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Hi, I was wondering if you could help. My Grandfather was from pre-partition India and a Gunner
in the British Indian Army. He was in Hong Kong and was held as a prisoner of war.
I would love to find out more about him but am struggling.
Are there any records where non-officers are listed?
Thank you!

Hi Chloe,

Your Grandfather Cpl Harold Spencer Taylor, service number 3386995, was a member of the
18th Division Recce Battalion ( Reconnaissance Corps). This was formed in April 1941 from the 5th Battalion The Loyal Regiment (North Lancs Rgt). His service number however shows that he originally enlisted with the East Lancs Regiment, so had chosen / instructed to transfer.
He embarked on "Oransay" on 27/10/1941 at Avonmouth, and sailed to the Clyde where the convoy WS 12 was formed. which sailed on 30/10/1941 and joined with shipping from Liverpool. The convoy sailed to Halifax, Nova Scotia. All the troops then transferred to American liners, now troop carriers. Harold and 18 Recce were on USS Leonard Wood. The convoy sailed to Trinidad and then onto Capetown, arriving 09/12/1941. At this point Japan had attacked Pearl Harbour and America was now at war.
The convoy then sailed for Bombay, India, where 2 weeks jungle training was carried out. The men then embarked on the "Empress of Asia" for sailing to Singapore, but when 10 miles from docking on 4/02/1942 the ship was attacked and grounded. Nearly all men were rescued but all equipment was lost. Upon landing the men were issued rifles and became an infantry regiment. Within 11 days, on 15/02/1942 Singapore capitulated and he was a POW.
Harold spent the rest of the war on Singapore, as far as I know initially in the Changi camps, but on 05/11/1943 moved to Blakang Mati (Sentosa) camp. One document lists him as being in X4b party, which I believe means he was digging Funk Holes (Tunnels) to be used as air raid shelters or evil extermination caves. He is listed as being in Changi for liberation on 05/09/1945. I"m afraid your family story of him being a POW in Japan, working on the Railroad and being in the Manchester Regiment all seem to be unproven at the moment, I have several files I can email as evidence.

Hello, my grandfather Harold Spencer Taylor was a POW in Japan. I believe he worked building the railways. Sadly I only know a few bits of information from what my dad has told me. I never got to meet Harold. Understandably he never spoke much about his experiences. I"d love to find some information on him. I believe he was in the Manchester regiment.

I have the following on WILLS R.A.C. [Reginald Alexander Christian] ‘Reggie’ b.1907. To Singapore 1928. Assistant, Joseph Travers & Co.[Merchants, Import & Export]. To Straits Times 1938 as Assistant General Manager, Printer & Publisher. Involved in amateur and semi-professional dramatics in Singapore. In 1941 with ‘The Island Committee’ putting on Noel Coward plays etc. Also an amateur boxer and racehorse owner, Enlisted VF 1940. L/Cpl 13589 1SSVF POW Singapore to Thailand with H Force 13.5.43. Returned to Straits Times post war getting the Sunday Times running as early as 10.45. To UK 1956. Wife Marie Gwendolyn nee Lansell b.1912. Children Victoria b.1951 & Georgina b.1953. Reggie died 11.1968 Lisbon, Portugal . On his LQ he gives his enlistment date as 1940. I am wondering if he had served earlier in the SSVF/Singapore Volunteer Corps. This I can check as I have the nominal rolls back to 1932.

Hi J Beck / Mary Howard. L/Cpl Reginald Wills, 1/S.S.V.F. , 13589. All I can help with is his POW camps as listed by COFEPOW. Changi Feb 42 - Apr 42, Bukit Timar Apr 42 - Dec 42. (Maybe,.... he seems to have written a possible error of dates) Changi again until May 43. Burma/Siam Railroad May 43 - Dec 43 . Back to Singapore, Sime Road Dec 43 - June 44. Changi Gaol June 44 - Feb 45. Kranji Feb 45 - Liberation. His transportation to the Siam Railroad was on 13/05/1943 and known as "H Force". This group suffered extreme hardships/starvation/disease and the death rate was around 27% with cholera taking many. When they arrived at Non Pladuk they were made to walk 140km to Tarsau, where they cut through Hell Fire Pass. The expert on SSVF is Jonathan Moffatt and I will email him requesting he visits and posts more details, if possible, and correct if I have made any errors.

My grandfather, Reginald Alexander Christian Wills, was taken POW during the invasion of Singapore and taken to Burma. He was a member of the SSVF, as far as I’m aware. I have no other information or records and, as a serving Army officer myself, would love to find out more.

