Author: Vanessa Kwa

Public History Final Designs: “They Answered Their Country’s Call”

For my HSTY3811 project this semester, I worked with the City of Canada Bay Museum, making a series of posters and a pamphlet for their “They Answered Their Country’s Call” collection. This consists of over 1600 biographies of local WWI veterans, and the museum wanted a way to share the collection with the public in an accessible and interesting format. The 1.4mx0.8m posters are of four people, one for each poster. It features a picture of the person, linking the local history to a visual that people can relate to. The poster also has information on how to learn more about the collection. I received full creative control over these posters, something I’m incredibly grateful for. However, I did my very best at each stage to ask and implement feedback from the volunteer staff, as this is as much their project as it is mine. 

This is something that supports the local community. The museum, their main reasoning behind the collection was to have an ongoing archive of local WWI veterans. This means that not only do the posters relate to local people’s own relatives, but if someone wanted to add their own relative to the collection, they could do so. Each poster has a QR code that links to a website about the collection. Whilst the website needs to be refined and a few more conversations need to be had between relevant organisations, it will hopefully result in a website with some further access to the collection and a way to contact the museum to contribute a person’s own relatives. The posters will be placed in 4 locations, rotating between to switch up the person featured. They were created in a standard format as well, meaning if more posters were to be made, they would be added to the existing group of posters. Whilst this has not happened yet, since the posters and pamphlets have not been made, this is the hope for the project. 

The general theme of the posters is a vintage but colourful style. There is a paper-like texture to the posters, adding a more ‘authentic’ feel. Each person has a different background, representing where they served, e.g. Army = green background. This is a nice tie into the people’s positions and the ways they served in WWI. The other colours were chosen because they stand out from their respective backgrounds. Yellow and red were used in three of the posters, representing the poppies and the gold medals some received for their service. Blue was used in the fourth poster to represent the Australian flag and the seas travelled by these people. Each poster includes where the person served and also how they are linked to their local community. The names of each person are on a ribbon banner, similar to banners used in local honour boards. The fonts chosen can be seen as a modern twist on older poster fonts. 

The pamphlet has a summary of the lives of each of the four people, giving more in-depth information about their personal lives and service to their country. It also lets people know that they can add to the collection if they wish. The pamphlet also includes the QR code and 4 locations featured on the posters. Additionally, it has a set of contact information specific to the City of Canada Bay Museum and Heritage Society, some of the people who are now in charge of the project. These pamphlets will be kept near the posters if people want more information but also can be brought to other locations where the posters aren’t being featured. This gives the project a larger reach since the City of Canada Bay is a large area. 

Finally, as a volunteer at the Museum, I also helped contribute to their monthly newsletter, Nurungi. This is released both online and in hard copies and is distributed to members signed up with their email addresses. I helped to edit and find sources for one September article written by the previous secretary, who had been working in the City of Canada Bay Heritage Society for over 50 years. The article was on the history of fireplace tools, such as tongs and pokers. This is because the museum does have a set of tools that joined the collection. Each month, articles are based on either new items or displays that the museum has made, or relevant events and anniversaries – for example, for October, the museum had an article on Halloween’s history and presence in the local community. 

Throughout this process, I had weekly in-person meetings with the museum staff and assisted in other ways. This was to build a connection with the local community since most staff members come from the area. Whilst these people are all volunteers, they were incredibly dedicated to their work and ensuring that this project progressed regularly. These meetings were also to get details on what needed to be on the posters and pamphlet and to get feedback on the progress, aesthetics and elements of the posters and pamphlet. The feedback, advice and relevant details were incredibly beneficial to create a final design that was suitable for the wider community, especially older members of the community. Since I happen to be a younger person, my design and technology skills were more appropriate compared to the museum staff. However, their expertise on what stood out to them in my designs was greatly appreciated, as it sometimes ended up quite different to what I thought was visually better. 

Overall, I’m very proud of what I’ve managed to create for this semester-long project. The final designs have been through many changes and we have collectively come to the best design and format. In future, a project like this would benefit from seeing how effective this collection turns out to be, possibly through questionnaires or surveys about the collection. I will be in communication with the museum beyond this semester, not only to assist with making these posters and pamphlets a reality but also because I enjoyed volunteering with them.

Public History Drafts: “They Answered Their Country’s Call”

In Week 4 of this semester, I was still thinking about possible organisations to work with. On a Saturday, my dad found that near our old house, they had turned the old library into a small museum, and suggested we check it out. There, in the City of Canada Bay Museum, I had an incredible opportunity to join an existing project the museum had ready – thus began my work.

The City of Canada Bay Museum is a small museum that first opened in 2009 at its current premises, housing a collection of over three and a half thousand items significant to the local community. For example, they have one of the original Victa Lawn Mowers, which Mervyn Victor Richardson invented in his Concord backyard. The museum also has a host of Arnott’s memorabilia, as Arnott’s also has a history in the area and is currently based in North Strathfield. The City of Canada Bay Heritage Society also manages the Yaralla Estate, the home of Eadith Walker.

With a grant given to the City of Canada Bay Heritage Society, a past museum member created over 1600 biographies of World War 1 veterans from the Canada Bay area – this project was called “they answered their country’s call.” It became a ‘virtual memorial’, a large digital collection of unique individual histories directly related to the local community’s families. However, their issue arose when trying to share these with the community. The project I have been working on is a series of posters that can publicise and direct people to the virtual memorial, allowing the community to find their ancestors and see the tangible history of their community.

