West Leederville War Memorial
West Leederville War Memorial - Part One -
The need for a war memorial1 in West Leederville was first put forward at a public meeting, convened by the Leederville sub-branch of the R.S.L. and the ladies' auxiliary, in the Leederville Town Hall on Tuesday, 11th July 19222. Many suggestions and comments were made on what constituted an appropriate memorial to the fallen of the district, and subsequently a committee was formed to take up the cause.
Officially unveiled on Sunday 25th May 1924, the war memorial at Cambridge Street, West Leederville contained originally 88 names on a bronze slab on the front of a pedestal. "It is a granite obelisk rough hewn, and mounting upwards from a base of massive proportions. Facing outwards from each corner are four crouching lions, sculptured in white marble… Thanks mainly to the efforts of the women and children of the district, the memorial would be handed over to the trustees free of debt, which was as it should be, when it was remembered it was erected in memory of men who though no sacrifice too great… The Governor [Sir Frances Newdegate said in his speech that] the memorial would serve as a fitting monument to those who had achieved great glory. There were three great reasons for the erection of the memorial: (1) Affection for those who had fallen: (2) respect and sympathy for those who had gone and returned and for the relative of those who had not: and (3) a lasting object-lesson of the patriotism and duty of the people of Leederville." 3
1
A war memorial can also be referred to as a cenotaph or fallen soldiers' memorial. 2 1922 'SOLDIERS' MEMORIAL.', The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), 12 July, p. 8. , viewed 01 Nov 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article28173653 3 1924 'LEEDERVILLE WAR MEMORIAL.', The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), 26 May, p. 6. , viewed 01 Nov 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article31233122
1
2
In a photograph published in the newspapers of the day, you can see Cambridge Street, heading towards Perth, CBD and the Leederville memorial on the left. The dark rectangular section appearing on the lower part of the obelisk, above the four lions, is most likely the bronze plaque containing the names of 88 local boys.4
The war memorial was designed by Pietro Giacomo Porcelli (1872-1943) a sculptor of considerable note in Western Australia; he was born in Bisceglie, Bari, Italy on the 30th January 1872. At the age of eight he went to Sydney with his father and became interested in drawing and sculpting. Later Porcelli trained at the Royal Academy of Naples, Italy and won many prizes for his works whilst earning his diploma. In 1898 Porcelli came to Western Australia with his father and started to carve out a name for himself.5 Porcelli designed and crafted many statues, busts and memorials, two of his most famous being the C. Y. O'Connor Memorial and the Midland Railway Workers' Peace Memorial. He designed many war memorials including the Yarloop War Memorial which also features similar lion sculptures to the West Leederville 4
[Picture of Cambridge Street with the Leederville War Memorial on the left] - The Western Mail, Thursday 30 July 1925, p. 3 5 Simon Keane, 'Porcelli, Pietro Giacomo (1872–1943)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/porcelli-pietro-giacomo8080/text14025, published first in hardcopy 1988, accessed online 1 November 2018.
3
memorial. The Yarloop lions are however placed much lower down and closer to the base of the memorial than those at West Leederville.
Pietro Porcelli - 1911 'No title', Western Mail (Perth, WA - 18851954), 1 July, p. 24.
During the 1930s it appears from newspaper articles that the West Leederville sub-branch of the R.S.L. put out the call to add more names to the memorial stating that it "is difficult to get the names of everybody. It is thought that there are quite a number of names not recorded, so relations are asked to get in touch with the sub-branch" 6 This 6
[West Leederville sub branch of RSL] - Sunday Times, Sunday 9 March 1930, p. 1 - more names to be added
4
then explains how one bronze plaque became four marble panels containing 125 names. On the Centenary of Anzac, the 25th April 2018, the Town of Cambridge added 50 extra names to the memorial, replacing the old north facing panel with new marble carved with the original names at top and the new names below, taking the total number of soldiers listed on the memorial to 175. A feature on the West Leederville War Memorial is the four crouching lions made from white marble and each of their bronze shields. Each shield names a major conflict zone in World War I, fields of war where the majority of the Leederville men fell. The shields read: Belgium, Gallipoli, France and Palestine. Some say that crouching lions are symbols of the British Empire 7 they are also known to convey a sense of majesty and awe. Lions being bold animals, they also signify courage in heraldry8, so the four lions on the West Leederville memorial are apt to represent our courageous serving men and women, both past and present.
