1st Bn The Royal Rifles of Canada
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Rifleman | Frank | Francis |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Port Hope ON | Eastern Ontario | 1915-04-02 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
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-SM-01 | Stanley | Fort Stanley, Hong Kong Island | Capture | 41 Dec 30 | ||
| HK-NP-01 | North Point | North Point, Hong Kong Island | 41 Dec 30 | 42 Sep 26 | ||
| HK-SA-02 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | 42 Sep 26 | 43 Jan 19 | ||
| JP-To-3D | Tsurumi | Yokohama-shi, Tsurumi-ku, Suyehiro-cho, 1-chome, Japan | Nippon Steel Tube - Tsurumi Shipyards | Variety of jobs related to ship building | 43 Jan 19 | 45 May 13 |
| JP-Se-1B | Yumoto | Fukushima-ken, Iwaki-gun, Yumoto-cho, Mizunoya, Japan | Joban Coal Mining Company | 45 May 13 | 45 Sep 15 |
Transport to Japan
| Draft Number | Name of Ship | Departure Date | Arrival Date | Arrival Port | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XD3A | Tatuta Maru | 43 Jan 19, left Shamsuipo Camp, 0500 hrs; left Hong Kong 1300hrs | 43 Jan 22, 0400 hrs | Nagasaki, Japan | Boarded train, arrived in Tokyo on 43 Jan 24 at 0700 hrs, boarded electric train for 10 mile ride to camp | Tony Banham |
Transportation SE Asia to Home
| Transport Mode | Arrival Destination | Arrival Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| admitted/NATS | SF | 1945-10-08 |
No other or additional related information found. Please submit documents to us using the contact link at the top of this page.
Post-war Photo
No other or additional related information found. Please submit documents to us using the contact link at the top of this page.
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993-09-09 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Port Hope Ontario | Welcome United Church Cemetery | ||
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
C65439 Frank Charles JIGGINS - Interview with Frank posted on Port Hope
Frank Jiggins of Port Hope is one of the few remaining Midland Corps veterans sent over to Japan at the beginning of the Second World War. The regiment left Canada on Nov. 16, 1941 and members were warned that they would probably have to disembark from the boat fighting with bayonets in hand.
But that proved to be false. There was no fighting because there were no ammunition supplies. On Christmas Day, Jiggins and 500 others were taken prisoner and sent to work in a coal mine outside Hong Kong.
For four years, Jiggins survived on three tea cups of rice a day. He didn't have a newspaper or any reading material. He had no idea how the war in which he had fought for a short time was progressing.
One of his worst moments was the day a Japanese soldier arrived at the camp with mail for the 500 men living in the barracks.
Standing in front of the prisoners, the soldier burned each letter, the only communication they had received from the outside world since surrendering. It was the last they would receive till the war ended.
When the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Jiggins was down in the coal mine digging and shovelling. At 12:30 a.m., a Japanese officer came into the mine, took a long sword out of its sheath, and held it up in front of his face.
"The Japanese have had to surrender," a translator said, "because the Americans are using gas."
Jiggins was terrified for the first time during the war that he was not going to make it home alive.
"We all thought we were going to have our heads cut off, but then the soldier said we were free to go. We had no idea what had happened."
That night, the severely malnourished prisoners began to loot nearby villages for food. A bonfire was lit using the barracks for wood and chickens were cooked over the flames.
When the prisoners were flown out on an American plane, they were taken over Hiroshima. Jiggins is emotional as he describes the scene.
"There was nothing there. Everything was grey."
(Veterans sitting next to Jiggins during the interview said pointedly that Hiroshima was not to be discussed.)
Jiggins returned home after hospitalization in the Philippines and San Francisco weighing 89 pounds. Today he weighs 160 pounds and refuses to have rice in his home.
But despite the slow starvation experienced in Japan, Jiggins feels no animosity toward the Japanese.
"They were common fighting men like ourselves. They had rations and they did for us what they could. If they were sick and couldn't line up for rations every Monday, then they had to wait till the following week."
What the veterans miss about wartime was the spirit of nationalism that was so strong then. Bruce Gibson, a past president of the Port Hope Royal Canadian Legion, said, "The comradeship was enjoyable, and I miss that. I met all kinds of people. We were one big family and didn't know any prejudices."
The message from the veterans was plain and clear. Canadians had to pay a price for freedom and those who sacrificed their lives for it should never be forgotten.
Links and Other Resources
There may be more information on this individual available elsewhere on our web sites - please use the search tool found in the upper right corner of this page to view sources.
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
Frank was a Dairyman from 1949 to 1974 in Durham, Ontario, Canada
1945 Next of Kin: Mr. William Jiggins (father), 54 Gavan St., Port Hope ON. Mother's name: Mary Ann Jiggins. Parents Birth Place: England
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.