MATTHEWS, Harry
| Service Number: | NX97832 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 19 August 1942 |
| Last Rank: | Trooper |
| Last Unit: | 1st Armoured Regiment |
| Born: | Hurstville, New South Wales, 1 August 1921 |
| Home Town: | Smithtown, Kempsey, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Clerk |
| Died: | Canberra, ACT, 17 September 2003, aged 82 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: |
World War 2 Service
| 19 Aug 1942: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, NX97832 | |
|---|---|---|
| 7 Aug 1943: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Trooper, NX97832, 1st Armoured Regiment, ex Townsville for Milne Bay per Westralia | |
| 26 Sep 1944: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Trooper, NX97832, 1st Armoured Regiment, ex Madang for Brisbane per Gorgon | |
| 15 Jun 1945: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Trooper, NX97832, 1st Armoured Regiment, ex Brisbane for Finschafen per Millin Griffith | |
| 5 Jul 1945: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Trooper, NX97832, 1st Armoured Regiment, ex Finschafen for Morotai per Clarence Matson | |
| 8 Jul 1945: | Wounded Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Trooper, NX97832, 1st Armoured Regiment, Balikapan | |
| 25 Jul 1945: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Trooper, NX97832, 1st Armoured Regiment, ex Morotai for British North Borneo per LCT 1297 | |
| 2 Feb 1946: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, NX97832 | |
| 4 Feb 1946: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Trooper, NX97832, 1st Armoured Regiment, ex Makassar for Brisbane per HMAS Kanimbla |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
Trooper Harry Matthews (Service No:NX97832) enlisted in the Australian Army on 19 August 1942 and served with 2/1 Armoured Regiment in New Guinea (7 August 1943 to 26 September 1944) and Borneo (15 June 1945 to 4 February 1946). Trooper Matthews was WiA at Balikapan 8 July 1945. At a General Court Martial in 1945 he was acquitted of charges of manslaughter and neglect following the deaths of two men during training exercises at Wasp Creek, Southport, QLD. The charge alleged that a three inch howitzer shell was discharged, striking the turret of a tank - Trooper Matthews was a crew member of the tank (known as the Assassin). The jury dismissed the charges after ten minutes deliberation. Brother William (RAN: Service No:24350) was KiA on board HMAS Perth.
Born in 1921 in Hurstville NSW, Harry was the youngest of two children of Horace James Matthews (b1886 in Goulburn, NSW) and May Lowery (b1893 at Inverell, NSW). Horace (a Draper/Storekeeper) served in WWI (Driver; Service Nos:3528/85840) and in 1919 in Sydney, NSW married May. Horace was a Department Manager at the time of his death in 1931, and in 1942 May enlisted in the AWAS (Lance Corporal; Service No:NF392020). May was Discharged (medical) shortly before her death in 1943.
Harry was working as a Dairy Bacteriologist in Smithtown NSW when he enlisted in the Army. In 1947 he was studying agriculture, food technology and livestock at Hawkesbury Agricultural College when he married June Molly Lucas (b1923 in Holbrook, NSW) - June was a Domestic Science Teacher. Harry joined the NSW Agriculture Department and was a Dairy Officer and Lecturer in a number of country postings, including Wagga Agricultural College. He went to India working on a project under the Colombo Aid Plan and in 1968 was a Farmer in Griffiths, NSW. Harry was a competitive tennis player, and he and June made regular trips to the Northern Territory (Daly River) fishing for Barramundi. June returned to teaching briefly in 1962 and by 1977 the couple were living in Canberra where Harry was an Advisor. Harry died in 2003 and June in 2008.
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