Anne’s history tales: Wartime at Tomaree and beyond

I WAS delighted to learn that Tomaree Lodge is to be maintained for public use, as it is an iconic historic site.

This would be one of the few areas remaining from the American soldiers’ occupation during World War II.

In June 1942 Newcastle and Sydney were shelled from Japanese submarines and from that September Port Stephens became an amphibious training base for some 20,000 Americans and 2,000 Australians.

The base was wound up in October, 1943, due mainly to the distance from Port Stephens to the Papua New Guinea bases.

The U.S. Army “Small Ships” fleet was then assigned to supply the soldiers on the islands up north using vessels from our area.

One of our local men, Bill Ripley, was requested to join the tug “James Wallace” as captain.

This was a 109 feet by 24 feet steel tug which had been acquired by the Royal Australian Navy and then ceded to the U.S. “Small Ships” along with many more.

Bill was considered too old for the Australian military service but the Japanese presence appeared foreboding so he felt compelled to help under the Stars and Stripes.

However it was not until the early 2000s that the Australian government began recognising the service of Australian personnel who served in the U.S.Army “Small Ships” section.

The American soldiers built some of the dwellings at the Tomaree site.

Because it was an army base, it was connected to electricity in April/May of 1942.

For many years after the war patients who resided at the Stockton Centre were taken to this area for a change of scene.

The patients were allowed to wander the area under supervision.

In the 1950s a friend’s father, who was a dentist working for Hunter Health in Newcastle, bought a unit at Nelson Bay so that he could also attend patients at Tomaree, which was considered an isolated area until more recent times.

After the Stockton Centre closed in 2020, the Tomaree Lodge was no longer needed for patients but thankfully a new use will also celebrate its past.

My wartime memories are of the Tea Gardens ladies attending the occasional ball at Nelson Bay.

One example is a Red Cross Ball held in the church hall in July 1943.

By all accounts the ladies were well chaperoned!

My father had a launch and must have taken passengers on occasion.

Nola Nolan told me she was allowed to attend as her parents trusted mine to take her – she was eighteen-years-old.

Negotiating the long timber wharf on arrival, wearing a ball gown and high heels, must have been a challenge.

My Mother also told me stories of the girl next door who had a job as a plane spotter, recording all planes flying in our area.

Our group has a log book covering several months of this work and the details supplied to the military.

The locals were also involved in the Coast Guard watches, reporting on all vessels entering Port Stephens and off the coast.

By Anne JOHNSON, Tea Gardens Family Research and Local History