Darge Photographic Company collection of negatives Accession Number: DA13619

Description

Studio portrait of two brothers, 4582 Private (Pte) Harold Ernest Edmond Smith (standing) and 4583 Pte Frank Tennyson Myrvin Smith. The brothers were both labourers from Ferntree, Tasmania prior to enlistment and embarked with the 14th Reinforcements, 12th Battalion from Melbourne on HMAT Warilda on 8 February 1916. Pte Harold Smith later transferred to the 52nd Battalion and was wounded in right thigh and evacuated to England. After recovering he re-joined his battalion and was wounded in the left leg and again evacuated to England. Due to the severity of his wound his leg was amputated and he returned to Australia on 16 March 1919. Pte Frank Smith also transferred to the 52nd Battalion and was detached to the 17th Anzac Light Railways. After re-joining his battalion he was evacuated to England after being wounded in the right chest. After recovering he transferred to the 51st Battalion and returned to Australia on 13 April 1919. This is one of a series of photographs taken by the Darge Photographic Company which had a permit to take photographs at the Broadmeadows and Seymour army camps during the First World War. In the 1930s, the Australian War Memorial purchased the original glass negatives from Algernon Darge, along with the photographers’ notebooks. The notebooks contain brief details, usually a surname or unit name, for each negative.

Details

Conflicts

• First World War, 1914-1918