Stanley Gibbs

Stanley Frederick Gibbs, GC (2 January 1909 – 3 March 1991) was an Australian shipping clerk and an exchange recipient of the George Cross, the highest civil decoration for heroism in the United Kingdom and formerly in the Commonwealth. On 3 January 1927, the day after his eighteenth birthday, Gibbs went to the rescue of 15-year-old Mervyn Allum during a shark attack at Port Hacking, New South Wales. He managed to fend off the shark by striking at it with his legs and fists and, with the assistance of a friend, pulled Allum clear of the water. Although Allum died from his injuries, Gibbs was publicly praised by the coroner and local community leaders for his actions, and was subsequently awarded the Albert Medal.

Born in Hunters Hill, Sydney, and educated locally, Gibbs was employed by the Australian Gas Light Company (AGL) as a shipping clerk for forty-five years. During the Second World War, he enlisted as a private in the Second Australian Imperial Force in February 1942 and served with the 35th Battalion on home defence and patrolling duties in Sydney and Western Australia for two years. The battalion was deployed to New Guinea in January 1944 for service in the Huon Peninsula campaign, but Gibbs' overseas experience was short lived. He broke his leg on the day of arrival, and spent an extended period in hospitals in New Guinea and Australia. Discharged in December 1944, he returned to his work with AGL. On 21 October 1971, the British Prime Minister announced that the Albert Medal would be discontinued and living recipients would henceforth be regarded as holders of the George Cross. Recipients were given the option of exchanging insignia which Gibbs took up and received the insignia of the George Cross from Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace in 1972.