ABLE SEAMAN ALEXANDER JOHN RICHMOND S/4619 RANR
Alex Richmond was born in Paddington NSW in August 1942, the son of John and Mildred Richmond of Oatley in Sydney. He enlisted in the RANR on the 26th of September 1940 at HMAS Rushcutter in Sydney and after two months basic training proceeded to HMAS Cerberus for specialist training. At the end of January 1941, he qualified in Seamanship receiving a Very Good rating and three weeks later qualified at gunnery with a mark of 79.2%.
In April 1941 Alex posted to HMAS Manoora a former coastal passenger ship requisitioned from its owners in 1939 and converted to an Armed Merchant Cruiser. He would serve on Manoora for sixteen months during which time the ship conducted patrols in the Southwest Pacific, Singapore and the Indian Ocean. He was advanced to Able Seaman on his 19thBirthday. He would leave Manoora in October 1942 and on the 23rd of November he became a member of the Tribal Class Destroyer HMAS Warramunga’s commissioning crew. With the exception of a two-month period at HMAS Cerberus qualifying as a anti-aircraft gunner in June 1943, Alex would serve on Warramunga until July 1944, taking part in numerous operation in the Solomon Islands New Guinea and in support of amphibious landings in the Dutch East Indies.
In September 1944 Alex posted into a pool position and the remainder of his service was taken up ashore with short postings to the Corvette HMAS Glenelg and the destroyers HMAS Nepal and HMAS Napier. He demobilised from the RAN on the 15th of January 1946 returning to his family home in Oatley NSW and later became an employee of the NSW railways.
Alexander John Richmond passed away on the 17th of July 2013, his body was cremated and his ashes interred in a memorial wall at Lavertys’ Funeral Home in Macksville NSW
Sources
Service Record - Australian National Archives
Nominal Roll - Department of Veterans Affairs
DVA Commemoration Details