Leederville Cenotaph from the feet of the 'Belgium Lion', 2015
Ph0207-29 West Leederville War Memorial NW face, 13 Oct 2005
7
rd
McKay, Judith 23 June 2014, 'Memorial symbolism', Queensland War Memorial Register, Queensland Government, accessed 1 November 2018: https://www.qldwarmemorials.com.au/traditions/symbolism/ 8 Wikipedia contributors. (2018, October 27). Cultural depictions of lions. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09:32, November 1, 2018, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cultural_depictions_of_lions&oldid=865961661
5
Leederville Cenotaph from the 'Palestine Lion' corner
6
The 175 World War I Heroes of the Town of Cambridge are:
Names on the West Leederville Cenotaph "Our Heroes Erected by the Residents of Leederville to the Sacred Memory of the HEROES who enlisted from this district and fell in the war 1914 - 1918" Adkins
Charles
Carter,
Ernest
Allen
H
Carter,
Harold Reginald
Anthony,
George Henry
Challenger,
Frederick Gordon
Atkins,
Francis Edward
Aylett,
Frank Thomas Lewis
Challenger, F [Could be Frederick's brother Arthur William Challenger who was KIA at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915.]
Bamford,
Charles Edwin
Chappell,
Alfred Hart
Bartlett,
John Edwin
Clark,
Herbert Holman
Beckett,
John
Cockburn,
George
Blechnyden,
Leslie Thomas
Cocks,
Frederick James
Blick,
Percival Swithin
Cope,
F
Bowen,
James William
Cornish,
Reginald Henry
Brady,
Edgar Vernon
Crawford,
William James
Bray,
Harold Oswald
Cross,
Albert
Bromham,
Louis Frederick
Darby,
Edward Harry
Brooks,
Thomas
Dawson,
Frank Willis
Brown,
F
Debnam,
George Parkman
Brown,
Thomas Hugh
Denton,
Arthur Jacob
Brown,
Charles (WWII)
Deverell,
Louis Horatio Albert
Caporn,
Percy
Dixon,
HFA
Caporn,
Walter Edward
Drabble,
Wilfred Ernest
Carlin,
Eric Brooke
Dunstan,
Percy Philip
7
Edmondson,
Edwin
Hodgson,
Joseph
Edmondson,
James Whittaker
Holden,
Charles Edwin
Eliasson,
Carl Alfred
Holder,
John Leggo
Elliot,
Thomas Hampton
Holder,
Harry
Flanagan,
Frances Charles (WWII)
Horley,
David George (WWII)
Foster,
Thomas Charles
Howieson,
David
Furniss,
James Stewart
Hull,
Joseph
Hutchins,
Victor Charles
George,
Frederick Ralph
Gibson,
James
Hutchinson,
James Wesley
Gilbert,
Percy George
Ion,
John
Graham,
John Charles
Ion,
J P (WWII)
Graham,
James m.m.
