The memory of the March of the Dungarees will be forever kept alive with Southern Downs Regional Council commencing work on a new memorial at Warwick’s historic Leslie Park. Taddio Building Group is undertaking the works on the Dungaree Memorial, which is set to open in early 2019. The March of the Dungarees departed Warwick for Brisbane in 1915 and during World War I was the only recruiting march to occur in Queensland.

Southern Downs Deputy Mayor Jo McNally who has long advocated for the memorial said she is thrilled to see the project is finally underway. “The Dungaree Memorial has been more than five years in the making and is a special project that honours our region’s unique history,” she said. Jo said the memorial commemorates an important part of history for not only the Southern Downs but Queensland. “Some of the young men from around the region left Warwick that day in 1915 and never returned. This memorial helps us remember their sacrifice and keeps our history alive.”

Councillor for Events, Sport, Parks and Recreation, Yve Stocks said the memorial will tell the story of the March of the Dungarees and will add to the region’s rich ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day commemorations. “The march left Warwick with 28 men and by the time it reached Brisbane that number had grown to 125 men wanting to enlist,” Yve said. “This memorial is an important piece of our war time narrative.”

Local Government Minister Stirling Hinchliffe applauded SDRC for beginning the works on the project. “The Dungaree Memorial Space is a wonderful initiative to keep the memory of these brave men alive,” Stirling said. “It is the kind of project the Works for Queensland program is designed to deliver and shows what can be achieved when our two levels of government work together.”
Our readers also enjoyed this story about the Motor Club Grant.