Mendinghem Military Cemetery, 2012. Image: Wernervc — Wikimedia Commons

In June 1917 P.G Taylor received devastating news. In 1960 he made a pilgrimage back to a place long buried in his memories.

Strike-breakers at Taronga Zoo viewing the monkey enclosure, 1917. Their tents can be seen in the trees behind them. Stanley R. Beer Studio (National Library of Australia)

Sarah Laing’s letter asking after her son (AWM R149302)

Photographs of strike-breakers at Taronga Zoo and a digitised image of a letter written by a Mosman mother enquiring about her son, give us a glimpse into Australian society in the early 20^th century.

Today (21 September 2017) is the 100th anniversary of Patrick Francis Hogan being killed in action. He was a journalist who enlisted in the AIF in February 1915.

‘He attacked Huns with a ferocity he never knew he possessed’ Illustration by J.D. Carrick

Charles Kingsford-Smith became a household name between and after the wars because of his record-breaking Trans-Pacific flights with Charles Ulm and P.G.Taylor, and mysterious disappearance in 1937.

Less known are his experiences as a combat pilot in 1917, where his flying career was forged in the fires of adversity.

A digital render of Sopwith Pup A7309 flown by Taylor in June 1917. Image: Panthercules, Rise of Flight forum

2/Lt. ‘Bill’ Taylor joined 66 Squadron just before the Royal Flying Corps worst month of the war. He wrote about what is was like flying in the cockpit of a Sopwith scout, and survive his first combat experiences.