Published on Tuesday, 30 June 2020 at 3:01:00 PM
Aboriginal Soldiers of the Midwest by Nola Gregory
The Aboriginal Soldiers of the Midwest exhibition was first displayed at the then Geraldton Region Museum in 1996, with the opening attended by approximately 300 guests. The display panels were designed to be portable and the exhibition later travelled to Yalgoo and Perth, with a smaller version on display at the Kalbarri Tourist Bureau in 1997. (Courtesy WA Museum Geraldton)
One of the panels was about Mr Jim Joseph (Dec) titled “A Reluctant Volunteer” – Mr Joseph first joined the army in 1942 and he witnessed the part destruction of Darwin by Japanese bombers. He completed his service in the Islands of New Guinea. The photo collection was kindly donated by the Department of Aboriginal Affairs Geraldton office, you can now have a look at the collection and other stories about our Soldiers of the Midwest, stories like “ A Family In Uniform” about the Mallard / Ogilvie Families who had two generations of related family members from Northampton represented in the Armed Forces. Ms Lennelle Papertalk was one of the driving forces behind the display completing many research hours chasing the stories.
If you would like to know more about Jim’s story and others, logon to the Geraldton Regional Library Yamaji Yanda Collection and read his story and others from the Aboriginal Soldiers of the Midwest display.
Image courtesy of Department of Aboriginal Affairs Geraldton Office, caption by Nola Gregory.
Image number: Y 800
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