1st Bn The Winnipeg Grenadiers
Red River Métis
General Information | ||
| Rank: | First Name: | Second Name: |
|---|---|---|
| Corporal | Thomas | Henry |
| From: | Enlistment Region: | Date of Birth (y-m-d): |
| Lockport MB | Manitoba | 1907-10-15 |
| Appointment: | Company: | Platoon: |
| Cook | HQ Coy | Coy HQ |
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 | Reference | Arrival Date | Departure Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HK-NP-01 | North Point | North Point, Hong Kong Island | 41 Dec 20 | 41 Dec 22 | |||
| HK-AS-01 | Argyle Street | Kowloon, Hong Kong | 41 Dec 22 | Dec 26 | |||
| HK-SA-01 | Shamshuipo | Kowloon, Hong Kong | Capture | 42 Jan 22 | |||
| HK-NP-02 | North Point | North Point, Hong Kong Island | 33 | 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 | 9 | 43 Jan 19 | 45 Apr 16 |
| JP-Se-4B | Ohashi | Iwate-ken, Kamihei-gun, Katsushi-mura, Ohashi, Japan | Nippon Steel Company | 134 | 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
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Post-war Photo
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Other Military Service
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Death and Cemetery Information
| Date of Death (y-m-d) | Cause of Death | Death Class | Death Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982-11-24 | Post War | ||
| Cemetery Location | Cemetery | Grave Number | Gravestone Marker |
| Saint Andrews Manitoba Canada | St. Andrews Anglican Cemetery |
Gravestone Image
Obituary / Life Story
On Wednesday November 24th 1982 at the health sciences Centre, Winnipeg, Mr. Thomas H Sinclair, aged 75 years, a lifelong resident of Lockport, Manitoba, dearly beloved husband of Vera Sinclair.
Born at Lockport, the son of the late Mr. and Mrs. Cuthbert Sinclair, Tom had lived there all his life. He was employed with the Department of Public Works for 25 years, retiring in 1972 as superintendent of the Saint Andrews Lock and Dam. He was also a dedicated lifelong member of the Parish of St Andrews serving as the Rector's warden for the past two years.
Tom served as a sergeant with the Winnipeg Grenadier during the Second World War in Jamaica and Hong Kong. He was a he was a prisoner of the Japanese from the fall of Hong Kong until hostilities ended in 1945. He joined the Royal Canadian Legion and the Hong Kong veterans association in 1949. His service to the legion and to the veterans was recognized by the Selkirk Branch with the award of the legions highest award, the meritorious service award in 1969. In 1978 the Manitoba and Northwest Ontario command of the Royal Canadian Legion awarded him the meritorious service medal at gain. At that time the citation recognized his services at command level as an active member of many committees, including organization and planning, Sharon circus, finance and legislation. His major contribution to the welfare of veterans and the community were made on the hospital facilities committee, responsible for liaison with the Department of Veterans Affairs regarding Deer Lodge hospital and the special projects committee which approved all charitable donations at command level. He was dedicated to the quality of life for veterans and in particular the preservation of Deer Lodge hospital as a veteran's hospital.
Tom was a member of the Constitution and Laws Committee of Command for many years and chairman of that committee for most of that time.
Tom held the office of Chairman of Manitoba and Northwest Ontario Command of the Legion from 1969 until 1979, when he became an Honorary President of the Command.
In 1976 the Dominion Convention of the Legion was held in Winnipeg to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Legion in Winnipeg. Tom served for three years as co-chairman of the Convention Arrangements Committee to host the largest convention ever held by the Royal Canadian Legion at that time. The citation concluded with these words- the Command Council knows of no case where Commander Sinclair has not given his best over the years and he has never spared himself in carrying out his many Legion activities.
His service to the legion continued until the day of his death.
Left surviving besides his beloved wife Vera are his two sons, Del and wife Mary of Lockport, Kenneth and wife Joan of St Andrews, one daughter Merrill Stralow of Saint Andrews, one brother Ray of Selkirk and Mary of Lockport, Kenneth and wife Joan of St Andrews, one daughter Merrill Stralow of Saint Andrews, one brother Ray of Selkirk and two sisters, Dorothy Hawes of Lockport and Mary Sutherland of St Andrews, 10 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren and many good and close friends. He was predeceased by his son-in-law Jim Stralow in 1973.
Funeral services will be held on Saturday, November 27th at 1:30 p.m. in the Saint Andrew's Anglican Church, Saint Andrews, Manitoba with Reverend Robert Brownlee officiating. Interment will follow in the family plot in the churchyard.
The honorary pallbearers will be Robert Smellie, Alex Nicol, Art Baker, Charlie Gissner, Dave Veitch, Steve Oliver and the members of the Vestry of the parish. The active pallbearers will be Lorne Larter, Dick Stralow, Bill Sinclair, George Gallant, Mike Burzuik, Clarence Truthwaite, Scott Sinclair and Mike Halipchuk. Members of the Legion will form a guard of honour and hold great gravesite rights.
The Gilbert Funeral Home, Selkirk is in care of arrangements.
Flowers are gratefully declined. Friends so wishing May contribute to Tom's memory to the St. Andrew's Church Memorial Fund, care of the St. Thomas Rectory, Lockport Manitoba.
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.
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
→ 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
Sergeant T. H. Sinclair - A resident of Lockport, Manitoba, Sergeant Sinclair was with the Grenadiers at Hong Kong. His wife and three children are living at Lockport.
Picture & caption from Face Book Page- Operation Picture Me- Hong Kong [scanning from Winnipeg Tribune] by David Archer, 2016
End of Report.
Report generated: 19 Apr 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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