FARMS FIT FOR HEROES?

FARMS FIT FOR HEROES?

Soldier Settlement was a federal, but state administered initiative which began during WWI. Land was purchased by government to provide small farms for returning servicemen, often on leasehold. One person who applied was my great-uncle Arthur Singleton, from Ulverstone. With the 12th Battalion he had taken part

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YOUNG CASUALTIES OF WAR – THE SINGLETON SISTERS

YOUNG CASUALTIES OF WAR - THE SINGLETON SISTERS

The following  story is about my great-uncle Arthur, who I never met and barely knew existed during my childhood.  This was despite the fact that my father had been named in his honour.  Arthur  died when I was fifteen. He was buried in our local  cemetery at

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ARTHUR SINGLETON’S ENDLESS WAR

ARTHUR SINGLETON'S ENDLESS WAR

On February 19 1922  my great uncle, returned WWI veteran  Arthur  Singleton, was arrested. According to a  later report by the Ulverstone police  he was in a disturbed  mental state. Like many men, he had never recovered from his war service.  As one of the first  Australians

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The Red Cross Searches For a Lost Anzac

The Red Cross  Searches For a Lost Anzac

MATES  AT GALLIPOLI HAUNT A SHELL-SHOCKED ANZAC My great-uncle,  Anzac veteran Arthur Singleton, was admitted to a Tasmanian mental asylum in 1926.  He constantly spoke of being tormented by the voices of his dead mates on Gallipoli.  After enlisting in the 12th Battalion at the outbreak of

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The Mystery of the Lone Pine Medal

The Mystery of the Lone Pine Medal

Private Arthur Singleton (Service No. 301) was one  of the first young Australians to volunteer in WWI.  He was a farmer’s son, from South Road, Ulverstone.  Aged 20, he joined the Tasmanian 12th Battalion, sailing off  to Egypt aboard the troopship Geelong on October 20 1914. He

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WAR NEVER ENDING

WAR NEVER ENDING

PRIVATE ARTHUR  WILLIAM SINGLETON – SERVICE NUMBER 301 Aged 20, Tasmanian born Arthur Singleton enlisted in the 12th Battalion, one of the first raised in Australia. He was a farmer’s son, and  had already served in the state’s volunteer military service for several years.  Like many young

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BATTLEFIELD BLOOMS

BATTLEFIELD BLOOMS

FLORAL MEMENTOES OF WAR The Gallipoli Rose (Cistus salvifolius) was the Australian War Memorial’s first commemorative plant. It grew on the  bloody battlefields of  Gallipoli. The sight of the flowers  lifted the spirits of the Anzacs (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps), who  brought home the seeds. 

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