The Battle of Broken Hill refers to an incident occurring when two muslin “Ghans” fired on a Picnic Train killing four people and wounding seven others. The men apparently believed they were fighting a holy war under the orders of the Turkish Sultan.
The killings occurred on Friday morning 1st January 1915 and are considered the only action against an enemy on Australian soil during WW1.
The picnic train was carrying 1200 residents from Broken Hill to Silverton in open carriages in a New Year’s celebration, organised by the Manchester Unity Independent Order of the Oddfellows. It departed Sulphide Street Station at approximately 10.00 am carrying passengers of all ages in open ore trucks fitted with temporary benches. As the train travelled through the outskirts of Broken Hill several passengers noticed a white ice cream cart bearing a Ottoman (Turkish) flag with two men crouched nearby. The two gunmen had concealed themselves in a trench about 50 yards from the rail line and fired upon the train.
Once the attack was reported, the local Police Inspector (Miller) mobilised the police and then contacted Lieutenant Resch of the local Military (82nd Infantry) to organise a response.
In addition, armed members of the public including several rifle club members became involved in the pursuit, Mr Avery (Club Captain), F.C Elvidge and R.D. Morton were members of the Silverton Tramway Rifle Club.
The gunmen—later identified as Gool Badsha Muhammad and Mullah Abdullah—fled the scene on foot, still armed. Around 10:50 am, police were joined by Lieutenant Resch and armed soldiers from a nearby army training camp. Two cars of armed men responded, although one vehicle later broke down during the pursuit.
On their way back toward their camp, the gunmen shot 70-year-old tinsmith Thomas Campbell in the stomach. Meanwhile, the police and militia, joined by local rifle club members, spotted the fugitives north of the West Camel Camp and engaged them near a quartz outcrop known as Cable Hill.
The two gunmen fired on their pursuers from their rocky position. A local labourer, 69-year-old James Craig, who had refused to leave his front yard despite warnings, was shot in the hip and later died from his injuries.
The final confrontation lasted until around 1:00 pm, with the police and militia pouring fire into the rocky ridge. As the gunmen’s position was overrun, Mullah Abdullah was found dead at the scene. Gool Muhammad was gravely wounded with multiple gunshot wounds to his chest, limbs and hands. He died shortly after from shock and blood loss. Constable Robert Mills of the police force sustained two gunshot wounds during the engagement but survived.
Following the shootout, the two gunmen’s bodies were quietly buried by authorities beneath a building used for storing mining explosives. The local Muslim community refused to allow burial in consecrated ground. Abdullah and Muhammad were Muslin men but their nationality has been debated with Police records identifying one as a Turk, Afghan or Afridi while the other as an Indian.
That same evening, news of the attack spread rapidly through Broken Hill. In retaliation, a mob gathered and set fire to the Broken Hill German Club on the corner of Oxide and Sulphide Streets. Authorities, fearing further violence, deployed police and soldiers to protect the North Camel Camp, where other cameleers resided. The show of force was sufficient to hold back the crowd, and no further violence occurred.
By the end of the day, three civilians were dead, several more wounded, and Broken Hill had been rocked by a shocking and violent incident that would remain seared into local memory for decades.
Several editions of various newspapers reported the rifle club member’s involvement.
SILVERTON TRAMWAY MEN IN PURSUIT[2].
Mr Avery (captain of the United Tramways Rifle Club) was, on the morning of the New Year’s Day tragedy, at the city telegraph office, when Guard W. T. Elsegood telephoned, from the company’s dam giving the information of the attack on the train, and on being communicated with, immediately returned to the railway station. There he found that the general manager (Mr. C. Eley) had already left for the scene with as many armed men as could be immediately obtained. A motor car arriving at the station, Captain Avery, together with Mr. R. D. Morton (United Tramway Rifle Club) and a member of the militia (name unknown) asked the driver to take them to the train. The driver took the party out at full speed, and on arrival at the train, finding that the murderers had gone facing in a Westerly direction, decided to follow them on foot across country. The three men spread well out and kept on until close to Mr. Bryant’s house, where they met Inspector Miller and a party of police. Captain Avery and Mr. Morton accompanied the inspector to a house above where Sergeant Dimond and other police were firing at the enemy. After trying several shots and finding that the target was mostly rocks, the inspector suggested that two men should go down to where Sergeant Dimond was, and that he would push on with men to get round the rear of the hill from where the shots were coming from. Mr. Morton, followed by Captain Avery, ran down to where Sergeant Dimond and men were posted on the verandah of a stone house near a dam. After staying there for some time, the two riflemen, finding little to shoot at, started to make for the rocks behind which the enemy was concealed. At the time of the final rush, Mr. Morton was within 25 yards of the rocks; his coolness and pluck all through being admirable. On mounting the summit of the rocks, another member of the United Tramway Rifle Club (Mr. F. C. Elvidge) was discovered to have been ensconced on the far side of the rock, and he had been not only exposed to the fire of the outlaws, but also to that of the men firing from the town side of the rocks. He also ran the risk of being fired at by some of the first arrivals who mistook him for a third enemy until they were informed that he was one of the attackers. Mr. Elvidge had to dig himself in with his hands and toes owing to lying in the sand in full view of the two men. Mr. Morton holds the record of being the best shot of the district (Barrier) for last year’s musketry course, having made a total of 183 out of a possible 190 marks. He also holds the handsome championship shield annually competed for by the United Tramways Rifle Club.
Other articles[3] of the time suggest most of the reinforcements were past or present[4] Rifle Club members. Other rifle clubs[5] in Broken Hill were, the Broken Hill Rifle Club and the West Broken Hill Rifle Club. No details of the participation of their members has been found however some may have participated as part of the local militia unit.
Further Reading:
THE NEW YEAR’S DAY TRAGEDY.[7]
FURTHER PARTICULARS.
MILITARY IN ACTION. 82ND INFANTRY RESPOND TO THE CALL.
CHARGES OVER THE HILLS.
HOW ONE OF THE TURKS DIED.
LOCAL DOCTOR’S VERSION[8].
An eyewitness account from Dr J. F. Bartley, who was in the scene at the time attack occurred.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Broken_Hill#/media/File:Manchester_Unity_Picnic_train_1907.jpg
[2] https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/166254284?searchTerm=broken%20hill%20rifle%20club
[3] https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/59121394?searchTerm=broken%20hill%20rifle%20club
[4] https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/15547745?searchTerm=broken%20hill%20rifle%20club
[5] https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/154938362?searchTerm=broken%20hill%20rifle%20club
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Broken_Hill#/media/File:Men_marching_in_Broken_Hill_after_1915_attack.jpg
[7] https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/45309777?searchTerm=broken%20hill%20rifle%20club
[8] https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/59299188?searchTerm=broken%20hill%20rifle%20club#
[9] https://parallelhistories.org.uk/history/diversifying-the-teaching-of-the-first-world-war-the-battle-of-broken-hill/
