Lavinia Jean Russell (1909 - 1942)

Ancestors

Australian Nurses of the Vyner Brooke

Biography

Lavinia Jean Russell

Lavinia Jean Russell was born on 21st December 1909 at Hurstville, New South Wales, Australia. Jean, as she was known to avoid confusion with her similarly-named mother, was the younger daughter of David Russell and Lavinia Adams.^[1] Her older brother was born (and died in infancy) at Grafton, New South Wales where her parents had married, and older sister was born at Broken Hill.

Following her formal education at St Mary's Star of the Sea, Hurstville, Lavinia undertook nursing training and was registered as a nurse.

Lavinia enlisted in the Australian Army Nursing Service as a Sister (rank equivalent to Captain) and was attached to the 2/10th Australian General Hospital, then based at Malacca, Malaya.^[2]

After strategic withdrawal to Singapore in the face of the seemingly all-conquering Imperial Japanese Army in December 1941-January 1942, the hospital set up in a school at Singapore. As the inevitable defeat loomed, along with 64 other Australian nurses and many civilians, including women and children, Lavinia was evacuated from Singapore on 12th February aboard the ill-fated Vyner Brooke. The ship was discovered by the Japanese as it was entering the Bangka Strait two days later, bombed and strafed repeatedly, and sank in twenty minutes.

Lavinia was killed at this time, either aboard ship or in the water.^[3] Lavinia Jean Russell's name is located at panel 96 in the Commemorative Area at the Australian War Memorial, Canberra and at Kranji War Cemetery, Singapore.^[4]

Sources

1. ↑ New South Wales Birth Index #8313/1910; registered at Rockdale
2. ↑ Department of Veterans' Affairs nominal roll: NFX70571 Sister Lavinia Russell; accessed 29 Feb 2020
3. ↑ Shaw, Ian W. 'On Radji Beach: The Story of the Australian Nurses after the Fall of Singapore'. MacMillan, Sydney, 2010. ISBN 978-1-4050-4024-2
4. ↑ Australian War Memorial nominal roll: NFX70571 Sister Lavinia Russell; accessed 29 Feb 2020

• Photo creative commons https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C371616

Memorial on parents grave at Woronora Cemetery

• https://www.google.com/search?q=nurse+lavinia+jean+russell&rlz=1C1NHXL_enAU825AU825&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=X5aTceAdp0GKuM%253A%252C5kOj6WID9h7QtM%252C_&vet=1&usg=AI4_-kSbMn14ai7Mf_02RHjFWhoRYY7Fqw&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi8mJ2UkvzjAhUf8HMBHUAyBa0Q9QEwCHoECAgQEg#imgrc=X5aTceAdp0GKuM:

Newspaper report of death: [1]