Detailed History

In this paper the description of the Remembrance Driveway Committee's activities during the period 1952 to 1988 and the background history and antecedents to the Remembrance Driveway are extracted from a 1994 paper by Dr Allan Correy from the Department of Architecture, University of Sydney.

Background History and Antecedents

Nearly all cultures have found ways of remembering wars and honouring war heroes. Some preserved the memory through myths and legends and others built monuments in some form. Early monuments, carved in wood or stone, were usually erected as memorial panels in cathedrals and churches and it was not until after the Napoleonic Wars that freestanding monuments appeared in public places. These memorials were not to common soldiers and sailors but were heroic tributes to victorious individuals, usually conquering generals or admirals. One of the most notable is Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square in London. The first memorials to ordinary servicemen came after the Crimean War of 1854-56 when the suffering and courage of British soldiers was recognised for the first time.

The first conflict in which Australia and New Zealand were involved was the South African War of 1899-1902 and memorials to those who served were erected in both countries. However it was the Great War of 1914-1918, which affected the lives of so many people, that fostered an enormous community need to establish lasting memorials to all those who served their countries. This was most apparent in the young Commonwealth countries of Canada, Australia and New Zealand, where both monuments of stone and living memorials were patriotically supported by most citizens. Australia in fact has more war memorials than any other country.
Architectural or sculptural memorials such as monumental buildings and arches were favoured at first. Some felt that utilitarian memorials, such as war veteran's homes or hospitals were more appropriate. Many believed that the utilitarian memorial was sacrilegious to the dead and so the idea of a living memorial gained favour. Planting trees was seen as a symbol of hope for the future but above all it was seen as something tangible which ordinary people could become personally involved with.

The idea of planting trees as war memorials appears to have originated in Great Britain in 1918 when the office of the King's Highway issued a pamphlet titled "Roads of Remembrance as War memorials". The two objectives of this program were to transform suitable existing highways "to the dignity of Roads of Remembrance adorned with trees" and to organise the building of highways "of exceptional dignity and beauty with open spaces at intervals as special memorials to the Great War". Interestingly the idea was taken up by Britains former colonies but not by Britain itself.

In Canada, memorial avenues were planted in both cities and rural towns but, today, only one at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, planted in 1922, survives intact and continues to be added to.
In Australia, from 1917 to 1921, hundreds of avenues of honour were planted to commemorate those who served in the Great War. The first and most famous avenue of honour was the one planted between 1917 and 1919, at Ballarat.

The Beginning

After World War II, monuments in stone were not in favour although often rolls of honour, with the names of those who served in the 1939-1945 war, were added to existing 1914-1918 memorials. While many were opposed to monuments, most still supported the idea of some sort of memorial and once again, a living memorial found widespread community support. It is not surprising therefore that the suggestion that the establishment of a Remembrance Driveway linking Sydney and Canberra appealed to politicians and the public alike.

It was Mrs. Margaret Davis who first contemplated planting a living memorial to those Australians who had served in World War II. Mrs Davis was the Founding President of the Garden Clubs of Australia and she suggested it as the Clubs' first project. Recognising the Garden Clubs' limitations, Margaret Davis enlisted the help of other members who had influence in the right places. Those she turned to were Lieutenant General Frank Berryman, Commanding Officer at Victoria Barracks in Sydney, Mr Robert Anderson, Curator and Chief Botanist at the Sydney Botanic Gardens and Charles Moses, General Manager of the ABC.

A preliminary committee, chaired by Charles Moses, was formed in April 1952. He invited a number of interested people to attend the inaugural meeting of the National Memorial Highway Committee held on 21 May 1952 at Broadcast House. An Executive Committee was elected with Frank Berryman as President and this committee was requested to investigate the practicability of establishing a Memorial Highway between Sydney and Canberra to commemorate those who served in the Australian Armed Forces in the Second World War. The objective was to be achieved by planting avenues of trees and establishing groves, memorial parks and other appropriate memorials. The Government provided part time secretarial services and a room to hold meetings at the Department of Local Government was made available. Senior Town planner, Mr Nigel Ashton who with Mr Anderson and Mr Cecil Hawkins, Chief Engineer, Department of Main Roads, surveyed the route of the Driveway served on this committee and continues to serve today. Past Presidents of the Remembrance Driveway Committee and details of the current Committee membership are at Annex A.

At its meeting on 24 June 1953, the Committee agreed that the name of the project be the Remembrance Driveway. In October 1953 the Remembrance Driveway logo of a laurel wreath and green tree on a yellow background with dark red lettering was approved by the Committee.

The Premier of NSW, the Hon. J.J. Cahill agreed to launch the project by making a statement on the ABC on 9 December 1953 and the Federal Minister for the Interior, Mr Kent-Hughs followed with a statement on behalf of the Commonwealth. A brochure was launched which concluded with a special appeal for donations from all members of society, from large corporations who were invited to sponsor a whole plantation to individual citizens who could donate a single tree for $20.

