| Accession Number | P06162.001 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white - Print silver gelatin |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Place made | Pacific Islands: Fanning Island |
| Date made | c 1916 |
| Conflict |
First World War, 1914-1918 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
718 Able Seaman (AB) Wilfred Fowler (Fred) Macmillan posing as he loads a shell into the breech ...
Description
718 Able Seaman (AB) Wilfred Fowler (Fred) Macmillan posing as he loads a shell into the breech of a 12.5 pound naval field gun. This gun is one of a battery landed by HMAS Encounter to reinforce the Fanning Island cable station. In 1914 a raiding party from the German Cruiser Nuremberg attacked the Fanning Island cable station, cutting the Pacific telegraph cable and destroying all the machinery and instruments in the station. The cable ship Iris was despatched to repair the cable in October 1914, although the cable was probably repaired by the cable station staff before Iris arrived, and when HMAS Encounter arrived on patrol on 13 August 1915 a small garrison of RAN sailors and some field guns was landed to reinforce the cable station.