Paroo Shire Honour Board

About

Unveiled in 1918, the Paroo Shire Honour Board is an intact example of a lavish, though typical Wunderlich honour board; richly decorated, it is a good example of the work of this firm. The Paroo Honour Board is a panel of pressed copper; richly decorated in low relief with patriotic symbols such as flags, laurel wreaths and cannons. This decoration provides a rich frame for columns of names, each on an individual brass strip. The honour board is mounted on a marble slab, measuring 1.82 x 1.55 metres, which is in turn mounted on a wooden frame with a bronze edge trim. A total of 370 names of those who served in World War I are listed alphabetically with further spaces indicating that hostilities had not yet ceased at that time. In the tradition of memorials, the rank of the deceased is not indicated. Additional Information The Paroo Shire Honour Board has strong association with the community as evidence of the impact of a major historic event. It is also associated with the work of Wunderlich, a company that was part of the fabric of the Australian building industry for much of the twentieth century. Many communities honoured their volunteers after the war ended, but the Paroo board is early and was installed before the close of hostilities. It has the date of the commencement of the war, 1914, on the left hand side of the memorial, but the corresponding space on the other side is empty. Spaces have also been left for names to be added. Beneath the standard words Roll of Honour and British and Australian flags is a plaque on which Paroo Shire is encircled by the commemorative inscriptions Brave hearts and true, God guide them and Shall their sacrifice be in vain? This is an uncommon challenge; a more usual inscription on similar Wunderlich honour boards is Those who answered the Empires call. The Honour Board was relocated to the public foyer of the new Civic Centre in 1971. This was officially opened by the then Premier, Hon J Bjelke-Petersen on 23 April 1971. The Paroo Honour Board commemorates those from Paroo Shire who served in World War I and was unveiled by the then State Governor, Sir Hamilton John Goold-Adams. It was originally located in the old Shire Hall, but is now in the current Civic Centre. (Source: EPA - Cultural Heritage Register)