Photo Gallery : Tarakan A Long Time Ago

Photo No. 01

Photo No. 01 : Oil storage tanks and a pier at Tarakan photographed between 1905 and 1914 

Photo No. 02

Photo No. 02 : Australian infantry advancing through wrecked oil storage tanks at Tank Hill, Tarakan. 

Photo No.03

Photo No.03 : Map showing Japanese positions located on Tarakan Island by Allied intelligence as of April 1945 and code-names for positions.

Photo No.04

Photo No.04 : Morotai, Halmahera Islands, Netherlands East Indies. Preliminary conference attended by commanders of RAAF Command, First Tactical Air Force, RAAF, US Navy and Australian Army. Details of the Australian landing on Tarakan Island, off the north-east coast of Borneo were discussed. Amongst those present were: Rear-Admiral Forrest Royal, US Navy; Lieutenant-General Sir Leslie Morshead; Air Vice-Marshal W. B. Bostock CB CBE. 

  

Photo No.05

Photo No.05 : Soldiers from the 2/48th Battalion watch part of the convoy which is taking them to Tarakan

  

Photo No.06

Photo No.06 : A map showing the movements of Allied units during the battle

Photo No.07

 Photo No.07 : TARAKAN, BORNEO. 1945-04-30. MEN OF 2/13 FIELD COMPANY, ROYAL AUSTRALIAN ENGINEERS, EXHAUSED AFTER THE INITIAL ATTEMPT TO GET ASHORE AT LINGKAS TO BLOW WIRE DEFENCES. THEY REST IN A LANDING CRAFT VEHICLE-PERSONNEL BEFORE A LATER SUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT AT FULL TIDE. IDENTIFIED PERSONNEL ARE:- SAPPER J.F. WILLIAMS (1); SAPPER J.R. MUNRO, LATER KILLED IN ACTION ON SNAG'S TRACK (2); SAPPER J.A. HOFFMANN (3); SAPPER R.A.R. STEVENSON (4); LANCE-CORPORAL R.C. MACE (5); SAPPER D.R. BIDWELL (6); SAPPER C.J. FOLEY (7).

Photo No.08

 Photo No.08 : TARAKAN. 1945-05-01. THE SECOND WAVE OF 2/48 INFANTRY BATTALION TROOPS LEAVING THE MANOORA IN LANDING CRAFT VEHICLE PERSONNEL DURING THE LANDINGS ON D- DAY.

Photo No.09

Photo No.09 :PRIVATE D. E. HAILEY (LEFT) AND T. M. CONWAY (RIGHT) MEMBERS OF 2/23RD INFANTRY BATTALION IN THEIR BREN GUN PIT ON THE FORWARD SLOPE OF B COMPANY POSITION DURING THE ATTACK ON THE JAPANESE HELD FREDA FEATURE BY 26TH INFANTRY BRIGADE.

Photo No.10

Photo No.10 : ESSEX HILL, TARAKAN ISLAND, 1945-05-21. TARAKAN AIRSTRIP LOOKING NORTH WEST NORTH, SHOWING THE EXTENT OF THE RECONSTRUCTION WORK COMPLETED BY MEMBERS OF 1ST AND 8TH AIRFIELD CONSTRUCTION SQUADRONS, RAAF, IN THE FIFTEEN DAYS SINCE 26TH INFANTRY BRIGADE CAPTURED THE AREA FROM THE JAPANESE.  

Photo No.11

Photo No.11 : Tarakan, Borneo. 1945. Disembarking on a remote section of Tarakan's coastline, one of many Indonesian patrols prepare to reconnoitre inland to clear the nearby country of Japanese stragglers. This patrol is part of the first combined AIF and Royal Netherlands Indies Army Forces attack on the Netherlands Indies. (Original negative no. A13272, Netherlands Indies Government Information Service Film and Photo Unit)  

Photo No.12

 Photo No.12 : Djoeata Boorterein, Tarakan Island. 1945-07-02. Group portrait of the remaining members of C Company, 2/24th Infantry Battalion, outside their cookhouse, with their Company Commander, VX11420L? Captain R T Eldridge.