In a remarkable discovery, messages in a bottle written by two Australian soldiers during World War I have been found over a century later on Australia’s coastline. The Brown family stumbled upon the Schweppes-brand bottle on October 9, 2025, during a routine beach cleanup at Wharton Beach near Esperance in Western Australia. Inside the bottle were cheerful letters penned in pencil by Privates Malcolm Neville, 27, and William Harley, 37, dated August 15, 1916. The soldiers were aboard the troop ship HMAT A70 Ballarat, which had departed Adelaide on August 12, 1916, bound for the Western Front in Europe. Neville tragically lost his life in action a year later, while Harley survived the war but succumbed to cancer in 1934, believed to be a result of being gassed in the trenches. Neville’s letter requested the finder deliver it to his mother, Robertina Neville, while Harley was content for his note to be kept by the discoverer. The bottle, found in pristine condition, likely spent decades buried in sand dunes before being dislodged by recent erosion. The legible letters have since connected the soldiers’ descendants, who expressed profound astonishment and emotional resonance with the discovery. Harley’s granddaughter described it as a ‘miracle,’ while Neville’s great nephew reflected on the pride and sorrow tied to his ancestor’s sacrifice.
WWI soldiers’ messages in a bottle found on Australian beach more than 100 years later
