Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1915-1922 (Creation)
Level of description
File
Extent and medium
29 letters
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
John Denis (Jack) Fryer was born on 11 September 1895 at Springsure, Queensland, son of Charles George Fryer and Rosina Fryer (née Richards). Charles and Rosina had seven children: Elizabeth Stuart (later Gilmour), William Thomas, Charles George, Henry Hardy, John Denis, Richard Alexander James and Walter Ponsonby. Jack won a scholarship to the University of Queensland and commenced study in 1915. By the end of first term, Jack decided to volunteer for military service in the first Australian Imperial Force. He was commissioned in 1916 and went to France. On 4 August 1918 the Fifty-First Battalion was in the line near Amiens when they were attacked; among the casualties was Lieutenant Fryer who had wounds to his arm, leg and thighs. After being hospitalised in Britain, Jack returned to Australian in July 1919. He re-enrolled at the University of Queensland for the first term of 1920 to complete his English honours examinations. While at University he was engaged in extra-curricular activities such as cricket, rugby, editing magazines including Galmahra with P. R. 'Inky' Stephensen, the Dramatic Society, contributed to the recently-founded St. John's College magazine Argo (using the pseudonym 'Chut'). In September 1922 he was hospitalised for tuberculosis. His mother travelled from Brisbane in December 1922 and took him home to Springsure in early January 1923. He died on 7 February 1923. In 1926, as a memorial to their former member and vice-president, members of the University of Queensland Dramatic Society donated £10 to establish a collection of works in Australian literature. The Fryer collection was maintained in the English Department until the 1950s when it became part of the University of Queensland Library.
Repository
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Letters from John D Fryer.
Folder 1a
Chronologically arranged notes taken from the collection of letters below
• John Fryer, St John’s College, Kangaroo Point, Brisbane to ‘Dear Lizzie’, 13 May 1915
• John Fryer, Enoggera, Brisbane to ‘Dear Lizzie’, 20 Jun 1915
• John Fryer, A69 Warilda, Sydney to his father, 8 Oct 1915
• ‘Souvenir of Perth, W.A.’, John Fryer to Mrs CG Fryer, 15 Oct 1915
• John Fryer, Zetoun Camp, Egypt, to his mother, [1915]
• John Fryer, No. 4 Auxiliary Hospital, Abbassia, Egypt, to his mother, 14 Dec 1915
• John Fryer, No. 4 Auxiliary Hospital, Abbassia, Egypt to Elizabeth [Liz] Fryer, 16 Dec 1915
• John Fryer, France to Walter Fryer, 22 Jul 1916
• Field Service Post Card, John Fryer to Mrs CG Fryer, 23 Jul 1916
• Field Service Post Card, John Fryer to Master W. P. Fryer, 25 Jul 1916
• Field Service Post Card, John Fryer to Mrs CG Fryer, 25 Aug 1916
• John Fryer, New College, Oxford to his mother, 17 Dec 1916
• John Fryer, postcard to Liz, [nd.]
• John Fryer, New College, Oxford, to Liz, 17 Jan 1917
• John Fryer, France, to his Mother, 17 Mar 1917
• John Fryer, [France?], to ‘all at home’, 26 Mar 1917
Folder 1b
• John Fryer, France, to his mother, 9 April, 1917
• John Fryer, Cranston’s Waverly Hotel, Southampton Row, London to Liz, 9 Jun 1917
John Fryer, France, to his mother, 11 Jun 1917
• John Fryer, France, to his Father, 6 Aug 1917
• John Fryer, St John’s College, Brisbane, to his mother, 1 Mar 1921
• John Fryer, St John’s College, Brisbane, to his mother, 2 Aug 1922
• John Fryer, “Ardoyne”, Corinda to his mother, 5 Oct 1922
• John Fryer to his Mother, “Ardoyne”, [Rest and Hosp?], 17 Oct 1922
• John Fryer to his Mother, “Ardoyne”, Corinda, 7 Nov 1922
• John Fryer to his Mother, “Ardoyne”, Corinda, 25 Nov 1922
• John Fryer, France?, to his Mother, n.d.
• John Fryer, Springsure, to his Mother, 2 Aug 1919
• John Fryer, Springsure, to his Mother, 5 Oct 1919
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Unrestricted access.
Conditions governing reproduction
Copyright expired.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Note
Box 1 Folders 1a and 1b.
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Fryer, John Denis, 1895-1923 (Subject)
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Status
Revised
Level of detail
Minimal
Dates of creation revision deletion
Created, Linda Justo, 11-May-2023.