Almost 100 World War I veterans were laid to rest at the Orange Cemetery in unmarked graves, a discovery unearthed by members of the Orange sub-branch of the Returned Services League who are now working to recognise the Diggers.

Researcher Sharon Jameson has been at the forefront of the discovery, and the often sad circumstances of the passing of these soldiers, most of whom died as paupers, without family and miles from home at Bloomfield Mental Hospital.

Orange RSL president Chris Colvin said the Orange branch was now working to mark the graves and give the soldiers the recognition they deserved, with 14 already approved for a war grave.

For Mrs Jameson, the research has turned into a labour of love for people she will never know but describes as family.

Her interest started when she assisted with the Orange Regional Library staff assignment to research Orange soldiers and their involvement in the First World War as part of the 100 year anniversary of Gallipoli.

Sydney friend Margaret Nugent, found the name William Wrangham as having been buried in Orange but when no grave markings could be found, Mrs Jameson went looking.

"He's not mentioned anywhere, he's not got a headstone, he's not on any of the headstones. So I decided I would like a headstone for him," Mrs Jameson.

Mr Wrangham died in May 1921.

"He'd been there for 100 years and not been recognised," Mr Jameson said.

While Mr Wrangham died in Orange hospital, most of the occupants of the unmarked graves came via Bloomfield Mental Hospital with William White, who recently had his grave marked with a white cross, more typical of the circumstances surrounding their interment.

He was born near Albury in 1867 and at the time he enlisted, would have been about 47 but gave his age as 35, which was not uncommon.

He left Australia in October 1914 and joined the Mediterranean Expeditionary Forces at Alexandria in 1915 bound for Gallipoli. He was hospitalised in December 1915 with frost bite and then in and out of hospital with rheumatic fever, rheumatism and arthritis.

White returned to Australia in May 1916 and was granted a war pension. He died in 1945 at Bloomfield aged 78 years and more than likely penniless, and was laid to rest in the Presbyterian section of Orange cemetery. He had never married and like Mr Wrangham, his grave was lost over time.

Mrs Jameson and Mr Colvin were delighted when he was accepted by Australian War Graves on October 28 2021 for a memorial headstone and since then 13 more names have been added to that list.

Proving the soldiers in the unmarked graves are eligible for a war grave is one of the tasks entrusted to the RSL branch but Mr Colvin believes those that ended up in the cemetery via Bloomfield all deserve one.

"In those days it was shell-shock, they just came back and couldn't fit in," Mr Colvin said.

"They just popped them in [Bloomfield] and that was it. Some of them were there for 30, 40, 50 years because you can find nothing on them after they came back from the war," Mr Jameson said adding returning soldiers from across Australia frequently ended up at the Orange facility.

"When you look at their death certificate, they died at Bloomfield," Mr Colvin said.

With the help of the Forgotten Diggers organisation, the Orange branch of the RSL will continue to research the unmarked graves and the a commemorative service for the 14 granted a war grave is scheduled for November 2 this year.

Mr Jameson and Mr Colvin said they wouldn't continue to push for recognition.

"I think they need recognition for what they've done," Mr Jameson said. "They went over there, had no idea what they were getting into and when they came back they were just different.

"How many of them were fighting a war in their heads until the day they died?"

What was lost now is found ...

The list of soldiers buried at the Orange Cemetery in unmarked graves (surname, christian name, date of birth, service number, place of birth)

WAR GRAVE RECIPIENTS

AKERS Francis (Frank) 1886 1244 Cobar, BAXTER Frederick John 1892 Lieutenant Victoria, BROWNLOW George 1891 521 London England, CRUMPLER William 1888 6145 London England, LEONARD Fabian 1890 4025 Condobolin, LIPMAN Augustus Solomon 1879 13266 Newcastle, MANNING Henry Cornelius 1894 1966 Cootamundra, MITCHELL Neville Frank c1884 5123 Botany, OWEN Albert Percy 1882 263 Banbury Oxfordshire, PARKER John Oliver 1888 956A Drake NSW, SMITH Frederick John c1891 2486 Leytonstone, Essex England, STAFFORD Edwin Harold 1899 7861 Mt Kembla, WALSH Stanley 1900 3399 Penrith, WHITE Willliam 1867 447 Bungowannah, Albury, CASH James 1890 350 Orange.

