As stars bring our past to life, ordinary Australians hit the archives to understand what their ancestors went through

IT’S the key question for so many people as we mark 100 years since WW1 began. In the search for answers, they are turning to their own history.

DRIVEN by a desire to understand what their forebears went through, a growing number of Australians are looking to learn more about their own family war history.

As the nation marks the centenary of the start of World War I, curators at the National Archives of Australia are gearing up for a surge in family requests for military service records.

To many, the records bring their ancestors’ experience closer and helps grapple with the question that dogs so many of us — how would I have coped?

The surge is likely to be pushed along by rash of new dramatised TV accounts, such as Sam Worthington vehicle Deadline Gallipoli and Anzac Girls.

NAA Anzac curator Anne-Marie Conde said demand for family war records had grown strongly, with historians and families increasingly curious about the contribution of “ordinary” individuals.

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Real events brought back to life ... a scene from Deadline Gallipoli. Picture Dylan Coker

“There’s greater confidence in Australian history as opposed to British history and a greater confidence that ordinary people have interesting lives and extraordinary stories,” Ms Conde said.

“History isn’t all about the great men and the great statesmen — history is made from below as well as from above.”

The NAA website helps families build a record and tribute of their relative’s service — of particular use is its new, interactive website “Discovering Anzacs”.

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Ms Conde predicted that April next year will be the busiest in the history of the NAA as the 100th anniversary of Gallipoli is commemorated.

The NAA has digitised more than 375,000 individual service records from World War I.

“It doesn’t fill in all the gaps,” Ms Conde said, “but it’s critical evidence that you can test to understand what that person’s experience was like and teach yourself too about the roles Australians played in war.”

Drama and reality ... Sam Worthington filming Deadline Gallipoli. Picture Dylan Coker.

Families can get a deep understanding of their loved one’s war service through a new book project called Australian War Stories, launched yesterday by Australian Associated Press.

Australian War Stories compiles a soldier’s individual war journey and tells it in a 10,000-word story. The story is published in a 96-page hardcover book, creating a permanent record of a relative’s service for families.

“We can take a name of those who served in WWI or WWII and write a comprehensive story about that individual’s wartime experience,” Australian War Stories executive editor Philip McLean said.

“Each story is individually researched and written, and then published in a beautifully crafted hardcover book.

“It is a lasting record that families can pass from generation to generation.”

The national secretary of the RSL, Mr John King, said there was a particular interest from young people in family war history, eager to know more about their relative’s service.

He said this was reflected in increased attendance of young people at Anzac Day ceremonies and parades.

“The people who are going to high school at the moment have a really keen interest, for some unknown reason, in their family history,” he said.

“Having these commemorations coming up has just reignited that interest.”

* To learn more about your family war history, visit www.australianwarstories.com.au

Originally published as As stars bring our past to life, ordinary Australians hit the archives to understand what their ancestors went through