MORE than 5000 Dutch soldiers will migrate to Australia soon after demobilization in Java. Their entry will be under a mutual agreement between the two countries, to be concluded soon. It is understood that the Australian Government stipulated in the agreement that the men should be single and under 30. The Government’s objective is to […]
Plan to settle 5000 Dutch soldiers in Australian 1949 Read More »
Ludolph Hendrik van Oyen was a distinguished Dutch military officer who played a vital role in the defence and rebuilding of Dutch forces during World War II. Early Military Career: Ludolph Hendrik van Oyen embarked on his military journey at the cadet school in Alkmaar in 1906. From 1906 to 1911, he further honed his
General Major Ludolph van Oyen in charge of the Netherlands Indies Forces in Australia Read More »
From Camp Columbia in Brisbane to Camp G in Hollandia Advance headquarters was established at Port Moresby early in 1943. After the Battle of Hollandia (see below) General Douglas MacArthur moved his staging camp from Camp Columbia in Brisbane to Hollandia in Netherlands New Guinea (present-day Jayapura in West Papua). Already in In early 1944,
MacArthur’s staging camp moved from Camp Columbia to Hollandia in Netherlands New Guinea Read More »
Christiaan Philip Karel (Flip) Winckel (Batavia (Nederlands-Indië), April 16, 1919 – Wassenaar, September 18, 2009) was a Dutch “Engelandvaarder” (soldiers who escaped to England during World War II) and a jurist. When World War II broke out, he was studying at Leiden University. Winckel belonged to the Winckel family listed in the Dutch Patriciate. Flip
Engelandvaarder Flip Winckel had a short stint as military auditor at Camp Columbia Read More »
The monument commemorates the men and women of the Netherlands who joined in the defence of Australia from 1941 to 1945 during World War Two. On Friday 3 November 2017, the monument was rededicated at Memorial Corner in Roma Street Parkland. It was relocated from its former location at Queen’s Place (corner Alice and George
Netherlands & Netherlands East Indies WWII Memorial Brisbane Read More »
Bernice Volz who, in the 1950s, lived in one of the huts in the former Camp Columbia – Camp Area No. 1 recalls that it was hut No. C1 that was allocated to her family when they arrived at the Wacol Migration Centre. More information on this hut and its occupants, as well as on
Hut C1 Camp Columbia used by migrant family Volz in 1950 Read More »
Sultan Muhammad Jabir Syah (4 March 1902 – 4 July 1975) was the 47th ruler of Ternate from 1929 to 1975 and the last Ternatan Sultan with executive powers. In 1944, during World War II, the Western Allies began liberating parts of eastern Netherlands East indies. They contacted Sultan Jabir, who had moved to the
Sultan of the Spice Island of Ternate at Camp Columbia Read More »
State Library of Queensland – Audio cassette tapes containing interviews with migrant women at Wacol Migrant Camp. Christine (Christa) Braun, nee Klein Five cassette tapes, two typed interview logs, one document containing personal background, details and interview summaries, four black and white photographs. Christa is German. She migrated to Australia in the 1950s with her
Historic interviews with former Wacol Residents Read More »
Willem Frans Boot. Born 26 November 1906, Zuid-Beijerland. Died: 18 Januari 1987, Den Haag. He joined the Royal Netherlands Navy in 1934. Even before the capitulation from Netherlands East Indies (NEI), staff of the Military Aviation Department of the KNIL(ML-KNIL) were sent to Australia. Most of the department of Captain Willem Frans Boot went Brisbane
Captain Boot the unpopular commander of the 18 NEI RAAF Squadron Read More »
The American-British-Dutch-Australian (ABDA) Command, or ABDACOM, was a short-lived, supreme command for all Allied forces in Southeast Asia, the area also included the supply port of Darwin, in the Northern Territory, Australia. ABDA had been established at Bandung, Java on 10 January 1942 and became operational following the declaration of war by Japan on 12 January
The American-British-Dutch-Australian Command – 1942 Read More »
The United States 7th Fleet is responsible for operations in the Western Pacific Ocean. It was formed on March 15, 1943, in Brisbane, Australia, during World War II. The fleet was initially commanded by Vice Admiral Arthur S. Carpender, and it consisted of the cruisers USS Minneapolis and USS New Orleans, and four destroyers. During
The Dutch and USA’s 7th Fleet Read More »
Lieutenant Admiral Conrad Emil Lambert Helfrich was a Dutch naval officer who played a significant role in the defense of the Netherlands East Indies (NEI) during World War II. He was born in Soerabaja, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) in 1886, and he joined the Royal Netherlands Navy in 1903. He rose through the ranks,
Conrad Helfrich Commander in chief of Dutch Forces in the East Read More »
In 2023 Board member Bart Lommerse contacted Josep (Joe) Kalemba. Joe is an expert metal detector hobbyist and when they started talking, he showed Bart his finding of a sword he had unearthed at Camp Columbia. He had already figured out that it was Dutch however, he had no idea why Dutch artefacts were showing
Ceremonial sword discovered at Camp Columbia Read More »
Following the Japanese invasion and occupation of the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) during World War II, many Dutch men, women, and children were interned in prisoner-of-war camps, known as internment camps or concentration camps. These camps were often harsh, with overcrowded conditions, limited food, and inadequate medical care. After the war ended and the
Camp Columbia hosted refugees from the Japanese camps. Read More »
During World War II, Archerfield Airport, located in Brisbane, Australia, served as an important airfield for the Australian, American and Dutch forces. The presence of British air units at was limited, and they were not stationed there for the full duration of the war. The majority of British air units deployed to Archerfield were present
Archerfield Airport – situated next to the extended Camp Columbia area Read More »
During World War II, the Darra Ordnance Depot—situated along Archerfield Road—played a crucial role in the South West Pacific war theatre. Constructed in early 1942, the site quickly became the largest munitions depot in the region, supporting the vast logistical needs of Allied forces. Military operations and infrastructure The Depot was operated primarily by the
Darra Ordnance Depot and freak explosion Read More »
In the immediate post-War World years, refugees from war-torn Europe were resettled in different places across Australia. By 1949, it is estimated that one-tenth of the American/Dutch/Australian Army’s Camp Columbia area became the Wacol East Displaced Persons Holding Camp. In the early 1950s the camp was developed to become the Wacol Migrant Centre, the biggest
After the war Camp Columbia was opened for refugees and migrants Read More »
While there were strong voices for greater forms of independence for Indonesia, the conservative hard-line Dutch Government was only prepared to provide more participation of Indonesians in local government structures but it would still have to be under the final control of the Netherlands, they had no interest in discussing independence and were adamant to
The Black Armada in support Indonesian Independence Read More »
The Old Fellow’s War. Edmund Nyst 2007 These are abstracts from the book as researched by Ruby Todorovski for the Queensland University Archaeological Research Project Camp Columbia Wacol. P132 Born 1927. Father was Dutch consul in Marseilles. Mother was American. Lived in Marseilles until after German occupation in 1942. Joined the resistance and in September
Edmund Nyst – Dutch soldier at Camp Columbia Read More »
Patricia (Pat) Metcalfe (born 1929 in Cairns) moved to Brisbane when she was 4 years old and after she finished the St Columba school at Wilson, was employed at Camp Columbia as a typist and secretary, first with the Americans and since 1945 with the Netherlands-East-Indies Government. Here she worked for the Department of Works
Patricia Metcalfe – Typist, Wim van Wely – Dutch Motor Pool Read More »