IDENTIFIED SOLDIERS

ADAMS Francis Charles Somerset 1875 Captain Cooks River New South Wales, BRIERTY Frederick Alexander 1892 1552/1348 Lilydale Victoria, BROMLEY Arthur Cecil 1885 14380 Sydney New South Wales, BROWN Malcolm George 1873 2375 Tumut New South Wales, BUCHAN John Henderson 1885 20239 Edinburgh Scotland, BURGESS Thomas Oswald 1896 2544 Greeveston Tasmania, BYRNE James Robert 1876 1992 Grong Grong NSW, CAMPBELL Donald 1886 14637 Condobolin NSW, CHESTERTON Sidney Herbert 1866 1964 Reading England ,COFFEY aka EVERARD Arthur Thomas 1872 33625 Adelaide South Australia, COLLISON Reginald Hercules 1886 5057 Woolwich NSW, COMMINS Michael Joseph 1885 5234 Queanbeyan New South Wales, CORBETT Samuel Hastings c1878 4154 Staffordshire UK, COTTON Garfield Graham c1890 1561 Maryborough Qld, CUMMINGS Arthur Joseph 1894 6125/85900 Redfern New South Wales, DENAHY Daniel 1891 32128 Michelago New South Wales, DONNELLY Joseph William 1886 546 Armidale New South Wales, DUDLEY William Henry 1883 6294 Dubbo New South Wales, DUNSTER George 1864 1012 Gundagai NSW, ELLEN James Robert c1880 3759 Nairn Scotland, EVANS Rowland 1893 6786 Everton Liverpool England, FARGIE John Walter 1883 11061 Wellington NZ, FINLAYSON Kenneth 1875 84 Plockton Co Ross Scotland, FRASER Robert 1898 3373 Wyalong New South Wales, GEARY James 1869 5103 Camden New South Wales, GILLETT John William 1881 752 Peterborough England, GOLLAN Thomas 1891 58568 Gunnedah NSW GRANT Jack c1894 895 Clarence River New South Wales, GRAY Arthur Allen c1894 6305 Bathurst New South Wales.

HAIGH William Cyril 1896 4440 Leeds England, HAM William Edward John 1897 2620 Eton England, HARDY George Dunkley 1897 4444 Lincolnshire England, HEARN Thomas Joseph 1881 4952 Crookwell New South Wales, HENDERSON Leslie George 1895 5030 Cowra New South Wales, HORNER William c1874 1286 Carcoar New South Wales, HUGHES Owen David 1888 Edinburgh Scotland, JOHNS George William Kilgour 1883 6349 Sydney New South Wales, JOHNSON Ernest William 1896 3115 Enmore New South Wales, JOHNSONE William Frederick 1897 27303 Ashwood England, KEATING John 1878 7277 Ross, Hotitiki, New Zealand, KEENAN Mary 1885 sister Orange New South Wales, KELLY Christopher Joseph 1892 2459 Deloraine Tasmania, KERR Harold Oswald 1888 500 Lewis Ponds New South Wales, KIDD Herbert Edward 1882 28783 Lucknow, New South Wales, KURTZ Joseph 1876 58187 Mudgee New South Wales, LANGHAM Frederick Thomas 1894 5044 Orange New South Wales, LAST Sidney 1885 1243 Rougham Suffolk England, LAWSON John Edward 1886 3164 Balmain New South Wales, LEWINGTON John Stephen 1879 4335 Yarrawonga Vic, LOCKWOOD Charles 1876 54227 Ossett Yorkshire, MacCORMICK Arthur c1877 5199 Ballarat Victoria, MADDEN Daniel 1888 3583 Wellington New South Wales, MARSTELLA Frederick Charles 1891 1676 Tenterfield New South Wales, MAXWELL Robert 1871 6104 Glasgow Scotland, McLEAN Walter 1890 1196 Glasgow Scotland, MEEHAN Albert Horace 1890 425 Temora New South Wales, MORRIS John 1880 2846 Kilkenny Ireland, MURPHY Joseph Henry 1891 799 Glen Innes NSW, O'BRIEN George Arthur 1880 950 Wallsend Newcastle NSW, O'HEHIR Patrick John c1896 4897 Melbourne Victoria, OLSEN Ole c1889 3360 Kristianna Norway, O'REGAN Leslie George Iceton 1888 22831 Yass New South Wales, PEASLEY Frederick William 1897 Orange New South Wales, QUIST Axel Rudolph 1877 4298 Stockholm Sweden, RANKIN Cyril Roy (DCM) c1893 4138/1399 Rotorua New Zealand, REED Frederick 1878 14812 Croydon England, REID George Alexander 1882 50934 Edinburgh Scotland, ROBERTSON William Thomas Malcolm 1886 1482 Eaglehawk Victoria, SMITH Patrick George (aka Nathaniel) 1875 2557 Darlington Victoria, THORPE James 1868 4321 Carcoar New South Wales, TOMLINSON William Robert 1859 Captain Dublin Ireland, WEEKS Bernard Vernon 1886 8836 London England, WILLGREN Ivar Isidore 1882 7092 Viborg Finland, WOODBURN Walter 1888 4629 Preston Lancs England

OTHER FORCES:

BISHOP Langslow Fred 1891 Major Birmingham England 17-May-32, S DILBAR (Rahn) Affez c1898 25-Nov-60S, CLAYTON Cyril Henry Joseph 1881 Lieutenant Orange New South Wales 7-Sep-58 M, ROE Austin Ernest 1887 served NZ WW1 Aust WW2 30-Aug-56, THORNE Cecil 146183 served in British Army 2-Jun-64

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