Families urged to dig into military history

TASMANIA is rich in military history and those families who want to discover a thing or two about their past should pay a visit to Major Chris Talbot this weekend.

The Army Museum of Tasmania will hold a Memorabilia Day at Anglesea Barracks tomorrow.

Museum manager Major Talbot said the day allowed Tasmanians to begin researching their family’s military history or to donate items.

“Many families have medals, uniforms and badges that have been handed down over generations,” he said.

“We want to help them with the process of researching their history and provenance.”

Major Talbot said the museum would accept all memorabilia, excluding firearms, ammunition or edged weapons.

“People are often looking for a home for their military things if there’s nowhere for them to go in the family.”

Recently, the museum received a major donation from the Youl family of the Midlands, including a World War I Military Cross won by Colonel Geoffrey Youl from the Evandale-Perth area and his sword.

Colonel Youl first served as a senior cadet on a naval training ship in England before World War I.

He then joined the artillery and later served as a Battery Commander, where he received the Military Cross, granted in recognition of “an act or acts of exemplary gallantry during active operations against the enemy on land”. He also commanded the Tasmanian 2/40th Battalion.

“It’s truly a treasure chest of Tasmanian history,” Major Talbot said.

“The collection includes Colonel Youl’s WWI service medals, plus two mentioned in dispatches. He also served in WWII, so we now have his WWII medals, the Edward VI Coronation Medal and Belgian Croix de Guerre.”

The museum will open from 10am-3pm tomorrow.