Albert Scott

Private Albert Oswald Scott (Service No. VX140371) served in the Australian Army during the Second World War, enlisting 12 April 1943 and discharged 14 June 1946. He served with the 29/46th Australian Infantry Battalion, and his service record lists places of connection as Bega and Milne Bay, NSW.

Albert Scott joined the fight at a time when Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people faced profound discrimination at home and in military service, yet his commitment to duty placed him among the many who contributed to Australia’s war effort from across the nation. His battalion operated in the Pacific theatre, including around Milne Bay where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander servicemen played critical roles alongside their non-Indigenous peers.

While detailed personal accounts of Scott’s tasks are limited in the public record, his service number and unit listing show his formal contribution in that global conflict. The Australian War Memorial’s archival page for him provides a key public recognition of his service.

Scott’s return to civilian life in post-war Australia would have arrived during a period of social change but for many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander veterans the transition was challenging, as full rights and recognition lagged behind the commitment they had shown overseas. His story stands among those who served and helped defend Australia, and whose contributions are gradually being more fully acknowledged.
Albert Scott reminds us of the many Aboriginal service-men whose service formed part of the shared heritage of the nation.