Baulkham Hills Patriotic League First World War Roll of Honor

The honor board is made of wood and printed with gold lettering. The board lists fifty men and women from the area who served in the First World War. It includes their enlistment and return to Australia dates. It also notes if they were wounded or killed in action, along with relevant locations and dates. Several of these men joined the 'Coo-ee marchers' who passed through Parramatta in November 1915 with much pomp and patriotic ceremony.

The board was rescued from the Baulkham Hills School of Arts after the building fell into disuse. It is currently located at the William Thompson Masonic School, Balcombe Heights Estate, building 10. To access to the board, contact the Hills District Historical Society.

Short history of The Patriotic League:

The League was founded in early August 1914 after a public meeting at the Melbourne Town Hall hosted by Lady Mary Hennessy, wife of Sir David Valentine Hennessy, Mayor of Melbourne (1912 - 1917). A fund set out to provide tobacco, cakes, puddings, condensed milk, biscuits and newspapers to supplement the rations and personal kits for Australian soldiers at the front. Supporting the troops through patriotic fundraising was a way those unable to fight could contribute to the war effort.

The Baulkham Hills Patriotic League was formed in June 1916. At the Annual General Meeting held in the Baulkham Hills School of Arts on 20 September 1917, it was reported what they had achieved and what had been supplied to Australian troops over the previous year. This was also published on page 12 in The Cumberland Argus and Fruitgrowers Advocate, issue Saturday 6 October 1917.

During the First World War, the concept of a national ‘Australia Day’ was part of a wider fundraising plan where money was raised by declaring a ‘special day’ on which events such as auctions, stalls, performances and street collections were held to encourage the community to contribute to the war effort. It was also seen as a way of drawing on the pride of Australian soldiers’ recent achievements at Gallipoli. A date of 30 July 1915 was agreed upon and the Patriotic League held events across Australia. Ribbons, cards, badges, buttons, handkerchiefs and other items bearing phrases such as ‘For Australia’s Heroes’ and ‘Help our wounded heroes’ were sold to raise funds. The success of ‘Australia Day’ on 30 July 1915 saw a repeat of similar events the following year on 28 July, and in subsequent years of the war.