History of Barwon Rowing Club
Chapter 5 - The Heroes of Old 1901-1919
The memorial was a broken column, symbolising a young life cut short, carved from granite and bearing a brass laurel wreath. The inscription read:
ERECTED BY MEMBERS OF BARWON ROWING CLUB IN HONOUR OF THEIR FELLOW MEMBERS WHO PAID THE SUPREME SACRIFICE IN THE CAUSE OF
HONOUR, JUSTICE AND FREEDOM IN THE GREAT WAR 1914-1918
ANDERSON A N
LASCELLES F
ALLEN W P
PAUL J C
BARNFATHER A E R
REID A
FEGAN N
STORRER C M
HUGHES H
STORRER H H
ZIMMER H
H Hughes and A N Anderson
F Lascelles and W P Allen
H H Storrer and C M Storrer
J C Paul and N Fegan
A Reid and A E R Barnfather
In Victoria, 1380 club oarsmen had enlisted, 68 of them past and present members of Barwon and 236 had died in service. The rowing writer for the Geelong Advertiser, in commenting later on the contribution of Geelong rowers to the war, said:
During the war much was made of the commentary that the war was won "on the playing fields of Eton". We in Australia substituted other words for Eton, which in our case is "the Barwon River".