TURNER, Arthur Alfred
| Service Number: | NX35194 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 15 June 1940 |
| Last Rank: | Corporal |
| Last Unit: | 2nd/19th Infantry Battalion |
| Born: | Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, 27 July 1900 |
| Home Town: | Tarcutta, Wagga Wagga, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Labourer |
| Died: | Cancer, Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia, 7 May 1977, aged 76 years |
| Cemetery: |
Wagga Wagga Lawn Cemetery & Crematorium Plot - S02-N-0032 |
| Memorials: | Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial, Tarcutta War Memorial Hall Honour Rolls |
World War 2 Service
| 15 Jun 1940: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Corporal, NX35194, 2nd/19th Infantry Battalion | |
|---|---|---|
| 16 Feb 1942: | Imprisoned Malaya/Singapore, Captured and Returned to active service after escaping prison work party. |
Malaysia / Indonesia Confrontation Service
| 29 Dec 1943: | Imprisoned Escaped captivity from Japanese 29th December 1943. |
|---|
World War 2 Service
| 10 Apr 1946: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Corporal, NX35194, 2nd/19th Infantry Battalion |
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Help us honour Arthur Alfred Turner's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Kathryn Turner
Arthur Alfred Turner enlisted on the 15th of June 1940 at age 39, leaving behind his young family, his wife Dorothy and son Colin aged 13 and his 3 daughters June, Mona and youngest Babe in rural NSW.
He was a member of the 2/19th Infantry battalion.
Arthur was captured on the 16th of February 1942 and interned in Chagi Prisoner of war camp by the Japanese. Arthur was a very small man, the size of a jockey, and had even contemplated that as a job when younger. Arthur was said to have escaped Changi prison camp many times during the nights to go to local villages. There he would get food and bush medicines to bring back to camp for the sick prisoners.
He somhow escaped in 1943 on December 29th. Arthur returned to active service until his discahrge in 1946.
On returning to Australia Arthur, like many returned servicemen and POW's , found it difficult to return to normal life, began drinking and was never the same. He refused to speak of his time as a POW and eventually left his first family and was later remarried. He was estranged from his son for many years due to this. Arthurs son Colin Alfred joined the Royal Australian Navy in 1945 going on to serve for 8 years including active service in the Korean War.
At Arthurs funeral his son Colin was surprised to have several men come up to him and ask to shake his hand, stating that they owed their lives to his father Arthur while they were POW's in Changi. Like many families, Arthurs was torn apart after his return from WW2 due to the trauma he suffered and his son tragicly never really got to know his fathers stroy until he was gone.
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/U56062 (www.awm.gov.au)
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