1st Bn The Winnipeg Grenadiers
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Lance Corporal | Andrew | |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| St. Claude MB | Manitoba | 1917-08-08 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| D | ||
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 41/12/22 | N/A |
Hospital Information
| Name of hospital | Date of admission | Date of discharge | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-BMH | 12/22/1941 | N/A | 118(42 Sep 21) |
POW Camps
| Camp ID | Camp Name | Location | Company | Type of Work | Arrival Date | Departure Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-AS-01 | Argyle Street | Kowloon, Hong Kong | N/A | N/A | ||
| 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-Fu-5B | Omine | Kawasaki-machi, Fukuoka pref., Kyushu Island, Japan | Furukawa Industries Omine | Coal mining | 43 Jan 23 | 45 Sep 22 |
Transport to Japan
| Draft Number | Name of Ship | Departure Date | Arrival Date | Arrival Port | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XD3B | Tatuta Maru | 43 Jan 19, left Shamsuipo Camp, 0500 hrs; left Hong Kong 1300hrs | 43 Jan 22, 0400 hrs | Nagasaki, Japan | Tony Banham |
Transportation SE Asia to Home
| Transport Mode | Arrival Destination | Arrival Date | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| HMS Glory | Esquimalt, BC | 1945-10-27 | Manila to Esquimalt, BC 37 CDNs sick and 119 fit |
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009-08-14 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Forget Saskatchewan Canada | Our Lady of LaSalette Roman Catholic Cemetery | ||
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
In loving Memory Andre Poquet, age 92, formerly of Rathwell, MB. Died Trilake Health Centre, Killarney, Manitoba Friday August 14, 2009. Mass St. Claude Roman Catholic Church St. Claude, Manitoba Thursday August 20, 2009 2:00 p.m.
Peacefully, on August 14, 2009, Andy Poquet, at the age of 92 passed away at the Trilake Health Centre in Killarney, MB. He was predeceased by his parents Adonis and Celestine (Halbardier) Poquet, brothers, Paul of Forget, Saskatchewan: Marius of St. Claude, Manitoba; Marcel in infancy of Forget, Saskatchewan, and sisters Josephine Peeters of Abbotsford, BC, and Fernanae Bernard of St. Claude.
Andy was born in Forget, Saskatchewan on August 8, 1917. Andy attended school at St. Joseph's Academy. In the 1930's Andy "bummed a freight to Portage la Prairie, MB" and proceeded to walk 25 miles to St. Claude, where his parents had settled.
Andy worked for several farmers in the area throughout the depression until 1940, when he decided to join the Army. After Basic Training, Andy became part of the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders. While there he trained new recruits in Portage, Shilo and Winnipeg. After transferring to the Winnipeg Grenadiers, Andy spent the next four years in Hong Kong in a P.O.W. camp.
Upon returning to Canada, he bought a farm between Rathwell and St. Claude. Andy became friends with George Bazin and they first thought a business in machinery repair would entice them, but the lure of antiques was too hard for both of them to resist. They quickly became business partners and remained in business for 35 years.
Andy and George specialized in finding 'wooden press back’ chairs, fixing them and selling them. But Andy's main passion was his massive collection of antique coal, oil lamps. When George Bazin retired to Lakeview Gardens in Killarney, Andy soon followed him in 2005. He resided at Lakeview Gardens until he fell ill and went to Tri-Lake Health Centre.
The family and George Bazin would like to thank the Dr.'s and nursing staff of Tri-Lake Health Centre. They would also like to thank Lakeview Gardens staff and the Homecare department for the excellent care received. Thank you to Father Marcel Carriere. A special thank-you to Legion Branches from Rathwell, St. Claude and Portage and the Hong Kong Veterans Association representatives George Peterson, Carol Hadley and Stan Lopata. Also a thank you goes to Brent Graham 26th Field Regiment.
Andy leaves to mourn long time friend and business partner George Bazin and numerous nieces and nephews from British Columbia, Manitoba, Alberta and Ontario. Donations can be made to the Hong Kong Veterans Association, c/o Box 381, Winnipeg, MB R3C 2H6. Killarney Funeral Home entrusted with arrangements.
Unidentified newspaper clipping
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
H20688 Andrew POQUET and his sister.
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.