These very evocative photographs were taken in Newcastle in April 14th 1941 while L/Cpl Swan was on leave. He features on the left in the above photograph and on the right in the one below. Note the pigeon ‘cree’ to the rear below and the playful ‘digging for victory’ pose of the elderly gentleman on the right, above. Is his friend below also a 16 DLI man? Notable on L/Cpl Swan’s uniform here is the lack of unit insignia--the distinctive ‘Guards-style’ 16 DLI shoulder flash and the the 46th Division ‘oak tree’ sign were not introduced until late 1941.
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