Southward, George Edward Collier (Able Seaman, b.1920 - d.2006)
Collection relating to the Second World War service of S6090 Able Seaman George Edward Collier Southward, HMAS Cairns and HMAS Lismore, Royal Australian Navy, Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean and Australia, 1943-1947.
Wallet 1 of 1 – Contains two folders of material relating to the service of Able Seaman George Edward Collier Southward.
Folder 1 of 2 consists of four diaries of Able Seaman Southward, containing entries dated between 1 January 1943 and 8 November 1946. These diaries cover the period of Able Seaman Southward’s service on HMAS Cairns in the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea, and service on HMAS Lismore in Australian and Southeast Asian waters. In his diaries, Able Seaman Southward writes about patrols in the Indian Ocean, receiving letters and parcels from home, going ashore for leave, seeing films, the weather conditions, ship maintenance, minesweeping, participating in naval exercises, travelling to the Mediterranean Sea, learning new anti-shipping procedures, being on watch duty, escorting convoys of ships, searching for enemy submarines, participating in the Allied invasion of Sicily, feeling ill, hearing news of the Italian surrender, returning to the Indian Ocean, recreational activities, sightseeing while on leave, and returning to Australia. He then goes on to write about leaving Australia as part of the crew of HMAS Lismore, visiting nearby islands, being stationed at Navy bases in Sydney and Brisbane, meeting with friends, assisting with training exercises, hearing about the end of the war, participating in a victory march in Perth, working hard, receiving vaccinations, travelling in Southeast Asia, watching sports, receiving beer rations, having medical treatments, and being discharged from the Navy.
Folder 2 of 2 consists of documents relating to the service of Able Seaman Southward. It contains:
1x Sailors Pay and Identity Book
1x Royal Australian Navy vaccination card
1x Entitlement to War Gratuity form [includes envelope], issued 22 September 1947
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