Infantry Battalion Barracks Site, Wadjemup/ Rottnest Island

Parent Place or Precinct

03650 Wadjemup/Rottnest Island

Child Places

• 27522 Residence & Ancillary Shed, Infantry Battalion Barracks (fmr)

Statement of Significance

The Infantry Battalion Barracks at the Airfield Camp is associated with the WWII occupation of Wadjemup/Rottnest Island by Defence forces, and possibly the internment of Italian prisoners of war during WWII.

Physical Description

The place is located on a portion of Lot 10976 P216860, Wadjemup/Rottnest Island, south of the Henrietta Rocks Fire Trail and the Oliver Hill rail line, in the vicinity of the Rottnest Island Airport. The majority of the buildings in the former Airfield Camp have been demolished, however aerial imagery indicates that some remnants remain in the wider area, including Residence & Ancillary Shed, Infantry Battalion Barracks, Wadjemup/Rottnest Island which comprises two buildings constructed circa 1941. These buildings have continued to be used by Rottnest Island staff as accommodation and storage facilities.

History

The buildings at the site of the former Infantry Battalion Barracks form part of a network of extant buildings and equipment established at Wadjemup/Rottnest Island during WWII. These elements, including associated ruins, archaeological features and deposits, were installed for the purpose of protecting the Port of Fremantle from bombardment and attack by enemy naval vessels. Major construction works commenced on Rottnest in 1935. The jetty located at the southern end of Thomson Bay was extended, and a narrow gauge railway connecting the Army Jetty to Kingstown Barracks (RHP), and Bickley and Oliver Hill Batteries was completed in April 1936. Completed in September 1937, Kingstown Barracks (RHP) was occupied by the 6th Heavy Battery RAA and the 5th Fortress Company RAE. Oliver Hill Battery was proof fired on 21 November 1938. Bickley Battery was proof fired on 25 July 1939, and officially completed in December 1939. In September 1939 the Rottnest Island Batteries were placed on war alert and by June 1940 the island was declared a prohibited area and all recreational activity ceased. The Infantry Battalion Barracks were constructed 600 metres to the west of the Kingstown Barracks (RHP) between 1940 and 1941, and directly south of the railway line to Oliver Hill. The Barracks was occupied by the 10th Garrison Infantry Battalion, an Australian Army Reserve unit assigned to defend Bickley and Oliver Hill Batteries against air-borne or infantry assault. Directly adjacent to the Airfield, the site known as Airfield Camp, appears to have also been colloquially known as ‘Salt Lake City’. Plans and maps of the site at the time indicate that the Airfield Camp included a neat arrangement of accommodation huts, quarters, offices, ablutions, canteen and kitchen and mess buildings. Residence & Ancillary Shed were located to the east of the mess and office buildings. In late 1942 the strength of the military on Rottnest Island peaked at 2,500, including Army, Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), Australian Women's Army Service (AWAS) and Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF) personnel. The RAN personnel included WRANS housed at WRANS House on Signal Ridge. RAAF personnel provided meteorological services for the batteries at Bickley and Oliver Hill. The AWAS and male personnel working at Oliver Hill Battery were housed in separate barracks located near the guns. The majority of remaining personnel were located in the Infantry Battalion Barracks and Kingstown Barracks (RHP). The guns at Wadjemup/Rottnest Island were never required to fire shots in action throughout WWII. A shift in focus saw a decline in Australia’s involvement in the Pacific in 1944. The majority of the military personnel on the island were either transferred to other units or demobilised, including the 10th Garrison who vacated the Airfield Camp in 1944. The Rottnest Island Board refused to take back the island until the Army agreed to restore facilities to their pre-war order. Whilst awaiting repatriation to Italy, about 120 Italian prisoners of war were sent to the Island to carry out repairs and renovations. Accommodated in Airfield Camp, their tasks included removing barbed wire, filling in trenches, cleaning camps and cottages, and replanting trees. By December 1944, tourists were once again visiting the island. The Civil Aviation Authority operated the airfield adjacent to the Airfield Camp from 1954 to 1964. Aerial imagery of the island from 1955 indicates that the majority of the buildings associated with the Infantry Battalion Barracks, located directly to the south of the airfield, had been removed by this time. Residence & Ancillary Shed and other built elements to the west and south of the main camp footprint appear to be the only above ground elements associated with the former Airfield Camp extant at that time, and were occupied by the Civil Aviation Authority, after which the place was utilised by the University of Western Australia. The site of the former Airfield Camp now encompasses a light industrial concrete batching plant, and material laydown and storage area for the Rottnest Island Authority.

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