A BASIS FOR VICTORY
THE ALLIED GEOGRAPHICAL SECTION
1942 - 1946
by Reuben R. E. Bowd

A Basis for Victory
The Allied Geographical Section
1942 - 1946

by Reuben R.E. Bowd

This book fills an important void in Australian military histiography by identifying the operations and achievements of one of General Douglas MacArthur's key intelligence organisations, the Allied Geographical Section.  

This inter-service and inter-allied unit was established by Colonel Charles Willoughby to address the lack of even the most basic geographic, anthropologic and hydrographic intelligence available in the Southwest Pacific Area of operations.

The Allied Geographical Section was located in the Permanent Bank Building, 115 Queen Street, Brisbane where it occupied originally one and then two floors.  It then grew larger than the building could provide and HQ AGS moved to the US Army Camp at Victoria Park with a service centre in the Grace Building, York Street, Sydney and the AGS (NEI) Detachment in Melbourne at South Yarra prior to forward echelon relocating to Manila in June 1945 when AGS rear-echelon relocated to Melbourne at South Yarra.  Forward echelons and detachments were maintained also with GHQ's advance toward Japan at Port Moresby, Hollandia, Biak, Tacloban, and Tolosa (Leyte) housed in camps maintained by the HQ's they were attached to.

"Australia @ War" WWII Research Products

This page first produced 30 October 2005

This page last updated 04 March 2020