- The 2018 Premier's ANZAC Spirit School Prize was launched on 11 November 2017. Information and entry forms are available at www.decd.sa.gov.au/anzacschoolprize/
- Above is the poster for the 2018 Premier's ANZAC Spirit School Prize and this blog posting tells the story of the nurse on the 2018 poster.
Olivia's story
In
recognition of the role of nurses in the Great War, the 2018 Premier’s Anzac
Spirit School Prize poster displays the picture of just one of the hundreds of
women who enlisted and served between 1915-1919 in Australia, Europe,
Gallipoli, England, the Middle East and on the hospital and troop ships
travelling between England and Australia. During World War 1 2,268 nurses
served with the Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) in 192 locations
overseas and on 39 ships. Of these, 25 nurses died from injuries or disease
when on active service. This is the story of one of the South Australian nurses
who served in the AANS.
The
photograph is of Olivia May Deane. Olivia (Olive to her friends) was 29 years
of age at the time of enlistment and her attestation papers described her as 5
foot, 3 inches in height, weighing 9 stone, 2lbs with a bright complexion,
brown eyes, black hair and a 39 inch chest measurement. Olivia was born on the 4 January 1886 in
Balaklava, South Australia. She trained
as a nurse at Port Augusta Hospital for 4 years before moving to Mount Gambier
in May 1915 as a volunteer member of the Australian Trained Nurses
Association. It was while working as a
nurse at the Mount Gambier Hospital she met and became engaged with the young pharmacist,
John (Jack) Morris McInerney at the hospital.
Olivia and Jack: A love story in
time of war
 | ||
| Olivia May Deane (1886-1976) |
 | |
| John Morris McInerney (1888-1918) |
After Jack’s enlistment in August 1915, Olivia joined the Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) in Adelaide on the 20 November 1915. It wasn’t until the 25 November 1916 that Olivia finally departed Australia on the SS Beltana for service with the AANS in Europe. Jack had already left for Europe (although Egypt was to be the destination) on 2 December 1915. Olivia had enlisted in the hope that she and Jack would be able to ‘catch-up’ in Europe and continue their relationship in the turmoil of war. Instead of being appointed to a hospital in England, a field hospital in Flanders or a hospital in the Middle East, Olivia became a member of the No.5 Sea Transport Staff. In this role Olivia travelled between England and Australia eight times on the hospital and troop ships during the duration of the war. Whilst in England she was attached to various hospitals, including one in St. Albans and the 2nd Australian Auxiliary Hospital in Southall, Middlesex. The normal voyage took about 8 weeks and was a stressful experience, with the fear of U Boats always being present whilst the nurses performed the heartbreaking job of caring for young men whose lives had been changed forever by the experiences of war. Olivia was to serve in such a capacity between November 1916 and January 1919, with short stays in London waiting for the turn-around of the hospital ships carrying the wounded back to Australia. During these periods Olivia was always hopeful of seeing Jack either on leave in England or recuperating from injuries in some hospital in England.
On
the 15 March 1917 Jack was sent to England for the treatment of his trench feet
symptoms at the Norfolk War Hospital in Norwich. Unbeknown to Jack and Olivia
their paths almost crossed at this time with the arrival of Jack in England for
hospitalisation on 15 March, as Olivia was in the process of embarking for
Australia on the morning of the 17 March.
This
was the second time Jack had been sent to England for recovery. After being
injured at Pozieres on 25 July 1916, Jack spent time recuperating from a
serious injury to his right buttock at the Lord Darby Hospital in England
between July 1916 and January 1917. Unfortunately
Olivia was in transit on the way to England for the first time as Jack’s time
of recuperation was ending before he returned to France in January 1917. In a
letter to his mother, Jack wrote:
Somewhere
in France: 5 February 1917
“My spell of ease has ended
and I am again on the warpath with my fellow Austral warriors. Just had word
that little Deanie is on her way from Australia, so my luck is out just now.”
Unbeknown
to his family and Olivia, during this time of recuperation in England, Jack as
a qualified pharmacist was offered a ‘safe’ job in that role in a military hospital
in England. However, he chose to turn down the offer and return to support his
fellow “Austral warriors” in France. The story of Jack and Olivia would have
been very different over the coming two years and into the future if he had
decided to stay and use his skills and knowledge in London as a pharmacist instead
of returning to the trenches as a soldier.
In
his letters home to his brother Alfred, Jack frequently talked of his hopes of seeing
Olivia when injured or on leave in England. These few excerpts give an insight
into his hopes and concerns relating to Olivia.
