Alfred Edward (Archer) Spencer (1912 - 1942)

Born 11 Jan 1912 in Carlton, Victoria, Australia

Ancestors

Died 1 Jul 1942 at age 30 in At Sea

Biography

Alfred (Archer) Spencer was a Prisoner of War during World War II.

Alfred (Archer) Spencer died as a prisoner of war on the Montevideo Maru during the Second World War.

Alfred was born in Carlton, VIC in 1912, the son of Erwin Mallet Spencer and Kate Sabina Archer. Erwin and Kate did not marry until after he was born. He was known as Alfred Spencer.

He married Ivy Reynolds in Victoria in 1934. It seems there were children.^[1]

He enlisted in the Australian Army for overseas service at Caulfield, VIC on 12 Jun 1940 as a Private (VX31527). At the time he was married, a machine driver at S.P.C. and was living with his wife at Shepparton, VIC. He had dark hair and brown eyes.

Following training he was posted to 23rd Anti Tank Coy, Royal Australian Artillery at Seymour and Bonegilla, VIC on 19 Jul 1940.

He was transferred to 17th Anti Tank Coy, Royal Australian Artillery at Holsworthy, NSW on 09 Aug 1941 and embarked on the "Zealandia" at Sydney on 09 Sep 1941 for Rabaul, New Britain in the Territory of New Guinea, disembarking there on 30 Sep 1941. His unit became part of "Lark Force" to defend the Territory.

After the Japanese invasion on 23 Jan 1942 he was captured on the Lassul Bay coast and became a Prisoner of War, initially held at Rabaul.

He was among those who were able to write a carefully scripted letter to next of kin advising that he was a POW. The letters were dropped from a Japanese plane over Port Moresby, Papua.^[2]

He died on board the "Montevideo Maru" when it was torpedoed and sunk off the coast of the Philippines on 01 Jul 1942, en route from Rabaul to Hainan where he was destined for forced labour.

Sources

1. ↑ Death of Mother - Family Notices (1945, April 10). Shepparton Advertiser (Vic. : 1914 - 1953), p. 8. Retrieved May 28, 2020, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article170426189
2. ↑ Red Cross POW Enquiry cards - https://gallery.its.unimelb.edu.au/imu/imu.php?request=multimedia&irn=74843

• Birth - Victoria BDM Birth index - Event: births; Registration number: 1673 / 1912; Family name: ARCHER; Given name(s): Alf Edw; Place of event: CARLTON, VIC, Australia; Personal detail Mother's name: Kate Savina; Mother's family name at birth: ARCHER; Father's Name: Unknown

• Marriage - Victoria BDM Marriage index - Event:marriages; Registration number: 2800 / 1934; Family name: SPENCER; Given name(s): Alfred Edward; Personal detail Spouse's family name: REYNOLDS; Spouse's given name(s): Ivy

• WW2 Australian Army Service File - National Archives of Australia - SPENCER ALFRED EDWARD : Service Number - VX31527 : Date of birth - 11 Jan 1912 : Place of birth - CARLTON VIC : Place of enlistment - ROYAL PARK VIC : Next of Kin - SPENCER IVY - http://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/scripts/AutoSearch.asp?O=I&Number=6220699

• Roll of Honour - Australian War Memorial - https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1698017

• Commonwealth War Graves Commission - https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2616321/spencer,-alfred-edward/

• Virtual War Memorial Australia - https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/648038

• The Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial (https://www.powmemorialballarat.com.au/ : accessed 7 Mar 2024) database entry for Alfred Edward Spencer