[Mike Cecil]

Interesting image. Interesting book. As Tony said, 2610 and 2601 correspond with Australian hull numbers. Both numbers fall within a group manufactured by SAR.

I have records of three LP2A carriers in the USA:
2595
2641
2674

All SAR carriers, and straddle the ones in the image. I also have a 2012 dated note that 2609 was under restoration in South Australia, which would tend to indicate that a complete 'batch' of numbers was not handed to the USMC, but odd ones to make up the required number, while still supplying local demands.

I'm guessing that the ones supplied to the USMC were from the orders placed for the EGSC for supply to other nations, as I've found no specific reference to a supply to the USAFIA or the USMC in particular, nor any returned by the US to the Commonwealth for credit to the Reverse Lend Lease account.

Edit: There is another (slim) possibility (and yes, it is another guess!): that the carriers were part of the equipment captured from the Japanese. The USMC are known to have captured quantities of equipment and used it against the former owners, including machine guns, Chevrolet and Ford trucks, engineer equipment, and so on. On page 74 of of the official US history of the Guadalcanal campaign there is an image of a Ford-Marmon Herrington LP3 artillery tractor found at Lunga Point. Its only possible source was an Australian artillery unit deployed to the Pacific/Malaya, and overrun in the first few months of the Japanese thrust south, and then used by the Japanese. There is an Aust MG carrier and a 25-pdr field gun in the collection of the AWM that were captured by the Japanese and used by them in areas remote from the point of capture. This makes the point that the Japanese were happy to use captured equipment and to re-locate it as needed.

Another rabbit burrow to dive into!!

Mike


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