Bones Timeline

Research Document #12

Bones Chronology Timeline

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Abbreviations Used
RC	Barley, Jack Charles – Resident Commissioner of G.& E.I.C. from Oct. 18, 1933 through his retirement on Dec. 19, 1941. Born 1887. 54 in 1941.
GBG	Gallagher, Gerald Bernard “Irish” – Officer-in-Charge, P.I.S.S., Gardner Island. Born 1912. 29 in 1941.
DWH	Hoodless, Dr. D. W. – Principal of the Central Medical School, Suva, Fiji.
LI	Isaac, Dr. Lindsay – Acting Senior Medical Officer, Central Hospital, Tarawa Born 1907. 34 in 1941. 91 if still alive.
HE	Luke, Sir Harry Charles – “His Excellency” High Commissioner of the Western Pacific, Suva, Fiji Born 1884. 57 in 1941.
AS	Macdonald, Patrick Donald “Paddy” – Assistant Secretary, W.P.H.C. Born 1909. 32 in 1941. 89 if still alive.
DCMM	Macpherson, Dr. Duncan Campbell McEwan “Jock” – Central Medical Authority, W.P.H.C. Born in 1900. 41 in 1941. Died in 1943.
GBN	Nasmyth, Commander G. B. – F. R. Met. Soc. (Fellow of the Royal Meteorological Society).
SMO	Steenson, Dr. Kingsley Rupert– Senior Medical Officer, Gilbert & Ellice Islands Colony, July ’41. Born 1895. 46 in 1941. 103 if still alive.
HHV	Vaskess, Henry Harrison – Secretary of Western Pacific High Commission, Suva, Fiji Born 1891. 49 in 1941. 108 if still alive.

