The Royal Canadian Corps of Signals
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Signalman | Lawrence | Frederick |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| St. Catherines ON | Central Ontario | 1919-07-26 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| Signals Operator | Brigade Headquarters | |
Transportation - Home Base to Hong Kong
Members of 'C' Force from the East travelled across Canada by CNR troop train, picking up reinforcements enroute. Stops included Valcartier, Montreal, Ottawa, Armstrong ON, Capreol ON, Winnipeg, Melville SK, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Jasper, and Vancouver, arriving in Vancouver on Oct 27 at 0800 hrs.
The Winnipeg Grenadiers and the local soldiers that were with Brigade Headquarters from Winnipeg to BC travelled on a CPR train to Vancouver.
All members embarked from Vancouver on the ships AWATEA and PRINCE ROBERT. AWATEA was a New Zealand Liner and the PRINCE ROBERT was a converted cruiser. "C" Company of the Rifles was assigned to the PRINCE ROBERT, everyone else boarded the AWATEA. The ships sailed from Vancouver on Oct 27th and arrived in Hong Kong on November 16th, having made brief stops enroute at Honolulu and Manila.
Equipment earmarked for 'C' Force use was loaded on the ship DON JOSE, but would never reach Hong Kong as it was rerouted to Manila when hostilities commenced.
On arrival, all troops were quartered at Nanking Barracks, Sham Shui Po Camp, in Kowloon.
Battle Information
We do not have specific battle information for this soldier in our online database. For a detailed description of the battle from a Canadian perspective, visit Canadian Participation in the Defense of Hong Kong (published by the Historical Section, Canadian Military Headquarters).
Wounded Information
No wounds recorded.Hospital Information
No record of hospital visits found.POW Camps
| Camp ID | Camp Name | Location | Company | Type of Work | Arrival Date | Departure Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-SA-02 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | 42 Sep 26 | 45 Sep 10 |
Transportation SE Asia to Home
| Transport Mode | Arrival Destination | Arrival Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| USS Admiral Hugh Rodman | Vancouver, BC | 1945-10-07 | Manilla to Vancouver, BC |
Came home on the USS Admiral Hugh Rodman via San Francisco.
Post-war Photo
First St. Catharines boy to get home after being taken prisoner by the Japs at Hong Kong on Dec. 25, 1941, was Sig. Lawrence F. Dowling, 26, son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Dowling, 4 Alice St, Wartime Housing. He was brought here yesterday from Toronto by the Red Cross Transport Corps. Sig. Dowling is shown above as he displays a souvenier - a Jap sword - to his parents. Food was so scarce that he dropped from 140 to 95 pounds during imprisonment in Camp Sham Shui Po, in Kowloon on the Chinese mainland near Hong Kong. The Japs, unlike the Germains, were severe with the prisoners to the very end, and did not improve their treatment as defeat appeared certain. In August this year, the rice for 900 men in the camp was cut 4000 pounds below normal. Sig. Dowling worked as orderly in the hospital most of the time, and said that as long as the prisoners kept busy, and did as they were told, and saluted even privates in the Japanese guard, they were not molested. Sig. Dowling worked in the pay office of McKinnon Industries before he enlisted.
(Photo and caption courtesy of the St. Catharines Museum and are from the St,. Catharines Standard issue of Monday October 15, 1945.)
Other Military or Public Service
No other or additional related information found. Please submit documents to us using the contact link at the top of this page.
Death and Cemetery Information
| Date of Death (y-m-d) | Cause of Death | Death Class | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993-08-11 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Surrey British Columbia Canada | Victoria Memorial Park Cemetery | ||
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
No other or additional related information found. Please submit documents to us using the contact link at the top of this page.
Links and Other Resources
Read more about RCCS 'C' Force members in Burke Penny's book Beyond the Call published by HKVCA.
Related documentation
- Our HKVCA Vault (Google Docs) may contain additional information, newspaper clippings, and documents which have been saved for this soldier. To access this information, click on the vault link and a Google Docs folder list will open in a separate tab. Use the first letter of the soldier’s service number, found at the top of this report, to open the correct folder. Each sub-folder is identified by service number. Scroll down until you reach the one of your interest.
- Facebook has proven to be a valuable resource in the documentation of 'C' Force members. The following link will take you to any available search results for this soldier based on his regimental number. Note: results may be contained within another related record. Facebook Search Results
- Find a Grave® is a valuable resource that may contain additional information on this 'C' Force member. When you arrive at the site search page, fill in as much detail as you can for best results.
General Comments
B32015 Lawrence DOWLING- BIRTH Madison, Swift Current Census Division, Saskatchewan, Canada
DEATH Peace Arch Hospital, White Rock, Greater Vancouver Regional District, British Columbia, Canada. Enlisted July 15, 1941
Signalman Lawrence Frederick Dowling (B32015), originally from St. Catharines, ON, served with Brigade HQ of the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals during the Second World War. He was sent with the Brigade group that accompanied the Royal Rifles of Canada and the Winnipeg Grenadiers overseas when they were deployed to the Pacific. He fought valiantly in the defence of Hong Hong when the Japanese unexpectedly attacked the city a month after his arrival. After several days of intense fighting the allies were forced to surrender to the Japanese on Christmas day 1941 and Signalman Dowling became a prisoner of war. He remained a POW until allied forces liberated him in 1945. The picture at the top of this report was taken during Dowling's time as a POW.
End of Report.
Report generated: 27 Apr 2025.
Additional Notes
(These will not be visible on the printed copy)
- Service numbers for officers ("X") are locally generated for reporting only. During World War II officers were not allocated service numbers until 1945.
- 'C' Force soldiers who died overseas are memorialized in the Books of Remembrance and the Canadian Virtual War Memorial, both sponsored by Veterans Affairs Canada. Please use the search utility at VAC to assist you.
- Some birthdates and deathdates display as follows: 1918-00-00. In general, this indicates that we know the year but not the month or day.
- Our POW camp links along with our References link (near the bottom of the 'C' Force home page) are designed to give you a starting point for your research. There were many camps with many name changes. The best resource for all POW camps in Japan is the Roger Mansell Center for Research site.
- In most cases the rank displayed was the rank held before hostilities. Some veterans were promoted at some point prior to eventual post-war release from the army back in Canada. When notified of these changes we'll update the individual's record.
- Images displayed on the web page are small, but in many cases the actual image is larger. Hover over any image and you will see a popup if a larger version is available. You can also right-click on some images and select the option to view the image separately. Not all images have larger versions. Contact us to confirm whether a large copy of an image in which you are interested exists.
- In some cases the References displayed as part of this report generate questions because there is no indication of their meaning. They were inherited with the original database, and currently we do not know what the source is. We hope to solve this problem in future.
- We have done our best to avoid errors and omissions, but if you find any issues with this report, either in accuracy, completeness or layout, please contact us using the link at the top of this page.
- Photos are welcome! If a photo exists for a 'C' Force member that we have not included, or if you have a higher quality copy, please let us know by using the Contact Us link at the top of this page. We will then reply, providing instructions on submitting it.