Pilot Officer James WhitfordPrint Page
The memorial was originally unveiled as a fountain in memory Royal Australian Air Force pilot James Whitford who was killed on war service at Point Cook. Whitford was a champion pilot of the Royal Aero Club of New South Wales in 1938-1939. The fountain appears to be no longer functioning.
Over 200 people stood in heavy rain at Five Dock Park yesterday afternoon, to watch the unveiling and dedication of the Whitford Memorial Fountain. The memorial was dedicated to the late Pilot-Officer J. R. Whitford, formerly of Five Dock, who was killed when an R.A.A..F machine crashed at Point Cook, Victoria, on November 29, 1939. He left a wife and daughter, Janette, now two years old. The memorial was given by Five Dock residents at a cost of £150 and was unveiled by the Mayor of Five Dock (Alderman R. T. C. Storey). The honorary secretary of the memorial committee (Mrs. H. Gray) said a collection for a wreath had been over subscribed in half an hour. "Pilot-Officer Whitford was so popular in the district, we decided to collect enough for a memorial," she said. Telegrams from R.A.A.F. friends of Pilot-Officer Whitford, stationed at training schools and unable to be present, were read at the ceremony, which was attended by a detachment of the Women's Volunteer Naval Reserve, Five Dock N.E.S. women, returned soldiers, and Boy Scouts.
Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 2 June 1941.
Location
Address: | Park Road & First Avenue, Five Dock Park, Five Dock, 2046 |
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State: | NSW |
Area: | AUS |
GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -33.867109 Long: 151.134564 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
Monument Type: | Monument |
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Monument Theme: | People |
Sub-Theme: | Military |
Actual Event Start Date: | 29-November-1939 |
Actual Event End Date: | 29-November-1939 |
Dedication
Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Sunday 1st June, 1941 |
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WHITFORD
MEMORIAL
RAAF
DEDICATED by the CITIZENS and FRIENDS
to the MEMORY of
Pilot Officer JAMES RICHMOND WHITFORD (R.A.A.F.)
Killed on WAR SERVICE
POINT COOK, VICTORIA , November 29th, 1939
Aged 27 years
CHAMPION PILOT, Royal Aero Club 1938-1939
AVIATOR PATRON
Haberfield-Five Dock-Abbotsford Sub-Branch of the
Returned Sailors, Soldiers and Airmen's
Imperial League of Australia
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Late Civil Aviation Instructor to Airflite Pty. Ltd.
Kingsford Smith Aerodrome, Mascot