The Photograph On The Wall

As you enter the Australian War Memorial and make your way down a passage adjacent to the First World War Gallery, a series of stunning photographs will capture your eye, and perhaps your heart. This wonderful collection, frequently rotated, usually depicts Australian service men and women over the ages. At present, however, there is one photograph of civilians.

Courtesy Australian War Memorial

The photograph, now quite well known, was published in The Sydney Mail, a weekly newspaper, on the 18th of June 1919. It depicts family members preparing to welcome their sons, brothers, husbands, etc, who had recently arrived home from the horrors of war. The occasion was a welcome home buffet in Hyde Park, Sydney. While the precise date is unknown, it is likely that it coincided with the arrival of a returning troopship.

The ANZAC Buffet had been established in 1915 at Mosman. It was an initiative of Miss Annie Evans, Commandant of the No. 8 Mosman Red Cross Volunteer Aid Detachment (VAD). It soon moved to Hyde Park in Sydney and was a place for returned men to relax, talk with mates and enjoy some refreshments. On "troopship days" the Buffet became the official meeting place for returning soldiers, family and friends. The Buffet operated continuously until April 1920.

The photograph reveals the anticipation of these waiting women. Yet within that anticipation can be observed hope, uncertainty, resignation, the beginnings of joy and, perhaps, fear. And it is the three women in the foreground who seem to embody all these emotions at once.

While the names of those in the photograph did not appear in the original publication, the names of two, by some means, are known.

The elderly lady on the right, with glasses, is Mrs Elizabeth McCallum. The girl with the Box Brownie camera is Miss Myra Harvey.

Mrs McCallum's family provided a strong contribution to the war effort, with all her sons enlisting. Her husband was also involved. As a member of the National Rifle Association and expert marksman, he assisted in a program to train new army recruits in marksmanship.

Mrs McCallum was born Elizabeth Bickley and married Captain Alexander Wright McCallum, possibly in New Zealand. Together, they had six children:

• Isabella Mabel (1881)
• Alexander Henry (1882)
• Allan John (1885)
• Wilfred (1887)
• Douglas Daniel (1889)
• Mabel (1893)

Alexander Henry served briefly as a Private with the Australian Medical Corps. He was discharged shortly after enlisting due to medical reasons.

Allan enlisted in 1915 as a Private and advanced to Lieutenant with the 30th Battalion. He returned to Australia in September 1919.

Wilfred served with the 8th Field Ambulance and returned to Australia around the 27th of April 1919, having been awarded the Military Medal (MM).

Douglas enlisted as a Sapper in the 1st Field Company Engineers. He served overseas, but returned to Australia in mid 1917 for discharge due to medical reasons. Prior to the war, Douglas, a painter by trade, married Nettie Nixon in 1909.

Mrs McCallum's youngest daughter, Mabel, had married Frederick A Calf in 1915. While Frederick does not appear to have enlisted, two of his brothers had. Charles Arthur Calf returned to Australia around the 5th of April 1919 and Edwin Ernest Calf, MM and Bar, returned on about the 8th of May the same year.

Mrs McCallum's eldest daughter, Isabella, had married Warrant Officer Charles Herbert Harvey in 1899. They had four children, including Myra: 

• Dorothy Madeline (1899)
• Myra Evelyn (1900)
• Alexander Charles Keith (1908)
• Jean Elizabeth Grace (1912)

Now, if the reader has been paying attention, it will have been observed that Mrs McCallum is the maternal grandmother of Myra Harvey. Here they stand, shoulder to shoulder, about to welcome home someone dear to them both.

In the photograph, Myra is nineteen and single. It will be two years before she is married, although it is most unlikely that she knew that at the time of the photograph. She will, however, become engaged in December 1919 to her beloved Charles (5693 Charles L Godfrey, 13 Battalion), who would shortly embark for his return to Australia.

Which brings us to the "lady in the veil". Many attempts have been made to identify this person. Her expression is one of calm anticipation, with the hint of a smile. Her skin and eye colour appear to be darker than Myra's, while their juxtaposition suggests friendship. She also appears to be a little older than Myra. Her clothes propose a modest affluence, perhaps indicating that her immediate circumstances have not been interrupted by war and the vagaries of army pay. She does, however, seem to be wearing a Female Relative Badge (also known as a Next of Kin Medal). Given her age, the badge is most likely to honour the service of her husband, while the veil could suggest bereavement (not necessarily for her husband). Sadly, the identity of our "lady in the veil" remains a mystery. Her image, so eloquently captured for posterity, must continue to provide historical service anonymously.

(It is just possible that our "lady in the veil" is either Mrs Nettie McCallum, the wife of Sapper Douglas McCallum, or Mrs Mabel Calf, Mrs McCallum's youngest child- see above. We can never, however, be certain.)

Courtesy Australian War Memorial

The Female Relative Badge was issued to the nearest female relative of those engaged in active service overseas. This would, usually, refer to a wife or mother, although a sister or other near relative may be entitled under certain circumstances. The badge displayed the inscription, "Issued by the Department of Defence. To women of Australia. For duty done." If more than one relative was serving, bars were added for each person.

A close look at Mrs McCallum reveals that she, too, is wearing a Female Relative Badge. Pinned to her coat, just below her right arm, there appear to be two bars fastened below the bottom edge of a badge or brooch. This would be appropriate, with three of her sons engaged in overseas service.

We return now to Myra Harvey, the young lady with the camera who is central to this photograph. As mentioned previously, Myra was to become engaged to Charles Lewis Godfrey in December 1919, shortly after his return to Australia. On the 26th of March, 1921, the couple were married in the historic St Johns Church, Parramatta, presided over by the Rev. S M Johnstone. While their marriage was to last until their death, many decades in the future, they were to experience some very tough moments.

Myra and Charles, as far as is known, had three children. The first, Herbert, was born in 1923 but died that same year. Their second child, Donald, was born in 1924. In 1931, while crossing Victoria Road at Gladesville (Sydney) on his way home from school, Donald was hit by a truck. Suffering multiple skull fractures, he did not survive!

The Godfrey's third child, a daughter Lorna Isabell, was born in 1928. Although having to survive a Depression and another World War, Lorna thrived and married Maxwell John Walker in 1950.

Charles Godfrey passed away in 1974. Myra, perhaps unaware of the enduring photograph snapped by a press photographer over half a century earlier, passed away in 1976.

The Female Relative Badge boldly declared "For Duty Done". For most women in 1919, "Duty" was just beginning!