Netherlands Archives - Page 4 of 4

Captain Boot the unpopular commander of the 18 NEI RAAF Squadron

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 […]

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The American-British-Dutch-Australian Command – 1942

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

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The Dutch and USA’s 7th Fleet

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

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Conrad Helfrich Commander in chief of Dutch Forces in the East

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,

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Ceremonial sword discovered at Camp Columbia

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

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Archerfield Airport – situated next to the extended Camp Columbia area

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

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Darra Ordnance Depot and freak explosion

Darra Ordnance Depot: role and significance During World War II the Darra Ordnance Depot—situated along Archerfield Road—played a crucial role in the South West Pacific theatre. Constructed in early 1942, the site quickly became one of the largest munitions depots in the region, supporting the logistical needs of Allied forces and acting as a major

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After the war Camp Columbia was opened for refugees and migrants

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

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The Black Armada in support Indonesian Independence

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

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Edmund Nyst – Dutch soldier at Camp Columbia

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

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Patricia Metcalfe – Typist, Wim van Wely – Dutch Motor Pool

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

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Joan McConachy – secretary at the Dutch Army at Camp Columbia

By her son David Hill. Joan McConachy was a secretary at Camp Columbia, Brisbane working for the Dutch Army as she later told her son David. Joan was born in 1924 at Winton (Central West QLD) and moved to Brisbane around 1943 from the then family home (Cattle Station), “Dotswood” at Charters Towers in Far

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The story Willy de Eerens and the dog tag found at Camp Columbia

Willy de Eerens Willy de Eerens was born on 27 February 1921 in Tjilatjap, an important port on the south coast of Java. During the Japanese invasion he was evacuated to Australia as one of the 99 student pilots from the class of 1 July 1941 of the Vlieg- en Waarnemersschool (V.W.S. – Flying and

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