Cashmore, Alec Brooke   (1907 - ?)

Born on 13 April 1907

He enrolled at Roseworthy Agricultural College in 1923 at which time his home was at Port Pirie. He graduated in 1927 with a Roseworthy Diploma in Agriculture (RDA) which he received with first class honours. He was then employed at the College as a 'cerealist' in 1927 and 1928. In 1938, he submitted a thesis to the University of Adelaide on the topic of 'Investigation into the Possibility of Control of Cape Tulip, Honoria collina, Vent. var. aurantiaca, Sweet., a weed species in South Australia' and in that year was awarded a Master of Science in absentia. At the time, he was working in the Division of Plant Industry at CSIRO in Canberra.

Chronology supplied by CSIRO Canberra

1930 Granted CSIR Junior Research Studentship, to work in the general field of Agrostology at the Waite Agricultural Research Institute, Adelaide.

1932 Appointed Agrostologist with the Division of Animal Health and Nutrition, Adelaide.

1935 Appointed Plant Ecologist, Section of Weeds Investigations, Canberra.

1939 Appointed Agrostologist, Division of Plant Industry, to work in Western Australia

1942 Volunteered for service with RAAF. Trained as a Specialist Armament Officer.

1944 Resigned from RAAF at request of Chief, Division of Plant Industry. Granted honourable discharge with rank of Flight Lieutenant.

Transferred to Canberra to take charge of Weeds Investigations.

1945 On the recommendation of the Chief, Division of Plant Industry, applied through the Department of External Affairs for a post with the Control Commission for Germany (British Element). Appointed Chief Technical Assistant (Major) with the CCG, Food, Agriculture and Forestry Division.

Proceeded to Germany.

1946 Appointed Officer-in-Charge of Agricultural Production in the British Zone with rank of Principal Control Officer (Colonel).

1947 Appointed Officer-in-Charge of Production Plans and Organisation with the British-United States Bipartite Control Group.

Returned to CSIR as an officer of Information Service. Toured Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux centres in the United Kingdom.

1948 Acted as Officer-in-Charge, Australian Scientific Research Liaison Office, London.

Joined CSIR Information Service, Melbourne. Appointed CAB Liaison Officer.

1950 Appointed part-time member of staff of CSIRO Wildlife Survey Section.

1951 On the recommendation of the Chairman accepted an assignment with FAO to work in Cyprus on range management problems.

1952 Returned to Head Office staff and was posted on secondment to the Division of Animal Health and Production as Acting Assistant Divisional Secretary.

Source: Extracted from: pers. com. Sue Coppin, Collection Archivist, Corporate Information, University of Adelaide (1/2/2008, 11/3/2008).
Portrait: Cashmore-AB-1927-28-RAC-Cricket-Team

Collecting localities for 'Cashmore, A.B.' from AVH (2021)

Data from 375 specimens