As Centenary of ANZAC commemorations continue, a new generation will have the opportunity to hear the nearly-forgotten stories of the Black Diggers of Logan, through the launch of a new digital collection of their memories.
Believed to be the only project of its kind for Queensland, new stories are being shared digitally with the rest of the nation through Historypin, to ensure their memory lives on.
Logan City Council Sports and Community Services Committee Chair, Councillor Russell Lutton, said the project aimed to begin a community conversation about the need to document the stories of Black Diggers as part of the establish ANZAC legends.
“It’s been over a hundred years since the ANZAC legends began, and we are only now getting around to properly documenting the stories of Black Diggers.
“This is the second project featuring Black Diggers of Logan stories, following the launch earlier this year of three mini-documentaries that chronicle the stories of four men with family connections to Logan.
“For this project we asked the community to come forward and share their stories of their ancestors and relatives who served in World War One.
“We found a lot of ‘new’ diggers, whose stories are remembered by their families, and who now want to share them with the city and with the world.”
Cr Lutton said Council is proud of its strong Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Australian South Sea Islander communities.
“We thought it was about time that our remembrance stories included them.
“We believe it is time to start documenting and preserving this knowledge now before it is lost forever, and I would encourage all residents to start researching their own heritage before it is too late.”
Visit the Black Diggers of Logan Historypin site at www.historypin.org/en/first-world-war-centenary/memories-for-a-new-generation/black-diggers-of-logan/ (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are warned the site contains images and names of deceased persons).
This project has received financial assistance from the Queensland Government through State Library of Queensland Q Anzac 100: Memories for a new generation.
