Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway Centre Piece

The Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway is a walking track and war memorial located in the suburb of

Concord West Concord West (also known as West Concord) is a suburb on the periphery of Sydney's inner-west, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Concord West is located 16 km west of the Sydney central business district, in the local governmen ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

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, Australia. It is located along Brays Bay on the

Parramatta River The Parramatta River is an intermediate tide-dominated, drowned valley estuary located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. With an average depth of , the Parramatta River is the main tributary of Sydney Harbour, a branch of Port Jackson. Seco ...

, and is a unique tribute to the Australian troops who fought in the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Papua-New Guinea campaign of July 1942 till December 1943. The Walkway serves as a focal point for local, state and national representatives to honour the service of those who fought in Papua New Guinea, and to ensure the service and sacrifices of those individuals (including the Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels and other Papuans who assisted the Australians) is passed on to current and future generations, particularly school children through a comprehensive schools visitation program.

History

Construction of the Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway commenced in 1994 and was designed by DM Taylor Landscape Architect Pty Ltd. The Walkway is a joint partnership between the

Concord Repatriation General Hospital Concord Repatriation General Hospital (abbreviated CRGH), commonly referred to as Concord Hospital, is a major hospital in Sydney, Australia, on Hospital Road in Concord. It is a teaching hospital of Sydney Medical School at the University of ...

, the now City of Canada Bay Council, the NSW

Returned and Services League The Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) is a support organisation for people who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force. Mission The RSL's mission is to ensure that programs are in place for the well-being, care ...

(RSL) and the Concord

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

. The Walkway was opened on 3 October 1996 by the then Minister for

Veterans' Affairs Veterans' affairs is an area of public policy concerned with relations between a government and its communities of military veterans. Some jurisdictions have a designated government agency or department, a Department of Veterans' Affairs, Minist ...

, the Hon Bruce Scott MP. On Victory in the Pacific (VP) Day 14 August 2009 the Ralph Honner Kokoda Education Centre was opened by the then Premier of NSW, the Hon. Nathan Rees. The current patron of the Walkway is His Excellency General the Honourable

David Hurley General David John Hurley, (born 26 August 1953) is an Australian former senior officer in the Australian Army who has served as the 27th governor-general of Australia since 1 July 2019. He was previously the 38th governor of New South Wales ...

AC DSC (Retd) Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia.

Description

The Walkway consists of more than 800 metres of pathway, starting from

Rhodes railway station Rhodes railway station is a heritage-listed railway station located on the Main Northern line, serving the Sydney suburbs of Rhodes and Liberty Grove both in City of Canada Bay, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is served by Sydney Train ...

. Along the Walkway visitors will see 22 information stations, each describing a significant place or engagement of the campaign together with photographs and maps which outline how the campaign was fought.

QR codes A QR code (an initialism for quick response code) is a type of matrix barcode (or two-dimensional barcode) invented in 1994 by the Japanese company Denso Wave. A barcode is a machine-readable optical label that can contain information about the ...

on each station allow visitors to supplement their knowledge through further details on the webpage for each Station. The

Ralph Honner Lieutenant Colonel Hyacinth Ralph Honner DSO, MC (17 August 1904 – 14 May 1994), known as Ralph Honner, was a distinguished Australian soldier during the Second World War. He is considered particularly notable for his leadership durin ...

Kokoda Educational Centre (named after the commanding officer of the 39th Battalion which fought in the campaign) is also located on the route of the Walkway where school students and other visitors can further study the events during the Papua-New Guinea campaign. In November 2022 a digital honour roll was launched, featuring the names of the approximately 620 Australians killed in the Kokoda campaign. The roll is permanently projected onto the windows of the Education Centre. The main entrance to the Walkway is through the Memorial Rose Garden, and features two semi-circular memorial walls amongst a bed of roses. Over 500 plaques dedicated to the memory of individuals or specific units who primarily served in the war (especially the Kokoda campaign) are mounted on the surrounding walls. The Walkway is linked to the Memorial Rose Garden by the

Bruce Kingsbury Bruce Steel Kingsbury, VC (8 January 1918 – 29 August 1942) was an Australian soldier of the Second World War. Serving initially in the Middle East, he later gained renown for his actions during the Battle of Isurava, one of many battles form ...

V.C. Path. Private Kingsbury was also commemorated in November 2022 with the unveiling of the Private Bruce Kingsbury VC Memorial Garden (and deck), which is adjacent to the Education Centre. At the centre of the Walkway is a series of

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

walls on which images of the

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

campaign have been

sandblasted Sandblasting, sometimes known as abrasive blasting, is the operation of forcibly propelling a stream of abrasive material against a surface under high pressure to smooth a rough surface, roughen a smooth surface, shape a surface or remove su ...

