Media Contact Liz Ransom Marketing Manager Phone +61 (0) 8203 9869 Mobile 0466 812 455 Email [email protected] History SA Torrens Parade Ground Victoria Drive Adelaide SA 5000 Phone +61 (0) 8203 9888 www.history.sa.gov.au History SA Media Release 4 August 2014 A World Away: South Australia’s War 1914 – 1918 When war broke out a world away in Europe, South Australians could not have imagined how it would impact their lives. With the centenary of this event upon us, there is significant interest in the individuals who took part, and in the lasting impact this conflict has had on the broader Australian community. To explore the events of WWI from a local and social perspective, History SA and the State Library of South Australia have created a new blog - A World Away: South Australia’s War to help people understand the complexity of these events. It represents the war through the words of those who were there, month by month, as events unfolded. The soldiers’ diaries and letters from the front are powerful tools that show the excitement, suffering, responsibility and camaraderie they experienced fighting in the First World War. Other primary source material includes newspaper excerpts and records of organisations such as internment camps and Cheer-Up Societies. In a series of monthly posts, individual battlefield experiences will be recounted first hand, allowing readers to gain a soldier’s perspective on the war – the key battles, the ebbs and flows of being in and out of the lines, and the flashpoints of strategic offensive and defensive campaigns. The home front experience will be shared concurrently, providing insight into the activities and emotions of those left behind in South Australia. In addition, A World Away will document the debates in Australia, the conscription drives, plebiscites and also the activities of organisations such as the Cheer Up Societies and pacifist organisations. Among the many individuals who we encounter throughout the war, in August we meet Ethel Cooper, an eccentric Adelaide woman living in Leipzig in Germany when the war breaks out. Her letters to her sister at home provide a unique insight into events in Germany at the beginning of the war. We also encounter Leopold Terrell, an ironworker, whose diary recounts his experiences in the tough economic times in South Australia in 1914 in the lead up to his enlistment. Along the way we will discover what South Australians were reading in their newspapers about events at home and those happening a world away. A collaborative project with the State Library of South Australia, A World Away is supported through funding from The Australian Government’s Your Community Heritage Program. When: Monthly August 2014 – November 2018 What: A World Away: South Australia’s War Blog Where: http://southaustraliaswar.com.au/

A World Away WWI blog final release - State … History SA Media Release 4 August 2014 A World Away: South Australia’s War 1914 – 1918 When war broke out a world away in Europe,

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Page 1: A World Away WWI blog final release - State … History SA Media Release 4 August 2014 A World Away: South Australia’s War 1914 – 1918 When war broke out a world away in Europe,

Media Contact Liz Ransom

Marketing Manager

Phone +61 (0) 8203 9869

Mobile 0466 812 455

Email [email protected]

History SA Torrens Parade Ground

Victoria Drive

Adelaide SA 5000

Phone +61 (0) 8203 9888

www.history.sa.gov.au

History SA

Media Release 4 August 2014

A World Away: South Australia’s War 1914 – 1918 When war broke out a world away in Europe, South Australians could not have imagined how it would impact their lives. With the centenary of this event upon us, there is significant interest in the individuals who took part, and in the lasting impact this conflict has had on the broader Australian community.

To explore the events of WWI from a local and social perspective, History SA and the State Library of South Australia have created a new blog - A World Away: South Australia’s War to help people understand the complexity of these events. It represents the war through the words of those who were there, month by month, as events unfolded.

The soldiers’ diaries and letters from the front are powerful tools that show the excitement, suffering, responsibility and camaraderie they experienced fighting in the First World War. Other primary source material includes newspaper excerpts and records of organisations such as internment camps and Cheer-Up Societies.

In a series of monthly posts, individual battlefield experiences will be recounted first hand, allowing readers to gain a soldier’s perspective on the war – the key battles, the ebbs and flows of being in and out of the lines, and the flashpoints of strategic offensive and defensive campaigns. The home front experience will be shared concurrently, providing insight into the activities and emotions of those left behind in South Australia. In addition, A World Away will document the debates in Australia, the conscription drives, plebiscites and also the activities of organisations such as the Cheer Up Societies and pacifist organisations.

Among the many individuals who we encounter throughout the war, in August we meet Ethel Cooper, an eccentric Adelaide woman living in Leipzig in Germany when the war breaks out. Her letters to her sister at home provide a unique insight into events in Germany at the beginning of the war. We also encounter Leopold Terrell, an ironworker, whose diary recounts his experiences in the tough economic times in South Australia in 1914 in the lead up to his enlistment. Along the way we will discover what South Australians were reading in their newspapers about events at home and those happening a world away.

A collaborative project with the State Library of South Australia, A World Away is supported through funding from The Australian Government’s Your Community Heritage Program.

When: Monthly August 2014 – November 2018

What: A World Away: South Australia’s War Blog

Where: http://southaustraliaswar.com.au/