THE single-line Cambrian Hill Memorial Avenue of Honour was officially reopened and rededicated along Glassons Road last week following recent upgrades.<\/p>\n
The peaceful Avenue of 56 six-year-old English oak trees now includes information on each of the area\u2019s World War I or World War II servicepeople. Each of them have their own bronze plaque attached to a concrete plinth.<\/p>\n
Next to the pre-existing memorial cairn, interpretive signage \u2013 including some war-time imagery \u2013 seats, and a flagpole have been installed.<\/p>\n
Buninyong RSL president Ron Fleming, Buninyong & District Community News<\/em> editor Barry Fitzgerald, and historian Les George led the research and development on site.<\/p>\n \u201cThe interesting part of this particular project, and a highlight, was that we were able to find two additional people who served and previously weren\u2019t indicated anywhere on the school honour roll or on the existing plaque on the memorial cairn,\u201d Mr Fleming said.<\/p>\n \u201cClimatic conditions took the trees in the past, they were removed, and now they\u2019ve been replanted with the oak trees which will give them a fairly long life, so the service to the nation and the sacrifices by some of those local community members will be there for a long time to come.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr Fleming encourages locals, and those slightly further afield in Buninyong and Ballarat, to set time aside to stroll the Cambrian Hill Memorial Avenue of Honour to see who served in the army, navy and air force.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is a great local historical point of view that everyone can share in. There\u2019s one name, for example, who served in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force who was born in Cambrian Hill.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople can begin to understand some of the terms they see on plaques, and can see a number of family names listed together; brothers, fathers and sons, uncles and cousins,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are two fairly large, significant family names in Cambrian Hill.\u201d<\/p>\n Each plaque identifies the section of the military in which a person served, their full name and regimental number, whether they were killed in action, returned to Australia or died of wounds, and significant locations and dates.<\/p>\n The Avenue\u2019s upgrades were made possible by funding from the State Government Restoring Community War Memorials and Avenues program, the Golden Plains Shire, the Buninyong & District Community Bank, and the Buninyong RSL.<\/p>\n At the ceremony, piper John Young played some music to the 50 attendees. A 16-page commemorative booklet was distributed, and the children of Napoleons Primary School also received copies.<\/p>\n Following the formalities, morning tea was held at the Napoleons Historical Society.<\/p>\n The original Colac-Ballarat Road Avenue was made in 1917. This has been damaged by roadworks and powerlines.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" THE single-line Cambrian Hill Memorial Avenue of Honour was officially reopened and rededicated along Glassons Road last week following recent upgrades. The peaceful Avenue of 56 six-year-old English oak trees now includes information on each of the area\u2019s World War I or World War II servicepeople. Each of them have their own bronze plaque attached […]<\/p>\n