Bungawalbin (Bungawalbyn) Great War Roll of Honor

About

This First World War photographic honour roll is made from highly-polished beech timber. On the sides are ornamental pillars and at the top is a classical pediment, decorated with colourful illustrations of the Red Cross surrounded by scroll designs. Below this are the crossed Union Jack and Australian Red Ensign, flanked by carvings of a kangaroo and an emu. The words 'Freedom' and 'Liberty' are carved below each animal respectively.  In the centre of the board is the list of names, hand-painted in gold across two columns. Next to each name is a heart-shaped recess, filled with a photograph of that soldier. Each heart is delicately edged with gold paint. The board is finished with a simple base piece, bearing the phrase 'Peace with victory'. The words are flanked by paintings of golden doves, with branches in their beaks. The board is dated '23.6.1919', on the bottom right of the base. The roll was hand-carved in 1919 by Mrs Priscilla Patch Jr. (nee Davis), President of the Bungawalbin* Red Cross and mother to Private Vere Roy Patch, who is listed on the roll. A framed sign next to the roll gives a brief overview of her life. She was born on 24 April 1867 at Chatham (Taree), NSW, to Joseph and Elizabeth Davis (nee Newby). She married John Patch in about 1887. They had seven children, including Vere Roy, and lived in the Woodburn Bungawalbin area. Priscilla died on 24 June 1957 at Evans Head, NSW. The unveiling took place at the former Bungawalbin Memorial Hall on Thursday, 9 October 1919. The Richmond River Herald and Northern Districts Advertiser, 14 October 1919, published a detailed account of the event. A banquet was held and presentations were made to Privates Harold Leeson, Jack Kirkland, and Henry Kirkland, who are all listed on the roll. Major E.T. Sheridan performed the unveiling. Of the roll and its creator, the Herald said: Mrs. Patch is to be complimented on her handicraft, more especially as the carving was all done with a pocket knife, and most skillfully and faithfully carried out. Long and tedious though the undertaking was, it was clearly a labor of love on the part of a lady whose fine record in patriotic work has been equalled by few and surpassed by none in these districts.  The memorial hall had only recently been opened at a highly-successful concert and dance on 26 September. The licensed hall was built from redwood boards and had a galvanised iron roof. It measured 60 feet by 26 feet and included a stage, dance floor, card/supper room, and a ladies dressing room (The Richmond River Herald and Northern Districts Advertiser, 30 September 1919). The hall was built as a permanent memorial to those who served from the district; however, is now closed.  In 1985, the roll was relocated to the Mid-Richmond Historical Society Museum, also known as the Coraki Museum. In 2012, the society fully restored the roll, which included sourcing new photographs for those that had disintergrated with age. They received a Foundation of Rural and Regional Renewal Grant for the project (Northern Star, 31 July 2012; 1 April 2015).  Access to the memorial is restricted to the opening hours of the museum. * Note: Bungawalbin is also spelt Bungawalbyn.