John Watson, Gordon Marshall and Annie Milgin talk about the area around Jarlmadangah, Nookanbah and Derby in the Kimberley during World War 2 - about what people, including Anne’s father, saw and remembered about the army from back then, and about people like John’s father who helped the army through labouring and other work, and people like Gordon’s father who served in the army undertaking coast watch reconnaissance work. John also talks about many of the local men at the time practicing with guns and bayonets seemingly in preparation for fighting should the enemy invade, and the three also tell stories of army trucks and military aircraft in the area during World War 2, and about a bunker near the old Derby airport that was used by the army for storage back then. There is also a more general discussion, with Gordon primarily, about why aboriginal men and women, including his father, signed up to serve for Australia in the first place, something which he has done some research on.

NOTE: This interview recording is a mix of of audio-only and audio-visual recordings.

This interview took place on 6 September 2015 in and around Jarlmadangah and Mt Anderson Station and was conducted by Dr Mary Anne Jebb and Dr Allison Cadzow as part of the Australian Research Council-funded research project Serving our Country: a history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the defence of Australia. This is the first of three interviews Gordon Marshall was involved in for the project, his second interview focuses on his own National Service experiences in the 1970s, and in the third interview, Gordon and his wife Glynis focus on the service of Gordon’s father John Marshall in World War 2.

The interview recording above is made available to be viewed here by permission of the interviewee(s), John Watson, Gordon Marshall and Anne Milgin. The recording may not be copied, reproduced or communicated in whole or in part without the prior permission of the interviewee(s). Requests for permission for use of this material should be made to the Serving our Country research project: our contact details.

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