Dental Surgeon Field Kit : Captain H E Hurley, Australian Dental Units

Dental Surgeon Field Kit. The box is of solid construction with the lid and main body butt jointed and secured with brass screws. The lid is secured to the box by two brass hinges and has a brass locking bar to keep the lid from opening all the way. The keepers for a brass handle are set on top of the lid, but the handle has been broken off. The front of the box folds down to allow access to the internal drawers and two implement trays located over the top of the drawers. The front of the box has a brass key lock which secures the lid of the box when in place. The lid is also secured by a hook and eye lock. The hooks are mounted on either side of the box with the eyes screwed into the lid. The base is made up from two pieces of wood with the edges extending out from the sides of the box. The base is secured to the box by screws. Some of the edging at the rear has broken off from use. The implement trays are set one above the other. The trays are joined by two brass bars on either side and when open, the top tray rests against the inside of the lid and gives access to the lower tray. Each tray has a grooved implement holder set into it to keep the tools in good order during travel and to allow easy access during a procedure. The drawers are set into four layers. The top two drawers are both low fronted. The top drawer has no internal dividers and the second drawer is divided into thirds with another small divider inserted across the centre. Each drawer has two round metal handles set into the front. The third row of drawers are divided vertically into three, with the left side being further divided horizontally to fit a smaller drawer above the lower drawer. The middle and right drawers both have high fronts with the central drawer being the wider of the two. Each of these drawers has a single metal handle set centrally into them. The lower drawer is the same height as the top two drawers put together and also has two metal handles set into it. The drawer has no internal divides.

Associated with the Service of NX149381 Captain Holroyd 'Roy' Edwin Hurley who was born on 29 August 1908 in North Sydney, NSW. Hurley was a qualified dental surgeon before the outbreak of the Second World War. He initially enlisted in the Citizen's Military Force on 20 November 1942 with the service number N443904 and the rank of lieutenant. He was promoted to captain on 23 December before being posted to 60 Australian Dental Unit in Newcastle arriving on 31 December. Hurley volunteered for the AIF on 15 March 1943 and was posted to the Australian Camp Staff at Greta, NSW on 19 March. On 17 October, he was posted to 57 Australian Dental Unit. Hurley was then posted to Officer Cadet Training Unit Woodville in South Australia for a specialist short course, arriving on 26 October. After successfully completing the course, he rejoined 57 ADU on 3 December. Hurley was evacuated to 113 (Concord) Military Hospital on 19 August 1944 with appendicitis. And after being operated on, was sent to a convalescent home to recover. He rejoined 57 ADU in October 1944. Hurley was next posted on 19 October 1945 as the dental officer for 113 AGH. He remained in this posting until he was discharged on 22 March 1946.