Original items held by the Army Museum of Western Australia
|
Arthur John Harold Parkin
Conflict |
World War 1 |
Service Arm |
Civilian support service |
Unit |
No 8 General Hospital |
Service No. |
|
Service Arm |
Army |
Date of Birth |
31 Jan 1872 |
Date of Death |
19 Oct 1953 |
Relatives |
|
Arthur Parkin volunteered at No 8 General Hospital in Fremantle from 1915 to 1920, transporting convalescing soldiers on tours around Western Australia to lift their spirits, and often taking them to their home districts. Meals were sometimes prepared by the residents of the towns they visited in a show of community support for the soldiers.
No 8 General Hospital opened on the 19th July 1915 to treat those young men who required medical care while they were in training prior to embarkation and to treat those who returned to Australia on medical grounds and needed further treatment.
Arthur Parkin did not serve in the Army himself but when he stopped volunteering at the Hospital in 1919, many of the soldiers who had enjoyed his tours signed this autograph book. Some added photos of themselves on one of the tours, some drew sketches, others showed their appreciation in words. Some of the many newspaper reports of the tours are also glued into the album.
Motor Tours For Wounded Soldiers; 'The West Australian'; Sat 24 Feb 1917
422 Lawrence McCarthy VC; 2858 Clifford William King Sadlier VC
2881 Pt Harry James Prince
5766 William Sydney Owen, 16th Battalion
2140 Lt James Edward Wilson, 6th Baty AFA; 2894 Alfred Richard Debnam, 51st Battalion
2428 Pt Arthur O'Brien, 43rd Battalion
776, Sgt Robert Hawes, 16th Battalion
Capt Austell Stirling Isaac, 28th Battalion; 2466 Harry Whitford, 11th Battalion
961 Stanley Reynolds, 12th Battalion
3538 Reginald Hockey, 51st Battalion
4253 Sydney Hammond White, 16th Battalion
3657 Henry Caulfield Waddell, 7062 Ernest Jason Paxman
2146 William Samuel, 5439 George John Tracy
1380 Petty Officer Raymond Charles Anderson (Wireless) RAN
2120 Cpl Jesse Little, 44th Battalion
2201 Spr Alfred N Hubble, 10th Light Horse
5692 Pte Reuben James Comery, 16th Battalion
2886 William Vincent Quealy, 39th Battalion; 596 James Bodinner, 28th Battalion
466 Cpl George Albert Cork, 16th Battalion
866 Frederick Simon Cecil Brown, 11th Battalion
229 James Seabrook Everett, 44th Battalion
7057 James Hartell Purser, 16th Battalion
4407 Alexander Draper, 28th Battalion
2718 Leslie William Moon, 48th Battalion
4267 Harry Eppey, 48th Battalion, 1038 Donald Keir Robertson
17442 Edward Healy Smith, 13th Field Ambulance
62805 Jules Flesfadar, Solo Cornet, 5th Army District Reserve Band
Arthur Charles Hendrie, Soprano Cornet, Army Reserve Band
1006 William Henry Tucker, 28th Battalion Band
7325 James Richard Murray, 51st Battalion
6428 Peter John O'Donnell
3003 Edwin Harcourt Maxwell
361 James Patterson MacKenzie
8552 Charles William Cann
The following photos, postcards, newspaper clippings and tour memorabilia were also tucked inside the autograph book.