English: Douglas Grant, draughtsman and soldier, with his ornamental pond and Harbour Bridge, Callan Park, between 1932-1940 / photographer Sam Hood

Douglas Grant was orphaned in a tribal battle or some say, in punitive action. He had a good education and became a clever draughtsman. After working at Mort's dock he enlisted twice, because of bureaucratic rules for Aboriginal Australians and joined the 13th Battalion. He was taken prisoner at Bullecourt. He worked in several locations when he returned until the time of this photograph, when he was a clerk at Callan Park Hospital. He built the pond and bridge shown here as a war memorial to his fallen comrades. A popular member of his battalion, Grant had also impressed his German captors as a man of superior intellect; to his fellow prisoners he was aggressively Australian. His attainments included a wide knowledge of Shakespeare and poetry and considerable skill as an artist and bagpipe-player. He was an exceptional man.

Biography: For a biography of Douglas Grant see: www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A090078b.htm

Format: Photograph

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From the collection of the State Library of New South Wales www.sl.nsw.gov.au