1st Bn The Winnipeg Grenadiers
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Lance Corporal | Frederick | Peter |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| MacGregor MB | Manitoba | 1919-08-12 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| HQ Coy | ||
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-01 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | Capture | 42 Jan 22 | ||
| HK-NP-02 | North Point | North Point, Hong Kong Island | 42 Jan 22 | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| NATS 90414 | Oakland | 1945-09-19 |
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007-12-18 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Winnipeg Manitoba Canada | St. Vital Cemetery | Section 1, Lot 984 | Engraved |
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
FREDERICK PETER WRIGHT Hong Kong Veteran Our dear Fred died peacefully, surrounded by his family, at Victoria Hospital on December 18, 2007. His long struggle with Alzheimer's is finally over. He will be lovingly remembered by his wife Dorothy; his daughter Rozann Broeska (and husband Ken), of Winnipeg, his daughter Elaine, of Dublin, Ireland, his son Grant (and wife Noelia), of Winnipeg; his four grandchildren, Philip Wright of Vancouver, Christopher Broeska of Minneapolis, and Jennifer Wood (and husband Peter) and Heather Broeska, both also of Vancouver; and his dear great-grandson Devin Frederick Wood. He will also be greatly missed by his brother Don Wright (and wife Isobelle) and his sister Dorothy Birkelt, both of MacGregor, Manitoba, his many nieces and nephews will also miss their Uncle Freddie. He was predeceased by his parents Fred and Agnes Wright and his sister Olive Palmer. Fred was born on August 12, 1919, in the R.M. of North Norfolk, Manitoba. At the age of five, his parents moved to Saskatchewan, returning to Manitoba in 1936 to farm near MacGregor. He joined the army in 1940 and left the following year. In 1945, he returned to Canada, having spent almost four long years as a prisoner-of war, at first in Hong Kong and then in Japan. He and Dorothy were married in 1948 and two years later moved to St. Vital, where be spent the remainder of his life, eagerly and lovingly tending to his large garden. Family holidays were especially important to Fred and after many summers of camping, mainly in Manitoba and Northern Ontario, with his wife and children, he built a cottage at Bird River, which his children and grandchildren then enjoyed for almost 30 years. He loved the outdoors and was off fishing at every opportunity, and he and his son went on many fishing trips to remote areas of northern Canada, including several to the Queen Charlotte Islands. After retirement, he and Dorothy traveled extensively, to Great Britain, Kenya, Russia, China, New Zealand, and various locations in the Caribbean. They also traveled greatly within Canada and he especially enjoyed driving the Dempster Highway across the Arctic Circle to Inuvik. Fred was an extremely kind, happy and friendly person, always as eager to tell a joke as he was to lend a helping hand to whomever he could, and he will be sorely missed by all who knew him. Cremation has taken place, and there will be a graveside service at St. Vital Cemetery. 236 River Road, on Friday, December 21, at 200p.m., with a reception to follow at Canad Inns, 1824 Pembina Hwy. If friends so desire, a donation may be made to the Canadian Wildlife Federation (350 Cowpland Dr., Kanata, Ontario K2M 2W1) or else to a charity of one's choice. His family would like to thank the staff of the fifth floor of Victoria Hospital for their kindness to Fred during his final months. NEIL BARDAL INC. 949-2200 nbardalmb.ca
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
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General Comments
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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.