On 5 February 1954 the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh planted two London Plane trees on the Bridge and Loftus Street corner of Macquarie Place in Sydney and later on 16 February the Queen planted a Snow Gum at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. Unfortunately this tree was ringbarked by vandals in 1965 and despite the attempts of a tree surgeon it did not recover. In 1975 the original plaque was placed inside the War memorial for safekeeping and a new plaque with a replacement tree [a Narrow-leaved Peppermint] took its place. These were the first official plantings which physically, marked each end of the Remembrance Driveway and which provided the impetus for subsequent plantings to begin simultaneously from both ends of the Driveway.

Following the official launch and the Royal plantings, general enthusiasm and public support for the project was high and remained so for about 10 years. Publicity, through the media, continued and was aimed at encouraging individual donors. Progress on the Remembrance Driveway was broadcast over ABC radio and Radio 2CH and later was given good television coverage. Auxiliaries were formed at Goulburn, Canberra, Camden and Berrima to supervise local plantings, however all have now closed down.

Many individual donations came flooding in and it became impossible to identify individual trees with individual donors as was initially intended. Corporate sponsors however were able to be acknowledged as for example with the Qantas grove at Bass Hill and the Hoyts Theatres grove at Lake George North, now the Arthur Gurney VC Rest Area.

Beginning with modest planting in 1954 the project accelerated over the next few years with plantings at 10 sites in 1955, 19 sites in 1956 and 7 sites in 1957. Fewer plantings were undertaken from then on, partly because there was a limited number of new sites available but also because the main effort was concentrated on maintaining the many thousands of trees already planted.

The Decline

In 1962, six new plantations were established and in 1967, 1973 and 1979 some small plantations were put in at Bass Hill and Cabramatta on the Hume Highway, in Sydney's inner west, but generally the Committee concentrated its efforts on maintaining existing plantations and investing surplus funds to generate income during the period of high interest rates. A pause was also called for because it was recognised that the development of the new expressway which was to replace the old Hume Highway would call for a reassessment of the route the Driveway should take. Public interest was waning. Many believed that the Remembrance Driveway had been completed and the Committee disbanded. No new sponsors were forthcoming and individual donations ceased. The maintenance of the established plantations became difficult and it was due only to the dedicated work of the Committee that the plantations survived.

The Revival

The modern revival of the project began in 1988 with plantings along the new by-pass roads around Mittagong and Berrima. In 1989 a survey along the new F5 Freeway and the highway south to Canberra recommended 12 new sites for planting under a Federal Roads Programme. This recommendation was accepted by the Committee after much discussion, as it meant moving away from the old Hume Highway route to the new highway between Mittagong and Goulburn. It reluctantly agreed that responsibility for the sections of the Driveway which were being bypassed would pass back to local authorities and/or community groups. These sections of the old Driveway could be referred to as Remembrance Drives or Remembrance Groves if that was the local wish but no longer would they be a part of the Remembrance Driveway.

There has always been a cordial relationship between the Remembrance Driveway Committee and the Department of Main Roads and its successor the Roads and Traffic Authority and they have been represented on the Committee from the start. The Authority took up sponsorship of the Driveway Committee in 1991 and has supported the concept of the remembrance Driveway with financial, planning and material assistance.

With the renewed interest in the Driveway, in 1992 over 500 trees were planted within the existing Villawood plantation to commemorate those who had served in the Vietnam War and in 1993, one of the original sponsors, Qantas, carried out additional planting in their Bass Hill plantation. In 1993, the Army planted and dedicated the largest plantation for many years on the F5 and Narellan Road interchange at Kenny Hill. This is the turn off to the Mount Annan Botanic Garden and in a co-operative effort by the Authority and the Garden, further development of this area began in late 1999.

In April 1997, in a joint statement, the Federal Minister for Transport, Mr John Sharp MP and the Minister for Veteran's Affairs, Mr Bruce Scott MP committed $4 million of Federal funding which was passed to the RTA, to accelerate a programme of naming rest area sites after the then 21 deceased Australian Victoria Cross winners from World War II and Vietnam and to enable the refurbishment of rest areas and tree plantations and to better provide for public information signage along the Remembrance Driveway.

The Committee, in conjunction with RTA staff, had initiated phase one of the Victoria Cross Rest Area Project in 1995 with the aim of dedicating Rest Areas to the memory of the 12 posthumously awarded World War II and Vietnam War winners. Phase one began with the dedication of three Rest Areas at Roses Lagoon, Lake George North and Penrose State Forrest. This was widened following the dedication of the Federal Government funds, to encompass all the deceased Victoria Cross winners from these conflicts. Rest Areas in their honour have been/are to be established as follows;

1995
John Edmondson VC Rest Area - Roses Lagoon
Arthur Gurney VC Rest Area - Lake George North
Bruce Kingsbury VC Rest Area - Penrose State Forrest

1996
John French VC Rest Area - Yarra Interchange
William Kibby VC Rest Area - Near Yarra Interchange
Percival Gratwick VC Rest Area - Collector

