Australian WWII - Far North Queensland Metal detecting and recovery

[AT P Sweep]

Well ~ Glad to say ~ the (2) Cyclones have proven to be a complete phizzer for us ~ despite our being locate d squarely between the two ~ Thankfully ~

In fact only now are we have any dgree of serious rain ~ has been just heavy clouds ~ spectacular Sun sets !


So on Sunday I wnet back to "grass roots" and site not so far from Atherton where I actually found my first shilling ~ and blow em down a mere metres from where I foudn the shilling 12 months ago ~

I found these two "aces in the hole" !


Rising Sun number 19 and trick piece of trench art ~


The total was not too bad for a few hours on a Sunday ~ a padlock , several boot grips, a flare cartridge shell, several pieces from what I assume is a English made clock - print says "English make".

Another tracer round ~ note swelling on the bullet head ~

[AT P Sweep]

Well been pretty quiet of late ~ but last week deviated from usual scenes and ventured into new territory ~

This included some areas which I reckon would be some of the most heavily fossicked areas in Queensland if not Australia !!

These included;

Range View- a WWII training area near Tolga which was a huge encampment and training area ~

The Rocky Creek Hospital site

Long lands Jungle training camp

Irvine-bank

Wongabel

We visited these areas purely as a change of pace or when showing visitors around the area.

Finds varied quite a lot being from scant to impressive

On this position I retrieved a swag of 303 Bren gun expended shells ~

The Rocky Creek Hospital site

ROCKY CREEK, QLD. 1943-08-09-10. GENERAL VIEW OF 2/2ND AUSTRALIAN GENERAL HOSPITAL.

Some of the finds ~

A AMF stock water bottle

Appreciate thoughts on the Webbing buckle top right ~ rectangular with long buckle pin ( ???)

The stone ~ top left ~ is in fact a hand seed grinding stone ~ it stuck out like Dog's ball on the site as the only rocks on the area were white quartz~ it was either bought there by a WWII digger from perhaps north Africa or is a indigenous discarded tool ~ A very unusual find `

First thought I had found Italian rounds but research has all but confirmed they are the Japanese rounds

Also another team member found what we believe are Stripper clips from a Boys Anti-tank rifle !

I thought perhaps the .50 cal round next the Japanese rounds may have been a .55 Boys but it measured as a .50

[AT P Sweep]

Weds

Three of us headed “bush” to check out Irvinebank site ~

I found this frag ~ Appreciate some feed back on this one ~

It has a < 50 mm > diameter fuze seat

We know that there were BL 5.5” to 155 mm Long Toms used in the area but have no evidence to date where ~ but it would seem this piece is one of those said Guns~

Appreciate some feed back on this ~

[m3bobby]

I think the brass web buckle with the long pin is from a X strap attachment. The buckle fits to the web belt and the other end has another buckle which attaches to the cross strap.

[AT P Sweep]

M3B

Thanks for the lead in ~ identified them but not sure which part of the uniform ~ Officers kit apparently ~




BRITISH ARMY P37 WEBBING BRACE ATTACHMENTS,

BRITISH OFFICERS WW2 WEBBING STRAPS

[m3bobby]

They go to the front, the rear of the x strap (braces?) attaches to the buckles on the rear of the belt. The other end of the strap attaches to the top of the attachments shown and replace the big ammo pouches on soldiers web sets. A lot of officers are observed with the revolver holster and small ammo pouch attached. I have some somewhere all the bits and I was given a compass pouch by a chap who preferred to carry his .38 ammo in it!

[AT P Sweep]

Thanks mate ~

I regularly find such items ~I guess we fossickers all do ~ that are puzzles ~ One I disregarded for example ~ I now know I have one some where in my collection that I now realise is a clip peculiar to the webbing attachment for a Bren gun carry strap

[AT P Sweep]

I was cleaning up the excess of relics and bits kicking around this morning ~ and reconfirmed that cliche~

"NEVER throw out anything till you can confirm it is simply detritus or even worthless rubbish!"

I found a small rectangle of brass with a single hole ~ it was so badly encrusted it simply looked yet another piece of innocuous nothingness brass !

