The Soldier's Details
- Surname:
- Harris
- First Name:
- Norman Joseph
- Nick Name:
- Norm
- Rank:
- Sergeant (Promoted on 24.1.1942)
- Regimental #:
- WX4985
- Company:
- ‘ B ’ Company, No. 9 Platoon. (Platoon Sgt)
- Enlisted:
- 23.07.1940
- Discharged:
- 22.05.1946
- DOB:
- 23.10.1910
- Place of Birth:
- Fremantle, Western Australia
- Father's Name:
- Not Known
- Mothers's Name:
- Clara Matilda Harris
- Religion:
- Roman Catholic
- Pre-war Occupation:
- Railway Construction
- Singapore:
- Selarang Camp Changi, Thomson Road (Caldecot Hill Estate Camp)
- Force:
- ‘ J ’ Force Japan, Wales Maru Party
- Camps Japan:
- Kobe (Showa‐Denki), Nagoya (15.2.1945-28.5.1945); Toyama (28.5.1945-5.9.1945)
- POW#:
- 587
- Return Details 1945:
- Yokohama-Okinawa‐Manila by aircraft; Manila-Sydney, B24 Liberator aircraft; Sydney-Melbourne by troop train; Melbourne-Perth by ANA airliner
General Description
This NCO was evacuated to Field Ambulance then to 2/10th Australian General Hospital with headache on 2/2/1941. He was discharged from hospital to a rest home but he became lost and joined ‘B’ Company Headquarters, remaining with them until he rejoined No. 9 Platoon at Botantical Gardens on 12/2/1942.
Norman was a member of ‘J’ Force transported from Singapore to Japan to a POW Camp at Kobe mid 1943. Some of the details of Kobe House are found at the story Kobe House, Japan.
Read about Showa-Denki Factory, Kobe.
Please read about ‘J’ Force and ‘Wales’ Maru
Please read about others from 9 Platoon
Following Kobe and working at Showa-Denki Factory, Norm, Arthur Draper, Alf Jones and Ron Lymn were moved to Nagoya Camp whilst the remaining men moved to Toyama. After three months and in May 1945 Norm and Arthur Harris were moved to Toyama until the end of the war. Please read about this.
Nag #9 Main Home Camp List
Source: NARA, RG 331, Box 942; prepared and certified by Roger Mansell, Director, Center For Research, Allied POWS Under The Japanese. All of these men came from the Osaka area. All arrived on 21 May 1945. Most likely prior camp was Narumi.
Name, Ser, Rank, ASN, Unit, POW #, Prior POW #
Anderson, Mervyn William,AIF,Pte,NX47308,2 of 30th,2766,8850
Brown, Arthur Douglas,AIF,CPL,QX15300,2 of 26th Tng Coy, 2762,8921
Brown, George Andrew,AIF,Pte,VX56222,2 of 29th,2767,8924
Draper, Arthur Montague,AIF,CPL,WX7777, 2 of 4th Machine Gun,2763,9035
Dunn, William Thomas,AIF,Pte,VX2192, 2 of 29th,2768,9038
Edwards, Stanley Joseph,AIF,Pte,QX21386, 2 of 26th Bn,2769,9046
Giles, Frank William,AIF,Pte,VX63776,2 of 29th,2770,9093
Giles, Thomas James,AIF,Pte,VX62211,2 of 29th,2771,9094
Grey, John Ernest,AIF,Pte,NX48199,8th Sig Corps,2772,9103
Harris, Norman Joseph,AIF,SGT,WX4985, 2 of 4th Machine Gun, 2761,9122
Jones, Alfred James,AIF,Pte,WX7510,2 of 4th Machine Gun, 2773,9179
Lucas, Robert George,AIF,Pte,QX17202,1 Coy AASC,2774,9226
Lutz, Edward Herman,AIF,LCPL,NX26919,2 of 30th,2765,9227
Lymn, Ronald Ruben,AIF,Pte,WX17515,unk,2775,9228
McClymont, William James,AIF,CPL,NX49231,Aust Pay Corps,2764,9237
McColl, Allan,AIF,Pte,VX21767,2 of 2nd Aust Mtr Ambulance, 2776,9238
McFarlane, Cyril Keith,AIF,Pte,NX46443,2 of 30th,2777,9247
Winepress, Frederick Joseph,AIF,Pte,QX21088,2 of 26th, 2778,9513
Yeats, Charles Thomas,AIF,Pte,QX11453,2 Coy AASC,2779,9518
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Norm’s parents Elijah (Thomas) Richard Harris and Clara Matilda Kjellgren married SA 1901. They had a family of two children Veronica and Ernest when they moved to Fremantle. Their third child Phyllis May was born in 1908 and Norman Joseph born 1910 Fremantle. The Harris family continued living in Fremantle.
Norm’s sister Phyllis May Harris married WX8869 Herbert Roy (Dick) Hindle who died in a Japanese mine fall in 1944. Harris would not have known Dick Hindle was a POW in Japan.
Both men were in ‘B’ Coy 9 Platoon. Hindle had grown up in Palmyra.
Norm’s father died in 1928 Fremantle. His mother died in 1940.
In 1931 Electoral Roll, Norm was recorded working as a labourer at ‘Upland” Group 31, Jardee.
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On returning to WA, Norm spent time at Lady Mitchell Convalescent home. He required treatment to his eyes which had suffered due to vitamin deficiency. Read Further.
In 1937 Norm and Agnes Mary (known as Bobbie) Clifford married.
In 1949 Norm and his wife Agnes were residing Hamilton Road, Spearwood, market gardening the property purchased through rehabilitation.
Norm died 3 June 1970 Caloundra aged 57 years, and buried at Caloundra Cemetery. Bobbie died 1994 Caloundra.
Camp Locations:
- Selarang Camp Changi - Singapore
- Thomson Road (Caldecot Hill Estate Camp) - Singapore
- Kobe, Osaka #2-B - Japan ***
- Nagoya - Japan
- Toyama, Nagoya #7-B - Japan
