WWII Aust & USA in Far North Queensland Australia ~

Discussion in 'Australian' started by Stuart SS, Jul 7, 2013.

  1. Stuart SS

    Stuart SS Well-Known Member

    As I am waylaid and currently out of MD action ~ well anything outside or physical and I have been doing extensive research ~ I found this JCU paper on the defence of Cairns during WWII~


    How many here even knew of this stuff !? A good read ~





    The first troops of any numbers to arrive were the 17th Australian Field Engineer Company, in late April 1942, who buoyed the spirits of a beleaguered Cairns. The 17th were the 'demolition boys', who completed the job begun by the 51stin case of invasion and mined the Kuranda Range Road and other main transport links such as the Gillies Highway,59 the Bump Track, railway and wharf facilities.


    On the Atherton Tableland it took workers only eight days during March/April to build a new Mareeba airfield capable of taking United States Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses.60


    Later in the year there were nearly 10,000 Americans in and around Mareeba, which had a local population of 2,500. One year later, the Americans had gone!




    On 'Thanksgiving Day' on Thursday 26 November, after an American military policeman bashed a drunken GI, his Australian companions took exception, and before long Australian and American troops were fighting the provosts, then it turned into a major street brawl with several thousand involved, including civilians.


    One Australian private was shot dead and a dozen wounded by US military police.

    Saunders and Taylor note that: "Under these circumstances, where highly trained combat troops engaged in prolonged violent encounters with military police, and where Australian civilians were only too eager to join the fracas, the power of the civil police to maintain public order and safety was acutely tested and found inadequate."


    Navy man, Clive Wise was at the pictures when the fighting began and after the film, they were collected by the Navy Shore Patrol and ushered back to base at HMAS Kuranda. Wise was issued a pick handle:

    "And placed on duty near the main entrance, directly opposite the American Red Cross. I can assure you I was scared stiff watching the Yanks driving around with .05 machine-guns mounted on their jeeps and packing 45s on their hips.

    There I stood with the pick handle. I suppose the general idea was that I was to use it like a cricket bat and hit the bullets back at the Yanks".139

    United States Military Police or "Provosts were particularly disliked by Australians for their use of batons and weapons on American servicemen."


    A very young Allied Works employee, Ray Brooks, on his first day in Cairns, got on the end of a queue for what he thought was for the picture theatre!

    Some Australian soldiers queued and then sold their position to an American for a £ 1, which then tripled the client's outlay as the visit cost 10/- for half an hour.
    Repeated several times, the 'queue-seller' stunt could prove profitable for those patient enough.


    137 The Australian soldier-boyfriend of one of the Club's workers, who had been requested to work extra time, became impatient with waiting outside and tried to enter the 'American's-Only' club. Due to previous contretemps, Allied soldiers were generally banned from one another's entertainment venues.

    Townsville's population had swelled from 28,000 to 100,000 and American troops particularly liked their milk.

    Subsequently, the Malanda Butter Factory was to supply 38,000 litres (10,000 gallons) of milk every day, by trucking down the Palmerston Highway to Innisfail, then by train to Townsville.

    There had been some American military presence in Cairns since November 1941, but it was not until December 1942, that some 3,500 men of the US 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment arrived.83

    No camp or mess facilities had been established for them but their Commanding Officer had visited Gordonvale and asked help in preparing food for the Regiment's arrival late that afternoon.85 Local residents, including members of the CWA and bakers, rallied to the cause. One American paratrooper, recalled:

    " Carloads of ladies and men came along carrying what seemed to be an unlimited amount of food. They made salad rolls and gave us cakes, watermelon, oranges and cups of (hot) tea, which we were not used to, but we were so hungry we would have consumed anything. This generous effort endeared them to us, especially when they welcomed us into their homes."86

    They left for Port Moresby in August 1943.87

    (A permanent camp was established on the outskirts of Gordonvale ~ but sugar cane farming was established after WWII and after some 65 years of levelling and grading there is little to nothing left in the way of relics !