I scraped it with my nail and I could make out a single number ~ So I flamed the item and immediately more numbers appeared ~

So I persisted ~ So I flamed it and scrubbed it and then as the numbers started to appear ~ I polished with wet and dry~

And Bingo ~

72613

And I simply started with NSW ~ NX ~ being the biggest populous ~

NX 2613



And first try ~ NSW

Service Record

Name LENNON, ARTHUR JAMES

Service Australian Army

Service Number NX72613

Date of Birth 3 Mar 1915

Place of Birth SYDNEY, NSW

Date of Enlistment 2 Apr 1941

Locality on Enlistment INVERELL, NSW

Place of Enlistment PADDINGTON, NSW

Next of Kin LENNON, DULCIE

Date of Discharge 5 Oct 1944

Rank Private

Posting at Discharge 2/3 Battalion

WW2 Honours and Gallantry None for display

Prisoner of War No

(No further records found on the Net ~ )


2/3rd Battalion

The 2/3rd Battalion was raised at Victoria Barracks, Sydney on 24 October 1939 as part of the 16th Brigade of the 6th Australian Division.

It relocated to the newly-opened Ingleburn Camp on 2 November where it conducted its basic training. On 10 January 1940, it sailed from Sydney and disembarked in Egypt on 14 February.

After further training in Palestine and Egypt, the 2/3rd took part in its first campaign - the advance against the Italians in eastern Libya - in January 1941.

It was involved in the successful attacks at Bardia (3-5 January) and Tobruk (21-22 January), and remained as part of the Tobruk garrison when the advance continued. One company of the 2/3rd was also employed to garrison Derna after its capture by the 19th Brigade on 30 January.

The 2/3rd left Tobruk on 7 March, ultimately bound, with the rest of the 6th Division, for Greece.

Arriving in Greece on 19 March, the 2/3rd was soon deployed north to resist the anticipated German invasion.

It occupied positions at Veria on 7 April, but a succession of withdrawals by the Allies in Greece meant that the battalion did not meet the enemy in battle until 18 April - at Tempe (Pinios) Gorge.

There, the 2/3rd supported the 2/2nd Battalion and blocked German movement through the gorge, allowing the unhindered withdrawal of Allied forces further south.

The 2/3rd itself was forced to withdraw again by nightfall. Its activities in Greece ended with evacuation by sea from Kalamata on 27 April.

The bulk of the battalion returned to Palestine, via Egypt, but one group of 141 troops subsequently fought with the 16th Brigade Composite Battalion on Crete, after the transport carrying them away from Greece was sunk.

In June and July 1941, the 2/3rd took part in the campaign in Syria and Lebanon and fought around Damascus (20-22 June), in an unsuccessful effort to secure Jebel Mazar (24-28 June), and in the climactic battle of Damour (6-10 July).

The battalion was destined to remain in Syria as part of the garrison there until January 1942. It left the Middle East, heading for the war against Japan, on 10 March 1942. The 16th and 17th Brigades, however, were diverted on the voyage home.

Between 27 March and 13 July they defended Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka) from possible Japanese attack. The 2/3rd finally disembarked in Australia, at Melbourne, on 8 August 1942.

The 2/3rd’s first campaign against the Japanese was the advance along the Kokoda Trail to the Japanese beachheads between September and December 1942.

It fought major engagements at Eora Creek (22-28 October), Oivi (5-12 November), and on the Sanananda Track (21 November-19 December).

1943 and 1944 were spent training in northern Queensland, and the 2/3rd’s last campaign of the war was the operation to clear the Japanese from the Aitape-Wewak region of New Guinea between December 1944 and August 1945.

The 2/3rd Battalion disbanded on 8 February 1946.

2/3rd Battalion | Australian War Memorial

[Steve T]

Great work!! Well done

[AT P Sweep]

Cheers Steve ~

Always win when "we" can assign an item no matter how insignificant eh ~

But another MD mate did find ~ more results today ~

Arthur James Lennon

It is interesting to note that his mother is also listed as Emily Wilbers and there is a record of his death from Tuberculosis in 1920 however on tracing this would appear to be Arthur James Bertram Lennon, his father, or Grandfather.

The Army records are a bit mixed up, but census details put Arthur and Dulcie living in Tingha NSW in 1958, Queensland Census Records have Arthur listed only as James Lennon living alone at the time of his death, all very curious, however these are the records i could find

Birth 1915

Death 22 Sep 1962 in Queensland, Australia, possibly Toowoomba

Buried 24 Sep 1962 Drayton & Toowoomba Cemetery, Church of Christ, Age 47

Married 1939 Inverell NSW

Wife

Dulcie Irene Cox


Birth 1922 in Tingha, New South Wales, Australia

Death in 13 Aug 2010

2 Daughters unknown


Death Certificate - QLD

Name: Arthur James Lennon

Death Date: 22 Sep 1962

Death Place: Queensland

Father's Name: John

Mother's name: Loveday Mary Honess

Registration Year: 1962

Registration Place: Queensland

Registration Number: 004546
Page Number: 1660