Places | |
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Accession Number | PR04936 |
Collection type | Private Record |
Record type | Collection |
Measurement | Extent: 1.5 cm; Wallet/s: 1 |
Object type | Diary, Papers |
Maker |
Douglas, Kenneth John Edward |
Place made | Australia, Singapore, Thailand |
Date made | 1942-1958 |
Access | Open |
Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
Copying Provisions | Copyright restrictions apply. Only personal, non-commercial, research and study use permitted. Permission of copyright holder required for any commercial use and/or reproduction. |
Douglas, Kenneth John Edward (Sergeant, b.1912 - d.1958)
Collection relating to the Second World War service of NX51080 Sergeant Kenneth John Edward Douglas, 2/19 Australian Infantry Battalion, Second Australian Imperial Force, Singapore, Thailand and Australia, 1945-1958.
Wallet 1 of 1 – Contains two folders of material relating to Sergeant Kenneth John Edward Douglas.
Folder 1 of 2 consists of one diary of Sergeant Douglas, containing entries dated between 24 January 1942 and 10 October 1945. This diary was used by Sergeant Douglas during his service in Malaya with 2/19 Battalion and time as a prisoner of war of the Japanese. In his diary, Sergeant Douglas writes about arriving in Singapore, being taken as a prisoner of war, being on a working party, receiving mail from home, being transported in cattle trucks, working on the Burma-Thailand Railway, thinking of loved ones at home, the prevalence of dysentery and skin diseased in the camp, lack of food, high death rates of prisoners, meeting with old friends, making a new camp in the jungle, being the camp barber, being ill with malaria, and Christmas celebrations. Many of the entries are addressed to his wife, Mrs Renee Douglas [née Jack], who he refers to as 'Pal'. This diary also contains handwritten copies of newspaper articles and official orders, a Second Australian Imperial Force casualties list, poetry relating to Sergeant Douglas’ experiences as a prisoner of war, and additional notes.
Folder 2 of 2 consists of documents relating to the service of Sergeant Douglas, his experience as a prisoner of war of the Japanese between 1942 and 1945, and his post-war experience. It contains:
1x Green Service Identity Book, Singapore, 1945
1x Document recording illnesses of Sergeant Douglas and related treatments, Singapore, September 1945
1x Statement regarding war crimes, Mayfield West, New South Wales, August 1946
1x War gratuity form, Sydney, New South Wales, 17 June 1947
1x Sympathy card of the Waratah and Mayfield Sub-Branch Returned Sailors, Soldiers & Airmen’s Imperial League of Australia, Mayfield, New South Wales, [unknown date]
2x Copies of photographs depicting Sergeant Douglas, [unknown dates]