Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Contributed by Salisbury East High School

Albert Spencer Nicks was born on the 13th of February 1915 in Kadina, on South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula. His mother was Grace Elizabeth Wellington Nicks and his father was Spencer Claude Nicks who worked as a mason. Albert grew up with seven siblings. He had two older sisters named Melva and Annie, and an older brother named Richard who was two years older than him. He had two younger sisters called Mary and Lillian as well as two younger brothers called Francis and Leonard who unfortunately died when he was only a few months old.

As Albert got older, his family moved to Adelaide, where he began school. He first went to Gilles Street Public School4, but likely due to overcrowding issues, he and his brother moved to Sturt Street Primary school when he was in the third grade. He stayed there for two more years before leaving school when he was in the fifth grade.

On December 26, 1940, Nicks became engaged to Edna Jean Ray7 and the two were married on June 28, 1941. By this time, he was working as a Grinder in Keswick and was living in Unley. 

Enlistment
Albert began the enlistment forms in February of 1941, when he was 26 years old. He decided to join up as a member of the 3rd Field Ambulance Unit for the Australian Army. He passed his medical examination on March 5, 1941, in Unley but he did not take the oath of enlistment until the 13 September 1941. During this time he got married and changed his next of kin on his enlistment form, from his mother to his new wife.

War Service
After his enlistment, Albert Nicks was sent to complete training at Warradale Army Camp, where he was classed as a nursing orderly before being transported to Port Moresby on 1 January, 1942. The 3rd Field Ambulance was a mobilised medical unit who was sent as part of the militia to support the soldiers fighting the Japanese along the Kokoda Track. When his unit arrived in New Guinea, however, they found that there wasn’t much prepared, so they first had to work on building roads around the hospital and digging slit trenches for protection.

While he was away in New Guinea, his wife Edna gave birth to their first child on 3 May, 1942. Their son Brian Mervyn, was born prematurely and only lived one day before he died. This would have been incredibly sad and hard for Albert, especially since he was overseas, away from his wife and serving in the war. Nicks first worked at the 2/1 Australian Field Ambulance which was a mobile front line medical unit. Here, he would have assisted in establishing and operating different medical posts for injured soldiers.He would have lived in very challenging conditions, being surrounded by dense jungle and exposed to many diseases. He also would have seen many soldiers suffering from illnesses and injuries.

While there, he had to visit the main dressing station on 7 April, 1943 due to getting a laceration to his left arm that needed treatment. About two days later he got treatment at the same dressing station for cellulitis (a skin infection caused by bacteria) and acne. He ended up staying at the dressing station for six days before he returned to his unit. Later that year, Albert flew to Townsville from Port Moresby on the 30th of June to go on leave. He was then transferred to work in the 3/14 Field Ambulance on September 20, 1943.

On the 25th of January in 1944, Albert Nicks arrived in the New Guinea town of Lae on the HIMAS Katoomba which left from Townsville. Four days later he committed an offence about his conduct “to the prejudice of good order of military discipline” and he was reprimanded by his commanding officer. On February 6 1944, Albert and his unit marched out to join the 18 Australian Field Ambulance.21 He went on leave again on the 5 May 1944 and was brought back to Townsville via the HMAS Katoomba.

While on leave in Queensland, Albert was evacuated to the 121 Australian General Hospital in South Australia on the 7th of June, because of an unknown Gastric Problem. It was at this time that Albert started to have ongoing health problems. Seven days later he was moved to Kapara Convalescence home in Glenelg because he was considered debilitated. Here Albert would have received treatment for the last stages of his recovery, he would have gone through rehabilitation to make him healthy again.

On the 29th of June 1945, he returned to the hospital and he received a medical classification of B1 because of debility and fibrositis (musculoskeletal pain and aching), this meant that he was unfit for service outside of Australia and he couldn’t work in hot or humid climates. Albert ended up staying at the hospital until the 31st of July, when he moved to the 111 Australian Convalescence Depot in Strathalbyn in South Australia to receive further treatment. He was finally discharged in early September 1945 and transferred to the 123rd Australian Special Hospital to work. Unfortunately, he was only there for four days before he was once again evacuated to the 111 Australian Convalescence Depot for a second visit on October 1, 1945. He stayed there until he was discharged on October 29, when he re-joined his unit.

World War two officially ended on the 2nd of August in 1945, but Nicks continued to serve and was not discharged from the Army until January 14, 1946.

After the War

Just over a month after leaving the Army, on the 25th of February 1946, Albert’s wife Edna, gave birth to their second son Michael Nicks, who was also sadly born prematurely and died after only 9-10 hours. This combined with Albert’s experiences at war likely had a big impact on their relationship. At some point over the next six years, Albert moved out of their Adelaide home and into a house on Parkside and the two were officially divorced on July 12, 1952.

