The Lone Pine at Wattle Park- Setting the Record Straight
By Sonia Prasel
This article was a Finalist in the Historical category of the 2007 Community Newspaper Assoc. of Victoria awards.
It was only recently that I learned our very own Wattle Park, right here in Burwood, was home to a Lone Pine. In fact it wasn’t just home to any old ‘Lone Pine’, but it was the very first Lone Pine planted in Victoria (and possibly Australia) which was propagated from a cone brought home from Gallipoli after WWI.
Lone Pine Wattle Park stands unassumingly opposite the Wattle Park Chalet and next to the stone clock. It is fenced off by a metal barrier which protects its roots and it displays three small plaques which commemorate the importance of it.
There are very few Australians who would not know of the heroism of the ANZACS in Gallipoli including the battle of Lone Pine. To briefly refresh your memory on Lone Pine, I believe the story goes something like this…At 5.30pm on 6 August 1915, Australians broke lines under heavy fire to attack the Turkish trenches. The trenches were concealed by pine logs and covered with surrounding soil. The ANZACS were able to break through this cover and enter the Turkish trenches. By 6pm, after savage hand-to-hand combat, the Australians took the trenches. The fighting at Lone Pine continued until 10 August 1915 when it finally ceased. By this time, the position was held strongly in Australian hands. The battle of Lone Pine, or Plateau 400 as it was also known to the ANZACS, saw 2197 soldiers and 80 officers lose their lives. 5000 to 6000 Turkish lives were also lost in the same battle. The original solitary pine, which also stood at this site, was another casualty of the War. It too failed to survive the battle and was eventually replaced.
During the time that this battle occurred, one young soldier by the name of Private Thomas Keith McDowell took the time to pick up a cone from the Pine at Plateau 400. He placed that pine cone in his bag as a souvenir. He probably never knew it at the time, but he was carrying the cone of the Pinus Halepensis species Brutia which was commonly known as the Aleppo Pine. He held on to that cone and carried it in his bag until his return to Australia late in1916.
On 14 January 1915, Thomas McDowell (or Keith as he was known to his family and friends) was working as a miner in the Victorian town of Wonthaggi, when he enlisted as a Private with the 23rd Battalion AIF. On 8 May 1915, Private McDowell, along with members of the 23rd and 24th Battalion AIF, sailed to Gallipoli on the boat, the Euripides. Private McDowell served for 17 weeks in Gallipoli, but suffered great illness and saw no further action afterwards.
Upon Private McDowell’s return home, the lone pine cone lay idle in his possession for 13 years. He then gave it to his wife’s aunt, Emma Gray who was said to have a green thumb. It was at her residence, ‘The Sisters” near Terang in Victoria that she began the birth of the Lone Pine movement by planting the first seeds. Five young seedlings were propagated in flower pots from the cone, however, only four survived. It was still a pretty good strike-rate considering the difficulty in growing them.
The seedlings were eventually handed over to the military and all were planted under full military honour. The first of the seedlings was planted by the Mayor of Camberwell, Cr. J.H. Nettleton and the Mayor of Box Hill, Cr. J.K. Archer at Wattle Park on Sunday 7 May 1933. The planting followed a Trooping of the Colour ceremony which was attended by a few thousand people. It was a grand event. Following this ceremony, the three remaining seedlings were planted at the Shrine of Remembrance on 11 June 1933, The Sisters 18 June 1933 and at the Warrnambool Royal Botanic Gardens on 21 January 1934.Unfortunately in April, 2006, the Wattle Park Lone Pine suffered some damage during a storm. It is now an old tree and botanists are struggling to help it survive. The eventual replacement of the tree seems imminent and the tree is currently under ‘cautious review’.
Upon Private McDowell’s return to Australia he remained in the AIF and in light of his service at Gallipoli, he was given a job as a guard. It was during this time that the rank of Sergeant was conferred on him, which is a title that is rightly bestowed upon him until today. He remained as a guard with the AIF until his discharge in 1919 after a long battle with his illnesses. Ill health was cited as the reason for his discharge. He passed away in 1977, aged 88.
If not for this man, there may never have been a Lone Pine at Wattle Park. If you are able to visit Wattle Park and the Lone Pine located there, maybe you can take a moment to spare him a thought.
N.B. The author would like to thank Edna Shaw whose tireless research supplied the information for this article.
