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Funeral procession for American soldiers Brisbane Queensland 1947

from State Library of Queensland

• Vesna Verencevic said:

  On 22 December 1947, 30,000 people watched a State funeral procession held in Brisbane for an unknown US soldier, who was transported on a gun carriage from the US Mausoleum No.4 at Redbank to King George Square in Brisbane. The soldier had been chosen to represent a total of 1871 US service personnel who were being repatriated to the US from cemeteries in Ipswich (1406 souls*, site now Manson Park), and Rookwood in Sydney (465 souls). Their steel caskets were carried to the Newstead wharf, and were loaded onto the American ship USAT Goucher Victory. At this time calls were made for a memorial to commemorate America’s WWII assistance to Australia, and the presence of the Americans in Brisbane. The Australian-American Memorial at Newstead Park was erected by the Australian-American Association, which had started public fundraising in March 1950, and construction in May 1951. Source: www.qldwarmemorials.com.au/memorial?id=1405