By Esther Lauaki
Bill Compston stumbled on a historic find while cleaning out his father-in-law’s shed last week.
The long-time Sunbury resident discovered two newspapers, well preserved in the dark shed, from the end of World War II in 1945.
Melbourne newspaper
The Sun broke news of the German surrender on Tuesday, May 8, 1945 with the headline “Unconditional surrender by Germans to all allies – War ends in Europe”.
Mr Compston also found a later edition of
The Herald, which splashed news of the Japanese surrender across its pages on Wednesday, August 15, 1945 with the headline “Peace – Japan accepts surrender”.
“We were cleaning it out and there they were in perfect condition,” Mr Compston, a member of the Sunbury Returned and Service League, said.
“I’m a member of the RSL as an affiliate for my father and father-in-law who both served.
“My father-in-law served in the later years of World War II in New Guinea.
“My wife and I were quite excited and I took the newspapers down to the RSL for everyone to have a look through. These papers aren’t going anywhere, we’re going to keep them in good condition.”
Among other treasures from his father-in-law’s shed, Mr Compston found
two Australian Commonwealth military forces Rising Sun emblems – a lapel badge and hat badge – and pilot Charles D. Pratt’s Anzac medallion from 1915 issued to returned servicemen.
