Western Australian Leave Train Cooking Sections

Cook - Current photo of one of the settlements on the Trans railway line

Brief History

Western Australia was connected to the eastern states by a transcontinental railway that ran from Kalgoorlie in WA to Port Pirie north of Adelaide that was also subject to periodic breaks due to heavy rainfall and minor derailments. This journey took several days and to meet the needs of troops, food was provided on the trains. While the Trans Australian Railway had staging camps at either end of the line (Parkeston and Port Pirie) that provided cooking crews on the trains, in June 1943 this changed to crews that manned field kitchens at isolated railway stations along the line, with crews rotating amongst the outposts - 1 Section; 2 Section and 3 Section. In January 1945 they moved from their Parkeston base to Port Augusta.

Meanwhile, the Kalgoorlie to Perth line was served by the 16th Leave Train Cooking Section which had been formed at Northam in March 1944. The unit remained at Northam until the conclusion of the war.

Unit Personnel

16th Leave Train Cooking Section

• John William Watson 16 Jul 1943 - 10 Jan 1944 & 30 Aug 1944 - 9 Nov 1945