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Stories from the World War I collection

Our World War I collections contain many stories – the personal accounts found in diaries, maps that document the progress of the war, newspapers and ephemera that reflect what was happening on the home front, life captured through the photographer’s lens

Stories from the World War I collection

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Curator's picks

Diarists' stories

Wesley Choat, prisoner of war

Wesley Choat and his two brothers enlisted in 1915.

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Further reading

3rd Australian General Hospital

by Elise Edmonds

Albert William Savage was a professional photographer from Moore Park in Sydney. 

Photographs of the Third Australian General Hospital at Lemnos, Egypt & Brighton (Eng.) / taken by A. W. Savage 1915-17

Jackson and the Paper VC

In Sydney in 1918 a shy, one-armed man from the tiny town of Gunbar was selling kisses for 5 shillings each.

Victoria cross

Reviving "The Pictorial Panorama of the Great War"

Hand-coloured photographs by ‘digger artists’ are displayed together for the first time in almost 100 years.
armistice_day_cologne.jpg
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Learning activities and excursions Curriculum-linked programs and resources for students and teachers.

Related content

Diarists from World War I

Our diary and letter collections offer a rich and personal insight into those who served in the Great War.

Readings from the World War I diaries

Our diaries are rich in contemporary detail and emotion, both documenting and providing insight into significant events and the minutiae of daily life.

World War I collection

The Library began collecting the personal diaries and correspondence of men and women who served in the First World War soon after the Armistice was declared in November 1918.