Steve Gower

Major General Stephen Newman Gower, AO (born 10 June 1940) is a retired Australian Army officer and former director of the Australian War Memorial (AWM).^[1] During his time in the Army he saw combat as an artillery forward observer during the Vietnam War in 1966 and 1967.^[2][3][4] He is also the author of the books Guns of the Regiment (1981) and Options for an Australian Defence Technological Strategy (1982).^[5][6]

Major General Steve Gower AO
Steve Gower at an announcement of additional government funding for the AWM in 2011
Director of the Australian War Memorial
In office March 1996 – December 2012
Preceded by	Brendon Kelson
Succeeded by	Brendan Nelson
Personal details
Born	Stephen Newman Gower (1940-06-10) 10 June 1940 (age 84) Adelaide, South Australia
Alma mater	University of Adelaide
Military service
Allegiance	Australia
Branch/service	Australian Army
Years of service	1959–1996
Rank	Major General
Commands	Training Command (1995–96) 8th/12th Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery (1978–80)
Battles/wars	Vietnam War
Awards	Officer of the Order of Australia

Early life

Gower was born on 10 June 1940 in Adelaide, South Australia, to Allan Martin and Agnes Fanny Gower. Educated at Unley High School and Prince Alfred College, he entered the Royal Military College, Duntroon in 1959. On graduation in 1961, he received a commission as a lieutenant in the Royal Australian Artillery. Gower wed Heather Eunice on 3 July 1965; the couple have one daughter.^[7]

AWM Director

Gower was appointed the Director of the Australian War Memorial in 1996.^[8] He continued in this role until November 2011 when he took full-time carer's leave. Nola Anderson served as acting director until December 2012 when Brendan Nelson became the new director of the institution.^[9]

Bibliography

Books

• Gower, Stephen (1981). Guns of the Regiment. Canberra: Australian War Memorial. ISBN 0642896887.
• Gower, Stephen (1982). Options for an Australian Defence Technological Strategy. Canberra: Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University. ISBN 0867840595.
• Gower, Steve (2017). Rounds Complete: An Artillery Forward Observer in Vietnam. Warriewood, NSW: Big Sky Publishing. ISBN 978-1925520583.
• Gower, Steve (2019). The Australian War Memorial: A Century on From the Vision. Mile End, SA: Wakefield Press. ISBN 9781743056165.

References

1. "Gower, Stephen Newman". Vietnam War Nominal Roll. Australian Government. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
2. "Steve Gower Bio" (PDF). Australian Defence College. Retrieved 27 August 2011.
3. "Gower re-appointed as director of Memorial" (PDF). Press release. Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 28 August 2011.
4. McPhedran, Ian (2 February 2011). "General talks himself out of a job". Courier Mail. Retrieved 28 August 2011.
5. Guns of the regiment / S.N. Gower ; line drawings by W.D. Thomas. National Library of Australia. January 1981. ISBN 9780642896889. Retrieved 28 August 2011. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
6. Options for an Australian defence technological strategy / S.N. Gower. National Library of Australia. 1982. ISBN 9780867840599. Retrieved 28 August 2011. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
7. Singh, Shivani (2010). Who's Who in Australia 2014. Melbourne, Australia: Crown Content. ISBN 978-1-74095-172-2.
8. "Tribute to Steve Gower". Wartime (59). Winter 2012. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
9. Ellery, David (19 March 2013). "Memorial has clean sweep of top posts". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 11 March 2023.