SIGNALMAN JOHN RAYMOND GILBERT PM7639 RAN
John Gilbert was born in Wodonga Victoria in August 1926, he was the son of John and Mary Gilbert and at the time of his enlistment he was working as a labourer. He completed his basic training at HMAS Cerberus before posting to HMAS Madang, the RAN’s shore establishment on the north coast of Papua, where he was probably employed on small craft. He was rated Ordinary Signalman in February 1945 and to Signalman in late October 45.
John served in the New Guinea Theatre until April 1946 when he returned to Victoria and three days later he was admitted to hospital for two weeks. After a period of leave he posted to the corvette HMAS Ipswich in early June 1946 to deliver the ship to Ceylon where it was handed over to the Royal Netherlands Navy. On his return to Sydney he posted to the Landing Ship Tank HMAS 3035 (Later HMAS Lae), which was alongside in Sydney.
Clearly John was dissatisfied with his posting and in early December he absented himself for twelve days. In early January he had the dubious honour of being HMAS Kuttabul’s first Warrant punishment for 1947 and he was sentenced to 21 days detention at Holsworthy Detention Barracks in Sydney. Whatever the reason for him absconding, within days of being released from detention he was demobilised from the RAN on the 13th of February 1947.
Post war John became a fireman in the NSW Fire Service and in 1947 he married Patricia Sutton in Corowa NSW, and they lived in Goulburn NSW until the late 1960s, but by 1977 John had left the fire service and was living with his mother in Albury.
John Gilbert passed away on the 20th of April 2004, his body was cremated and his ashes interred in a memorial wall at Lavertys’ Funeral Home Macksville NSW.
Sources
Service Record - Australian National Archives
Nominal Roll - Department of Veterans Affairs
