Catalog
Voucher - 2 Pence Hay Internment Camp; No.6 Camp Officers' Mess
| Issuer | Hay Internment Camp, No. 6 Camp Officers' Mess |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Vouchers |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | No. 6 Camp Officers' Mess 2d. |
| Reverse description | Unprinted red paper; the obverse text shows through as a faint mirror impression due to ink strike-through, leaving the reverse otherwise plain. |
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Hay Internment Camp, established in far-western New South Wales in 1940, held civilian internees — predominantly Italian and German nationals, along with Jewish refugees who had fled Nazi Europe and were, with grim irony, classified as enemy aliens by the British authorities who transported them from the UK. The No. 6 Camp Officers' Mess voucher system existed to facilitate internal trade and canteen purchases without allowing real currency to circulate freely among the compound population.
Printed on red paper at the camp itself, this 2 Pence voucher is among the most locally produced of all Australian internment issues — improvised, utilitarian, and entirely site-specific.