Ethel Ridgway Bailey

National Archives of Australian, 2017

Ethel Ridgway Bailey was born in November 1890, in Sydney, New South Wales. She was the daughter of Charles and Adelaide Mary Bailey of Cable Station, Southport, Queensland. The Bailey family had an extensive family history of its members in both the world wars. Ethel Ridgway’s sister, Hilda M. Bailey, was born in 1893 in Petersham, New South Wales and was a nurse in World War 1. Ethel’s brother, Arthur Rofe Bailey, was born in 1887, Sydney and embarked on the 3rd of February 1916 and was given the role in 4th Infantry Battalion. Leslie Owen Bailey, Ethel’s sister, was born in 1891 in Petersham and embarked on the 19th of December 1917 and was given the role of the 1st Infantry Battalion (Australians Nurses in World War One, 2013; Australian War Memorial, 2017).

Map of New South Wales in 1890 (Pinterest, 2017)

World War 1. It was boarded with 16 officers, 21 nurses, and 92 other passengers. Around 3000 Australian nurses served as part of the Australian Army Nursing Service in 192 locations such as Egypt, England, France, Gallipoli, Italy, Burma, Salonika, Lemnos, Belgium, Germany, Greece, Turkey, Palestine, Mesopotamia as well as on 39 hospital ships (Jennifer King, 2014). Ethel Ridgway served in Egypt, London, and France. Ethel Ridgway served as a nurse for 41 months. Many of the nurses worked in British hospitals or in British army nursing units or Australian units as well as hospital ships and Australian hospitals. While overseas the Australian nurse’s treated both Australian and wounded soldiers of many nations. The nurses were faced with many challenges like poor facilities, lack of medical equipment, diseases, harsh climates and the two major problems, large numbers of wounded and traumatised patients and language barriers with some foreign patients. “Onboard hospital ships off Gallipoli, inundated by hundreds of wounded men or in the Spartan and dangerous casualty clearing stations of the Western Front, Anzac nurses worked in extraordinary conditions to save lives.” (Jennifer King, 2014) At the end, 25 nurses died from injuries or diseases while serving. 388 nurses were awarded for ‘bravery in the face of danger’ as Sister Alice Ross King (Jennifer King, 2014).

Hospital Ship ‘HMAT Karoola A63’ (The Wartime Memories Project, 2017)

Ethel Ridgway Bailey resigned in the United Kingdom because of the importance of marriage on the 14th of December 1918. She married John Bernard Francis on the 14th of December 1918 in England at the age of 29. Ethel Ridgway gave birth to Douglas John Bailey on the 11th of February 1919 in Sydney. He later went on to fight for World War II. In 1990 she gave birth to Judy and Robert Bailey in Adelaide, South Australia. Ethel Ridgway passed away at the age of 83 on the 10th of August 1971 at Randwick, New South Wales. She was buried at the Northern Suburbs Memorial Gardens, East Terrace. Ethel Ridgway Bailey will always be remembered for who she was, a caring mother, a wonderful sister, and daughter, and a healing nurse that helped save many lives during World War One (Australian Nurses in World War One, 2013; Century of World War One in Orange, 2014).

Reference List

Australian Nurses in World War 1 (2013), “Bailey, Ethel Ridgway” Australian Nurses in World War 1 http://ww1nurses.gravesecrets.net/ba.html (Accessed 04/09/2017)

Australian War Memorial (2017, “FIRST WORLD WAR EMBARKATION ROLL” Australian War Memorial https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R2003135/ (Accessed 04/09/2017)

Century of World War 1 in Orange (2014), “Australian nurses in World War I” Century of World War 1 in Orange http://www.centenaryww1orange.com.au/stories/australian-nurses-in-world-war-i/ (Accessed 20/09/2017)

Jennifer King (2014), “Diaries and letters of WWI nurses tell of the horrors and bravery of women who volunteered” ABC News http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-08-19/anzac-girls-profile-piece-**hold**/5574326 (Accessed 20/09/2017)