Good morning list Just a general observation on the Dreadnought boys. I spent most of my working life with NSW Agriculture, starting in 1961 as a livestock research officer at the then Wollongbar Agricultural Research Station between Lismore and Ballina on the far North Coast of NSW. For the first 8 years of my location at Wollongbar my office was in the top floor of a two storey wooden building which had been originally constructed early in the 1900's to house students being trained for employment in the dairy industry. I recall that it was not uncommon for the farm manager to receive visits from elderly men who had come out from the UK under the "Dreadnought" scheme and had trained at Wollongbar. They were interested in being shown their old bedrooms which at the time of my service at Wollongbar were being used as offices. I was told during my early years at Wollongbar that another wooden building had been demolished earlier. It had accommodated the cooking and dining facilities. In the farm store there were very large linen table cloths which had covered the dining tables; one of which was still in service in the early 1960s as a table for separating species in plant samples taken by agronomists in their pasture research. An outline of the events leading to the provision of facilities which were later used for training in the Dreadnought scheme is taken from: "In the Service of Agriculture - a Centennial history of the New South Wales Department of Agriculture 1890 - 1990". P J Mylrea. Published by the New South Wales Department of Agriculture 1990. Page 11: "The concept of Farm Schools became a reality with the first intakes of students at Wagga and Bathurst Experiment Farms in the mid-1890s and at Wollongbar and Berry in the early 1900s. At these schools 'the curriculum is essentially of a practical nature'. . Page 15: "In addition to the Farm Schools already established, two 'Apprentice schools' were established at Grafton and Cowra Experiment Farms in 1911, but 'we do not find that the local lads show a keen desire to avail themselves of the opportunities afforded by these schools of primary grade'. The dearth of students at many of the schools (Wollongbar, Grafton, Glen Innes, Cowra) for many years was overcome by the training of boys under the Dreadnought Farms Scheme. This scheme had a naval origin: 'In 1909 when the question of naval defences was being very keenly debated in Australia and New Zealand the citizens of New South Wales voluntarily subscribed 90,000 pounds towards providing a Dreadnought (battleship) for the Royal Navy.' A dreadnought was not built, but half of the money was given to a Trust which had the aim that 'worthy British boys can be received, taught and boarded free for six months or a year, and distributed to the farmers of the State'. The scheme was put into operation and many boys passed through the departmental farms. The scheme ceased in about 1939, but by 1929 5488 boys had arrived in New South Wales." Page 17: Caption of a photo (no names unfortunately) "Dreadnought Farm Scheme boys from Great Britain at Wollongbar Experiment Farm in 1922" In listing his sources Peter Mylrea used the following for the Dreadnought Scheme: A G Scholes Education for Empire Settlement London, Longman & Green. 1932. p.64 Annual Report NSW Department of Agriculture 1908. p. 6 When I returned to Wollongbar after post-graduate studies in Canada in 1971 a new research building had been completed at Wollongbar and I remember seeing the lovely old wooden building being demolished. The site is now under more recently constructed administration buildings. A painting of the old building was commissioned before demolition and was hung in the corridor outside the tea room of the Research building. I hope the above provides leads for further research. Many Australian families would have an ancestor who came to New South Wales under the Dreadnought scheme. Maybe there is an opportunity for a special interest group. Regards Bryson Wilson in leafy Pennant Hills Joe Bissett wrote: > Hi Listers, > > Can anyone point me to genealogical information concerning the Drednought > Boys immigration program to New South Wales? I'm particularly interested > in a group of approximately 350 boys who left England, possibly the Dover > area, in early 1914. > > I would also be interested in any shipping information, especially a > continuation voyage from NSW to Melbourne. My GF Frederick Edward PIGGOTT > chaparoned this group, but ended up in the 51st Regiment (reserve) in > Albertville, Melbourne by June 1914. He was discharged from the Royal > Garrison Artillery on 7 January 1914 and then spent an unknown amount of > time in Dover prior to leaving for Australia. > > Thanks for any help, Joe > > ==== AUSTRALIA Mailing List ==== > Australian Prisoners of War > http://www.southernx.com.au/pow.html > > ============================== > Search over 600 million names at Ancestry.com! > http://www.ancestry.com/search