Richard Reginald Riley Dawe or Reg as he was usually known was born at Dalton near Gunning to Theodore and Elizabeth Jane née Clarke in 1896.
At 19, he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force at Goulburn on 29 September 1915 and served in the 1st Battalion in France. He was wounded in action in August 1918 but resumed service before returning to Sydney on 14 May 1919.
At the time of his enlistment his occupation was a labourer, and at his discharge from the armed forces he became one of the original soldier settlers at Waterview in the Monteagle district.
He planted an orchard but the trees died, so he replanted again in the next year.
In 1921 he married Doris Irene Donges at Monteagle and they had two sons, Eric and Noel.
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Reg’s Independent Order of Oddfellow Manchester Unity (MUIOOF) apron is displayed at the Young Historical Museum.
By the late 19th century, the MUIOOF had a network of lodges in cities and towns across Australia providing welfare support, medical care and a sense of community to its members.
While MUIOOF membership declined after World War II with the introduction of social welfare, Manchester Unity reinvented itself as insurance company Australian Unity.
Throughout his life Reg was an active member of the Monteagle MUIOOF for instance participating and receiving a certificate at the Monteagle Oddfellows Ball in July 1924.
Reg was a steward at the 1929 Monteagle Annual Carnival where equestrian events in the ring, needlework and school exhibits were a highlight.
He was also a foundation member of Waterview Tennis Club which was formed in 1920 and played many tournaments in the 1920s and 30s.
Active as a Methodist at Grenfell, he was elected as a junior steward as well as a representative to the annual conference in Sydney in February 1942.
Besides being an orchardist, Reg produced wool from the 1930s.
During World War II, he felt compelled to enlist in the Australian Defence Force on 9 April 1941 at Orange.
At the rank of Corporal he served in the Garrison at Cowra POW Camp from 12 April 1941 to 8 December 1945.
Once discharged he returned to working the land at Waterview, only moving into the town of Young in 1970.
Doris died in February 1973 and Reg died in October the same year.
Karen Schamberger - Young Historical Society
