Ridgway, Mark (b.1891)

Collection of material relating to Mark Ridgway's work as the Administrator of Nauru from August 1945-1949. The majority of the documents are official reports compiled in the period immediately after the re-occupation of Nauru by Australian forces in August 1945. This includes an intelligence report produced by the 31/51 Aust Infantry Battalion (AIF) Nauru Force in September 1945 which contains background information on the Japanese occupation of the island and the Australian re-occupation. During the Japanese occupation of Nauru, a large proportion of the Nauruan population were transported by the Japanese to Tol and Tarik Island in the Carolines. A report describing the experiences of the survivors who were returned to Nauru after the war is in the collection, as are many statements taken from witnesses of Japanese atrocities against Nauruans, Gilbertese and inhabitants of Tol and Tarik. Related material describing other aspects of the Australian re-occupation of Nauru in 1945 can be found in the Memorial's Official Record series AWM 54: Written records, 1939-45 War.