    We have done three MD trips with very little return/s!)


    [SIZE=1.45em]http://etropic.jcu.edu.au/ET8/Bottoms.htm[/SIZE]
     
  2. Stuart SS

    Stuart SS Well-Known Member

    FYI







    Australian-built WWII tank finds new home in far north Queensland museum - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

    Ironically here is an assessment from World of Tanks gaming site ~

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRK7MK66X1I

    But still a generous gesture if the facts are in order regarding the donation ~

    Sentinel Aust Tank.jpg
     
  3. Stuart SS

    Stuart SS Well-Known Member

    Season's greetings and well being to all ye believers ~

    As I am out of action for the time being I am doing a lot of research and have developed some great results which I / we will be checking out as as i am cleared for action !

    In the meanwhile ~ I cleaned up some last Hunt relics ~ with great results ~

    The best of the day # 253 ~

    Relics # 253 Take III (2).jpg

    Relics #253  cleaned up  (1).jpg

    Relics #253 Take II (2).jpg

    But better still I noticed that the Rising Sun above has ~( FINALLY A Rising Sun badge) with manufacturer's imprint..

    This has been an issue with my finds ~ so I checked the other badges I have most recently found ~ and bingo ~ tow more ~

    Relic Badges  manufact ID  (4).jpg

    This will need a little brush to reveal all !

    Relic Badges  manufact ID  (6).jpg

    Relic Badges  manufact ID  (1).jpg
     
  4. Stuart SS

    Stuart SS Well-Known Member

    Talking about restoration on relics ~ I had a chuckle this afternoon when the story of where the relics, the gold and the Gem stones came from in the Stafford shire MD find in the Cockies paddock in UK ~ They go onto explain how the items were made and cast!

    ( A great watch after one the greatest MD finds in history !)

    The were using thorn spikes in 'Dremel' type tools to clean the dirt off the relics and not damage the relics ~ I imagine they used a LOT of thorn stems !!)

    But anyway Ms M declares ~ "Huh! Why don't they just soak them in water!! " ( Om' staying out this one ~ I have explained numerous times that soaking in warm soapy water just doesn't cut the 'cheese' !! )

    In fact I may even try the same thing for delicate items such as Rising Suns or gold and or silver rings ~ any material that is relatively soft ! )

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSjd6pjM0w8

    Another thing I do if I have some spare time is cruise EBay listings and I have Identified many items this way ~ but yesterday I spotted a listing for a pair of RS and one was a 'Luke Melbourne' and the other is a rare one ~ 'H Arendsen'

    I have not positively identified the second with the residue on the back, and just maybe it will be an even better and rare example ~

    ( The residue is from sitting on cotton wool in a small clear plastic display container ! The cotton wool stuck to the back of the RS ! A trap for relic displayers!! )


    WOO HOO !!!!!!!!!!!! I Scored!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    I just found a web site on the subject and as I also checked the manufacturers name~ 'General Plastics"


    Quote

    General Service Badge (Rising Sun) Hat Badge - General Plastics

    Description: General Service Badge (Rising Sun) Hat Badge - General Plastics

    Maker's Name: General Plastics

    Condition: Very Good

    Comments: General Service Badge (Rising Sun) Hat Badge - General Plastics - World War 2.

    General Plastics only made a small number of Rising Sun badges and thus this is considered to be one of the rare Rising Sun hat badges.

    Australian General Service Rising badges from World War I and World War II are now starting to become scarce.






    http://militaria-sales.com.au/general-service-badge-rising-sun-hat-badge-general-plastics-p-2866.html

    General Plastics Rising Sun (2).jpg

    Relic Badges  manufact ID  (6).jpg
     
  5. Stuart SS

    Stuart SS Well-Known Member

    Finally ~ came out at the end of this week ~

    Put in two hunts ~ first was a solo recce of some six stop overs to check the areas which may have been potentially unregistered camp sites ~

    The issue was that I definitely found evidence of military presence ~ mostly 303, even 45 ACP projectiles and the last site had been targeted by artillery !

