HARBISON, Alan Thomas
| Service Number: | SX10304 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 1 October 1940, Keswick, SA |
| Last Rank: | Captain |
| Last Unit: | Australian Army Medical Corps (2nd AIF) |
| Born: | Wallaroo, South Australia, 14 January 1902 |
| Home Town: | Moonta, Copper Coast, South Australia |
| Schooling: | Prince Alfred College and University of Adelaide, South Australia |
| Occupation: | Medical Practitioner |
| Died: | Moonta South Australia, 23 July 1963, aged 61 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Moonta Cemetery, South Australia |
| Memorials: | Kadina Memorial High School WW2 Honour Roll |
World War 2 Service
| 1 Oct 1940: | Involvement Captain, SX10304 | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Oct 1940: | Enlisted Keswick, SA | |
| 1 Oct 1940: | Enlisted SX10304 | |
| 1 Jan 1944: | Discharged Captain, Australian Army Medical Corps (2nd AIF) | |
| 1 Jan 1944: | Discharged SX10304 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Annette Summers
HARBISON Alan Thomas MB BS
1902 - 1963
Alan Thomas Harbison was born, on 14th January 1902, in Wallaroo, SA. He was the son of William Henry Harbison and Nellie Adelaide, nee Jordan. Harbison was educated at Prince Alfred College and studied medicine at the University of Adelaide, graduating MB BS in 1927. His elder brother Ernest John Keith Harbison also served in WW2. Harbison married Elma Irwin Chapman, on 21st July 1928, at St Augustine’s Church Unley. She was the daughter of Frederick Arthur Chapman and Marian, nee Kingsborough, of Unley Park, SA. The couple had a son in 1929. Harbison took up general practice in country towns and was living in Moonta, SA, at the beginning of WW2.
Harbison enlisted at Keswick Barracks on 4th October 1940, and having previously served in the militia, was posted, as a captain RMO, to 2/27th Bn. By the 20th October 1940, he was embarking on the Mauritania for the Middle East. He arrived in Palestine on 24th November 1940 and was detached to 5 AGH from 2/27th Bn. The area of operations for 2/27th Bn in the Syrian campaign was so rugged that Harbison, as RMO, went out on foot to pick up some wounded men; when he eventually picked up the wounded men, he found the two-mile carry had taken five hours. However, he remained mostly with 5 AGH during his service in the Middle East and returned to 4 MD on the Westmoreland in March 1943. Harbison was then allotted to 2/1 CCS on 2nd June 1942. He travelled to Port Moresby on the Manunda on 24th December 1942 and posted to 2/9th AGH. He was transferred to the 2/AIF on 1st March 1943 and returned to SA by July 1943. He was attached to 121 AGH on 11th November 1943, and was granted leave before the termination of his appointment on 1st January 1944.
Harbison returned to his general practice in Moonta, SA, after the war. Alan Thomas Harbison died, on 22nd July 1963, survived, by his wife and three children, Jim, Alan and Margaret. Both Harbison and his wife are buried in the Moonta Cemetery, SA.
Source
Blood, Sweat and Fears III: Medical Practitioners South Australia, who Served in World War 2.
Swain, Jelly, Verco, Summers. Open Books Howden, Adelaide 2019.
Uploaded by Annette Summers AO RFD
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