Lambertus “Bep” van Klaveren was one of the most celebrated Dutch sportsmen of the twentieth century. During the Second World War, however, his remarkable career brought him to Australia and, according to the recollections of VK-KNIL member Joan van Embden-Butler, to Camp Columbia at Wacol. At the camp, the former Olympic champion conducted physical training […]
Bep van Klaveren: Olympic boxing champion at Camp Columbia Read More »
The 268th Station Hospital was a segregated African American United States Army medical unit staffed by Black doctors, nurses and enlisted medical personnel. Its wartime journey took it from Fort Huachuca in Arizona to Camp Columbia at Wacol and subsequently to Milne Bay in New Guinea. The unit’s presence at Camp Columbia connects the site
The 268th Station Hospital with African American Nurse Officers at Camp Columbia, 1943 Read More »
Women served at Camp Columbia during both its American and Dutch periods. American Army nurses worked in the camp’s medical facilities, while members of the American Women’s Army Corps served within the wider United States military organisation in Brisbane. From 1944, after the principal American units moved north, Camp Columbia became the headquarters of the
VK-KNIL Women at Camp Columbia: Work, Daily Life and Personal Recollections Read More »
Short video produced by Peter Rasey at the Home Front Festival at Walston House on 16 August 2026. The event was organised by the National Trust of Australia (Queensland) and the Camp Columbia Heritage Association. Brisbane’s complex Allied command structure during WWII Paul Budde explains the complexity when suddenly Australia faced itself with an invasion
Short video of the Home Front Festival Read More »
At the Home Front Festival at Wolston Farmhouse on 16 August 2026, Associate Professor Geoff Ginn of the University of Queensland and Camp Columbia Heritage Association Chair Paul Budde delivered two complementary presentations about Brisbane during the Second World War. Professor Ginn first established the broader historical setting. He explained how the Pacific War transformed
Brisbane in the Second World War—from regional city to Allied headquarters Read More »
Intelligence cooperation in the Southwest Pacific Area When the Netherlands Forces Intelligence Service (NEFIS) moved its headquarters to Camp Columbia in 1944, it entered one of the most concentrated Allied command and intelligence environments in the Southwest Pacific. Brisbane was already the headquarters of General Douglas MacArthur’s Southwest Pacific Area command and home to a
Camp Columbia within Brisbane’s intelligence network Read More »
The Camp Columbia Heritage Association has completed a major project funded through a $20,000 Australian Government Stronger Communities Programme grant, providing new exhibition, digital and audiovisual resources to help preserve and communicate the remarkable history of Camp Columbia. The grant was secured with the support of the Hon Milton Dick MP, Federal Member for Oxley,
$20,000 Stronger Communities grant delivers lasting legacy for Camp Columbia heritage Read More »
The Camp Columbia Heritage Association’s participation in the Home Front Festival at Wolston Farmhouse on Sunday 16 August 2026 attracted strong interest from visitors and the local community. Presented by the National Trust of Australia (Queensland) in partnership with CCHA, the festival commemorated Victory in the Pacific Day and brought Brisbane’s wartime Home Front to
Among the collections preserved at the Bronbeek Museum are a series of unassuming red file folders labelled: N.E.F.I.S. Kaarten – JAVA no. 2699 N.E.F.I.S. Kaarten – MOLUKKEN no. 5999 N.E.F.I.S. Kaarten – EILANDEN in de ARAFURA ZEE no. 1999 At first glance they appear to be ordinary filing folders. Yet they contain evidence of one
Mapping the road home: NEFIS, Camp Columbia and the Allied intelligence war Read More »
The 91st Station Hospital was one of the major American medical units based at Camp Columbia during World War II. Operating alongside the better-known 42nd General Hospital and the 28th Surgical Hospital, it formed part of the extensive medical infrastructure established by the United States Army in the Brisbane area to support Allied operations across
The 91st Station Hospital at Camp Columbia Read More »
Long before suburban development reached Brisbane’s western outskirts, the railway line through Wacol played a crucial role in opening the district to agriculture, industry and later military activity. The railway from Brisbane to Ipswich was completed in the 1870s, with Wacol Station established in 1876 as a stopping place for settlers and local farming communities.
Wacol Station and the railway lifeline of Camp Columbia Read More »
A new six-part historical series on the Dutch Australian Cultural Centre (DACC) website The story of Camp Columbia is one of the cornerstones of the Camp Columbia Heritage Association (CCHA). Yet Camp Columbia was only one part of a much larger wartime network that linked Australia and the Netherlands during the Second World War. While
Beyond Camp Columbia: The Dutch Government-in-Exile and Australia’s Wartime Alliance Read More »
The post-war history of Camp Columbia is best understood as a continuous evolution rather than a single transition. From 1945 onward, the site developed into a major Australian Army facility, later known as Wacol Army Camp and centred on Sanananda Barracks. Over more than fifty years, its role changed in line with Australia’s defence priorities,
In June 2026, Camp Columbia Heritage Association (CCHA) Chair Paul Budde and University of Queensland historian Associate Professor Geoff Ginn travelled to the Netherlands for a week-long study visit by invitation of the Dutch Cultural Heritage Agency (Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed – RCE). What began as an exchange of knowledge quickly developed into the
Building an International Future for Camp Columbia: Lessons from the Netherlands Read More »
More info about the event incl tickets On Sunday 16 August 2026, the Camp Columbia Heritage Association (CCHA) will join the National Trust of Australia (Queensland) at the Home Front Festival at historic Wolston Farmhouse to commemorate Victory in the Pacific (VP) Day. The festival promises a fascinating day of living history, music, military re-enactments,
Wolston House at Wacol is one of Brisbane’s oldest surviving colonial homesteads and occupies an important place in both Queensland history and Brisbane’s World War II heritage landscape. Built in 1852, the house long predates the military transformation of the surrounding area during World War II, yet its wartime experiences directly connected it to Camp
Charles van der Plas: colonial expert, wartime administrator in Australia and advocate of gradual reform Charles Olke van der Plas (1891–1977) was one of the most experienced Dutch colonial administrators of the Netherlands East Indies. Born in Buitenzorg, now Bogor, in West Java, he developed a deep knowledge of Indonesian society, Islam and local languages.
Charles van der Plas: colonial expert and advocate of gradual reform Read More »
When people think of the Allied command centres of the Second World War, cities such as London, Washington and perhaps Chongqing come to mind. Yet few realise that for much of the Pacific War, Brisbane became one of the most important Allied capitals in the world. Between 1942 and 1945, Brisbane served not only as
During discussions in the Netherlands in June 2026 between the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE), the University of Queensland and the Camp Columbia Heritage Association, it became clear that the history of Camp Columbia – also for the UQ students – is best understood within the broader context of the Second World War
From Camp Columbia to World War: Understanding Australia’s Role in the Pacific Read More »
Introduction Among the Dutch servicemen who passed through wartime Australia, few went on to an intelligence career as remarkable as that of Jan Bakker. An Engelandvaarder who reached Britain in 1944, Bakker subsequently joined the KNIL and was sent to Australia for military training. In November 1944 he was commissioned as a reserve second lieutenant