    Unfortunately no shell primer/ fuzes though ! Lots of frags though~ obviously the artillery range training was was well focused !

    Fossick #254 The Return to Action  II April  6  (4) .jpg

    No sign of a camp despite numerous very old sawn off tree trunks ~ but lots of projectiles~ obviously used as a target area ~

    After some 3-4 hours research I worked my way back to the closest known camp site.

    While MIA i bought a recent book released in 2014 ~

    "Jungle Warriors: From Tobruk to Kokoda and beyond, how the Australian Army became the world's most deadly jungle fighting force;" Adrian Threlfall

    Fossick #254  The warriors  extract  (4) .jpg

    If one considers the Wet forest and bush around, that task would have been a massive training task for sure ! But it did pay off when the Gun crews finally arrived in New Guinea by close supporting the ground troops ~

    My research and the book also explained why the Australian Military made extensive use of the Matilda tanks ~

    060606.JPG

    Seems after extensive comparisons with the Grants and the Stuarts, the Matilda despite being made redundant to most other theatres and forces , the Matilda slow speed, excellent armour and firepower was deemed the most practical balance for Jungle Warfare!


    So after a smoko I decided to work some of the high ground ~ and armed with a new software combination on the Minelab I was soon picking up numerous targets and with only an hour or so I picked up some nice quality targets ~ Most were well protected on high ground with right soil and a protective leaf cover!
    Fossick #254 The Return to Action  April  6  (7) .jpg

    Fossick #254 The Return to Action  April  6  (8) .jpg



    The razor is the first one I have ever found with the zinc coat intact,

    The spoon is a holy grail as it has the D/|\D Logo ~

    Fossick #254 The Return to Action  April  6  (10) .jpg

    Fossick #254 The Return to Action  April  6  (11) .jpg

    Two pounder  resto  example Febr 16 (2).jpg

    Give me a month and I will restore the Six pounder solid shot practice projectile to a point most will never know ! ( I have ad great success in doing 2 pounder/s !)

    The Australia Flashes are as found!
     

    Attached Files:

  6. Stuart SS

    Stuart SS Well-Known Member

    As North globers proclaim the sounds and sites of Spring ~ even we are sliding into Winter ~Grey skies and frequent showers ~

    For the region of Tropical Wetlands and daily extreme UV ratings, the chill is quite amazing ~

    SO despite the frequent rain showers I managed several hunts the last week ~

    The first was a short hunt of only 1 1/2 hours as I was recalled via mobile phone to home base ~ but managed a few smalls ~ considering it was a very public and extremely well worn site ~

    The sad remains of a Jack knife ~ buried amongst a bevy of spent 303 cases ~ The pad lock has a very ornate facia plate with nicely 'hammered' backing ~

    Fossick #257 Solo Short  April 13 (7).jpg

    The second was a solo hunt again and a little more productive ~

    Excellent weather and a very peaceful few hours !

    AS we glide into Winter the risk of snakes is considerably reduced ~ (although the Tiger snake is not daunted by Winter one bit and has a dubious reputation ~ )

    Fossick #268 April 17 Solo 2 4th , 2 5th (3).jpg

    Fossick #268 April 17 Solo 2 4th , 2 5th (1).jpg

    The targets were sparse but still ~

    I was pursuing a signal and stumbled into a bottle dump ~ I dug some ten bottles ~ including my first Whiskey Bottle, which is a nice bottle for sure. Be even better inf it was full of course !

