Nat Gould

John Brookfield Gould

In 1947 at Mersing

John Brookfield Gould was born on 28 August 1908 at Malacca in Malaya, the son of Ralph Colin Gould 1877-1923 and his wife nee Edith Emily Johnston 1881-1945.

His father had gone to Malaya in 1905 to become Legal Advisor to the Administration of the Straits Settlements and had settled with his wife in Malacca.

John Brookfield Gould embarked on a career on the Rubber Plantations. In 1934 [from the 1935 Directory] he was an Assistant Planter, Craigielea Estate responsible for the Kim Kee, Gan Tian and Colinsburgh Divisions. By 1940 he was Manager, 10th Mile Division, Kempas Ltd, Jasin, Johore.

During the Second World War John Brookfield Gould was conscripted into the Johore Volunteer Engineers (JVE) in October 1941 as Sapper 681. He was captured in Singapore by the Japanese in February 1942. He is listed on the Johore Volunteer Engineers medal entitlement roll and JVE Changi BRE roll.

There are accounts by JVE members Willacy, Archer, and Hutchinson, and the captivity diary of A. McKenzie was recently published.
John Brookfield Gould was in overland Party M from Singapore to Thailand 5.11.42 under Lt Colonel G.E. Swinton [2nd East Surreys]. In May 1944 he was in a party sent from Thailand to Ube POW Camp in Japan.

After his release, John Brookfield Gould returned to England. In Sheffield he met Margery Welch at the home of his cousin Dr. Carrick. He sailed back to the Far East in early 1946, to work on the Permatang Estate, Kota Tinggi. Margery followed later. They married in Malaya, probably at Malacca in 1946 or 1947.

Possibly as a result of the captivity in the hands of the Japanese, John Brookfield Gould died in Malacca on 18 August 1948 aged only 40 years. His gravestone has the inscription “Beloved Husband of Margery”.