1997
Rawdon Middleton RAAF VC Rest Area - Gundaroo Turnoff.
William Newton RAAF VC Rest Area - Gundaroo Turnoff
Albert Chowne VC Rest Area - Marulen

1998
Kevin Wheatley VC Rest Area - Lake George
Peter Badcoe VC Rest Area - Lake George

1999
Charles Anderson VC Rest Area - Geary's Gap
Thomas Derrick VC Rest Area - Towrang Creek

2000
Hughie Edwards VC Memorial Park - Federal Highway ACT *

2001
John Mackey VC Rest Area - Illawarra Highway Junction
James Gordon VC Rest Area - Belanglo

2002
Richard Kelliher VC Memorial Park - Campbell ACT
Reginald Rattey VC Memorial Park - Campbell ACT

2004
Frank Partridge VC Rest Area- Menangle

2005
Ray Simpson VC Memorial Park - Campbell ACT
Leslie Starcevich VC Memorial Park - Campbell ACT

2006
Sir Roden Cutler VC Rest Area - Prestons

For the Future
Edward Kenna VC Rest Area
Keith Payne VC Rest Area

In the ACT, because NSW RTA responsibility for development of the Driveway stops at the border, Government authorities are ensuring that the Driveway with all its accoutrements continues on to the Australian War Memorial. The ACT Government and it's Department of Urban Services sponsored the development of the Hughie Edwards VC Memorial Park which was dedicated in September 2000 and in the Remembrance Park, behind the Australian War Memorial, Campbell, the Department of Urban Services prepared a specially landscaped site for three landmark trees, which were planted by His Excellency , the Governor General in November 2002 to replace the tree planted by Her Majesty in 1954 in front of the War Memorial which died. The Department also completed the construction of the facilities associated with the Kelliher VC and Rattey VC Memorial Parks, which were dedicated in October 2002. In 2005 the Committee commissioned the construction of the Ray Simpson VC and Leslie "Tom" Starcevich VC memorials in the Park. They were dedicated in December of that year.

The Future

The Committee's objectives for 2007/8 are:

• Keeping in mind possible future RTA development of the Hume Highway, proceed with planning for the dedication when required of the Keith Payne VC and Edward Kenna VC Rest Areas. [If there are no further rest areas developed by the RTA, it seems likely the Keith Payne VC Rest Area will be doubled up with the Kevin Wheatley VC Rest Area at Lake George and the Edward Kenna VC Rest Area will be within the area containing the Arthur Gurney VC Rest Area at Lake George north.]
• With the help of the RTA, develop a plantation along the southbound side of the Hume Highway freeway between Glenfield and Campbelltown, to honour those members of the Australian Defence Force who have defended the nations interests in conflicts and peace keeping operations since the Vietnam War.
• Investigate the installation of signs in selected relevant VC Rest Areas, depicting the history of the various theatres of war in which members of the Australian Defence Force have served since WWII.
• Continue the development of the Remembrance Driveway Inventory
• Seek RTA assistance with the maintenance of the Remembrance Driveway website.
• Oversee the maintenance of existing VC Memorial Rest Areas to ensure that they are maintained at the required standard.
• Continue the improvement of existing plantations and the development of new ones.

Conclusion

The Remembrance Driveway is a tribute from those who remember yesterday and have faith in tomorrow. It commemorates those who have served in the Australian Defence Forces in World War II and subsequent wars or who have served since then in operational theatres around the world, in defence of the nation's interests. I hope that those using it will reflect on the sacrifices made by these soldiers, sailors and airmen.


Ian Callaway
Commodore RAN,[Rtd]
President
Remembrance Driveway Committee
24 July 2008

Annex A

REMEMBRANCE DRIVEWAY COMMITTEE -

PAST PRESIDENTS -

Lieutenant General Sir Frank Berryman KCVO CB CBE DSO - 1952-1981

Sir Charles Moses KB CBE - 1981-1988

Mr Robin Wood - 1988

Mr Nigel Ashton - 1989

Major General Kevin Latchford AO 1989 - 1999

REMEMBRANCE DRIVEWAY COMMITTEE - 2008/9 -

President

Commodore Ian Callaway RAN [Rtd]

Vice Presidents

Major General Kevin Latchford AO [RL]

Mrs Wanda Robbins

Honorary Secretary

Commodore Ian Callaway RAN [Rtd]

Honorary Treasurer

Mr David Farquhar

Public Officer

Commodore Ian Callaway RAN [Rtd]

Members

Mr Peter Kalina

Mrs Sally Kalina

Air Commodore Frank Burt OBE RAAF [Rtd]

Ms Judy Keast

Mr Ken Bradley

Mr Bill Harrigan

Mr Tom Gissane

Mr Paul Murray

Ms. Diana Hill

ACT Government Representative

Ms. Diana Hill [Canberra Urban Parks and Places]

Returned Services League Representatives

Mr Bill Harrigan

Mr Tom Gissane

Garden Club of Australia Representatives

Mrs Judy Keast

War Widows Guild NSW Representative

Mrs Wanda Robbins

RTA Representatives

Mr Paul Murray