Montville book honours the sacrifices of local WW1 soldiers

Montville Remembers: World War One 1914 – 1919 is a tribute to the soldiers, their families and the community that supported them.

Alf Smith, 1916 ... the much-loved Montville shop keeper lived in the three-storeyed ‘Wedding Cake Shop and home’ in Main Street for almost 50 years.

For more than 100 years the Montville district has acknowledged that the continued peace we enjoy in Australia began with the sacrifice made by those who served in the First World War.

But the community never really knew very much about those men who went to war from their district. Until now. The latest book in the “Montville Stories Series” puts together the stories of the 53 young men from the Montville district who enlisted in World War One and explains how their community supported and honoured them. 

Montville Remembers: World War One 1914 – 1919, written by Gordon Plowman and Cate Patterson provides a brief historical context and then presents via a roll call the service of each soldier and his life before and after the war.

“The book also recounts the support the community gave them while they were serving, how it was one of only a few communities at that time to honour them with its own medal and a unique memorial, and how it celebrated their return and helped them recover their health and sense of place in the community,” said Cate. 

“Most were able to lead full and productive lives on their return, a testament to their character and to the community support they received before, during and after the war.”

During the war years a Montville Patriotic Committee was formed. It worked with the Red Cross to provide send-offs and care parcels for soldiers and to provide for struggling families and repatriated wounded. It conducted peace marches and welcomed home the soldiers who returned. The work of the Patriotic Committee is detailed in the book.

The book also gives the history of the Montville Memorial Gate and Pillars that record the names of those who enlisted, those who were rejected and those who died in active service, and details the memorial trees planted by the school children for the fallen soldiers.

The book is a tribute to the soldiers, their families and the community that supported them. 

It is available from the Montville Post Office and from the Montville Monthly Market at the MVA stall at a cost of $25.