Family Name:
Atkinson
Given Names:
Hugh
Gender:
Male
Birth-date:
1923
Death-date:
Unknown
Marital Status:
Single
Age/Age Range:
19
Location:
QLD
Occupation:
Station hand
Primary Motivation:
Conscientious Objector – Rationalist
Reason for Court Appearance:
[1] Refusal to enlist
[2] Appeal
Court Name and Location:
[1] Court of Petty Sessions, Sydney
[2] Supreme Court, Sydney
Court Hearing Date:
[1] November 1942
[2] Unknown.
Court Outcome:
[1] on bail awaiting appeal outcome
[2] 3 months imprisonment, served at Long Bay and Emu Plains Prison Farm
Military Event: World War II 1939-1945
Further Information:
Hugh Atkinson was a 19-year-old station hand, working in Queensland when he was conscripted. He refused on enlist based on his Rationalist beliefs. Appearing at the Sydney Court of Petty Sessions in November 1942, Atkinson was sentenced to three months in prison. The sentence was stayed while he appealed. He offered to work on a Mercy ship patrolling the coast, but his offer was refused. After his appeal failed, he served his sentence in Long Bay Prison and Emu Plains Prison Farm in 1944.
Confirmatory Sources: Peacemaker, December 1942, p.1.
THE AUSTRALIAN PEACE HONOUR ROLL 