Online Collection Spotlight: Trench journals and unit magazines of the First World War.

April 20, 2026 at 11:47
by Melanie Ngo
in Ask a librarian, Collection spotlights, War

State Library Victoria members can access hundreds of databases from home (if your home is in Victoria). That’s millions of articles, magazines, archives, ebooks, videos, songs, audiobooks and more, available through the catalogue anytime. We’re taking a closer look at new and/or interesting databases as well as hidden gems from our collections. Read on for top picks and tips from Librarians.

Not a member yet? Sign up online first and reward your curiosity.

Today we’re looking at Proquest’s Trench journals and unit magazines of the First World War database.

Shows a cartoon of five soldiers sitting against a wall. A cart is featured further down the page. the final image shows a soldier plucking a duck — The Yandoo, (15 July 1917), *The 7th Field Artillery Brigade Yandoo : containing publications of the organ of the 7th Field Artillery Brigade, Australian Imperial Forces …*, vol 3, no 3, p 1. State Library Victoria.

This database provides access to over 1500 rare trench journals and unit magazines of World War I, sourced from such leading archives as the Imperial War Museum, the Library of Congress and the British Library. These journals complement the State Library’s rich collection of World War I material.

The journals were published between 1914 and 1919, and were written and illustrated by service personnel from the infantry, artillery, air force, naval, supply and transport units, military hospitals and training depots of all combatant nations, including – Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Great Britain, Germany, Canada and France. Although the majority of the surviving journals originated from units based on the Western Front in France and Belgium, there are also magazines from units serving on the Eastern Front, in Gallipoli, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, Britain and America.

Two soldiers reading, whilst laying on their bunk beds. — *Sgt. C. A. Masters & Sgt. Gammon, Tel-el-Ribu*, [1915]; H81.169/13

What makes this database so great?

Trench journals provide a fascinating insight into the thoughts and experiences of WWI serviceman and women and by documenting each unit’s circumstances and experiences they present a unique view of the war.

For the contributors, the journals were hugely important, as they provided an outlet for literary and creative expression. For the readers they were a morale booster, providing a welcome relief from their daily wartime experiences.

`Fundamentally, the trench press provided a communal voice for frontline soldiers, allowing them to implicitly, if not explicitly, establish a compact that was an important factor in their continued willingness to endure the unendurable.’ ¹

A brown cover featured a map of Australia with a red cross over it. The title Al Abaht it, is written on the cross. There's also an image of the Field Ambulance crest.

The text of a poem called The Ambulance. A photograph of some ambulance transport equipment, at Bivouac, is at the bottom of the poem.

All Abaht It: With which is Incorporated the “Furphy Times”. The Journal of the – (10th) Field Ambulance (Australian Army Medical Corps), (November 1916), pp 1 and 11. State Library Victoria.

Highlights

These trench journals are a valuable source of information, providing a unique social history of World War I. Within these titles you will find essays, accounts of daily activities, poetry, images and news from home. The desire to raise spirits meant that humour was an intrinsic part of these publications – so you will find many humorous stories, jokes, poems and satirical pieces.

As the editor of the Karoolian stated –

`the magazine tends toward perpetuating the bright side of our association with military life’. ²

Three photographs of life in the barracks, accompanied by humourous descrptions. — *The 7th Field Artillery Brigade Yandoo : containing publications of the organ of the 7th Field Artillery Brigade, Australian Imperial Forces …* December 1916, p 9. State Library Victoria.

six humour cartoons depicting the activities of soldiers. — Sundry doings, (December 1916), *The 7th Field Artillery Brigade Yandoo : containing publications of the organ of the 7th Field Artillery Brigade, Australian Imperial Forces …*, p 22. State Library Victoria.

Browsing through these journals you will find numerous reports of football and cricket matches, boxing tournaments and competitions such as tug of war, darts and rough riding. Other activities included theatrical and musical performances; competitions; dinners, celebrations and formal military events.

Coloured image of soldiers playing cricket — *Soldiers playing cricket, Green Shell, Gallipoli, Turkey*, [1916]; H83.103/28

Text regarding amusements, sporting results and other activities

First image - soldiers in fancy dress.
Second image American baseballers.
Third images five images standing or sitting on a large cart or box

Various sports, (December 1917), The 7th Field Artillery Brigade Yandoo : containing publications of the organ of the 7th Field Artillery Brigade, Australian Imperial Forces …, pp. 88-89. State Library Victoria.

Australian titles

The database contains over forty journals produced by Australian forces. Titles include –

The Australian titles often feature `Digger’ or `Anzac’ slang – much of which was unique to the World War I era. If you’re curious about what some of these titles or phrases mean, you can find several useful slang dictionaries in our collection. Diggerspeak: the language of the Australian at war is a great publication to start with.

Search Tips

From the database home page you can perform a Basic keyword search. Or you can use the Advanced search option to search by keyword, or by the unit’s name, type or origin.

To filter the collection to titles produced by Australian service personnel, please follow these steps:

Navigate to Publications.
Select Unit Origin.
Click More to expand the full list of origins.
Choose Australia from the options.
Click the Apply button.

This will refine the results to 41 publications.

A screen capture of the homepage of the database

A screen-capture of the Publication search page

A screen capture of the section of the Publications search page that shows the Unit origin feature

More to explore

We always welcome your recommendations for database trials — let us know what you’d like to see. Check out our latest databases on trial, and see a full list of all new and trial databases, by visiting our A-Z Databases page. If you have a research query or questions on how to use our online collections, contact us via our Ask a Librarian service.

For further information on how to research World War I resources please see the following guides and collections –

Australians in World War I – research guide

Researching your ancestors’ occupations – Armed forces – research guide

The First World War – online database

World War I Unit Histories – digitised collection