In April 1929 there was a devastating flood in the small tin mining town of Derby, in north-eastern Tasmania. A dam burst after a period of unprecedented rain. Fourteen people lost their lives and many others their homes and livelihoods. The death toll would have been much
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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, but
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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
Read more →HAPPY TO SERVE Cyril Blakney enlisted as soon as war was declared in 1914. He was a compositor from Hobart, and also an accomplished musician and amateur actor. Such a fine looking young man. After the Gallipoli campaign Cyril served on the Western Front. On June 10 1917 he
Read more →LOST MATES HAUNT AN 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 Gallipolli. Arthur had gone on to fight at Lone Pine and in France,
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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
Read more →A WORK IN PROGRESS – GHOSTS OF GALLIPOLI A fellow author invited me to share some information about my current work-in-progress in an author ‘interview’ called The Next Big Thing! You may expect me to talk about The Water Doctor’s Daughters, or All Along the River; Tales
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