Ivison,
James Miller
Grant, Donald McDonald, AKA Donald Maxwell Grant. Greay,
Herbert
Greay,
Samson
Gudgeon,
Christopher
Haley,
Frederick Lewis
Hancey,
Edwin Banthorpe
Harms,
Charley
Hawkes,
Frederick Henry
Henderson,
Edward Thomas
Hennerty,
Joseph Leonard
Hett,
George
Higgs,
Charles
Higgs,
William
Hill,
Rowland Joseph
Hinson,
Charles Henry
Hislop,
James
James,
C
James,
Albert Victor Gordon
Jarvis,
Ephraim
Jones,
Charles Edward
Kempton, Kerr,
J
Kneebone,
Joseph Keith (WWII)
Kyrwood,
Roy Garfield
Lamerton,
8
Clarence Thomas (WWII)
George Arthur
Lamerton,
William John
Lewis,
Griffith David
Lyons,
James
Mansfield,
Herbert Alfred
Marquis,
Clarence George
Marsland,
John Charles
Martin,
CT
McCormack,
John Joseph
Plummer,
Harold Alexander
McDonald,
IS
Porter,
George John
McDougal,
R
Power,
Robert (WWII)
McGovern,
Kevin M
Priestley,
McGuire,
Martin Augustus
Randell,
J
McMillan,
T J (MM)
Randle,
John
McNeill,
Norman Frederick
Rawes,
Edward
McRostie,
William Bertram
Richardson
Melrose,
Wilson
Rickson,
Henry James Vivian
Stanley Ernest
Miles,
Robert Steven MC
Robertson,
Minn,
Robert Charles
Ryan,
Stephen
Saunders,
RV
Selby,
Samuel Vaughan
Moore,
John William Beverhoudt
Moran, Morgan,
Alfred Stephen C
Seymour,
Percy William
N
Mosey,
Joseph Albert
Siggs,
Roland Alfred
Moulson,
Alfred
Simcock,
David John
Mullane,
John James Christopher
Smeed,
Leonard Arthur
Mullane,
William Edward
Smith,
Mullins,
John
Smith,
HWV
Munday,
Charles Forrest Hill
Smith,
RO
Newman,
Jack Carter
Smith,
Frederick William
O’Reilly,
Frank
Smith,
David
Oates,
Clifford Nicholas
Smith,
Stewart Irwin
O'Neil,
A
Souter,
James McGurgan
Oversby,
Thomas Edward
Stranger
A
Paterson,
William Hamilton
Stranger,
Thomas James
Paterson,
John
Sumner,
Cyril William
Pearson,
Horace William
Taylor,
EJ
9
Farquhar Hugh Arpafeelie
Taylor,
RJ
Wall,
C
Thomas,
William Arnold Spencer
Walsh,
Thomas Henry
Thompson,
R
Warden,
Thomson,
H
White,
Thorpe,
Charles Forder Thorpe
Wilkes,
Tolano,
Phil
Wisher,
Stewart Frederick
Tough,
Robert Alfred Edgar
Withers,
F
Townshend,
Edwin Hepburn
Woollcott,
Ernest
Tuffin,
Edwin (WWII?)
Wrightson,
Arthur Harry
Turvey,
William
Wyatt,
Wyatt James
Vernede, Charles William Ewart (WWII)
10
James Greig Morris Herbert (MM)
The need for a war memorial1 in West Leederville was first put forward at a public meeting, convened by the Leederville sub-branch of the R.S.L. and the ladies' auxiliary, in the Leederville Town Hall on Tuesday, 11th July 19222. Many suggestions and comments were made on what constituted an appropriate memorial to the fallen of the district, and subsequently a committee was formed to take up the cause.
Officially unveiled on Sunday 25th May 1924, the war memorial at Cambridge Street, West Leederville contained originally 88 names on a bronze slab on the front of a pedestal. "It is a granite obelisk rough hewn, and mounting upwards from a base of massive proportions. Facing outwards from each corner are four crouching lions, sculptured in white marble… Thanks mainly to the efforts of the women and children of the district, the memorial would be handed over to the trustees free of debt, which was as it should be, when it was remembered it was erected in memory of men who though no sacrifice too great… The Governor [Sir Frances Newdegate said in his speech that] the memorial would serve as a fitting monument to those who had achieved great glory. There were three great reasons for the erection of the memorial: (1) Affection for those who had fallen: (2) respect and sympathy for those who had gone and returned and for the relative of those who had not: and (3) a lasting object-lesson of the patriotism and duty of the people of Leederville." 3
1
A war memorial can also be referred to as a cenotaph or fallen soldiers' memorial. 2 1922 'SOLDIERS' MEMORIAL.', The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), 12 July, p. 8. , viewed 01 Nov 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article28173653 3 1924 'LEEDERVILLE WAR MEMORIAL.', The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), 26 May, p. 6. , viewed 01 Nov 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article31233122
1
2
In a photograph published in the newspapers of the day, you can see Cambridge Street, heading towards Perth, CBD and the Leederville memorial on the left. The dark rectangular section appearing on the lower part of the obelisk, above the four lions, is most likely the bronze plaque containing the names of 88 local boys.4
The war memorial was designed by Pietro Giacomo Porcelli (1872-1943) a sculptor of considerable note in Western Australia; he was born in Bisceglie, Bari, Italy on the 30th January 1872. At the age of eight he went to Sydney with his father and became interested in drawing and sculpting. Later Porcelli trained at the Royal Academy of Naples, Italy and won many prizes for his works whilst earning his diploma. In 1898 Porcelli came to Western Australia with his father and started to carve out a name for himself.5 Porcelli designed and crafted many statues, busts and memorials, two of his most famous being the C. Y. O'Connor Memorial and the Midland Railway Workers' Peace Memorial. He designed many war memorials including the Yarloop War Memorial which also features similar lion sculptures to the West Leederville 4
[Picture of Cambridge Street with the Leederville War Memorial on the left] - The Western Mail, Thursday 30 July 1925, p. 3 5 Simon Keane, 'Porcelli, Pietro Giacomo (1872–1943)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/porcelli-pietro-giacomo8080/text14025, published first in hardcopy 1988, accessed online 1 November 2018.
