General News
31 August, 2024
Women of the Australian Red Cross - Vera Deakin OBE
Vera Deakin was the youngest daughter of prime minister Alfred Deakin.
Vera Deakin was the youngest daughter of prime minister Alfred Deakin.
At the outbreak of World War I Vera was in London with her sister Katie, shortly after, they returned to Australia where Vera joined the Australian branch of the Red Cross and completed a course in home nursing.
In 1915 she was eager to play some part in the war abroad and having contact with a friend in the Red Cross in Cairo asked if there were opportunities for war work there.
Vera reached Port Said on October 20, 1915 and the day following her arrival, she opened the Australian Wounded and Missing Inquiry Bureau.
The bureau aimed to identify, investigate and respond to enquiries made regarding the fate of Australian personnel reported missing or wounded.
It was the link between prisoners of war and their families.
Full casualty lists were maintained for each state.
When a request for information was made to the bureau, a letter was sent to the men and officers known to be nearby at the time.
This information was collated and a reply sent to the family informing of the result.
With the movement of the Australians to the Western Front in 1916, the bureau shifted its headquarters to London and continued to assist relatives who had been unsuccessful in obtaining satisfaction from the military authorities.
One example of an investigation made by the bureau involved a Gilgandra Coo-ee, Harold Baxter.
Harold was killed in action on 22 November 22, 1916 at Flers, France.
The family was notified of his death but his sister had heard more information was available from the Red Cross bureau.
She wrote to Miss Deakin in January 1916 and the bureau sent out requests to the men and officers known to be in his battalion and nearby at the time Harold was killed.
Many replies came back and Miss Deakin sent a letter to Harold’s sister providing much more information which helped her accept the death of her brother. For her work Vera was appointed OBE in 1917.
She married a young officer, Thomas White, in 1920 and became Lady White in 1952 when her husband was knighted.
Lady White remained active in the Australia Red Cross until she died in 1978.
