ProvenanceMade for the Semaphore Cheer-Up Society, South Australia. Many badges like this one were sold as part of fund raising attempts to support returned soldiers. The Cheer-Up Society formed in South Australia during the First World War. There were branches throughout South Australia, and a Cheer-Up Hut in Adelaide where the Festival Theatre complex is now located.
The Cheer-Up Society, made up of volunteer women workers, aimed to ‘promote and provide for the comfort, welfare and entertainment’ of soldiers and sailors. The society wished to shield soldiers from alcohol and disreputable city entertainments. At the Cheer-Up Hut, opened in 1915 west of the Adelaide City Baths on King William Road and financed by funds raised at fairs and badge days, the men could have free meals, meet friends, play billiards and enjoy concerts. Departing troops were given great farewells. Food and money were donated by the society’s 10 000 members, particularly from country branches. The Burra Cheer-Up Girls’ Band raised funds and the Murray Bridge Cheer-Ups met troop trains with refreshments.SignificanceThis and other associated badges are a rich source of evidence on the material and cultural history of fundraising between the two World Wars in Australia. The symbols, colours and mottoes used on the badges themselves also express ideas about the values and identity that Australians held in the early to mid-twentieth century, particularly following the experience of the First World War.DescriptionCircular badge, concentric bands of gold and blue encircle a white background on which a wreath is depicted. The wreath encloses a marking 'Welcome Home'. The blue band is marked 'Semaphore Cheer-up Society'. Printed paper between a tin base and a celluloid cover.Creator (person)Creator (organisation)AcknowledgementKeywordsbadgeswartime badgescharity badgesfundraisingCheer Up SocietyDate of Creation1918Date of Usage1918Materialtin
|paper
|celluloid Accession NumberHT 1985.1928
