Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Born in Rockhampton in 1888, Gertrude Ada Nye was the second child and eldest daughter in a family of six children. Her father, William Thomas Nye, a marine engineer, had married Elizabeth Martha nee Swain in Rockhampton where she grew up initially. She was educated at first in Rockhampton Queensland and later in Brisbane where the family had moved, residing in Hamilton in Hillside Crescent.

The children's father, William Thomas Nye of Rockhampton, Hamilton and later of Buderim Mountain, was born in Maidstone, England in 1862. He was elected an associate member of the Institute of Civil Engineers at the early age of 22. He then journeyed to Queensland as the manager of the Rockhampton Gas Co. He retired at the age of 49 and settled in Mt Buderim, where he spent the remainder of his life with some of his six children, though his wife died four years previous to his retirement. Their six children were William Nye, Mrs Gertrude Knox (nee Nye), Miss Hilda Nye, Mrs Ethel Foote (nee Nye), Dr Leslie John Jarvis Nye and Claude Leonard Rutland Nye. Their father died on 3 Oct 1945.

The Nye family moved to Buderim in the early years after Federation and but also had a home in Hillside Crescent, Hamilton. Gertrude may have had ideas other than nursing initially for she was studying light and shade drawing at the Technical College. In 1906, she managed a bare 55% pass so perhaps art was not her forte. In 1913 Gertrude was working in the nursing industry in the Brisbane Hospital for one year. During that year she lived in the Nurses Quarters of the Brisbane Hospital. On 14 Mar 1915, Gertrude enlisted in the AANS (Australian Army Nursing Service) and sailed to England aboard the Orontes on 14 Apr 1915. She arrived in the UK on 25 May 1915 and joined Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service on 26 Jun 1915.

She was immediately shipped off to France and posted to No 3 General Hospital which was in Le Treport, some 10 km northeast of Dieppe on the French Atlantic coast. Here she performed with some distinction earning the following comment from one of her superiors: 'During the time, 3 months, Miss Nye had been on duty in this hospital, she has proved herself a very capable, reliable, punctual and conscientious Nurse. She has not had charge of a ward except during the Sisters off duty time, then she arranged her work well and kept good discipline.' That latter quality was considered an essential for nurses at that time.

She was transferred to No 4 Casualty Clearing Station located at Beauval on 8 Dec 1915 where again she seems to have created a good impression. 'Miss Nye is a very capable and conscientious nurse.' She was there for most of the next year but on 13 Sep 1916, she was transferred again, back to No 3 General Hospital. Her performance earned her a posting to Italy on 14 Nov 1917 with the British forces sent there to bolster the front after the Italians collapsed at Carporetto but precisely where she was based is not known. It seems that she was still there when the war ended and on 27 Apr 1919, she was sent back to England to the Wharncliffe War Hospital, Sheffield, pending repatriation to Australia.

She served with 18 other Australian women in Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service for at least six years. Exactly what she did, I have been unable to discover since the records kept by the English are very poor indeed although, in their defence, some were destroyed in the Second World War and other mishaps. It seems reasonable to assume that as a Staff Nurse, she was quite a senior nurse of considerable experience and competence but it is a shame we cannot record her contribution with any precision beyond saying that she cared for the sick and wounded.

She returned home to Australia on the SS Osterley leaving England on 21 May 1919 and reaching Sydney on 7 Jul 1919 and continuing on to Brisbane shortly after. The ship was loaded with female passengers, possibly war brides as well as returning nurses. Four years later, Gertrude returned to England and met Alexander Edmund Knox from Wandsworth, Surrey. In the months between January and March the couple married in India and had two children, Bruce and Diana. It seems they then returned to the UK. Six years after marrying Gertrude, Alexander fell off a horse, the fall caused a thrombosis and he died on 27 Apr 1929 in England. Gertrude then returned to Australia with her two children and moved to 183 Gregory Terrace, Spring Hill, Brisbane. Her son, Bruce, lived with her from 1947 to 1949 while he was a student studying engineering at university in Brisbane. In 1945 Gertrude was still alone in Spring Hill, Brisbane. By 1958, she had moved to 316 Hawken Drive, St Lucia where she lived until 1977 at least, apparently dying shortly afterwards.

She is commemorated on the Buderim Mountain Roll of Honour Board, Buderim War Memorial Hall, Corner of Main & Church Streets, Buderim.

Gertrude was one of hundreds of Australian women who served as nurses with the forces in the war. She was close to the western front lines and those on the Italian front and would have witnessed the suffering of the many wounded and sought to minister to their needs. Her service should justly be remembered and honoured for not only was her service not without personal risk it was also performed from a spirit of caring humanity.