brokenhill

What an extraordinary image, hiding their identities I guess. "In 1908 BHP attempted to reduce wages on the expiration of an existing industrial agreement. In response the unions commenced a recruitment campaign and began agitation for increased wages. Following an agreement on conditions BHP closed its mines and announced that it would re-open 'after the Christmas period with rates reduced by 12.5 percent. The company eventually re-opened with non-union labour. In response the unions picketed the mine and battles with police ensued. The lockout lasted 20 weeks with many miners defecting from the union ranks." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broken_Hill_Trades_Hall Picketers with an effigy of a 'hanged scab' - www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2009/04/20/2546761.htm#:~:te.... "The Great Lockout of 1909 was prologued in 1908 when the bosses decided through the voice of John Darling, Chairman of Directors of B.H.P. that wages must come down by 12.5 percent, i.e. from the minimum of 8/7½ to 7/6 per day." (added emphasis) www.solidarityforeverbook.com/cgi-bin/showchapter.pl?c=4 "During prolonged industrial struggles women bore the brunt of increasingly difficult household duties, exacerbated by food shortages and the lack of income. During the five-month 1909 Lockout, the first industrial dispute to take place in Broken Hill for sixteen years, women formed a Relief Committee to help those struggling to feed and clothe their families. The 'Big Strike' that lasted 18 months from 1919 to 1920 was an extremely trying period. Co-operative depots were established by the unions, supplying housewives with basic food such as bread, margarine, potatoes and onions. Many mothers saw their children suffer from malnutrition. Miscarriages due to poor diet and anxiety were common. The Big Strike was the last major strike that the women of Broken Hill had to endure. It was finally called off on 10 November 1920 after both the unions and mine managers agreed to the recommendations made by the President of the New South Wales Industrial Court, Justice Edmunds." www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE4102b.htm

www.flickr.com/photos/imperialwarmuseum/7921756518/in/set... His brother, mentioned above.

The National Archive of Australia has his digitised service record here: recordsearch.naa.gov.au/NameSearch/Interface/ItemsListing... THORN Reginald Samuel Service Number - 3621 Place of Birth - Cavanagh SA Place of Enlistment - Adelaide SA Next of Kin - (Mother) THORN Mary Ann The Australia Birth Index on Ancestry states Name:Reginald Samuel Thorn Birth Date:24 Aug 1888 Father's Name:John Samuel Thorn Mother's name:Mary Ann Bishop Birth Place:Thornton Registration Place:Frome, South Australia

Help piece together the Life Stories of more than 8 million men and women who made a contribution during the First World War at www.livesofthefirstworldwar.org/

Not sure what "Unique" is referring to here? Something to do with the break-of-gauge in the railways?

"Terowie's initial raison d'être was to serve as a transport hub for the late 19th Century pastoral settlement of the north-east of the State. The broad gauge line from the south (via Burra) ended at Terowie. Soon a narrow gauge line continued 20 km north to Peterborough, where lines from Perth, Western Australia, Alice Springs, Broken Hill and later Sydney met. Thus Terowie functioned for decades as the transshipment point at the railway break-of-gauge."

Terowie, S.A. is a fascinating ghost town - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terowie,_South_Australia

beachcomber australia I'm unsure as to what "unique" refers to as well. The titles of the photos in this series come directly from the description given to them in the album. See investigator.records.nsw.gov.au/asp/photosearch/search.as... for the whole album page. -AG