100 years on, a small town remembers the men who never returned

Dawn breaks on Sunday morning over the war memorial at the top of the Sheridan Street in Gundagai, 100 years after the armistice that ended the first world war. Photograph: Mike Bowers for the Guardian

The ceremony at Gundagai, every 11th of November, takes place among the sporting fields. It is something that Jim Sharman thinks about a lot.

Sharman, the president of the Gundagai RSL, is in charge of organising the ceremony every year, but Sunday’s 100th anniversary of the armistice gives it a special significance.

Returned servicemen wait for the ceremony to begin in Gundagai. Photograph: Mike Bowers for the Guardian

Local historian Lena Elphick says the New South Wales town has a strong connection to the war. A lot of families sent a lot of their children off, and lost many. In the grove where they hold the ceremony, they planted 52 kurrajong trees, each with the name of a soldier who was killed in action.

Floral tributes left at the war memorial in Gundagai. Photograph: Mike Bowers for the Guardian

“It goes to show the kind of commitment that the people of Gundagai had,” says Elphick. “More than 78 men died in the first world war, who were either born in Gundagai or had connections in other ways.

Related: 'Hard to believe it's a century': Australians fall silent to mark end of world war one

“Five brothers of the Oliver family for instance, all fought. Two brothers were wounded in Gallipoli and went to fight in France, where the other three brothers joined them.”

Another family, the Elliots, served in the war and returned to help set up the RSL.

Veterans watch on as the ceremony gets under way. Photograph: Mike Bowers for the Guardian

It’s a long-standing tradition – Gundagai has hosted a ceremony every year since the 1920s – and also remembers the second world war, Korea, Vietnam and Afghanistan. School captains from the local school usually speak, and sometimes the mayor.

The light horse re-enactment honour guard arrive for the service in Gundagai. Photograph: Mike Bowers for the Guardian

In a small town, Sharman notices that family is a strong theme.

“I can see the expressions on people’s faces as the service is conducted. Those people are remembering - thinking of family, thinking of in some cases long-dead relatives, close relatives,” he says.

The names of men who served are inscribed on the walls of the war memorial. Photograph: Mike Bowers for the Guardian

“When we come to things like Afghanistan, it’s of great significance to them. It is carried out in a very reverent way. It gives people the opportunity to remember back, and for those who are grieving, to grieve for recent relatives lost.

“I always find it interesting that we have the commemoration right in the middle of the sporting fields of Gundagai. Those things that they will no longer be able to participate in. That’s a sacrifice that they made. But when you see the activity around you think ‘Yeah, well that’s a bit of what it was for.’”