These part-time volunteers would soon join the lines of men queuing up to sail overseas after war was declared on 4th August, 1914.

One of the part time soldiers is holding a make-shift sign which says 41st 'B' Company, Bathurst.

The young men were housed in Bell tents, a popular type of military tent at the time.

The 41^st Infantry unit was based in Bathurst, Penrith and Lithgow.

These men are using enamel plates to eat their food on but later they would be issued a British designed mess tin. These metal mess tins were a necessary item of every soldier's kit.

Liverpool Camp at the time was one of the main Australian Infantry Force's training camps in NSW.

In 1912 the government paid for 54,000 acres along the George's River that was to be used by the Army, including the Liverpool Field Training Area.

Numbers of permanent huts were constructed on the site by World War One.

The area was outfitted with a remount depot for training and allowing for some 2000 Australian Light Horse Regiments.

Over time the Liverpool Camp boasted a field hospital, nurses' accommodation and kitchens and messes, as well as a weapons stores.

Training was continuous from physical jerks to long route marches.

Some did stretcher drill, and there was plenty of rifle drill, often using dummy rifles in the early days.

With all the uniforms in short supply recruits sometimes had to wait until they were about to sail for overseas service before being outfitted by the Q-store.

With war looming, the Salvation Army and the YMCA put up tents to supply Christian work at the Liverpool Camp.

Church of England and other chaplains also visited the camp for Sunday services.

It was early 1915 before a pair of tents were erected so that the recruits could write letters home and to loved ones.

They could also read newspapers and books there.

Food was very important to all soldiers, both in training camps and the front.

Soldiers quickly found that the Army food was rather basic, but quite filling.

Military authorities had calculated that each man needed about 4000 calories each day, but the bland nature of the food was apparent.

A typical Liverpool breakfast could include oatmeal, pork sausages with fried potatoes, slices of bread and butter with jam and tea.

They occasionally served eggs to the privates.

Lunch could be roast beef or lamb, baked potatoes, bread and butter, vanilla cornstarch pudding, made without eggs, and tea and coffee.

The evening meal would be mutton or beef stew, bread and golden syrup, stewed prunes all washed down by copious amounts of black tea.

Rations closer to the front almost always had tinned corned beef, or Bully beef, powdered potato, rice, sometimes bread but nearly always 'hard tack'.

There was jam such as plum and apple jam with cocoa or tea.

'Hard tack' was an Australian or British Army issue biscuit which were extremely hard, even breaking digger's teeth if they were not soaked first in tea or water.

Rations could be combined and prepared in the field kitchens and delivered out to the men.

Sometimes they might get tins of salmon or sardines, tins of Army Maconochie's meat and vegetable stew, tinned soup, bacon, cheese, fresh vegetables, tinned 'Pork and Beans', peas, beans or potatoes, the spuds peeled by the soldiers on kitchen detail.

Desserts might include boiled and plum puddings, canned fruit, and sweets such as barley sugars, boiled lollies or caramel blocks.

Sometimes cocoa, milk or powdered milk, salt, sugar and even cigarettes were found.

Whilst on active service, particularly during the colder months there could, on active service, be rations of rum for most of the field artillery men.