Earlier this week it was announced that 76 years after it sank during the Battle of the Coral Sea, the wreck of the USS Lexington had been found off the coast of Australia. The Battle of the Coral Sea, the sinking of the Lexington and Magnetic Island are linked as part of the Battle for the Pacific in WW2.

The Battle of the Coral sea is credited with stopping the Japanese advance in the Pacific and was the first real defeat of an Imperial Japanese Navy task force in WW2.  It occurred only 800km off the coast of Queensland, which is only a 1-2 day drive for most Australians. It just goes to show you how close the Japanese got.  The battle came about as part of the Allies attempt to stop the invasion of Port Moresby. Had this landing been successful the Japanese would have had a bomber base close to the Australian mainland and we would have seen much more damage as part of the Japanese plans to disrupt American supply lines and keep Australia out of the war in the Pacific.

There has been some amazing footage released from the search, led by billionaire Paul Allen. The footage show some remarkably well preserved equipment Some of which you can see at the National Geographic:

 

 

5 facts about the Lexington and the Battle of the Coral Sea

1. She is one of the first US Navy’s aircraft carriers (CV-2), but she started out as a Battlecruiser
2. She survived Pearl Harbour because she was at sea when the attack came.
3. During the battle, the Lexington was badly damaged by Japanese torpedoes, bombs and secondary fire. She was eventually abandoned and scuttled on May 8. More than 200 crew, of a total of nearly 3,000 aboard, died in the battle.
4. The Lexington was found on March 4 resting on the floor of the Coral Sea at a depth of 3,000 metres (1.86 miles)
5. The battle of the coral sea was fought over 4 days, and was the first naval battle fought with neither side ships sighting each other. It was the first all air-craft naval battle in the world. There were two Australian ships as part of the fleet, HMAS Australia and HMAS Hobart.

Townsville very nearly became Australia’s Pearl Habour.

The Battle of the Coral Sea was part of  much larger Japanese offensive and Townsville very nearly suffered the same fate as Pearl Harbour,  Documents show that a large 120 plane raid was planned for Townsville but was cancelled just 48 hours before the Battle of the Coral Sea!. Townsville luckily received a much scaled-down air raid in July 1942, two months after the Lexington was sunk, and one month after the Battle of Midway.

Magnetic Island in WW2.

After the attacks at Pearl Harbour (1941) and Coral Sea (1942) sleepy Magnetic Island was thrust into the front line of Australia’s defense. Following the Japanese offensive, Townsville and Darwin had became the hub of Allied Defenses. Townsville became the largest operational air base in the South Pacific with her bombers (Marauders, Liberators, Shackletons and others) striking targets in the Pacific. The Port of Townsville saw hundreds ships carrying men and material heading into the Pacific and New Guinea. Cleveland Bay directly out from Florence Bay became a major anchorage for ships of all descriptions. Reports say that from 1942 never fewer than 10 and usually at least 40 ships were anchored in Cleveland Bay.

All these ships needed controlling and protecting. The two existing 4.7inch guns at Kissing Point could only cover the western channel but couldn’t cover the anchorage in Cleveland Bay. Magnetic Island was thus selected as the site for a Port War Signal Station (PWSS) and artillery battery, known as the Magnetic Battery or the slightly more militaristic, ‘Fort War’. Begun in Sept 1942 and operational in July 1943, Fort War was armed with two 155mm (6″) field guns orginally destined for Manila. It protected the approaches to Townsville. The Navy informed the Army if approaching ships were friendly or otherwise.

These days the we refer to the site as ‘The Forts’ and it is our island’s most popular walking trail, and well worth a visit. It is graded moderate, taking 1-1.5 hours to complete the 4km circuit, but the views from the top are definitely worth it. Not to mention the high chance of spotting a Koala or 3 along the trail. Many of the WW2 relics are still there accompanied by some very good interpretive signs to help you make sense of the site.

It wasn’t all guns and hard work…

Despite the island being ‘closed’ during the war, the Hayles family resort in Arcadia was leased as an R&R camp for soliders and from 1943 to the end of the war some 47,500 men and women spent a 48 hour leave pass at the resort. Ferries arrived Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The friday night dances were legendary, as were some of the Saturday morning hangovers…
These days and after a few makeovers the resort is still there, but is now known as Arcadia Village Hotel Motel. In the complex you’ll find a bar, two very nice salt-water pools (open to patrons of the hotel and pub), a cafe, a bottle shop, a newsagent and our world famous Toad Races on a Wednesday Night.