Architect and veteran
Born in 1888 in Auckland, New Zealand, Keesing migrated to Australia in 1907. He was working as an architect in Sydney when he enlisted for service in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) in December 1915. Receiving the rank of Lieutenant upon enlistment, 27-year-old Keesing joined the 12th Field Engineers 4th Division. He sailed from Sydney on 9 April 1916 on board the HMAT A71 Nestor. Keesing trained in Egypt and England before being deployed to the Western Front in October 1916.
In the months shortly after the war ended, Keesing was appointed by the Commonwealth to the position of Principal Architect. It was in this role, prior to designing Gosford’s memorial, that he was involved in devising and designing war memorial schemes and monuments for key battlefield sites and significant locations representative of the Australian contribution to the war. Keesing was uniquely qualified for this position, being able to draw on both his architectural background and his experiences in the military.
Keesing’s schemes observed the architectural principles and guidelines of the Imperial War Graves Commission (IWGC) (now known as the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC)) established by Fabian Ware and Sir Frederic Kenyon in 1917. The CWGC continues to be a foundational authority for commemorating the Commonwealth’s war dead across the globe. In 1919, Keesing’s workplace was within the War Graves and Memorials section at Australia House, London. His advice was sought by all levels of government, including Prime Minister Billy Hughes, High Commissioner Andrew Fisher, and High Commissioner Secretary Allan E. Box. Also that year, Keesing was mentioned in dispatches for his architectural service and received his promotion to Captain.
The architectural memorial designs by Keesing in 1919 involved several significant schemes, including the Uniformed Australian 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Division Memorials located at victory sites on the Western Front. In quick succession, Keesing was seconded to the IWGC to devise the Gallipoli Memorial Scheme, alongside the IWGC’s renowned British Principal Architect, Sir John James Burnet. Keesing’s original designs for a National Memorial at Villers-Bretonneux and Broodseinde Ridge were later abandoned once Commonwealth finances were re-evaluated.
Following the death of his father, Keesing returned to Australia on board HMAT Wahehe in October 1919, arriving in Sydney in December, before travelling on to Auckland. By the early 1920s, Keesing had returned to Sydney and was actively working as an architect. His credits include the NSW Jewish Memorial Hall in Darlinghurst, also known as the Maccabean Hall, as well as a bronze honour roll for The Great Synagogue in Sydney. He was also elected the Honorary Architect for the NSW arm of the Returned Sailors and Soldiers Imperial League of Australia (R.S.S.I.L.A). In this role he was responsible for providing symbolic and utilitarian war memorial design advice and support to communities throughout NSW.
Gosford’s tribute to their heroes
The phenomenon of erecting Great War memorials spread throughout Australia, with this movement influencing the NSW Government to appoint a State War Memorial Advisory Board. Later named the Public Monuments Advisory Board, its function was to approve the memorial designs proposed for public sites, ensuring each memorial embodied a sacred purpose, intent, and a dignified design and character befitting of those that served King and Country.
From 1919, erecting a memorial in the waterfront town of Gosford, on the Central Coast of NSW, was a civic priority. Erina Shire Council established a Soldiers’ Memorial Committee to lead the campaign and to fulfil the expectations of the community. Public subscriptions were collected by district community groups and individuals, which was a customary approach to fundraising for civic commitments. From the start, the community’s intent was to ensure the great deeds of those who had experienced the horrors of war were not forgotten.
For several years, lengthy community discussions ensued involving, the proposed site and location for a Memorial Arch at Waterside Park, debates about symbolic or utilitarian memorials, and unsuccessful memorial proposals that were later abandoned. Community frustration grew due to delays erecting their memorial, which led the Memorial Committee to persuade Keesing to prepare a memorial scheme for Gosford.
The Gosford Times and Wyong District Advocate (21 June 1923), described Keesing’s vision, “The Memorial will stand 17ft 6in height, is to be preferably of local stone, a bronze tablet to be placed on the western face with the names of the men who ‘went West,’ whilst on the eastern side, a bronze rising sun will face the break of day.” A site next to the Boer War Memorial in Gosford Park was chosen, as was stone from the local Gosford Quarry. Keesing also included an original design in the cenotaph’s laurel wreath. It features an ivy relief pattern similar to the design he prepared to feature on the Australian Division Memorials on the Western Front.
The memorial was constructed by contractor and fellow veteran Mr Harrison, who began work in November 1923. Work progressed and on 10 April 1924, the Gosford Times reported the memorial was close to completion.
The stone work of the Memorial is nearly completed, and presents a fine appearance, whilst the bronze tablets about to be affixed are a work of art, and altogether the Committee are well satisfied with the result of their efforts to carry out the trust reposed in them by the public to erect a Memorial suitable to the noble sentiment embodied in the Cenotaph.
The Gosford Cenotaph was unveiled on the afternoon of Anzac Day, 25 April 1924 by Brigadier-General Alex Jobson in front of a large crowd, including returned soldiers, families of the fallen, Red Cross volunteers, and school children. The program of events began with church services in the morning, followed by a parade of troops, soldiers, and nurses who marched from the railway station to the park, accompanied by the Gosford band.
The service was led by the Padre in Charge, Chaplain Birch of HMAS Brisbane. In his address, he spoke strongly about the meaning behind the special day, saying “the memory of Anzac stood for honor, victory, and sacrifice” (The Gosford Times, 1 May 1924). Brigadier-General Jobson also shared messages from the King and the Prime Minister before the flags draping the memorial were released, officially marking the unveiling.
Their name liveth for evermore
The Central Coast community remembers the sacrifices made by our military personnel, and we are thankful for their committed service to our country. Their bravery, sacrifice, and strength does not go unnoticed, and we are indebted to them and the dedicated service they continue to provide to protect the nation.
Lest we forget.
Read about the 2021–2023 conservation works for the Gosford Cenotaph on the NSW Office for Veterans Affairs website.
Sources:
- 'Gosford War Memorial’ (21 June 1923). The Gosford Times and Wyong District Advocate, p. 13, retrieved 18 December 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article166822175
- ‘Group portrait of the officers and NCOs of the 12th Field Company of Australian Engineers at Watts Lines, near Nieppe’, Australian War Memorial, retrieved 15 December 2023, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/E01978
- ‘Gordon Samuel Keesing 1888 – 1972’, NSW Association of Jewish Service & Ex-Service Men & Women, retrieved 15 December 2023, https://najex.org.au/hero/gordon-samuel-keesing-1888-1972/
- ‘Gordon Samuel Keesing, The AIF Project, retrieved 18 December 2023, https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=160697
- ‘Keesing AIF Memorials’, Architecture Journal (NSW), Vol.7, No.1, 20 January 1920.
- Personal Card for Free Admission to Museums, Antiquities Excavations and National Monuments’, Papers of Gordon Samuel Keesing, 1913-1970 [manuscript], Bib ID 2624940, National Library of Australia, Canberra, ACT.
- 'Soldiers’ Memorial’ (13 November 1919). The Gosford Times and Wyong District Advocate, p. 9, retrieved 15 December 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article167216912
- ‘Their Name Shall Live for Evermore,’ (1 May 1924). The Gosford Times and Wyong District Advocate, p. 3, retrieved 18 December 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article161559275
- Thomas Trumble, CMG, CBE, Commonwealth of Australia Correspondence, pp. 126-129: NAA.A461.D370.1.15.
