Waterfall Station Roll of Honour
The Waterfall Station Roll of Honour consists of a white marble tablet
displaying the names of sixty six railway men from the district who had
served in WWI. The memorial is located at Waterfall Railway Station and was
the second of such memorials to be unveiled in the Shire. The unveiling of
the memorial was conducted on Saturday 6th October 1916.
An article in the The Propeller of Friday 12 October
1917 describes the event:
Last Saturday there was a big gathering of residents
from Waterfall and Helensburgh to witness the unveiling of an Honour Board
erected on the Waterfall Railway Station. The gathering was presided over by
Councillor Boyle. Mr. Ley, M.L.A., delivered a stirring address. He was followed
by the Rev.Mr. Smee. Before the proceedings there was a procession of school
children to the Station and they rendered patriotic songs in fine style.
Afternoon tea was afterwards served to the visitors by Mrs. King at her house.
In November 1916 a request had been received from
Britain for volunteers of railway men able to construct and operate railways on
the continent. The response was so great that a unit was able to be established
very quickly. All railway employees were guaranteed their jobs back on their
return from the war.
A new station was built at Waterfall in 1999 and the
memorial transferred to the new building. However birds became a nuisance
roosting above the memorial with their droppings causing damage to the
marble surface. Another upgrade to Waterfall station was completed in August
2015 more than three months ahead of schedule so the honour roll was again
relocated.
In April 2016 Minister for Veterans Affairs David
Elliott announced that the State Government would provide a grant of $15,000
to the Engadine RSL Club Sub Branch to help with repairs to the memorial and
removal of stains from the marble tablet. The honour roll is now located high on
the western wall of the station building right below the platform roof with no
possible nesting places for birds above it.
To discover more details of the servicemen named on this
memorial click on the heading, then on to one on the names listed at the bottom
of the page.
Biographies of these servicemen can be found in
SERVICE AND SACRIFICE, Sutherland Shire
Memorials 1914-1918, by Marilyn
Handley and Susanne Hewitt, 2015, available from Botany Bay Family History
Society, 02 9523 8948, P.O.Box 1006, Sutherland, NSW, 1499.
References:
http://monumentaustralia.org.au/themes/conflict/ww1/display/23691-waterfall-roll-of-honour/
http://www.theleader.com.au/story/3841044/ww1-memorial-at-waterfall-to-be-repaired/
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/234749440?searchTerm=%22Waterfall%20Railway%20Station%22&searchLimits=exactPhrase|||anyWords|||notWords|||requestHandler|||dateFrom=1917-10-12|||dateTo=1917-10-12|||l-advtitle=1225|||sortby
Service and Sacrifice, Sutherland Shire Memorials
1914-1918, 2015, Marilyn Handley and Susanne Hewitt
