United States Army issued baseball glove : Corporal H G T Birt, No.1 Rescue and Communication Squadron RAAF

Left handed brown leather baseball catching glove. The glove has numerous small metal loops through which is threaded leather chord. Stamped in cursive script onto the lower catching surface of the glove is 'Elmer Riddle' immediately beneath this is the word 'TRADEMARK'. Machine stamped into the outer surface of thumb is 'LICENSED UNDER PAT.NO.2231204'. An adjustable leather band with three eyelets is fitted to the upper surface of glove, through which is threaded on the first eyelet a round metal button. The round metal button has the word 'Goldsmith' impressed into it. The hand opening for the wearer of the glove has 'HORSEHIDE LINING' impressed into the leather. An unknown stuffing material fills out the catching surfaces of the glove.

This baseball glove was recovered by Corporal Herbert Birt from the site of a wrecked US army hospital at Buna, New Guinea.

Herbert Gerald Thomas Birt was born on 28 March 1920 at Canterbury in Sydney. His parents were Harold Ernest Birt and Cora Gladys Birt (nee Bourne). He was educated at Canterbury Boys High School.

Herbert joined the RAAF on 9 September 1940 and he completed RAAF technical training as a trainee flight rigger and fitter in Richmond, Ultimo, Narrandera in NSW and Ascot Vale in Victoria. On 4 April 1942 he was promoted from Aircraftsman 1 to Leading Aircraftsman. He saw active service in Papua and New Guinea between 5 October 1942 and 21 November 1943. His unit was No.1 Rescue and Communication Squadron (1 R & CS) at Port Moresby under the command of the famous Australian Flying Corps fighter ace Squadron Leader AAND 'Jerry' Pentland. His role in the Squadron was to help service and maintain their various aircraft types.

In late December 1942 or early 1943 he was flown to north coast of New Guinea to Popondetta. They then travelled on land to the scene of the recent battle of Buna. Whilst there they came across a devastated US Army field hospital. There was bomb damage and equipment everywhere after a Japanese air attack. Amongst the remains he found a box of new leather baseball gloves, and a baseball glove nearby in a tree. This is the glove that was found in the tree. He kept the glove for the remainder of the war.

The frontpage of the Army News in Darwin published on 10 December 1942 has the following on this incident: 'Japanese Atrocities. . on December 2, an American field hospital unit in the Buna area, was bombed without causing damage. On December 7, this same unit was bombed twice from low-level, with casualties amounting to seven killed and 30 wounded." He moved with 1 R&CS to Milne Bay in June 1943 and later to Goodenough Island in September 1943. In August 1943 he was temporarily seconded to No.4 Squadron. Other duties he undertook whilst in Papua and New Guinea included looking for and reporting on crashed Allied aircraft. If sensitive equipment such as Norden bomb sights were still fitted he had to remove them. He eventually returned to Australia in November 1943. He spent the majority of the remainder at the war with the RAAF 2 Aircraft Depot (2AD) at Richmond RAAF base. On 1 April 1944 LAC Birt was promoted to Corporal.

He was a witness to the fatal crash of Lockheed Hudson A16-68 at Richmond on 20 December 1944. He was scheduled to fly on this joy flight with fellow 2AD ground crew but gave his seat up to a female colleague. All onboard were killed in the crash and are buried at Richmond. And after the war brought the baseball glove home.

Corporal Birt left he RAAF on 19 November 1945. He married former WRAAF telephone operator, 99341 Aircraftswoman Ida Joyce Dobbs in Sydney during 1947. They had two sons, Ian and Barry. Herbert went onto a successful career in the real estate industry in the northern districts of Sydney post war. In 2000 he and Ida moved to the Queensland Gold Coast. Ida passed away in late 2008 and Herbert in 2010.