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Berowra At War, World War One
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DetailsDuring the First World War the Hawkesbury River and its famous Railway Bridge was thought to be a major target for enemy attack. Berowra residents, being local to the area, felt great responsibility to ensure any signs of enemy activity were monitored and reported, because if the bridge was destroyed it would hinder troop and munitions movement between Northern Australia and Sydney.
In December of 1915, local residents feared the Germans were preparing for just such an attack! Germans were arriving in the area by train and disappearing into the bush with boxes full of some unknown substance. Were they stockpiling explosives? Were they planning their attack? In a rather anticlimactic turn of events, it was revealed that the Germans were simply tourists, out for a day in the beautiful Berowra Bush and bringing copious quantities of their favourite beverage, lager beer, along for their picnics!
The local residents were not the only ones to worry about the risk to Sydney if the Hawkesbury was invaded or indeed if the famous Railway Bridge was attacked. If the bridge was lost, troop movements between Sydney and the north would be impeded, as would the movement of supplies so when war broke out a squad of soldiers were stationed at either end of the bridge. Their job was easily defined – to stop the bridge being interfered with in any way. Barbed wire was placed around either end of the bridge as well and an exclusion zone to boats was even put in place.
Local residents were very supportive of this guard and indeed even the local children aided them in small ways. Master Vincent Kelly was one such child, throwing the paper and magazines to the guards stationed on the bridge each day from the train which conveyed him to school in Woy Woy.
During the First World War there were many different funds and charities which needed support, ranging from those in support of our own soldiers to those in support of families displaced by the war. As was the case with many communities, Berowra took part in fundraising efforts for many of these causes, holding jumble sales, making donations of time, money and produce and organising charitable concerts. A block of land valued at £100 was even donated and raffled in order to raise much needed funds for the Red Cross in 1918.
The Berowra community recognised the beneficial aspects of the ‘healthful’ Berowra climate and air and many opened their homes to returned soldiers, allowing them to recuperate from their illnesses and injuries. With plentiful fresh produce, a caring community and of course the fresh air which Berowra became famed for, many soldiers spent time in the area at homes of residents such as Mr and Mrs McKean.
The community also banded together to help returned soldiers in any way that they could. In 1917, when a returned soldier from out of the Berowra area lost his brooder-house and incubator room (including a number of chickens), the poultry farmers of Berowra donated some of their own birds to him, helping the soldier who was still suffering from shrapnel wounds to re-establish his business.
Throughout the war the Berowra community was proud and supportive of the boys fighting overseas. Even well before the War had ended, in 1916 an Honour Roll was unveiled at Berowra Station commemorating the men from the Berowra district who had volunteered, some of whom died for their country. This honour roll had 25 names on it, some of them people who lived slightly further afield in places including Mt Kuringai. This original honour roll has since been lost.
However, in 1932 a new memorial to our heroes was unveiled, commemorating people from Berowra (and also those who had moved to the area after the War had concluded). This memorial was first opened at Berowra Station and local legend has it that the ashes of some of Berowra’s fallen men were interred at the original memorial site. Later in the 20th century the memorial itself was moved to its current location, adjacent to Berowra Library and Community Centre.
CreatorBerowra Living HistoryKeywordsBerowra
DetailsDuring the First World War the Hawkesbury River and its famous Railway Bridge was thought to be a major target for enemy attack. Berowra residents, being local to the area, felt great responsibility to ensure any signs of enemy activity were monitored and reported, because if the bridge was destroyed it would hinder troop and munitions movement between Northern Australia and Sydney.In December of 1915, local residents feared the Germans were preparing for just such an attack! Germans were arriving in the area by train and disappearing into the bush with boxes full of some unknown substance. Were they stockpiling explosives? Were they planning their attack? In a rather anticlimactic turn of events, it was revealed that the Germans were simply tourists, out for a day in the beautiful Berowra Bush and bringing copious quantities of their favourite beverage, lager beer, along for their picnics!
The local residents were not the only ones to worry about the risk to Sydney if the Hawkesbury was invaded or indeed if the famous Railway Bridge was attacked. If the bridge was lost, troop movements between Sydney and the north would be impeded, as would the movement of supplies so when war broke out a squad of soldiers were stationed at either end of the bridge. Their job was easily defined – to stop the bridge being interfered with in any way. Barbed wire was placed around either end of the bridge as well and an exclusion zone to boats was even put in place.
Local residents were very supportive of this guard and indeed even the local children aided them in small ways. Master Vincent Kelly was one such child, throwing the paper and magazines to the guards stationed on the bridge each day from the train which conveyed him to school in Woy Woy.
During the First World War there were many different funds and charities which needed support, ranging from those in support of our own soldiers to those in support of families displaced by the war. As was the case with many communities, Berowra took part in fundraising efforts for many of these causes, holding jumble sales, making donations of time, money and produce and organising charitable concerts. A block of land valued at £100 was even donated and raffled in order to raise much needed funds for the Red Cross in 1918.
The Berowra community recognised the beneficial aspects of the ‘healthful’ Berowra climate and air and many opened their homes to returned soldiers, allowing them to recuperate from their illnesses and injuries. With plentiful fresh produce, a caring community and of course the fresh air which Berowra became famed for, many soldiers spent time in the area at homes of residents such as Mr and Mrs McKean.
The community also banded together to help returned soldiers in any way that they could. In 1917, when a returned soldier from out of the Berowra area lost his brooder-house and incubator room (including a number of chickens), the poultry farmers of Berowra donated some of their own birds to him, helping the soldier who was still suffering from shrapnel wounds to re-establish his business.
Throughout the war the Berowra community was proud and supportive of the boys fighting overseas. Even well before the War had ended, in 1916 an Honour Roll was unveiled at Berowra Station commemorating the men from the Berowra district who had volunteered, some of whom died for their country. This honour roll had 25 names on it, some of them people who lived slightly further afield in places including Mt Kuringai. This original honour roll has since been lost.
However, in 1932 a new memorial to our heroes was unveiled, commemorating people from Berowra (and also those who had moved to the area after the War had concluded). This memorial was first opened at Berowra Station and local legend has it that the ashes of some of Berowra’s fallen men were interred at the original memorial site. Later in the 20th century the memorial itself was moved to its current location, adjacent to Berowra Library and Community Centre.
CreatorBerowra Living HistoryKeywordsBerowraRelated
CollectionBerowra Living History
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Berowra Living History, Berowra At War, World War One. Hornsby Shire, accessed 27/04/2026, https://hornsbyshire.recollect.net.au/nodes/view/3817