1st Bn The Winnipeg Grenadiers
Red River Métis
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Private | Wilbert | |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Saint Claude MB | Manitoba | 1903-03-22 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| B | ||
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 | 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 |
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 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1954-04-28 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Saint Claude Manitoba Canada | St. Claude Roman Catholic Cemetery | Yes | |
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
WILBERT DUBOIS Died on April 28th at Deer Lodge Veterans' Hospital, Wilbert Dubois, age 51 years, following a lengthy illness.
Mr. Dubois was born in the St. Claude district on March 22, 1903, where he lived most of his life. He spent a few years in Saskatchewan and after his return, married Miss Florence Gertrude Warren, of Cloan, Sask., on April 30, 1937. On July 16th, 1941 he joined the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders and after a short time of service with that regiment he was transferred to the Winnipeg Grenadiers, and was sent to Hong Kong in October, 1941.
He was taken prisoner at the fall of Hong Kong. After his freedom from prison camp in 1945 he returned to St. Claude where he has lived ever since. His health had been failing and had spent quite some time in Deer Lodge Hospital.
The funeral service was held on April 30th in the Roman Catholic church, St. Claude, conducted by Rev. Father Gagne. The pallbearers were Albert Delorme, Albert Jobin, Victor Deshayes, Gerald Bourgoyne, Murray and William Sinclair. The flower bearers were Miss Marguerite Crighton, Kenneth Wolf, Mrs. R. Parker and Jaques Leroux. Interment was in the St. Claude cemetery.
Mr. Dubois leaves to mourn his widow, daughter Norma, and son Carl, at home; his mother, Mrs. M. Dubois, of St. Claude; Nine brothers Thomas, of Portage; Jack, Julien, Ernest, Lawrence and Edmond, of St. Claude; Arthur, of Victoria, B.C.; Robert, of Didsburry, Alta.; James, R.C.E., of Chilliwak, B.C.; two sisters, Mrs. Jean Warren, of Cloan, Sask., and Mrs. Marie Crighton, of Winnipeg.
CARD OF THANKS We wish to express our most sincere thanks and appreciation to all the kind friends who showed sympathy, contributed floral offerings and all who assisted in any way during our recent bereavement. -The Dubois Family
Translation of Paragraph relating to Wilbert Dubois from Anecdotes 1954
On the 28th of April, Mr. Wilbur (sp) Dubois died at the age of 51 years at the Deer Lodge Hospital in Winnipeg. He was born in St. Claude in 1903 and had gone to Hong Kong where he was held prisoner by the Japanese. That he was able to pass through this ordeal was due to the grace of his mother who had shown him how to mend socks. When some of the Japanese soldiers noticed his talents, they kept him busy darning their socks. This enabled him to have an easier life than most of his companions. He returned to St. Claude in 1945 but he remained feeble and sick as a result of the bad treatment he had received in prison.
Research conducted as part of the HKVCA Indigenous Veterans Project for this veteran are available in our Vault. To access this research use the link displayed below under Related Documentation.
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.
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→ Related documentation for information published in this report, such as birth information, discharge papers, press clippings and census documents may be available via shared resources in our HKVCA Vault. It is organized with folders named using regimental numbers. Use the first letter of the individual's service number to choose the correct folder, then scroll to the specific sub-folder displaying the service number of your interest.
General Comments
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End of Report.
Report generated: 21 Nov 2024.
Additional Notes
(These will not be visible on the printed copy)
- Service numbers for officers 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.
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