Soldier/Settler Memorial in Griffith

[Mike K]

Originally Posted by Ganmain Tony

Something Ive been meaning to do for a while.

Thought you all might be interested in this. A very simple, but very touching memorial in the city of Griffith in the South/West of New South Wales. A lot of Australias returned soldiers were given blocks out here in the new Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area (MIA) after the First World War. The Australian Government at the time saw irrigation farming out on this very flat country as Australias post war future.

My family on my mothers side were such people. Two of my great grandfathers (6th Light Horse) one great uncle (2nd AIF) and my grandfather (WW2).

I love this memorial because it, to me represents how they (the people) were. Not flash, just simple people who went and did what their country asked them to do. In war and also in civilian life.

Which may have been a harder task? Imagine coming back from the war only to be told youre being shoved out to the middle of nowhere to scorching hot scrub land & told you have to build a house and make a living in a profession you have never done before & have no clue how to go about it.

They ( Govt. ) were desperate to settle some areas . So much so that non- soldiers were settled on blocks also . Many of the schemes were doomed becuase of a total lack of foresight by the beaurocrats . In the Mallee, just after WW1 , a typical settlers block was a square mile of semi-desert . My grandfather had one at Annuello , near Managatang. Lack of water always made it a tenous situation. We visited the old place in 1968.... talk about a god forsaken existence. Miles from nowhere , with horses for transport, attempting to grow wheat .
MIKE