The Timeline
GBG returned to the Phoenix Islands on 4 August 1940 following a trip to Beru to pick up more settlers for Gardner.
September 1940
1		16
2		17
3		18
4		19
5		20
6		21
7		22
8		23	RC first hears of bones. Tarawa told to watch for Koata and bottle.
9		24
10		25
11		26
12		27
13		28
14		29
15		30	Tarawa reports bottle in hand.
October 1940
1	RC notifies Suva of bones. Eight day delay. RC advises GBG.	17	GBG replies to HHV with details.
2		18
3	HHV asks for Earhart file.	19
4		20
5		21	HE asks DCMM if GBG’s details indicate AE.
6	GBG answers RCs questions of 10/1. Six day delay.	22
7	HHV suggests to HE that GBG give details, Americans be advised and Jock brought in.	23	DCMM writes long reply to HE saying sextant is best bet for ID.
8		24
9		25
10	HE says get details and tell RC and GBG to keep secret. HHV calls DCMM.	26	HHV drafts wire to GBG to send bones and suggests calling Americans. HE says no. Wire sent to GBG.
11		27
12		28
13		29
14		30
15	HHV talks to DCMM again and wires GBG for details. Five day delay.	31
16	RC advised that GBG has been asked for details and matter is secret.
November 1940
No traffic.
December 1940
1		17
2		18
3		19
4	Plan made for Nimanoa to leave Ocean about December 24th for Phoenix inspection, then leave Ocean for Christmas via Nonouti and Beru about Jan. 20th	20	Radio receiver at Gardner has just failed. Kiakia should be ready to leave for Phoenix in ten days. Nimanoa repairs will take until at least Jan. 10th. Phoenix voyage will take 3 wks.
5		21
6		22
7		23
8		24
9		25
10	Nimanoa damaged in heavy seas and westerly gale. Navy Office instructs all vessels to head for Suva due to presence of “raider.”	26
11	Nimanoa and Kiakia are off Abemama.	27	GBG writes letter to go with bones.
12		28
13		29
14	Nimanao arrives Tarawa	30
15		31
16
January 1941
1		17	Nimanoa leaves Beru for Phoenix.
2		18
3		19
4		20
5		21
6		22
7		23
8		24
9		25
10		26
11		27
12		28	Nimanoa calls at Gardner after visiting Hull, Sydney and Canton and leaves same day for Tarawa. Gardner radio working okay.
13		29
14		30
15	Nimanoa leaves Tarawa for Phoenix via Beru to pick up cargo for Phoenix.	31
16
February 1941
1		15
2		16
3	Nimanoa arrives Tarawa and is “decarbonizing” (takes five days).	17	RC sends two wires to HE – LI says bones are Polynesian and LI has released ships.
4		18
5		19
6	LI wires GBG that he has grabbed bones.	20
7	RC wires GBG that he knows about LI and will handle it.	21
8		22
9		23
10		24
11	LI wires GBG bones are Polynesian. RC wires HE that LI has closed port.	25
12		26
13	HHV drafts reply for HE’s review.	27
14	HE adds sentence and wire is sent blasting LI. LI wires GBG re “guillotine conversation.”	28
March 1941
1		17
2		18
3		19
4		20
5		21
6		22	Nimanoa (and bones) arrive Suva. Goes into overhaul.
7	Nimanoa due to leave Tarawa for Suva 11th March.	23
8		24
9		25	GBG’s letter logged in thirty-six days after Nimanoa released. HHV gives file to AS for action.
10		26
11	Presume Nimanoa leaves Tarawa.	27
12		28
13		29
14		30
15	Nimanoa leaves Beru.	31	DWH receives the bones.
16
April 1941
1		16	DCMM tells DWH.
2		17	DWH acknowledges. (Nimanoa o/h will cost £2,800 against £2,000 budgeted. Do only what’s necessary as vessel’s service required asap in G&EIC.)
3		18	DCMM says he has read DWH’s report and concurs.
4	DWH examines bones and writes report.	19
5	DWH says he’ll keep the bones until told what to do with them.	20
6		21
7		22
8		23
9		24
10		25
11	HHV fwds DWH report to HE and notes that it can’t be AE and asks if HE wants to send bones to Sydney as SWH suggests. Also suggests GBN look at sextant.	26
12	HE says have DCMM tell DWH to hang on to bones. Also ask GBN about sextant.	27
13		28	HHV figures out there is no sextant (he has had box 29 days) and asks GBG. GBG replies same day.
14		29
15		30
May 1941
No traffic.
June 1941
1		16
2		17
3		18
4		19
5		20
6	Nimanoa leaves Suva for Gardner.	21	GBG listed as absent on duty in Suva.
7	HHV sends box to GBN. Contents are carefully wrapped and kept.	22
8		23
9		24
10		25
11		26
12		27
13		28
14	Nimanoa arrives and departs Hull (having already stopped at Gardner and collected GBG).	29
15		30
July 1941
1	SMO says he has looked at contents and shoe parts are male & female. Mentions corks with brass chains.	17
2	(Wednesday) Nimanoa leaves for Gilberts. GBG to stay in Suva and later embark on vessel undertaking distribution of coast-watching personnel and equipment.	18
3	GBG writes note to file and says that it must be a castaway native.	19
4		20
5		21
6		22
7	GBG gets his typewriter overhauled in Suva.	23
8		24
9		25
10		26
11		27
12		28
13		29
14		30
15		31
16
August 1941
1		17
2		18
3		19
4		20
5	HE gets file from HHV	21
6		22
7		23
8	HE returns sextant box after showing it to Gatty (having gotten it from GBN). Gatty thinks it’s English but not used in aviation.	24
9	GBG is in Funafuti with Viti.	25
10		26
11	AS reports GBN opinion that dovetailed corners might mean it’s French.	27
12		28
13		29
14		30
15		31
16
September 1941
1		16
2		17
3		18
4		19
5		20
6		21
7		22
8		23
9		24
10		25
11		26
12		27	GBG dies.
13		28	Viti departs Gardner.
14		29
15		30
October 1941
1		17
2		18
3		19
4		20
5		21
6		22
7		23
8		24
9		25
10		26
11	Viti arrives back in Suva.	27
12		28
13		29
14		30
15		31
16
November 1941
1		16
2		17
3		18
4		19
5		20
6		21
7		22
8		23
9		24
10		25
11		26
12		27
13		28
14		29
15		30	Viti arrives Gardner with H.E.
December 1941
1	Viti departs Gardner with Emily aboard.	17
2		18
3		19
4		20
5		21
6		22
7		23
8		24
9		25
10		26
11		27
12		28
13		29
14		30
15		31
16

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