. This Centrepiece forms the actual memorial where commemorative events occur. A cascading waterfall alongside the granite walls also forms a part of the Centrepiece. Lush tropical vegetation environment has been planted, simulating the conditions of the original

Kokoda Track The Kokoda Track or Trail is a single-file foot thoroughfare that runs overland – in a straight line – through the Owen Stanley Range in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The track was the location of the 1942 World War II battle between Japanese ...

. Included in the Walkway grounds is an area where visitors can have refreshments, including a barbecue. The Walkway is supported by donations and volunteers from individuals, local and other community groups, numerous sub-branches of the NSW

(RSL), and financial support from Local, State and Commonwealth governments. The Friends of Kokoda program is another support program for the Walkway.

Schools and education program

A primary purpose of the Walkway is to educate current and future generations of the service of Australians in World War II, focusing on the South West Pacific, including New Guinea and the Kokoda Track campaign. The Walkway hosts over 4500 school children each year, with structured visitations where groups are accompanied by volunteer guides with extensive knowledge of the campaign. This program is supplemented by a series of educational material available for schools. On Kokoda Day 3 November 2021 a

Virtual Reality Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), educ ...

(VR) program located in the Ralph Honner Kokoda Education Centre was launched. This VR program allows students to imagine they are on the Kokoda Track, with first hand accounts and historical documentary scenes adding to the experience. An

Augmented Reality Augmented reality (AR) is an interactive experience that combines the real world and computer-generated content. The content can span multiple sensory modalities, including visual, auditory, haptic, somatosensory and olfactory. AR can be de ...

application allows the students to gain further information as they visit each of the stations along the Walkway.

Commemorative events

Each year, the Walkway hosts a number of commemorative events, all of which can be attended by members of the public. The main events are: *

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(25 April): traditionally, Anzac Day is commemorated at the Walkway prior to 25 April, allowing individuals to attend commemorative events on 25 April. * Victory in the Pacific (VP) Day (15 August): is the day on which

Imperial Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent forma ...

surrendered in

, in effect bringing the war to an end on that day. * Kokoda Day (3 November): this day is the anniversary of the raising of the Australian flag at Kokoda village in 1942, following the near completion of the brutal campaign waged since July 1942. In 2022, a special 80th anniversary event was held at the Walkway to mark this significant date. At this event, and following lobbying by the Walkway Board and supporters, the

NSW State Government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the States and territories of Australia, Australian state democratic administrative authority of New South Wales. It is currently held by a coalition of the Liberal Party o ...

announced that 3 November will be designated NSW Kokoda Day to honour those who fought in this campaign. The Walkway acknowledges

Remembrance Day Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day owing to the tradition of wearing a remembrance poppy) is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth member states since the end of the First World War to honour armed forces members who have died in t ...

(11 November) in an informal manner on the day, rather than with an organised service. Other anniversaries are commemorated in a similar manner with the laying of poppies or wreaths at the Memorial Centrepiece.

Future plans

The KTMW Board of Directors which oversees the operation of the Walkway has a number of plans to further promote the knowledge and understanding of the significance of the Kokoda campaign, as well as to enhance the experience of visitors, including: * the launching of a new website for the Walkway, with enhanced sections, including those focussing on the commemorative and educational objectives of the Walkway. * to have the Walkway gazetted as a war memorial of national significance, to reflect its ongoing commitment to commemorate the Kokoda campaign and the role it plays in educating school children about the campaign. * expanded entry points and signage at both ends of the walkway to increase awareness of the Walkway. * upgrade the CCTV equipment which will enhance visitor safety and wellbeing. This upgrade will also mitigate vandalism which has previously caused damage to the Walkway.

Gallery

File:Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway Rose Garden.jpg, Memorial Rose Garden entrance File:Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway Rose Garden Plaques.jpg, Plaques within the Memorial Rose Garden File:KTMW Centrepiece.jpg, The Walkway's Memorial Centrepiece. File:Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway Centre Piece Wall.jpg, Granite wall showing scenes from the campaign File:Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway Stream.jpg, Stream showing simulated jungle environment File:Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway Station.jpg, One of the 22 stations along the Walkway, each representing a major battle or location in the campaign File:Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway Relief.jpg, Relief plaque of

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

outlining the Kokoda Track campaign File:Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway Path.jpg, One section of the Walkway path File:KTMW Ralph Honner Educ Centre & statue.jpg, Ralph Honner Kokoda Education Centre and Fuzzy Wuzzy Angel statue File:KTMW Ralph Honner Education Centre - exterior.jpg, Private Bruce Kingsbury VC Memorial Garden with the Digital Honour Roll projected onto the Education Centre's window (right hand side) File:KTMW Ralph Honner Education Centre - interior.jpg, Interior shot - Ralph Honner Kokoda Education Centre

References

External links

Kokoda Track Memorial Walkway web site

YouTube Video showing historical footage of the Kokoda Track campaign

YouTube Video showing Kokoda Memorial Walkway

Stations along the Walkway

Pictures of Center Piece With Granite Walls

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