1st Bn The Winnipeg Grenadiers
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Private | Nick | |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Fort Garry MB | Manitoba | 1919-04-07 |
| 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
No wounds recorded.Hospital Information
| Name of hospital | Date of admission | Date of discharge | Comments | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-BMH | 09/22/1942 | N/A | 118 |
POW Camps
| Camp ID | Camp Name | Location | Company | Type of Work | Arrival Date | Departure Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-NP-01 | North Point | North Point, Hong Kong Island | N/A | N/A | ||
| 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-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
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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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-04-09 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Winnipeg Manitoba Canada | Brookside Cemetery | Med-Ash-0249-C | |
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
H41754 NICK ZYTARUK Frances Zytaruk sadly announces the death of her beloved husband Nick, at St. Boniface Hospital. Nick served his country in wartime as a member of the Winnipeg Grenadiers. As they arrived in Hong Kong, they were taken prisoners and spent 44 months as slave labourers on 2 cups of gluey rice per day. He never had any time for schooling because his parents praised him daily at the age of six years for earning 25 cents from each of his three uncles, for cleaning barns. This money was needed to provide flour, sugar or whatever food they could not grow in their garden. At the age of seven he had the job of using four horses and a gang plow. He was born April 7th, 1919, the third child in a family of 11 children to the late George and Katherine Zytaruk. His brother Martin gave his life for his country while fighting the war in Italy. He was predeceased by his eldest brother Bill and 2nd youngest brother George from Hamilton, ON. Both worked for the Ford plant. His middle brother John, also served in the war and returned home. He leaves to mourn his passing his wife Frances, of over 56 years; son Brian (Myrna) and granddaughter Vanessa of Calgary; daughter Wilma (Ernie Hrushka) of Dufresne, MB. His body was donated for Medical Science to the University of Manitoba. Nick requested that no service be held. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the St. Boniface Foundation where he was treated so well by all who came in contact with him, whether in the Emergency Assessment or on the 5th floor. All the staff went that extra mile in caring for all the patients. Nick worked until December 1973 when he needed a wheel chair to get around. He has lived at home while being on the Victoria Hospital lifeline. Our thanks go out to them, they made his daily living easier. Thanks also goes out to the orderlies who bathed Nick nightly to help ease the pain in his back. Nick your wife and children will honour your life. We never lose the ones we love For even though they are gone Within the hearts of those who care Their memory linger on As published in the Winnipeg Free Press on Apr 20, 2002
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.
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General Comments
Grenadier Due Tonight-Not in Asia
Wife Didn't Know He Was on This Side of the Pacific
Sgt. Stella Varcoe, a storeswoman for ordnance with the C.W.A.C.'s at Fort Osborne barracks, was visibly taken aback when The Tribune told her this morning her husband was coming home tonight from Hong Kong.
Pte. S. E. Varcoe is scheduled to arrive at the C.N.R. station at 6.45 p.m. His name was given by the Grenadiers' headquarters; they had been unable to communicate with his wife.
The Tribune tried first at 306 Assiniboine ave., where Mrs. Varcoe had once lived; she was traced from place to place and from army office to army office until she was located at Fort Osborne.
The reporter called through a screened window, "Is Mrs. Varcoe here?" A young woman with black, curly hair came to the window. Told the news in brief, she got out her handkerchief and looked upset. Then she came round to the door, wearing her hat now and looking official.
"That's the first I've heard he was even on this side of the ocean. I had a wire saying, Safe and well in Allied hands. Oh, thank you for coming out!"
Before her marriage she was Stella Taylor, of Dominion City. They were married in Winnipeg. She went to Jamaica when her husband was stationed there. She joined the C.W.A.C. three years and eight months ago, just a month after the news that Hong Kong had fallen.
In a story from Mount Vernon, Wash., Monday, The Tribune learned eight Grenadiers were on their way to Vancouver and home. One of them, Pte. Robert Dalzell, 733 McGee st., had already wired his family when The Tribune called to see if they knew the happy news.
"Oh, yes," smiled Mrs. Dalzell; "he must be as excited as we are. He keeps on sending letters and telegrams. And our neighbors have been so good to us-we've had nothing but company since the first word of his safety arrived."
A second Winnipeg man on his way home is CQMS. R. A. Wold, 215 Centennial st. Mrs. Catherine Wold, his wife, wasn't home. Neighbors said she worked at the C.P.R. In the local freight office she was found.
"His father is a veteran of the last war - Peter Wold, and he's in Deer Lodge hospital; a brother, Sgt. E. Wold, was a prisoner in Germany, but he's home safe now. There's another brother, Henry, in Eaton's," she said.
She had had three letters from her husband, the last in 1943.
The third Winnipegger en route is Pte. N. Zytaruk, 1200 Manahan ave., Fort Garry.
The others, now in Vancouver, are: Pte. P. Wright, MacGregor; Pte. I. Zopera, Molson; Cpl. F. Neufeld, Morris; Pte. H. L. Berry, whose next of kin is in Toronto, and Sgt. C. I. Whalen, whose next of kin is in Vancouver.
A wire from Bellingham, Wash., says Pte. James Furey wants his parents, Mr. and Mrs. J. Furey, Sidney, Man., to know he is all right and is fast gaining weight. A brother died in a Jap camp; another was killed in Italy.
Mrs. Baird, Dubary apts., received a letter recently from her husband, Major Kenneth Baird, written before the fall of Hong Kong.
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.
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- 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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