Wallet 1 of 1 - Letter of Howard Carthew Stevenson to 'Phil', 1945 Accession Number: AWM2020.22.217

Description

Collection relating to the Second World War service of PA3671 Able Seaman Howard Carthew Stevenson, HMAS Pirie, Pacific Ocean and Tokyo Bay, 16-31 August 1945.

Wallet 1 of 1 - Wallet consists of one ten-page letter and envelope from Able Seaman Stevenson to “Phil” [identity unknown]. Stevenson was serving on the HMAS Pirie, which was present in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1945 when Japanese envoys signed the Allied instrument of surrender aboard USS Missouri. In the first section of his letter, dated 16 August 1945, Stevenson asks about peace celebrations and comments that it was hard to believe that the war was over, as he was still far away from home and had to complete his regular duties. In the second section of his letter, dated 31 August 1945, Stevenson describes his experience of Tokyo Bay, including seeing numerous white surrender flags, docking with large numbers of Allied ships, being the third Australian ship in Japanese waters, seeing parts of the city reduced to rubble, and seeing new Japanese submarines close-up. He then describes the ship’s activities from the weeks leading up to the Japanese surrender, and wrote that on the day of the surrender they celebrated by giving a few hearty cheers and continuing to work in the rain. The envelope is marked “Signing of surrender terms, Tokyo Bay, 2nd September 1945” and has signatures of what is believed to be the crew of the HMAS Pirie.