1st Bn The Royal Rifles of Canada
General Information |
||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Rifleman | Dean | William |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Atholville NB | Eastern Quebec | 1919-12-10 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| C | ||
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
| Date Wounded | Wound Description | References |
|---|---|---|
| 41/12/25 | N/A | 36 |
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 Apr 16 |
| JP-Se-4B | Ohashi | Iwate-ken, Kamihei-gun, Katsushi-mura, Ohashi, Japan | Nippon Steel Company | 45 Apr 16 | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| NATS 50848 | Oakland | 1945-10-03 | Guam Passenger Manifest embarked 1945-09-30 NATS |
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
Dean HACHEY and wife Evelyn- Post war photo about 1946-47
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978-12-20 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Sept-Îles Quebec Canada | Sept-Îles Cemetery | Yes | |
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
After returning from the war, Dean William Hachey worked at the local Canadian Legion in Atholville, New Brunswick.
In 1951, my parents were living in Edmonston, New Brunswick, where my dad was working for the CN railway. They had 3 daughters at this time.
In 1954, my dad moved to Sept-Îles, Quebec to work for the QNSNL/ Iron Ore Company of Canada. The company was looking for men with experience working on trains, which my dad had because of the CN. The rest of the family would join him there shortly afterwards. My brother was born in Sept-Îles in 1955. Circa 1957 or so, the family moved to Schefferville, Quebec, a mining town up north, where my dad continued his work for the company. That is where I was born in 1961. Around 1963, we all moved back to Sept-Îles where he continued working for the QNSNL (Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway, a subsidiary of the Iron Ore Company of Canada)
Because of his years of experience working on trains, my dad was then offered the position of foreman, position which he declined. He stated that after what he had endured at the hands of the Japanese during his years in captivity, he could never "give an order" to another man. So, he kept on as a simple carman. He continued working for the Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway until circa 1973, when his health took a turn for the worse. He suffered many long years of debilitating pain before his death in 1978.
My dad came from a large family and was a loving and caring family man. He was devoted to his wife, children and grandchildren. He was also very involved with the local chapter of the Canadian Legion in Sept-Îles, Quebec. He was always in attendance for the Remembrance Day parade. At one point, I remember the Legion just closing down, most likely due to declining membership.
When I was young, he would watch cartoons with me on Saturday mornings, laughing at the antics of poor Wile E. Coyote and the Roadrunner. He was, along with my mom, a huge fan of the Montreal Canadians. Saturday nights were hockey nights at our house, and he never missed a match. He also enjoyed watching wrestling (which I found fake), and he never missed a chance to take us to the beach on Sundays.
On certain weekend nights, he would often cry and talk about the war and what he had endured. This broke my heart; even though I was way too young to understand. He would also cry when he was in a lot of pain. Years before he passed away, he said he forgave the Japanese for what they had done to him. And he was most sincere when he spoke those words. In my eyes, it takes an incredibly brave and strong man to make such a statement. It also shows exactly what kind of man he was. I know not all POW's feel this way, and to be honest, I don't think I would have the mindset to forgive if I had been in his shoes. He also said that he hoped there would never be another war. I often think about that statement, and what would be going through his mind seeing the present state of the world if he were alive today.
I was only 17 when my dad passed away. I will always love and miss him, and I so wish my 3 children would have had the chance to know him. He was the best dad and grandfather.
Claire added the following information regarding her dad's cause of death in December of 1978. Somewhere in the 70's, not sure of the precise year, he had to have surgery on his upper back to remove grenade shrapnel imbedded in his skin. It was a major surgery as it was close to the spine. Unfortunately, he was told he could resume his job as a carman with the QNSNL (Quebec North Shore and Labrador railway company) only 2 weeks after his surgery. This led to devastating consequences involving the wound from the surgery. He had to go for a second surgery to repair the damage caused, and he developed severe and crippling pain afterwards. He was prescribed heavy doses of morphine which he took for years. This resulted in his stomach rupturing, and he passed away from septic shock at 59. After all he endured during his years of captivity, he could have been spared such a cruel and untimely death. RIP dad.
Submitted by daughter Claire, October 2025
General Comments
My dad, Dean W. Hachey (right) and his friend Albert Roy, both from Atholville, NB, were riflemen with the Royal Rifles. I believe this was while they were in Gander. My dad passed away in 78 at the age of 59. Mr. Roy also passed away. Both came back after their ordeal as POW's.
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 search results for this soldier based on his regimental number, but they may be incomplete.
Facebook Search Results.
To capture all items for an individual, we recommend visiting our Group: Hong Kong Veterans Tribute of Canada and using the search option there. Note: results may be contained within another related record. - 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.
End of Report.
Report generated: 15 Nov 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.
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- The 'From' information box at the top of the report represents the enlistment location unless we have obtained updated information pinpointing where the member lived.
- 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.
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