The University of Melbourne Archives holds many collections of historical material relating to World War One. These collections include original items from Australian soldiers, nurses and doctors at the various fronts, as well as business, union and personal papers revealing the situation on the home front.
For example, material samples of Australian Army uniforms in a textile business collection; the Bendigo anti-conscription campaign committee minutes; correspondence from Vera Scantlebury Brown as a young female assistant-surgeon in England; and souvenirs including poppies picked on the Western Front in 1916 and still intact as part of the Ray Jones collection.
For links to many of our World War One related collections, see our catalogue subject guide.
Articles and exhibitions based solely or partly on UMA's World War One collections include:
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We will help until the war is done
an account of Swallow and Ariell employees' Busy Bee program to aid the war effort.
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Alfred Plumley Derham: Soldier, Medic, Poet, ANZAC
an account of Alfred Derham's war as an Army Medic, who enlisted as a fourth year medical student.
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Somewhere In France
a French-language blog by University of Melbourne Students using UMA collections to uncover the experience of Australian soldiers on the Western Front.
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Forgotten Voices, Hidden Stories
the University of Melbourne's World War One site, featuring several articles about UMA collections.
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The ANZAC Battlefield: Landscape of war and memory
an exhibition at the Shrine of Remembrance, Melbourne, showcasing findings from archaeological surveys of Gallipoli and including UMA items.
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Compassion and Courage: Doctors and dentists at war
an exhibition at the University of Melbourne's Medical History Museum.