PRE>This series was the main correspondence series of the 2nd Echelon, Army Headquarters and the subsequent agency, Central Army Records Office. The bulk of the extant files relate to Australian prisoners of war and internees held overseas and missing personnel during World War II (WWII). Also included are records which relate to the administration of internment camps in Australia. Part of the series relates to movements of personnel during the later part of WW II and also during the Korean War. The records relating to prisoners of war and internees overseas include: nominal rolls of Australian POWs, casualty reports, statements made by recovered personnel, movements of personnel and lists of protected personnel. Also included are nominal rolls of UK casualties, copies of proceedings against prisoners of war, statements and copies of proceedings relating to war crimes and Japanese atrocities.The records relating to enemy prisoners of war and internees held in Australia are concerned mainly with the administration of the camps. Files contain information regarding the following: number of persons interned in Australia, prisoners of war strength, movement of prisoners of war, instructions re enemy prisoners of war held in Australia and registration of deaths. Files relating to individual internees are held in a relating series (CRS B3812, Correspondence files, multiple number series (121 primary number). The following is a list of subjects covered in this series and the related primary and secondary numbers. The items which have been asterisked have related registration booklets in archival custody (CRS B3948). *140/1 - POW Casualties - /4 - Post-War Result of Accident or Illness
- */6 - POW Casualty Information
- /7 - POW Casualty Information
- /8 - POW Casualty Information
- /9 - POW Casualty Information
- */10 - POW Casualty Information
- */11 - POW Casualty Information(part)
*141/4 - POW Casualty Information *142/1 - Sparrow Force - */2 - Recovery of Aust. POW
*144/1 - POW Japanese Hands - */2 - Recovery of POW /4 - POW Casualties
- */11 - POW
- */14 - Statements of made recovered POW
- /18 - Addressing mail to POW
- /23 - Judicial Proceedings against POW
- /24 - Protected personnel
- /26 - POW Casualties
- /28 - Japanese Propaganda
- /30 - 'Vatican' Radio Broadcasts - list of POW
- /31 - Shortwave Broadcasts
- */32 - Act of Grace Payment to AMF Personnel in Timor
*145/2 - Missing Personnel *145/4 - Missing Personnel *146/1 - Japanese Atrocities and War Crimes 147/2 - UK Casualties 148/1 - NEI Personnel 161/5 - Chinese casualties162/2 - Training and courses for personnel - /4 - Training and courses for personnel
171/1 - Officers Missing and POW - Near East 172/2 - POW - Missing 172/6 - POW various 500K/1 - Movements Personnel - Korea - /2 - Movements Personnel
- /4 - Movements Personnel
776/4 - NG Details Depot - Transfer of Card Index 778/1 - Enemy Internees and POW held in Australia 805/2 - Publications and instructions 999/1 - Disbandment of EC Army Records Office In addition to the correspondence held on these files other items include: File Number Description (see inventory for further details)144/1/71 Photographs of POW's in Japanese hands: British and/or Australian PW captured Aug/Sept. 1944 and June 1944, Hansa Bay area, New Guinea Photograph captured, Genjin, Dutch New Guinea, 14-20th June 1944144/1/91 Army clothing tags "E.J. Howard Pty. Ltd. 1940" 144/1/131 Maps: Sketch map of area surrounding Tamakan Railway Bridge Target map - Saigon area Target map - Singapore area 144/1/156 Recovered piece of paper with address - POW Ambon (?)144/1/128 Army photograph 144/1/235 & Identity discs.144/14/70 Photograph - Australian soldier (?). Found in Borneo 144/1/255 Identity discs. Personal/family photographs found. Sketch map of PW Camp - Ranau Sketch map of Experiment Farm Camp Sandakan 144/14/121 Copies of drawings of POW Camp Oesapa Besar 144/14/140 Personal diary, Christmas cards and other personal effects 145/4/103 Notebook and photographs of deceased soldiers in Greece 145/4/146 Photographs of POW about to be executed and map of Singapore used for 'official use'Most of the files do not have file covers. The files usually consist of several folios, each with a different number typed or handwritten in the top right hand corner of the folio and held together by metal pin clips. This number was allocated from one of the registration booklets (B3948). When two or more folios related to the same subject they were grouped together and the last folio registered became the top number, i.e. file number. The entries in the registration booklet were then amended to show the new top number. The files in this series were culled before transfer to Archives, in 1947, according to note found with the remaining files, and in 1957 approximately half of this series was destroyed. The remaining files in Archival custody have been placed in acid-free folders. The set of registration books (B3948) for the correspondence files in this series is incomplete. The related series CRS B2944, File relating to 'Cowra Mass Escape', C.1950's-1978, consists of three files which were amalgamated. These files were originally from a 'Director of War Graves Services series (file number 14/2/- ), this series (CRS B3856) (file number 778/1/421) and a Prisoner of War Information Bureau series (file number 347/641/167). The three files and extra material are held in a manilla folder with the title 'Cowra Mass Escape'.
In B3948/0 - controlling registers for B3856 - book no.11 contained two notes relating to correspondence files 144/1/316 and 144/1/362. The registers indicate that file
144/1/316 was top-numbered into 144/1/362 [New Britain (Rabaul) correspondence relationg to SS MONTEVIDEO MARU]. The note relating to 144/1/362 indicates that
this file was sent to 'Central Registry' in 1960. In 2013, file 144/1/362 was located in the Defence offices and transferred to National Archives of Australia, Melbourne
repository in B3856 2013/00185490.
A reference copy of item 144/14/140 relating to items found in a mass Sandakan war grave was made in 1997 owing to the fragile condition of the originals. This is held in B3856/1. In 1999 a CD-rom copy was made of component 10 of item 144/14/140, this was placed with the reference copy of the item in B3856/1. The original was removed to B3856/2, it is unable to be issued for preservation reasons.
Quantity in agency custody0.18m: held by CA 1568, Army Office, Department of Defence III - Directorate of Personnel Support
Subsequent series unregistered
Correspondence files, multiple number series, c.1954-1966