• Entry type: Person
  • Entry ID: AWE0857

Allgrove, Ellen Mavis (Nell)

  • Married name Hannah, Ellen Mavis
(1910 – 1994)
  • Born 12 October 1910, Claremont, Western Australia, Australia
  • Died 29 October 1994, , , Australia
  • Occupation Nurse, Servicewoman

Summary

Nell Allgrove, née Hannah, came to South Australia from the West with her family when she was an infant. She began nursing training at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in 1936 and worked in the hospital’s Blood Transfusion Unit until she was called up to the Australian Army Nursing Service in 1940. In 1941 she joined the 2/4 Casualty Clearing Station and was sent to Malaya. She was among those who escaped from Singapore just before its capture by the Japanese in February 1942. When the ship ‘Vyner Brooke’ was sunk in Banka Strait, Nell and fellow nurses were interned by the Japanese. She was among 24 nurses (from a total of 65) who survived until their release in September 1945.

Archival resources

  • State Library of South Australia
    • Interview with Ellen Mavis Allgrove [sound recording] Interviewer: Joan Durdin

Published resources

Related entries


  • Related Organisations
    • Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) (1902 - 1948)
  • Related Cultural Artefacts
    • Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial