Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

John Hope Clatworthy was born on 7th February 1916 at Gladstone QLD, the eldest child and only son of Charles and Stephanie Clatworthy. He had a younger sister Stephanie. John’s primary education took place at Mowbray House, Chatswood NSW and when his father died in 1930 he moved to Corinda in Brisbane QLD with his mother. After completing his education John did a course in wool classing at the Technical College.

He achieved technical diplomas from the Australian School of Radio Engineering and Ren-Mak Systems to become a radio mechanic. John joined the Citizen Military Forces (CMF) in February 1939 then enlisted for WW2 at Brisbane on 3rd June 1940 aged 24. He’s described as being 6ft 1in tall with a fair complexion, blue eyes and fair hair. His service number was Q191484, his rank Acting Sergeant and he was assigned to the Northern Command Signals.

John proceeded to the camp at Fort Lytton in Brisbane where after completing training he was classified as Instructor Mechanical Group in July 1940. He was promoted to Lance Corporal on 8th August 1940 and the next day was posted for duty with Northern Command to Fort Cowan on Moreton Island, also known as Cowan Cowan.
On 2nd January 1941 John returned from duty at Fort Cowan, was appointed Acting Sergeant and transferred to New Guinea Force Signals.

He embarked from Brisbane on 14th January 1941 on SS Montoro and disembarked at Port Moresby New Guinea 6 days later. He was based at 3 Mile Camp in Port Moresby and family records reveal that John and a mate made a transmitter out of available material and hoisted it into a suitable tree to "listen in" to the Japanese radio broadcasts. In early March 1942 John proceeded for special duty to Kwato. Upon returning from that duty a month later he was admitted with jaundice to the 128th Australian General Hospital (AGH) at King’s Hollow, 21 miles form Port Moresby.

He was transferred to the 113th Convalescent Depot at Rouna on 14th April 1942 and then to the New Guinea Force Reinforcement Depot at Port Moresby in late April to await evacuation to Australia. He embarked from Port Moresby on 15th May 1941 and disembarked at Brisbane QLD a week later.

He was admitted to the 112th AGH at Greenslopes and was discharged from hospital in early October 1942.
John was transferred to “Z” Special Unit on 23rd October 1942. This unit was part of Special Operations Executive (SOE) which was formed in March 1942 and it was a joint Allied special forces unit formed to operate behind Japanese lines in South East Asia. Predominantly Australian, Z Special Unit was a specialist reconnaissance sabotage unit that included British, Dutch, New Zealand, Timorese and Indonesian members, predominantly operating on Borneo and the islands of the former Dutch East Indies. It was re-formed in April 1943 as Special Operations Australia (SOA) and “Z” Special Unit was given the cover name of Services Reconnaissance Department (SRD) a non-descript name for a very active group of agents. “Z” was a special unit known only to the Prime Minister and High Command.
Several training schools were established in various locations across Australia and family records confirm that John was based at the Fraser Commando School at North White Cliffs on Fraser Island QLD. He learned Japanese morse code and instructed the unit in the use of it. He wrote instructions and tested the members abilities. The Commando School camp was located near Central Station near Lake McKenzie and the camp for “Z” Special Unit was near McKenzie’s Jetty on the western side of the island.

The unit carried out a total of 81 covert operations in the South WestPacific theatre. The best known of these missions were Operation Jaywick and Operation Rimau, both of which involved raids on Japanese shipping in Singapore Harbour; the latter of which resulted in the deaths of 23 commandos either in action or by execution after capture.
On 10th September 1943 John transferred from the CMF to the AIF and was given the service number QX57505. In mid-March 1944 he was discharged for the purpose of being commissioned as Lieutenant and seconded as signals instructor for “Z” Special Unit, AC of Signals Land Force Headquarters.

John remained in this role at Fraser Island until mid-July 1945 when he received orders to proceed to Camp Tasman at Brisbane and then on to AMF Signals Headquarters at Victoria Barracks, Melbourne VIC, but still seconded to “Z” Special Unit. In early December 1945 he proceeded to the transit depot in Melbourne for return to Queensland. His appointment was terminated on 10th December 1945 and the next day he was transferred to the Reserve of Officers QLD.

After the war John started his own business called “John H Clatworthy Expert Radio Repairs.” Later on he worked for Crammond Radio, a Brisbane based radio manufacturer. John was a member of the Aquarium and Terrarium Society of QLD and in 1951 won a certificate for best effort of tropical John developed a mole on his upper arm which turned out to be melanoma cancer. The mole was removed but not before the cancer had spread throughout his body and brain. He passed away from the cancer on 1st April 1952 at Brisbane QLD aged 36. He was cremated at Mt Thompson
Crematorium, Brisbane.
John Hope Clatworthy was awarded for service in WW2 the Australia Service Medal and the Returned From Active Service Badge.
Respectfully submitted by Sue Smith 6th September 2023.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z_Special_Unit
https://lynettesilver.com/special-operations-australia/soa-and-fraser-commando-school-2/