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(Originally Posted 9 November 2011 and updated 18 December 2011)

This is an extract from an email received by Secretary Steve on 7 Nov 2011. If you can help, then please contact Steve direct.

To the kind attention of Mr. Gordon Wallace,

Good afternoon.

I am a Northern Italian researcher, looking for information and, if possible, for a contact with the families of two former prisoners of war from the 2/15th Battalion, 9th Australian Division.

They were:

Pte Edgar Nathaniel Triffett, QX5753,

Pte Robert Wylie, QX5740.

I am currently trying to find more about the life and the war experience of a small group of Allied prisoners who spent some time on the Italian Western Alps, while "on the run" and trying to reach the Swiss borders. Triffett and Wylie are two of them. Concerning Mr. Triffett, I already found some interesting data thanks to the historian Bill Rudd; I would kindly ask you to help me in finding more and, if possible, to provide me a possible contact with the still existing members of their families.

I remain at your disposal, wishing you a nice weekend,

Marco Soggetto

Here is Steve's reply followed by Marco's response:

G'day Marco

--- Thankyou for your email and I am delighted to talk with you.

Sadly in the passage of time we only have a few veterans left however I still have 2 POW's one being Alex Connor now at the age of 92 and who is extremely clear in his thinking and has a tremendous recall of events etc and in fact has written many articles on his and others experiences in both Italy and Germany --- the other is a man by the name of Norman Harrett who at 94 is not doing too well.

Coming back to your question re Ted Triffett as he was known in the battalion, he passed away on 3 August 1989 in Toowoomba Queensland and it is believed that his wife did write a letter to us about that time and so my task in the next few days is to go through all of our previous journals and newsletters to see what I can dig up for you.

I do not have anything on Robert Wylie, however as I dig into our records I may find something and can come back to you.

We would be very grateful for any research that you have made and can also provide to us so that we can add that too to our records which is to be kept in a museum.

I would be most grateful for you also to provide your contact phone numbers.

Wishing you well.

To which he replied

Good morning from Milan. Thanks for this very nice reply.

I will wait with great interest the results of your search.. I know that even Mme Triffett already died, unfortunately.

Maybe, if you will find her letter, I can write to her children. Do you think that Mr. Connor may remember something about my former POWs? Or did he wrote something about them, about the Italian stay or the moment of their capture?

Thanks indeed. My mobile phone number is 338 9815092. The international prefix number for Italy is 39.

Anyway, today and tomorrow I will be away for work.

Best regards,

Marco