BAWDEN, WILLIAM AND MADGE IN GARDEN

Overview

B/W print. William and Madge Bawden sitting in the garden. William in a dark jacket, white shirt and striped tie with plus fours, long light socks with a decorated band at the top and dark shoes is sitting in a folding garden chair. Madge in a dark long sleeved frock with a white collar/scarf knotted at the neck is crouched next to him holding a curly haired dog seated in front of her. Behind them are shrubs, a high brick wall and trees.

Historical information

William Gilbert Harvey Bawden was born in Fremantle in 1897, the eldest of six children of William and Emma Bawden of 9 Hampton Road, Fremantle. He enlisted, aged 16. As a Corporal of the 44th Battalion, 11th Brigade Australian Division, Anzac Corps he was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Star of Vermeil in 1917, for his patrol work under heavy fire and for rescuing wounded workers from a factory which was being shelled. There he was blinded by a fragment of shell. After recovering from his wounds he returned to Western Australia. Realising that he needed special training to overcome his handicap he went back to England in 1921 and, like many Australian war-blinded men he was admitted to St Dunstan's. There he trained and qualified as a 'medical electrician' and chartered masseur. He established a practice in Ealing, where he remained for the rest of his life and, over a long period, gave freely of his services to several local hospitals and to Aftercare Sports (sports for those no longer staying at St Dunstan's hostel). Despite his disability he was an all round sportsman, excelling in rowing and swimming, in which he competed against a police team and the British Olympic Swimming team. In December 1922 he married Laura Mabel Jenkins (to whom he referred as 'Mab', and who his family called 'Madge') who was believed to have been his nurse. In 1925 he was elected to the Massage Advisory Committee. In early 1929 he suffered problems relating to his wounded eye and was hospitalised for a month. In April the problem recurred and he was readmitted to Greenwich Seamen's Hospital, Kent, where he died on 24 April, 1930.

Details

Details

Registration number
cwa-org-28--14-209-
Item type
Last modified
Sunday, 8 February, 2026
Completeness
83
Town of Claremont Museum

Town of Claremont Museum

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