There is not much known about Albert in the years that followed. At some point he met and married his second wife, Audrey Mary McKay, had two sons named Peter and Dennis and moved to Port Lincoln on the Eyre Peninsula. It was here where he passed away on October 19, 1983, when he was 68 years old. His gravestone is in North Shields Cemetery in Port Lincoln, where he is buried next to his second wife Audrey.

References

1    “Albert Spencer Nicks (1915 - 1983)”, database, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com.au/genealogy/records/albert- spencer-nicks-24-63hsn9 : accessed 5/04/2023

2    “Australia, South Australia, School Admission Registers, 1873-1985,” database, FamilySearch

(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPH8-LPLV : 17 August 2019), Albert Spencer Nicks, 10 Aug 1925; citing School Enrolment, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia, citing Attorney General of South Australia, Adelaide; FHL microfilm 103421031.

3    “Spencer Claude Nicks”, database, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com.au/family-

tree/person/tree/61847552/person/320051356797/facts : last accessed 21 May 2023)

4    “Australia, South Australia, School Admission Registers, 1873-1985,”

5    Gilles Street Primary School, 2023, Our History, Gilles Street Primary School, Government of South Australia Department for Education. Last accessed on 21 May 2023, https://www.gillesstps.sa.edu.au/History

6    “Australia, South Australia, School Admission Registers, 1873-1985,”

7    “1940 Family Notices”, Chronicle (Adelaide, SA : 1895 - 1954), 26 December, p. 18. , viewed 14 April 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article92400042

8    “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, database with images, National Archives Australia

(https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Gallery151/dist/JGalleryViewer.aspx: viewed 21 February 2023, Mobilization Attestation Form, pg. 2

9    “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, pg. 2

10 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, database with images, National Archives Australia

(https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Gallery151/dist/JGalleryViewer.aspx:) Viewed 16 March 2023, Mobilization Attestation Form, pg. 3

11 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, pg. 3

12 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, pg. 2

13 Curtain University, n.d, Fear of Japanese expansion, Curtain University, date accessed 22/05/2023, https://john.curtin.edu.au/envoy/expansion.html

14 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, pg. 6

15 Australian War Memorial, 1957, Chapter 1 War Threatens Moresby, Australian in the war of 1939-1945. Series 5- Medical, Volume III-The Island Campaigns, 1st Edition, Australian War Memorial Australia, Pg 4

16 “The Adelaide Chronicle, Births Marriages and Deaths”, database, Trove

(https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/92371845?searchTerm=albert%20spencer%20nicks) Viewed 22 May 2023, pg. 12

17 “Ancestry, 2023, 18th Field Ambulance”, Forces War Records, Date viewed 12th May 2023, https://uk.forceswarrecords.com/unit/134069/18-field-ambulance/timeline

18 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, pg.6

19 Australian Navy, n.d. HMAS Katoomba, Australian Navy, Viewed 19 April 2023, https://www.navy.gov.au/hmas- katoomba

20 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, pg.7

21 Linton, 2020, 18th Australian Field Ambulance, Birtwistle Wiki, Viewed 18th May 2023, https://birtwistlewiki.com.au/wiki/18th_Australian_Field_Ambulance

22 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”, pg.8

23 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records” pg.12

24 Virtual War Memorial Australia, “Convalescent Depots”, Virtual War Memorial Australia, Viewed 8/06/2023 (https://vwma.org.au/explore/units/2131)

25 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records” pg.12

26 “New Grades of Army Medical Fitness”, database, trove (https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/91410136) Viewed 10th May 2023

27 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”,pg.12

28 “Nicks Albert Spencer WWII Service Records”pg.9

29 “The Adelaide Chronicle, Births Marriages and Deaths”, database, Trove, published February 28, 1946, pg. 16

(https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/93156864?searchTerm=Albert%20Spencer%20Nicks%20Edna%20jean

%20ray%20Michael%20Nicks) Viewed 20th April 2023

30 “The Adelaide Chronicle, Undefended Divorce Actions 1931-1954”, database, Trove, published July 12 1952, pg. 12

(https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/47411918?searchTerm=NICKS%2C%20Albert%20Spencer) Viewed 22

May 2023, pg. 12

31 “Albert Spencer Nicks (1915-1983) – Find A Grave Memorial”, database, Ancestry

(https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/115813750/albert-spencer-nicks) Viewed 15th March 2023

32 “Albert Spencer Nicks (1915-1983), ancestry, Viewed 6th of April 2023

33 “Albert Spencer Nicks (1915-1983)- Find A Grave Memorial”, Ancestry