3
memorial. The Yarloop lions are however placed much lower down and closer to the base of the memorial than those at West Leederville.
Pietro Porcelli - 1911 'No title', Western Mail (Perth, WA - 18851954), 1 July, p. 24.
During the 1930s it appears from newspaper articles that the West Leederville sub-branch of the R.S.L. put out the call to add more names to the memorial stating that it "is difficult to get the names of everybody. It is thought that there are quite a number of names not recorded, so relations are asked to get in touch with the sub-branch" 6 This 6
[West Leederville sub branch of RSL] - Sunday Times, Sunday 9 March 1930, p. 1 - more names to be added
4
then explains how one bronze plaque became four marble panels containing 125 names. On the Centenary of Anzac, the 25th April 2018, the Town of Cambridge added 50 extra names to the memorial, replacing the old north facing panel with new marble carved with the original names at top and the new names below, taking the total number of soldiers listed on the memorial to 175. A feature on the West Leederville War Memorial is the four crouching lions made from white marble and each of their bronze shields. Each shield names a major conflict zone in World War I, fields of war where the majority of the Leederville men fell. The shields read: Belgium, Gallipoli, France and Palestine. Some say that crouching lions are symbols of the British Empire 7 they are also known to convey a sense of majesty and awe. Lions being bold animals, they also signify courage in heraldry8, so the four lions on the West Leederville memorial are apt to represent our courageous serving men and women, both past and present.
Leederville Cenotaph from the feet of the 'Belgium Lion', 2015
Ph0207-29 West Leederville War Memorial NW face, 13 Oct 2005
7
rd
McKay, Judith 23 June 2014, 'Memorial symbolism', Queensland War Memorial Register, Queensland Government, accessed 1 November 2018: https://www.qldwarmemorials.com.au/traditions/symbolism/ 8 Wikipedia contributors. (2018, October 27). Cultural depictions of lions. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 09:32, November 1, 2018, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cultural_depictions_of_lions&oldid=865961661
5
Leederville Cenotaph from the 'Palestine Lion' corner
6
The 175 World War I Heroes of the Town of Cambridge are:
Names on the West Leederville Cenotaph "Our Heroes Erected by the Residents of Leederville to the Sacred Memory of the HEROES who enlisted from this district and fell in the war 1914 - 1918" Adkins
Charles
Carter,
Ernest
Allen
H
Carter,
Harold Reginald
Anthony,
George Henry
Challenger,
Frederick Gordon
Atkins,
Francis Edward
Aylett,
Frank Thomas Lewis
Challenger, F [Could be Frederick's brother Arthur William Challenger who was KIA at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915.]
