World War One Commemoration ProjectPrint Page

The palm tree commemorates the creation of the Commemoration Project for World War One.

As part of a joint Fremantle Council and RSL Arbour Day and World War One Commemoration Project, twenty seven identification tablets for tree plantings were made by the Fremantle Foundry at a cost of 6 shillings each. On Sunday 25 August 1935, representatives from each of the units being commemorated that had served during World War One planted Phoenix Palms (or Canary Island Palms) along Swanbourne Street and Hill Street (Hill Street changed to Knutsford Street in 1951). The palms were later marked with the permanent identification tablets.

Sixteen of the identification tablets still remain. Seven of the tablets are now located at the base of Phoenix Palms either side of the access road within the Monument Hill Memorial Reserve from the High Street entrance. The remaining nine tablets are still located intermittently along Swanbourne Street and Knutsford Street at the base of the palms.

The palm with the tablet marked ‘Civic Fathers’ was planted by the Mayor of Fremantle, Mr F. E. Gibson. The palm with the tablet marked ‘Fallen Soldiers’ was planted by the warden of the memorial, Councillor. R. Rennie. The palm with the tablet marked ‘Memorial’ was planted by the architect of the memorial, Mr. C. Nicholas.

WAR UNITS COMMEMORATED.

Palms Planted at Fremantle.

To commemorate units which left Western Australia for the Great War, a ceremonial planting of palm trees took place in Swanbourne and Hill Streets, Fremantle, yesterday afternoon. These two streets bound the Fallen Sailors and Soldiers' Memorial Reserve on the eastern and southern sides.

At the ceremony, the Mayor of Fremantle (Mr. F. E. Gibson) said that the Fremantle City Council was always interested in any movement for the improvement of the reserve, and had readily acceded to a request made by the Fremantle sub-branch of the Returned Soldiers' League for co-operation in planting the palms. He hoped that the public would play its part in preserving the reserve from wanton damage.

Brief addresses were also made by unit representatives when planting the palms, each representative being introduced by the president of the sub-branch (Mr. Theo. Brennan).

Before the ceremony, which commenced at 3 pm, the Fremantle City Band met at the Town Hall and marched along High Street towards the reserve. At Bateman Street, the band was joined by returned sailors and soldiers. In addition to the trees planted to commemorate war units, a palm was planted by the Mayor, on behalf of the Fremantle City Council, one by Cr. R. Rennie (warden of the memorial) and one by the architect of the memorial (Mr. C. Nicholas).

Following was the order in which palms were planted, the names of the unit representatives being shown in parentheses:— 11th Battalion (Major J. Morgan), 12th Battalion (Cr. W. P. Griffiths), 16th Battalion (Cr. E. Davies), 28th Battalion (Mr. T. Brennan), 32nd Battalion (Mr. W. Flindell), 44th Battalion (Lieut-Col. Foxworthy), 48th Battalion (Cr. H. Swinbourne), 51^st Battalion (Mr. D. Bell), engineers (Col. Goadby), Machine Gunners (Cr. J. W. Lynch), Pioneers (Cr. E. R. Evans), Railways (Mr. P. Bullmore), Signallers (Cr. A. Bracks), Heavy Artillery (Lieut-Col. G. W. P. Meredith), 10th Light Horse (Col. A. S. N. Olden), Tunnellers (Mr. W. Borwick), Australian' Army Medical Corps (Major-Gen. A. T. White), Nurses (Sister Kiernan), Ambulance (Mr. J. Follington), Chaplains (the Rev. Canon E. M. Collick), Royal Australian Navy (Commander R. Griffiths Bowen), Royal Australian Naval Reserve (Lieut-Commander H. B. Hatten), Australian Army Service Corps (Mr. T. H. Bell), Australian Field Artillery (Cr. J. Wilson).

Throughout the afternoon, selections were played by the Fremantle City Band.
The West Australian, Monday 26 August 1935.

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