Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Born at Swanwater West in 1881, and buried in the Swanwater West Cemetery in 1921, was a remarkable lady by the name of Gertrude Agnes GREWAR.  Swanwater is a small farming community near Cope Cope, which is situated on the Sunraysia Highway, partway between St Arnaud and Donald in the Northern Grampians Shire of Victoria.  Gertrude was the sixth child of eight, born to John and Elizabeth (nee Kilpatrick) GREWAR.  The family had moved to the area a few years before Gertrude’s birth, but Gertrude hadn’t allowed the moss to gather under her feet in her 40 short years of life.

In her early twenties she began her nursing training at the Gippsland Hospital in Sale.  Graduating after 3 years, she moved on to private nursing, and also spent a couple of years as a surgical Sister, in charge of a ward and operating theatre.  She then spent 3 years at the Hamilton Hospital, where she was promoted to the position of Matron.

Yet, as was often the case, when Gertrude joined the Australian Army Nursing Service in 1915, she had to accept the lower position of Staff Nurse, equivalent in rank to a Private.  She was 33 years old and gave her address as Moonee Ponds, an inner suburb of Melbourne, where it’s possible that she was staying with her brother Archie before sailing.

When Gertrude embarked on the RMS Mooltan on the 18th May at Port Melbourne pier, as a reinforcement of the 1st Australian General Hospital (AGH), the NSW and Qld reinforcements were already on board.  They continued around the coast, collecting from Adelaide and Fremantle on the way, and finally left Australian waters on the 24th.  Sailing with them were other members of the Medical Corps, including the nurses, officers and general staff of the 3rd AGH.  One interesting incident that occurred whilst they were at sea was the discovery of a young stowaway, a patriotic 12 year old boy.

Arriving in Egypt on the 16th June 1915, Gertrude and her 37 Mooltan companions were taken on strength with the 1st AGH, which operated out of the Palace Hotel at Heliopolis, and various other venues around the area.  They walked straight into their own small drama.  Quite apart from the war raging at Gallipoli, was the one going on between the Matron and Medical Officers of the 1st AGH.  Despite the administrative turmoil, the nursing staff devoted themselves to their patients, and the tensions eventually eased with a reorganization of the hospital, and the protagonists being recalled to Australia.

When the Palace hospital had become overcrowded, the 1st AGH had created auxiliary hospitals to cope with the lighter cases.  One of these was No.1 Auxiliary Hospital which was set up at Luna Park.  It seems that Gertrude and most of her new companions were stationed there, where they carried out their duties in fairly rough conditions, the kitchen arrangements in particular being described by the PMO (Principle Medical Officer) of Cairo in mid-July, as ‘deplorable’.  Little wonder that during her time in Egypt, Gertrude suffered a bout of dysentery.

On the 23rd of September 1915 Gertrude was transferred for duty in England, and one of her companions that remained with her, was Dora Ellis from Qld, who would later be by her side in her final hours.  Gertrude and Dora were then posted to transport duty, nursing the sick and wounded Gallipoli veterans returning to Australia from the hospitals in England.  Departing from Portland on the Star of Victoria on the 19th January, they arrived back in Melbourne on the 29th February.

Dora re-embarked on the Ceramic in April and was sent on to India, but Gertrude didn’t return to duty until the 6th June, when she re-embarked at Melbourne on the Wandilla.  Also returning to duty and embarking with her was Jane Gerrand, yet another Mooltan companion, who had also previously nursed in the Gippsland Hospital at Sale.  She had been invalided home in March with a fractured shoulder, after being knocked down by a tram in Heliopolis.  Interestingly, another passenger on board the Wandilla was a 19-year-old member of the 3rd Pioneer Battalion, Private Lyall Howard, who was later to father one of our Prime Ministers.

Arriving back in England on the 26th July 1916, Gertrude went straight to the 1st Australian Auxiliary Hospital, now situated in the house and grounds of ‘Harefield Park’ in Middlesex.  Although originally a convalescent hospital, they were increasingly administering to surgical cases from France, especially amputees, and the work was described by many nurses as ‘very heavy’.  In the December of that year, Gertrude suffered her first bout of influenza, and spent some time at the Convalescent home at St Albans.

Finally promoted to the position of Sister on the 1st September 1917, she was then detached for duty with the Croydon War Hospital from the 8th of that month to the 22nd of December.  Of the various British hospitals that AANS nurses were employed in, this hospital saw the highest concentration, especially in 1917.

Gertrude then returned to the 1st AAH at Harefield, where she remained until she was posted to France on the 21st June 1918.  A few days later she reported for duty at the 1st AGH in Rouen, meeting up again with Jane Gerrand.  Most of the wounded that were admitted to the 1st AGH at this time, were only treated for a few days, and then evacuated to England.

At the end of October, Gertrude was admitted to the 8th General Hospital suffering her second bout of influenza, and was still a patient when the Armistice was announced.  Discharged to the Convalescent Home at Cannes on the 20th November, she returned to the 1st AGH for duty on the 8th December.

With the end of the war, the 1st AGH moved to England and established itself in a former British hospital at Sutton Veny.  Jane returned with them mid-December, and Gertrude followed later, on Christmas day.  In mid-January 1919, she reported to AIF HQ in London, and on the 18th she embarked on the HT Ulysses for return to Australia, arriving on the 10th March 1919.

Although still required to carry out nursing duties on her return trip, Gertrude was classed as medically unfit herself, her main debility being Pruritus, a skin irritation which results from other ailments.  When she was reassessed towards the end of April, she was found to be better, and fit for discharge, but it was noted that her heart rhythm and pulse were irregular.  She was eventually discharged on the 21st June 1919.

Settling back into post war Australia, Gertrude continued to nurse, taking charge of Dr Kidd’s private hospital in Castlemaine.  She remained there until early 1921 when she decided to take a break, and headed to Sydney with one of her sisters for a rest.

Returning to Victoria in May, she then spent a couple of weeks with her ailing mother at the family home in Cope Cope, when suddenly on Sunday the 22nd she was taken ill herself.  She had a nursing friend with her and the doctor was called immediately.  Dora Ellis, who at the time was Matron at the Castlemaine Hospital, also came to her side on the Monday.  Despite the united efforts of this team, Gertrude passed away around midday on Tuesday the 24th of May 1921.  The cause of death was given as paralysis of the brain.  The funeral to the Swanwater West Cemetery took place the following afternoon.

Heather (Frev) Ford, 2007

Endnote: Gertrude’s brother James attempted to enlist in Sept 1918 but was found medically unfit.