116 AUSTRALIAN GENERAL HOSPITAL (AGH)
IN AUSTRALIA DURING WW2

visits since 26 December 2004

The 116 AGH was established at Townsville, Charters Towers and Gungarra, 16 miles from Cairns.

VOLUNTARY AID DETACHMENTS IN PEACE AND WAR
By Rupert Goodman
Page 103

116 AGH (Charters Towers)
Another posting well remembered by former members of the AAMWS was to Charters Towers, little known then, even to the Queenslanders. Inland from Townsville it had a much cooler climate and like many Queensland towns, it was noted for its boarding schools in the years of peace. As happened in Toowoomba, a Catholic College and a Church of England school formed the basis of a military hospital, 116 AGH. Col Wilson and Matron Pearce and the nursing staff, including AAMWS, had a difficult task at first in getting equipment and supplies, particularly blankets, when night temperatures dropped, calling for half a dozen blankets, per bed! Charters Towers also had a good air base, so patients were flown in from New Guinea, Australian and allied servicemen alike. Nevertheless, when the one urge of all servicemen and servicewomen was to serve overseas, Charters Towers seemed very much of a backwater. AAMWS and other troops had to rely on rumours as to why a hospital was established in this out of the way place. Capt J.E. Darvall had the difficult task of keeping up the morale of the AAMWS.

Amongst the AAMWS of 2/14 AGH who left Townsville after a Cyclone
for 116 AGH at Charters Towers were L. to R. Dorothy Fredericks,
Meryl McGinn, Mavis Fadden, Lyon Bishop, and Patty Walker.

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"Australia @ War"

This page first produced 2 January 1999

This page last updated 08 Jun 2007