A WWI uniform donated to Hawkesbury Regional Museum by the Paine family of Windsor is being restored using a $4,416 grant from the Commonwealth Government’s Department of Veterans’ Affairs, under the Armistice Centenary Grant funding program.
The donated items belonged to Brigadier General John Jackson (J.J.) Paine, grandfather of the late John Paine.
Rebecca Turnbull, curator at the museum, said preventative conservation treatment would allow the uniform and related items to be used for research and exhibitions.
“This conservation will allow the stories and experiences of Hawkesbury soldiers, who participated in the Great War, to be shared with future generations,” she said.
Christine Paine, wife of John Paine, said her late husband would have been “pleased as punch” to see his grandfather’s items honoured in this way, and that they belonged to the community now.
“This would have been John’s wish and we had spoken about doing it for some time, but just hasn’t got around to it during his life,” Mrs Paine said.
“The uniform and other items have been in our house ever since I moved there, 30 years ago, in a big old leather trunk that has Brigadier General J.J. Paine printed on the outside.
“They were just part of the house and my daughter Jess as a little girl used to wear them as dress-ups. She even wore them to Book Week one year at Windsor Primary!”
Brigadier General J.J. Paine is a significant figure in the history of the Hawkesbury, with the Paine family firm of solicitors being the longest-running law firm in Australia, commencing in Windsor in 1828.
He was also Mayor of Windsor for eight years, a trustee of the Hawkesbury Benevolent Society and Hospital, President of the Hawkesbury District Agricultural Association and a prominent Mason.
In 1914 when the Great War broke out, Brigadier General J. J. Paine volunteered for service. He was despatched to command 2,700 troops on the Ceramic, the largest troopship that left Australian shores.
A further command of 2,200 troops on the Euripides brought him in touch with the ANZAC Mounted Division then operating in Egypt, Sinai and Palestine.
He was awarded the rank of full Colonel, then the rank of Brigadier-General. He held the 1915 Star, the General Service and Victory Medals and the Victoria Decoration. Brigadier-General Paine died aged 72 years at his home, Sunny Brae, in Windsor.
The Armistice Centenary Grants Program provided funds to every electorate in Australia for communities to mark the centenary of the Armistice, and the local grant was handed officially to the museum by Macquarie MP Susan Templeman.
“Until now, the fragility of the material in the uniform meant that it was too delicate to have on display, but I look forward to seeing it restored and on show,” Ms Templeman said.
“The generosity of the Paine family means that not only uniforms and military equipment, but also letters and postcards from Egypt and elsewhere that were sent home to Windsor will help tell the broader story of the Hawkesbury’s role in WWI.”
Mrs Paine said: “I’m very grateful to both the museum and Susan Templeman for making the money available to have these items restored so they can be on display forever at the museum.”
The items will be on display at the museum once the restoration work is complete.