Book honours St Paul’s servicemen

AUTHOR Anne Doggett’s book Lives of Honour: Ballarat East and the Great War was officially launched by members of St Paul’s Anglican Church, Bakery Hill on Remembrance Day earlier this week at the Eureka Centre.

Published as part of the church’s 170th anniversary celebrations, the book highlights 177 men from the St Paul’s community who served in World War One, and gives a picture of life in Ballarat East before, during and after the conflict.

“The book is a collection of stories about these men and their families, their background, where their ancestors came from, a summary of their role in the war, what happened to them afterwards and any other significant events that might help us understand what it was like living in Ballarat East in those days,” Doggett said.

“The accounts are concise with certain aspects highlighted like mental health for example, and the poverty in the area.”

One of the stories that fascinated Doggett was that of Fred Williams, a chaplain who received a military medal for his service. “Chaplains really led quite a dangerous existence in the fields,” she said. “His fellow chaplain was killed, he went out to retrieve his body, and the Germans turned their machine guns on him. He couldn’t stay and wrote a little bit about that and how devastating that was.

“At the same time, he was sending letters home to the wives and the families of those who were killed in the war, and when you read those letters you realise how much it must have meant to the families to receive them.

“They’re very moving.”

Forty-three men referenced in the book were also former residents of the Ballarat Orphanage.

Guest speakers at the launch were associate Professor at Deakin University and author of Anzac: the Unauthorised Biography, Dr Carolyn Holbrook, and Member for Ballarat Catherine King.

Lives of Honour has been in development since 2022 and was inspired by the St Paul’s honour board.

The book was funded with support from a Ballarat Community Impact Grant, and a Saluting Their Service grant from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.