2
August 1917
“Olive left in June again and I hope I will be a little
luckier this time than I was on her previous visit. I think she is a very lucky little lady to be
able to travel all over the world like this.
It’s a great war for some people right enough”.
12
August 1917
“From what I can gather Olive must be on her way across
to England again and perhaps is already there.
I will not be surprised to have word any day that she had reached
there. My word she has had some luck
surely in getting a couple of trips across and she should have some excitement
too in getting past the U boats. Many a
fright for her, poor kid, though I read that the Germans have agreed to leave
hospital ships alone and that makes it easier.”
16
September 1917
“I would not have been very displeased to be scrapping so
that I would have chance of catching a Blighty and seeing Olive in England
before she leaves there but such is not likely to happen at present so she will
return once again without being able to report upon me by personal examination.”
However
their luck did change in October 1917 when at last Jack and Olivia’s paths
overlapped after two years of hoping and yearning. Olivia had returned to England on the 29
August and embarked for Australia on the 17 October. This meant that Jack and Olivia had the 14
and 15 October together when he was still on leave and before Olivia had to embark
again for Australia on a hospital ship.
In
great excitement about this happenstance, Jack was to write on 17 October:
“Somehow my luck has been very, very wonderful lately. I
can hardly believe that all this is true. I just managed to find little Olive
on her 2 last days in England so I am very satisfied with myself. Now she is
probably on her way home and soon after this letter reaches you she should be
there to tell you that I am still O.K.”
That
was to be the last and only time they were to meet during the war, despite Jack
writing hopefully on 14 March 1918 that he had:
“… word
last week that Olive has again reached London after rather an exciting trip
across. Most likely I will see her
before she leaves for home if I have a reasonable amount of luck. I should be getting my leave in another 3
weeks and it is hardly likely that she will have returned before that.”
With
the Ludendorff Offensive commencing on 21 March 1918, Jack was not to be granted
leave as hoped and on 28 June he was killed at Merris as the Australians conducted ‘peaceful penetration’ raids
as the allies advanced.
Olivia
sailed from Australia on 5 January 1918 and disembarked in England on 4 March
and embarked on the return journey to Australia on 15 April. Sadly, if Jack was
granted the leave in March that was due they would have met again, but it was
not to be. Olivia was to hear of Jack’s death by telegram from his mother upon
arrival in Australia on the SS Gaika on 30 July 1918. As it turned out, Olivia did
not to return to England until the 13 October 1918. Being four months after Jack’s death in June,
this must have been a very painful and hollow return for her knowing that now
there was no possibility of a chance meeting with Jack. Olivia remained in the
UK for three months during which time she was admitted to hospital with influenza.
Given that by this time the influenza epidemic was sweeping Europe and
killing thousands of people she was lucky to have survived. Olivia was to
eventually leave European shores on the SS Suevic for the last time heading for
Australia on 6 January 1919.
Ironically,
Olivia was de-mobilised on 28 June, 1919, exactly a year after Jack’s death. In
coming years Olivia was awarded the British War Medal (18365/4MD) but as was the
case with nurses who had not served in a theatre of war, she was not issued
with a Victory Medal.
Olivia
resumed her nursing career in Adelaide after leaving the Australian Army
Nursing Service and in 1925 at the age of 39 she married Keith Sommerville, a
clerk from Peterborough. Olivia never
had children and died in Melbourne, 91 years of age in 1976. Obviously the war years and Jack’s death
robbed Olivia of any chance of an early marriage and a normal family life. She must have often wondered what would have
been with her and Jack if the war had not intervened or his luck had held out
to November 1918.
This
is just one of the many stories about the nurses of World War 1. A group of
Australians who bravely served, with their lives changed forever. This is also
an example of the type of stories that are uncovered by students entering the
Premier’s Anzac Spirit School Prize. The prize invites students to tell the
story of a soldier or nurse who served in World War 1. Students are encouraged
to use primary sources and if at all possible talk to the families of the
person they are researching. This story is just one of so many and happens to
be the story of the family of Malcolm McInerney, the DECD Manager of the
Premier’s Anzac Spirit School Prize, who like so many in our community have a
story to uncover and tell about those who served in the conflicts of the 20th
Century.
The
2018 Premier’s Anzac Spirit School Prize was launched on Remembrance Day 2017
and is now open for student to start researching and creating a story to submit
by 18 May, 2018. For details of the competition go to http://anzaccentenary.sa.gov.au/competitions/the-premiers-anzac-spirit-school-prize/
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