    Fossick #268 April 17 Solo 2 4th , 2 5th (7).jpg

    I was hoping to find as always the mythical royal blue bottle/ jars but none as yet ~ although I feel the hole is not done and dusted yet ~

    Fossick #268 April 17 Solo 2 4th , 2 5th (11).jpg

    Fossick #268 April 17 Solo 2 4th , 2 5th (14).jpg
    Akso first Tasmanian beer bottle ~ all the rest are/ were dated 1943-1944.

    Fossick #268 April 17 Solo 2 4th , 2 5th (12).jpg

    Fossick #268 April 17 Solo 2 4th , 2 5th (20).jpg

    An assortment of coins including a fragment of a Commonwealth penny ~

    Plus another 1967 Israeli blank AR15 cartridge ~ plus .380 and 9mm rounds.

    Unusual Brass screw bung ~ another Torch frag` + misc brass scraps `

    Fossick #268 April 17 Solo 2 4th , 2 5th (21).jpg

    A few of the most recent relics which have undergone electrolysis ~ The razor came upa Ripper !

    April 13 Relics restoration  (4).jpg
     
  7. Stuart SS

    Stuart SS Well-Known Member

    As North globers proclaim the sounds and sites of Spring ~ even we are sliding into Winter ~Grey skies and frequent showers ~

    For the region of Tropical Wetlands and daily extreme UV ratings, the chill is quite amazing ~

    SO despite the frequent rain showers I managed several hunts the last week ~

    The first was a short hunt of only 1 1/2 hours as I was recalled via mobile phone to home base ~ but managed a few smalls ~ considering it was a very public and extremely well worn site ~

    The sad remains of a Jack knife ~ buried amongst a bevy of spent 303 cases ~ The pad lock has a very ornate facia plate with nicely 'hammered' backing ~

    View attachment 148869

    The second was a solo hunt again and a little more productive ~

    Excellent weather and a very peaceful few hours !

    AS we glide into Winter the risk of snakes is considerably reduced ~ (although the Tiger snake is not daunted by Winter one bit and has a dubious reputation ~ )

    View attachment 148870

    View attachment 148871

    The targets were sparse but still ~

    I was pursuing a signal and stumbled into a bottle dump ~ I dug some ten bottles ~ including my first Whiskey Bottle, which is a nice bottle for sure. Be even better inf it was full of course !

    View attachment 148872

    I was hoping to find as always the mythical royal blue bottle/ jars but none as yet ~ although I feel the hole is not done and dusted yet ~

    View attachment 148873

    View attachment 148874
    Akso first Tasmanian beer bottle ~ all the rest are/ were dated 1943-1944.

    View attachment 148875

    View attachment 148876

    An assortment of coins including a fragment of a Commonwealth penny ~

    Plus another 1967 Israeli blank AR15 cartridge ~ plus .380 and 9mm rounds.

    Unusual Brass screw bung ~ another Torch frag` + misc brass scraps `

    View attachment 148877

    A few of the most recent relics which have undergone electrolysis ~ The razor came upa Ripper !

    View attachment 148878
     
  8. Elliot Hannay

    Elliot Hannay New Member

    Re Bevan Waldock...I worked with Bevan at the Bundaberg News Mail in the 1960s and he features in my memoirs which look like being published.. (a 16 year old cadet journalist growing up on the job in the days of hard copy and hot metal) I came across this site while researching some of my old workmates. Bevan told me about his bad treatment by the Vichy French and some of the dark humour of fighting in the jungle. He was a man of quite courage and strong moral fibre and was an inspiration to me as a young bloke.A sharp wit and a keen sense of humour. Bevan could out-debate one of our subs, an alcoholic gay Englishman with double degrees from Oxford. I cannot believe that his dog tag turned up just a few kilometres from where I know live and I am pleased that you folk have got it back to his family. He had a son who flew choppers for the Brits and one of his boys also hunted with me.. in the days when you could hunt!
    As they say " We might be finished with the past.. but the past ain't finished with us!
    I have done my best to do justice to Bevan's memory in my manuscript
    EH
     

Share This Page