Jack and Hazel Smith
Jack Smith of the US Navy with Hazel Smith (née Holloway) on their wedding day in Sydney, 1942. AWM P08500.001
American sailor Jack Smith, like many members of the United States forces, was posted to Australia during the Second World War. In 1942 he met an Australian woman, Hazel Holloway, at a nightclub, and the couple was soon married.
In 1945 Hazel, eight months pregnant and with a toddler in tow, set sail for her new home in America. Jack remained behind on active service until 1947, so Hazel initially lived with his sister in San Francisco. When he returned, the couple decided to settle in Utah. By the early 1950s Hazel and Jack had welcomed another three children, but Hazel had begun to miss home, and eventually the couple decided to move back to Australia.
Jack and Hazel Smith return to Australia with their family after living in the United States, 1953. R J Morson Photographics, AWM P08500.002
Activities
- Around 15,000 women like Hazel left Australia during and after the Second World War. How might Hazel have felt about starting a new life in America?
- What are the similarities and differences between the uniforms worn by Royal Australian Navy personnel and those worn by US Navy personnel?
- What are some ways in which the United States forces influenced Australian society while stationed in this country during the war?