Arthur Reginald Evans DSC (1905 - 1989)

Born 14 May 1905 in Leichhardt, New South Wales, Australia

Ancestors

Husband of Gertrude Slaney (Poole) Evans — married 1940 in Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia

Died 31 Jan 1989 at age 83 in Avalon, New South Wales, Australia

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Kenneth Evans [send private message]

Biography

Reg Evans DSC was born in New South Wales, Australia

Arthur Reginald 'Reg' Evans DSC was born on 14th July 1905 in Leichhardt, New South Wales, Australia. He was the only son and eldest child of Stuart Evans and Edith Ludlow. ^[1]

He moved to the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu) in 1929, obtaining work as an assistant manager on a copra plantation. When the plantation was later sold, he obtained work in the Solomon Islands as an accountant for the trading company, Burns Philp, and later as a purser on the inter-island steamer, the Manutu.

Reg married Gertrude Poole in 1940 in Chatswood, New South Wales. ^[2]

On 25th July 1940, two months after the collapse of France and evacuation of Allied troops at Dunkirk, Reg enlisted in the Second Australian Imperial Force for service overseas in defence of his nation in the Second World War. Posted to the 2/9th Australian Field Regiment, Australian Artillery, he was sent to the Middle East in mid-1941, and served in Palestine, Egypt, and Syria before returning to Australia in 1942. He attained the rank of Warrant Officer Class 2. When the regiment was re-assigned to the 3rd Division, for defence within Australia, Reg took his discharge on 9th October 1942 ^[3] ...

... and was commissioned two days later, on 11th October 1942, in the Royal Australian Navy Volunteer Reserve (RANVR) as a Lieutenant. ^[4] Reg would be working in the Pacific Islands as a Coastwatcher, stationed on Guadalcanal where the Japanese had commenced constructing an airstrip. He was described about this time as 'slight of build, with a long, thin face that lit up with his warm smile ... well educated, had a ready wit and was cool under pressure'. ^[5] In August 1943, Reg was instrumental in rescuing the crew of a US PT boat that had been run-over by a Japanese destroyer. The commander of the PT boat was Jack Kennedy, later US President John Fitzgerald Kennedy. ^[5]

The war over, Reg was finally discharged from military service on 16th May 1946 at HMAS Torrens, Adelaide, South Australia. ^[4]

Reg was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) on 1st March 1945 for his work as a Coastwatcher and 'bravery and enterprise in reconnaissance operations'. ^[6][7] The award was presented on 19th November 1946 at Government House Adelaide by the Governor of South Australia. His home address at that time was 9 Ettrick Avenue, Medindie, South Australia. ^[8]

He and Gertrude returned to Sydney, where he worked as an accountant until retiring. ^[5] Gertrude passed away in 1963.

Aged 83 years, Reg passed away on 31st January 1989 in Avalon, New South Wales. ^[9][10]

Sources

1. ↑ New South Wales Birth Index #14296/1905
2. ↑ New South Wales Marriage Index #15415/1940
3. ↑ Department of Veterans' Affairs nominal roll: NX57823 Warrant Officer Class 2 Arthur Reginald Evans; accessed 1 May 2022
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Department of Veterans' Affairs nominal roll: Lieutenant Arthur Reginald Evans; accessed 1 May 2022
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2} Lindsay, Patrick. The Coast Watchers: The Men Behind Enemy Lines Who Saved the Pacific. Random House, North Sydney, 2011. ISBN 978 1 74275 312 6
6. ↑ Australian Honours: Distinguished Service Cross; accessed 1 May 2022
7. ↑ Australian War Memorial honours and awards: Distinguished Service Cross; accessed 1 May 2022
8. ↑ Australian War Memorial honours and awards (recommendation): Distinguished Service Cross; accessed 1 May 2022
9. ↑ New South Wales Death Index #4013/1989; mistakenly lists mother as Dora Frances, who was his mother-in-law
10. ↑ Australian War Memorial; accessed 1 May 2022