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Image Not Available for Cigarette case presented to Commander H.T. "The Daddy of All of Us" from a grateful Surveying Service 29 September 1928
Cigarette case presented to Commander H.T. "The Daddy of All of Us" from a grateful Surveying Service 29 September 1928
Image Not Available for Cigarette case presented to Commander H.T. "The Daddy of All of Us" from a grateful Surveying Service 29 September 1928

Cigarette case presented to Commander H.T. "The Daddy of All of Us" from a grateful Surveying Service 29 September 1928

Date1928
Object number00003828
NameCase
Medium9 ct gold
DimensionsOverall: 70 x 90 mm
ClassificationsClothing and personal items
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from J Bouvy
DescriptionThis nine-carat gold cigarette case is engraved 'H.T.B. "The daddy of us all" A grateful surveying service 24-9-28'. Commander Harry T Bennett surveyed northern Australian waters in the survey ship HMAS GERANIUM from 1923-1927. This case was presented to him as a farewell gift when he retired from the Royal Australian Navy.HistoryHarry Thring Bennett DSO served in the Royal Navy during World War I and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order; he then transferred to the Royal Australian Navy where he spent most of the 1920s in the Hydrographic Branch undertaking surveys of northern waters and of the Great Barrier Reef. He retired in 1929 but was recalled during World War II where he served firstly as Commander of HMAS PLATYPUS and then as Staff Officer in Sydney of the DEMS (Defensively Equipped Merchant Ships).SignificanceThis gift highlights the respect of the survey party towards the commanding officer.