| Accession Number | P04526.001 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white - Print silver gelatin |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Date made | c 1940 |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Informal portrait of NX9816 Private (Pte) Fergus Baird, 2/1 Battalion, of Bondi, NSW who enlisted ...
Description
Informal portrait of NX9816 Private (Pte) Fergus Baird, 2/1 Battalion, of Bondi, NSW who enlisted on 4 January 1940. Pte Baird was captured defending the island of Crete against the German land and airborne invasion and was subsequently held as a prisoner of war (POW) at Stalag IVA, Germany. Pte Baird became seriously ill and after spending many months in the POW camp hospital he was released during a POW exchange and repatriated to Australia in 1944 to find he had been deserted by his wife. Pte Baird died at the home of his sister, Mrs Linda Castray of Woollahra, on 3 February 1944, aged 43 years, and is buried at Rookwood Cemetery, Sydney.