Reading the war news, 1915

People back home were eager to hear news about how the ‘boys’ were doing at the front. After the landings at Gallipoli the reality of war hit home as casualty lists became a daily feature in the newspapers. Photographs of dashing young men and heartfelt obituaries are poignant reminders of the human cost of war. 

In this 1915 photograph a group of men are reading newspapers outside the general store in Tokomaru Bay. A group of children and their teacher can be seen standing on the verandah reading the war news from a noticeboard. It is easy to imagine the sense of apprehension that the names of local men would appear on the lists of dead.