Bamford,
Charles Edwin
Chappell,
Alfred Hart
Bartlett,
John Edwin
Clark,
Herbert Holman
Beckett,
John
Cockburn,
George
Blechnyden,
Leslie Thomas
Cocks,
Frederick James
Blick,
Percival Swithin
Cope,
F
Bowen,
James William
Cornish,
Reginald Henry
Brady,
Edgar Vernon
Crawford,
William James
Bray,
Harold Oswald
Cross,
Albert
Bromham,
Louis Frederick
Darby,
Edward Harry
Brooks,
Thomas
Dawson,
Frank Willis
Brown,
F
Debnam,
George Parkman
Brown,
Thomas Hugh
Denton,
Arthur Jacob
Brown,
Charles (WWII)
Deverell,
Louis Horatio Albert
Caporn,
Percy
Dixon,
HFA
Caporn,
Walter Edward
Drabble,
Wilfred Ernest
Carlin,
Eric Brooke
Dunstan,
Percy Philip
7
Edmondson,
Edwin
Hodgson,
Joseph
Edmondson,
James Whittaker
Holden,
Charles Edwin
Eliasson,
Carl Alfred
Holder,
John Leggo
Elliot,
Thomas Hampton
Holder,
Harry
Flanagan,
Frances Charles (WWII)
Horley,
David George (WWII)
Foster,
Thomas Charles
Howieson,
David
Furniss,
James Stewart
Hull,
Joseph
Hutchins,
Victor Charles
George,
Frederick Ralph
Gibson,
James
Hutchinson,
James Wesley
Gilbert,
Percy George
Ion,
John
Graham,
John Charles
Ion,
J P (WWII)
Graham,
James m.m.
Ivison,
James Miller
Grant, Donald McDonald, AKA Donald Maxwell Grant. Greay,
Herbert
Greay,
Samson
Gudgeon,
Christopher
Haley,
Frederick Lewis
Hancey,
Edwin Banthorpe
Harms,
Charley
Hawkes,
Frederick Henry
Henderson,
Edward Thomas
Hennerty,
Joseph Leonard
Hett,
George
Higgs,
Charles
Higgs,
William
Hill,
Rowland Joseph
Hinson,
Charles Henry
Hislop,
James
James,
C
James,
Albert Victor Gordon
Jarvis,
Ephraim
Jones,
Charles Edward
Kempton, Kerr,
J
Kneebone,
Joseph Keith (WWII)
Kyrwood,
Roy Garfield
Lamerton,
8
Clarence Thomas (WWII)
George Arthur
Lamerton,
William John
Lewis,
Griffith David
Lyons,
James
Mansfield,
Herbert Alfred
Marquis,
Clarence George
Marsland,
John Charles
Martin,
CT
McCormack,
John Joseph
Plummer,
Harold Alexander
McDonald,
IS
Porter,
George John
McDougal,
R
Power,
Robert (WWII)
McGovern,
Kevin M
Priestley,
McGuire,
Martin Augustus
Randell,
J
McMillan,
T J (MM)
Randle,
John
McNeill,
Norman Frederick
Rawes,
Edward
McRostie,
William Bertram
Richardson
Melrose,
Wilson
Rickson,
Henry James Vivian
Stanley Ernest
Miles,
Robert Steven MC
Robertson,
Minn,
Robert Charles
Ryan,
Stephen
Saunders,
RV
Selby,
Samuel Vaughan
Moore,
John William Beverhoudt
Moran, Morgan,
Alfred Stephen C
Seymour,
Percy William
N
Mosey,
Joseph Albert
Siggs,
Roland Alfred
Moulson,
Alfred
Simcock,
David John
Mullane,
John James Christopher
Smeed,
Leonard Arthur
Mullane,
William Edward
Smith,
Mullins,
John
Smith,
HWV
Munday,
Charles Forrest Hill
Smith,
RO
Newman,
Jack Carter
Smith,
Frederick William
O’Reilly,
Frank
Smith,
David
Oates,
Clifford Nicholas
Smith,
Stewart Irwin
O'Neil,
A
Souter,
James McGurgan
Oversby,
Thomas Edward
Stranger
A
Paterson,
William Hamilton
Stranger,
Thomas James
Paterson,
John
Sumner,
Cyril William
Pearson,
Horace William
Taylor,
EJ
9
Farquhar Hugh Arpafeelie
Taylor,
RJ
Wall,
C
Thomas,
William Arnold Spencer
Walsh,
Thomas Henry
Thompson,
R
Warden,
Thomson,
H
White,
Thorpe,
Charles Forder Thorpe
Wilkes,
Tolano,
Phil
Wisher,
Stewart Frederick
Tough,
Robert Alfred Edgar
Withers,
F
Townshend,
Edwin Hepburn
Woollcott,
Ernest
Tuffin,
Edwin (WWII?)
Wrightson,
Arthur Harry
Turvey,
William
Wyatt,
Wyatt James
Vernede, Charles William Ewart (WWII)
10
James Greig Morris Herbert (MM)