Over the last few months, I have started volunteering and working with the City of Canada Bay Museum on Saturdays. I have helped to plan and create many drafts of the possible posters. The current plan is to create four different posters for four locations: Five Dock Library, Concord Library, Five Dock RSL, and a travelling poster that will be used in markets, schools and other opportunities. Each poster will feature a different person’s biography and a photo of the person. Below are some of the drafts I’ve designed with the key elements of the poster – the title, “They answered their country’s call”, the subheading, “More than a name”, the four future locations of the posters, a QR code that will link to a website and/or directory, the person’s face, name and details, and a reference to the City of Canada Bay Heritage Society. (Note: in place of the actual people, I have used an image of myself. This will not be the final image used – I don’t think I’m Gertrude, and it is probably incorrect to make people think I am Gertrude.)

This is an image of a poster. The poster reads as follows: In dark navy blue text, "They answered their country's call. More than a name." Below, an image of Vanessa sits to the right of the words, "Matron Gertrude Moberly RCC. Army. Royal Red Cross, 1st Class." Underneath in yellow is: "Do you have an ancestor from WWI? Find out more at:" Underneath, a QR code sits to the left of, "City of Canada Bay Museum, Five Dock Library, Concord Library, Five Dock RSL" in dark navy blue. At the bottom of the poster, in dark navy blue, is: "In association with the City of Canada Bay Heritage Society." The background of the poster is a dull green colour with a paper-like texture. There is a small decorative yellow piece on each corner of the poster, acting as a border. A small red poppy is in the top left corner of the image of Vanessa. The full image is covered with the word 'draft' repeated as a watermark.
This is the first draft I made of the poster on the 24th of August using Canva.
This is an image of a poster. The poster reads as follows: In red text, "Do you have an ancestor from WWI?" Below, to the left in dark green text, "Find out more: Five Dock Library, Concord Library, Five Dock RSL, City of Canada Bay Museum." Besides this is a QR code. Below, in green, the words "More than a name" curve over the top and around the head of Vanessa. The image of Vanessa takes up the bottom 60% of the poster. Directly below Vanessa's face reads "Matron Gertrude Moberly RCC. Army. Royal Red Cross, 1st Class" in white. On either side of these words are a single light red poppy. The words "They answered their country's call" are in yellow. At the bottom of the poster, in white, is: "In association with the City of Canada Bay Heritage Society." The background of the poster is grey. There are green swirls that create a large border around the whole poster. The full image is covered with the word 'draft' repeated as a watermark.
This is another draft I made of the poster on the 24th of August using Canva.
This is an image of a poster. The poster reads as follows: In pale green text, "They answered their country's call. More than a name." Below, in red, is: "Do you have an ancestor from WWI?" The text is on a small grey background. Below is an image of Vanessa with a small light red poppy in the top right corner. Underneath are the words "Matron Gertrude Moberly RCC" on a grey ribbon banner. Below are the words "Army" in pale green, and "Royal Red Cross, 1st Class" in white. Underneath is: "Find out more." This is white text on a small red background. Below this is: " Five Dock Library, Concord Library, Five Dock RSL, City of Canada Bay Museum" in red. To the right of the text is a QR code. At the bottom of the poster, in yellow, is: "In association with the City of Canada Bay Heritage Society." The background of the poster is a dark navy blue. There are small, thin, curved red lines that make a border around the entire poster. The full image is covered with the word 'draft' repeated as a watermark.
This is a later draft I made of the poster on the 31st of August using Canva.
This is an image of a poster. The poster reads as follows: In pale green text, "They answered their country's call. More than a name." Below, in yellow, is: "Do you have an ancestor from WWI?" Beneath is "Find out more" in white on a small red background, followed by "Five Dock Library, Concord Library, Five Dock RSL, City of Canada Bay Museum" in white. To the right of the text is a QR code. Below is an image of Vanessa with a black border and a small red poppy in the top right corner. Underneath are the words "Matron Gertrude Moberly RCC" on a curved grey ribbon banner. Below are the words "Army, Nursing" in white, a thin white line, and "Thomas Walker Convalescent Hospital Matron, Concord" in white. At the bottom of the poster, in yellow, is: "In association with the City of Canada Bay Heritage Society." The background of the poster is a muted green with a paper-like texture. There are small, yellow branches with small green leaves that form a small border around the entire poster. The full image is covered with the word 'draft' repeated as a watermark.
This is the most recent draft I made of the poster on the 21st of September using Canva.

I’ve also been able to assist in other ways. The museum itself is fully run by volunteers who come in twice a week to handle any and all requests by the council, schools, libraries, RSL clubs, and members of the public. These people are constantly working from 10am-4pm each day they come, speaking to people who walk in wanting information on their families, handling many new items donated to their collection, and numerous administrative activities. I’ve therefore gotten some opportunities to help out elsewhere. For example, last week I helped to edit an article going into the next edition of their Monthly Newsletter, Nurungi. It was a really cool opportunity to see what else the museum and heritage society has been doing in terms of public history and community engagement.

Over the last few months, it has been an absolute pleasure to see how these people work and help them via this project and in other ways. I have absolutely loved getting to work with these people through this course and am looking forward to further developing these posters for the community.

For more information about the museum or heritage society, check out the following links

https://www.canadabay.nsw.gov.au/lifestyle/arts-and-culture/city-of-canada-bay-museum

https://canadabayheritage.asn.au/