War time records
Local Government Records provide insight into how conflicts impacted the community on the home front. The Shire Archives contain records from the period of both the First and Second World Wars including letters, Repatriation Committee Files and information about community support.
Shire Secretary Requests a Leave of Absence to Enlist in the Second World War, July 1942.
During the Second World War (1939-1945) the State and Federal Governments were dealing with the new experience of the threat of attack on the home front. The Archives contain records that illustrate the disruption to normal life including the construction of air raid shelters, provision for the evacuation of schools by rail and impacts on the workforce. The War meant that many key staff enlisted. This letter to the Council is from the Shire Secretary, who enlisted in 1942.
Preparations for the Evacuation of Children
By 1942 fear of a Japanese invasion of Australia had significantly escalated in response to the War in the Pacific. Provision was made for evacuating school children on the Mornington Peninsula in the event of an attack, using rail transport.
War Creates Career Opportunities for Women
Miss Ula Robinson was the Shire Secretary for the former Shire of Mornington between 1917 and 1919 during the First World War. Many women entered the workforce in response to labour shortages caused by men enlisting to fight. Ula was highly respected in her field. When she was appointed to the Shire of Mornington position, she had already worked as the acting Shire Secretary in the Gippsland district of Traralgon since March 1914. She replaced Thomas Nihill, who enlisted in 1917 and returned to the role in late 1919.
A Local Mother’s Concerns about Air Raid Shelters
Community concerns during War time are raised in many of the letters that are held in the Archive. This letter written during the Second World War is from a local mother, anxious about the safety of Mornington State School children. She demands to know what the Shire is doing about the construction of Air Raid Shelters. Mrs Ritche writes ‘this is no time to be talking it is action that is wanted and quickly’. Fear of enemy attack and invasion within the community is palpable. We are fortunate to have both the original letter and the Shire’s response, providing an interesting window into the handling of public relations in the 1940s.
