Dungog Public School First World War Roll of Honour

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The Dungog Public School First World War Roll of Honour is a large wooden board with a classical shaped pediment on the top with the words “ROLL OF HONOUR  1914-1919 DUNGOG SCHOOL” printed inside it in gold coloured lettering. The main body of the board consists of three large panels in which the names of the 92 men from the area who served during the war are listed in three vertical columns. There is one column of names inside each panel. The names are printed in gold coloured lettering and are listed in alphabetical order (apart from the last two names in the third column which were added later). A cross is included at the end of the names of the 11 men who were killed in action. The school is also referred to during this period as the Dungog Superior Public School, this was a reference to schools which provided some secondary school level vocational courses to students in their final two years of study. In May 1917 an advertisement was placed in the local newspapers by the Dungog Parents and Citizens' Association who were planning to have an Honour Roll erected at the school and were asking the community for the names of ex-students who had served so that they could be included on the memorial. On 17 August 1917 the Dungog Chronicle published a list of all the names that had been received up to that point. On 5 October 1917 the Chronicle reported that the Honour Roll was to be unveiled on Monday 8 October. However, the unveiling was postponed due of heavy rain and actually occurred on 13 October. The classrooms were decorated with flags and flowers with a Union Jack covered the memorial prior to its unveiling. The ceremony was led by the President of the Parents Association, Mr R. L. Fitzgerald. The Ven. Archdeacon Luscombe spoke before the Hon. Walter Bennett M.L.A. officially unveiled the Honour Roll. Mr Woodman was responsible for the woodwork and Mr A.P. Curtis, the lettering. Miss E. Skillen was credited with originating the idea of an Honour Roll and with providing substantial assistance in its development. An article published by the Dungog Chronicle on 19 October 1917 lists the 76 names already printed on the board and the additional nine names that were ready to be added. On 16 January 1918 the Sydney Mail published a photograph of the board which makes it clear that at this time, the names were not listed in alphabetical order and that an additional seven names were yet to be added. Furthermore, the date range on the pediment reads "1914-19" since the war was still ongoing at the time. Therefore, the lettering on the Roll of Honour was obviously changed at some stage after 1919 so that the list was reordered and the dates modified into the arrangement in which they appear today.