Colleen Hurley and Iris Paulson discussed their grandfather’s service with the 4th and 11th Light Horse during World War 1. Private Frank Fisher enlisted in 1917, and served in the Middle East. Frank was born in Claremont in Queensland and lived on the Cherbourg Mission, working there as a stockman before enlistment, and as a mediator after returning in 1919, with a limp that his family attribute to wounding in the war. Frank died aged 56 in 1936, and his family express a great deal of pride in his war time service and have done some of their own research in Brisbane and Canberra on the details of his service. Also discussed in the interview briefly are cousin Cecil Fisher who served in the Korean War, and Colleen Hurley’s father in law Archie Driscoll, who served with the Army at Tobruk in World War 2.

This interview took place on 31 March 2014 in Brisbane and was conducted by Professor Mick Dodson with Craig Greene as part of the Australian Research Council-funded research project Serving our Country: a history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the defence of Australia. Also present at this interview was Graham Paulson.

The interview recording above is made available to be viewed here by permission of the interviewee(s), Colleen Hurley and Iris Paulson. The recording may not be copied, reproduced or communicated in whole or in part without the prior permission of the interviewee(s). Requests for permission for use of this material should be made to the Serving our Country research project: our contact details.

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