Ernest (Jesse) James Oral History

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DescriptionThis interview consists of three audio recordings and transcripts. Ernest (Jesse) James was interviewed on 11 October 2003 at the Whitlam Library, Cabramatta by Marilyn Gallo (Oshana).
The interview was for the "War Veterans oral history project" in partnership with Fairfield RSL.Interview SummaryErnest Thomas (Jesse) James was born in Townsville North Queensland in January 1939. His father was Arthur Ernest James and his mother was Elizabeth Mary Cuthbertson. Ernest was nicknamed Jesse at an early age and that name has stuck.

Jesse joined the Royal Australian Navy at the age of 17, his enlistment being at Townsville. His parents had separated and Jesse felt it better to join one of the services as a means of distancing himself from the situation. After medical examinations in Brisbane he was sent to Sydney where he headed for Cabramatta to join his grandparents. They convinced him to invest some of his pay in a block of land which he did. The land was at Smithfield.

Jesse was working at Garden Island Naval Base in Sydney originally and then had postings to Western Australia and England. He had married a Sydney girl who had followed him overseas and they returned to Sydney in 1970 and have remained here ever since.

When he enlisted, and after his initial training, Jesse finally went to sea on HMAS Sydney. Here he served under Peter Sinclair who later was to become the Governor of NSW. From Sydney he went to Darwin, Singapore, Hong Kong, Manila and the Gulf of Thailand. In the early seventies he did seven trips back and forth to Vietnam. They had 24 hours at Vung Tau on each occasion to drop their men and equipment and leave the area as quickly as they could. The Vietnam War was in full swing and it was definitely a danger zone. Here he also was involved in transporting trucks to Cambodia.

While transporting the men to and from Vietnam, Jesse was very much aware of the traumas that they had endured whilst in jungle warfare. The problems manifested themselves in many ways and Jesse saw the changes that the effects of the war had on them. He later saw the effects on the marriages of those in the services and particularly of the Vietnam veterans.

Jesse served on other ships and worked as a surveyor surveying the coast of various parts of Australia. He then transferred to being a physical training instructor where most of his work was done onshore at various naval bases. In England he completed an officer’s training course.

He was often able to see his family whilst in Sydney and working from some of the local bases and they were able to follow him to many places over the years. He and his wife had married when he was only 19 and he saw the importance of keeping his family together. As he rose through the ranks of the Navy, Jesse finally became a Lieutenant commander and met dignitaries from all over the world. He also traveled to many countries and finally retired in 1994 after nearly 40 years service.

Jesse speaks in detail of his life after retiring from the navy. He tells of being in the naval reserve, working at the Platypus submarine base and of being Director of Naval Safety in Canberra. In the interview he details his feelings about many subjects pertaining to the services and describes in much detail his personal feelings and tensions being on board a ship which carried 2000 servicemen and women.

Jesse saw what it was like to live in many other parts of the world and also tells of his feelings about the changing face of Australia. He emphasises that we should always be prepared to defend our principles and our way of life.

His interview is most interesting and comes from a man who has seen much and has lived much. He rose from what he calls ‘a little lout’ to one of the most important and influential positions in the Royal Australian Navy.

Transcript

Interview Transcript - Ernest (Jesse) James - Part 3

Interview Transcript - Ernest (Jesse) James - Part 2

Interview Transcript - Ernest (Jesse) James - Part 1

Audio

Interview with Ernest (Jesse) James - Part 3

Interview with Ernest (Jesse) James - Part 2

Interview with Ernest (Jesse) James - Part 1

Details

IntervieweeErnest (Jesse) JamesInterviewerMarilyn GalloDate of interview11/10/2003Duration01:18:33Transcripts availableYesRightsFairfield City Council Access ConditionsAccess open for research, written permission required for personal copies and public use

Connections

Oral History ProjectAll Oral HistoriesThe Way We Were - People of FairfieldLocal War VeteransCollectionMilitary Collection