| Accession Number | P05555.004 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white - Print silver gelatin |
| Maker |
Wendels Studio |
| Place made | Australia: Victoria, Swan Hill |
| Date made | c 1940 |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Studio portrait of VX41293 Private (Pte) Alan Leslie Hutchins, 2/22nd Battalion (Lark Force), of ...
Description
Studio portrait of VX41293 Private (Pte) Alan Leslie Hutchins, 2/22nd Battalion (Lark Force), of Woorinen, Vic. Pte Hutchins enlisted on 28 June 1940, and died as a prisoner of war (POW) of the Japanese, on 31 March 1942 at Rabaul, New Britain. Pte Hutchins was one of seven brothers who enlisted and served overseas during the Second World War. Only three, VX41288 Pte Ivan Robert Hutchins, 2/4th Field Ambulance, VX37192 Bombardier Malcolm George 'Mike' Hutchins, 2nd Anti Aircraft Regiment, and VX41229 Pte William Ernest (Bill) Hutchins, 2/22nd Battalion (later 2/23rd Battalion), survived the war and returned to Australia. They had served in the Middle East and New Guinea. Brothers VX61202 Pte David Arthur Hutchins, VX61203 Pte Fred Hutchins, VX61201 Pte Eric Everard Hutchins, and a second cousin, VX50460 Pte Thomas Hutchins, all of the 2/21st Battalion (Gull Force), died as prisoners of war (POW) of the Japanese at Ambon, Netherlands East Indies . VX74662 Sapper Fredrick Wallace, 9th Field Company, Royal Australian Engineers, another cousin of the Hutchins brothers, was a member of the recovery team which visited Ambon in October 1945 to uncover mass graves and identify remains, including those of his cousins, at Laha airfield and Tantoei camp.