Fortress Fremantle Lecture Sun 23 Jun 2019 2:00pm – 3:00pm WA Maritime Museum Join Tim Baldock, author of Fortress Fremantle: Its Lost Sub & Contribution to World War II, for a fascinating insight into Fremantle during the Pacific War. In total, more than 170 submarines were based in Fremantle over the course of the war. Such was the importance of this base that the Port was closed to the public and most people who lived in Fremantle had no idea of the significance of their contribution to the war effort. Many submarines based in Fremantle were lost at sea over the course of the war, and the USS Bullhead, the memory of which Fortress Fremantle is dedicated to, was the last American ship to be lost in World War II. After leaving the Port of Fremantle in July 1945, she was sunk off the coast of Bali on 6 August 1945, the same day as the first atomic bomb was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Tim Baldock is an avid military historian, with Fortress Fremantle: Its Lost Sub & Contribution to World War II being his first book on the subject. The decision to write about the Pacific War was driven by his personal interest in that campaign, largely influenced through his work as a volunteer tour guide on Rottnest Island in Western Australia where the Oliver Hill Gun Battery still stands today. A proud West Australian, who grew up with a deep connection to Fremantle, his research has allowed him to share his passion for history with his love of the Port. This lecture is free to attend and bookings are not required.