Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Albert was the fourth child born to Walter Thomas and Augusta Emma Stubberfield on the 1st November 1910. He was born in Port Vincent, his hometown on the Yorke Peninsula of South Australia. As the name suggests, the town was a Port from where local grain was loaded and shipped. Albert, known as Alby had two older sisters, Emily Louise and Dorothy Edith and an older brother Edward Walter (Ted). He also had a younger brother, Roy Vincent.
The children all attended the local Minlaton School where they were all actively involved in end-of-year concerts, including singing, dancing, recitals and operettas. Fundraising also involved all the locals and key days, including Empire Days were celebrated as was Education Week where nearby schools of Curramulka, Port Vincent, Wauraltee, Mt. Rat, Curramulka North, Rocky Beach, Koolywurtie and Minlaton combined for a Sports Program on the Minlaton Showground.
Living on the sea, Alby became a good swimmer, competing in the Annual Aquatic Sports coordinated by the Port Vincent Sailing Club. He finished in the top three as a 13-year-old in the 60-yard race.
Post School, Alby and younger brother Roy became interested in boxing, a popular sport of that era. Bouts were conducted for both entertainment and fundraising, including for the Minlaton Racing Club. As an 18-year-old, Alby had the raw talent and slowly developed skills and techniques as his successes mounted. Initially the local Pioneer newspaper described him as getting ‘to business quickly and sent home a number of hits to the head, but with no vim behind them.’ Later in the year it was reported that ‘the Pt. Vincent man had the best of matters at call of time.’ As a sport, boxing raised passions amongst the spectators, with one, “Onlooker” taking to his pen to write to the Pioneer newspaper in October ’29, protesting one of Stubby’s (Alby’s) win against Bowman. ‘The referee lost his head in this round by grabbing Bowman round the waist and throwing him to the centre of the ring when they were clinching on the ropes. When the gong sounded Stubby was getting the worst of the deal, and it looked as if the gong saved him from a knock-out. Then came the referee's decision in favor of Stubberfield.’ The result had obviously not been as the writer wanted. Alby also used his quick footwork skills to be named as best in the ‘Statue Dance’ with his partner at a dance run by the Port Julia Progressive Association in ’36.
Alby became a stone mason, working for a Mr Austin. He had just turned 21 when his 65-year-old mother Auguste died in March ’32. She was buried in the Port Vincent Cemetery.
However, with the outbreak of war, 30-year-old Alby was one of many young men who enlisted on the 29th June ’40 in the nearby town of Curramulka. He was allocated the number SX6888 and placed in the newly formed 2/48th Battalion as was fellow Port Vincent enlistee SX8410 Maurice Ricketts, a farmhand. Their early days were spent in the pavilions of the (now) Royal Adelaide Showgrounds, before their training continued at Woodside in the Adelaide Hills.
At the end of October ’40 a large gathering was held in the Port Vincent Institute when the Soldiers' Welfare Club arranged an attractive social for then Corporal A. B. Stubberfield and Private Maurice W. Ricketts. (31-year-old Maurice was soon medically discharged in December.) Many of the locals presented items and songs after which dancing ensued. Local gardens were raided to provide red, white and blue flowers for the supper tables. Both soldiers were presented with a wallet of notes from the Welfare Club and wished Godspeed and a safe return, before each spoke their thanks and the singing of "Auld Laug Syne" concluded the evening.
Alby then boarded the Stratheden on the 17th November, arriving in the Middle East on the 7th December. His leadership skills were quickly recognised with a series of promotions to Lance Sergeant a year after leaving Adelaide. The desert conditions, of flies, dust and heat were challenging. The men had been living in hot, cramped, primitive hand-hewn underground dugouts. In an attempt to destroy morale, Germans pilots dropped leaflets deriding them for living ‘like rats’. Ironically it had the opposite effect, with the troops proudly claiming the title of being Rats of Tobruk, a term they carried with honour and which became a highly respected and admired label.
The bond between those from around Port Lincoln remained a strong support, as did the arrival of precious letters from home. SX7141 Allan Poole, also from the 2/48th described this late in July ‘41. “Well, I am in a happy mood tonight, as I have just received another letter from you. I have been getting my fair share of letters lately and my word they are a God-send. You would not believe how we look forward to receiving them. "Lofty" Whait and "Shorty" Barwick will be joining us any day now. I have been up seeing Harry Sellen each night, after finding him here, but he went into hospital this morning with an ulcerated stomach. Ripper (Tom) King and Alby Stubberfield are here now. Ripper was in Palestine for a while with a wounded leg, but he is all right now.”
Conditions were horrific for the men as they sweltered in their tiny dugouts, attacked by plagues of flies, fleas, minimal water and unappealing tinned meals. Any daytime movement brought down intensive shell and mortar fire – and the ire of fellow soldiers. Night-time raids were conducted against enemy sniper and troop positions in No Man’s Land and resulted in the capture of some enemy soldiers.
Early in July ’42, the decision was made to attack the Tel el Eisa Station. John Glenn in Tobruk to Tarakan described the lead-up as the 2/48th Battalion left Shammama Halt for the front, 22 miles away. “At midnight we were in position ready to move through the wire. There was no talking or smoking; the men waited tensely for the order to go forward. There and there a man moved in the dark and whispered final instructions. The long minutes dragged on. Then the first group moved through the wire, one from the Pioneer Platoon under Sergeant Stubberfield, their job being to give protection to the ‘I’ Section, under Lieutenant Basil King.”
A massive attack followed, with 106 of the enemy captured. However, “at a quarter to ten forty Stukas slowly circled the battalion position, and, having selected their target, came in from the east with sirens going and dive-bombed headquarters, cloaking the whole of Point 26 in a pall of dust and smoke. Strangely enough, there were only two casualties. Sergeant Stubberfield and a gunner from the 2/7th Field regiment were wounded and evacuated.” Alby sustained an horrific blast wound to his abdomen, receiving treatment for almost a month, before returning to his battalion.
Back home the News continued to carry the names of those killed or wounded in the fighting. From the 2/48th this included SX6702 Lieutenant Dudley C. C. Williams, Unley Park; SX10269 Lieutenant John J. Wilson, Parkside; Privates SX13592 William P. Fletcher, North Adelaide and SX6888 Lance-Sergeant Albert B. Stubberfield, Port Vincent.
Alby’s lung function was reduced from the blast as was his overall physical and psychological condition, however he stoically remained with the 2/48th Battalion until they received news of their well-earned return to Australia.
On New Year’s Day ’43 whist in El Alamein, the 2/48th were granted a rest period in the lead-up to their third Christmas in Palestine. (this was to be followed by training, inoculations and vaccinations up to New Year’s Day.) A donkey race was held with typical Aussie flair and humour. Sergeant Stubblefield was nominated as Clerk of the Course. The racing donkeys carried such names as Latrine Out of Paper by Austerity and Rommel Out of Africa by Easter.
Finally at the commencement of February ’43 Alby and his battalion were on their way home to Australia via Melbourne. By this stage, Alby was still an extremely unwell man, continuing to repeatedly cough up blood (haemoptysis) from his injuries, spending time in the Repatriation Hospital. This resulted in him being discharged on the 1st October, ‘43, being medically unfit for service.
57-year-old Alby died on the 30th May ’67 and now rests in the Centennial Park Cemetery, RSL Row Wall 138, plot F006.
Researched and written by Kaye Lee, daughter of Bryan Holmes SX8133, 2/48th Battalion.