Australian Army Museum of Western Australia > Records

World War 2, Western Australia, WX3480 STEPHENSON, 2/9 Australian General Hospital, 1945

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Overview

Grey Drill Safari Suit Jacket & Pants, Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS), Sister Millicent Mary Stephenson, W233414, WX3480, 2/9th Australian General Hospital, Middle East, 106th Casualty Clearing Station, Bougainville, (donated 1991)

This grey drill safari suit jacket and pants were made in Australia in 1944.

Historical information

Over 4,000 women joined the Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) during the war. Member of the AANS were commissioned officers - lieutenants on appointment, rising to higher ranks of colonel, lieutenant-colonel and major. Very few nurses used their military rank, higher ranks were addressed as ‘matron’, others as ‘sister’.
Ward dresses worn by nurses in the Pacific were based on a British design with large veils, starched collars and cuffs, not suitable for tropical conditions. Nurses were issued with army boiler suits and boots until safari tunics and pants were made. Long sleeves helped provide some protection from mosquitos carrying diseases like malaria. Millicent was mentioned twice in dispatches for her service in the South West Pacific

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-32-75-587

Contextual information

This uniform element formed part of the VP (Victory in the Pacific) special 80th Anniversary Exhibition presented at the Australian Army Museum of Western Australia from 6 to 24 August 2025

Links to additional resources

Middle East 1941

Last modified

Friday, 8 August, 2025

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Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

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