My Grandad was a POW from HMS EXETER. ("Jack" Purnell) Very interesting reading these articles, thank you for sharing.

Mike i should have also mentioned that i was
given from one of my father"s sisters some 
post cards sent from the camp, which he would tick, i am alive well
love to family,  these i guess were from the red cross
thank you once again 
Bob lench Glastonbury somerset 

Dear Mike Thank you so much for your infomation
My dad was 1 of 11 & while i was growing up No body spoke about
the war, he would go into london each year to
a reunion diner ( i still have the menu’s ) but 
he said every year there were less friends.
he died very suddenly, one sunday @the age of 45. he
had a massive heart attack leaving  my mother myself aged 15 &
a younger brother aged 2 . i still miss him ! 

Hi Bob. Your father was in the 35th Light Anti Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery (35 LAA). He was in 144 battery. His service number was 1797124.
His regiment sailed from Greenock on 13/11/1941, on Empress of Japan, arriving Durban 18/12/1941. He changed ship to the Narkunda and sailed on 24/12/1941 for Singapore, arriving 13/01/1942. The 144th battery was sent over the causeway into Malaya but were soon pushed back and then came the capitulation on 15/02/1942. On 05/04/1942 he was sent by boat to Hanoi in French Indo China (Vietnam) and later to Saigon. Unfortunately I have very little information about these camps except that the survival rate was far higher than all other camps. His liberation occurred on 12/09/1945 when Dutch paratroopers liberated the camps. The POWs were flown to Bangkok and then onto Rangoon. Ships then bought then home with most being on British soil in November/December 1945.

hello, my father was a prisoner with the Janpan
he was on the boat that was sent to relive
singapore  do you have any details he came back just before 1949
i think ?   his name was Robert Burton Lench gunner

hello, my father was a prisoner with the Janpan
he was on the boat that was sent to relive
singapore  do you have any details he came back just before 1949
i think ?   his name was Robert Burton Lench gunner

Thanks for the information Mike
He is my Great Uncle we where always told he went to Singapore and died there your information is so helpful thanks again and I will keeping searching 

Kindest regards Malcolm 

Hi Malcolm. Sgt Harry Pearson, service number 2317200, was a member of the Royal Corps of Signals. He was with the Hong Kong Signal Company. He was never in Singapore, Hong Kong was his theatre of war. His date of birth was actually 14/12/1905. He became a POW on 25/12/1941 when Hong Kong capitulated. He died in one of the worst actions of the war, when on October 2nd 1942 he was on the Lisbon Maru being transported to Japan when it was attacked by the submarine USS Grouper as there was no identification to show that POWs were onboard. There were 1,816 British and Canadians onboard and 826 lost their lives. Many were shot in the water but also many were saved by Chinese fishermen. He is now commemorated on column 9 of the Sai Wan Cemetery on Hong Kong. I have not gone into detail as with the Lisbon Maru information I have given, you will be able to find many thousands of reports on the internet for your research. A good place to start would be hongkongwardiary.com and also contact Tony Banham at that site if you want any clarification. Good searching ....

I’m looking for information about my Grandmother’s brother Harry Pearson born 1906 west hartlepool died 2nd october 1942 singapore
Harry Pearson harry pearson born 1906 west hartlepool died 2nd october 1942 singapore,we have no other information TIA 

Hi, I’m looking for a Joe (Joseph) Woodley. He was a prisoner of Japan and escaped during the war.

Julie, to add to the useful information supplied by John, he was in Changi Singapore prior to 27/10/1942 when he entrained in Party "V" for Siam and Chunkai. This train had 650 men and the vast majority were 227 of Manchester Regiment and 234 of Gordon Highlanders. I believe that the 259km camp was probably called Kurikonta (close to Konkoita) , but usually just called 259 camp. I can see a few articles referring to "Sh*t Creek" but not once does anyone confirm another name. One POW clarifies that (thankfully) it is called that due to thick sticky mud they had to work in. The Camp Leaders were : Lt. Col. John Rowley Williamson, 2 Indian Heavy Anti Aircraft R.A., awarded DSO for POW leadership in 1946. Lt. Col. George Edward Swinton , Battalion Commander East Surrey Regiment. Major John Edward Dobbs, Middlesex REgiment.
Lt. Col. James Dow Sainter, 1st Punjab Regiment Indian Army.

John, that"s really valuable information, thank you so much. I wonder if you or anyone else is able to explain the time gap between his capture in February 1942 and the first camp of Chungkai listed on his liberated pow questionnaire with the dates October 1942 to August 1943?

Two of his commanding officers, Swinton and Dobbs had camps named after themselves on the TBR at about the 250km point on the railway. The 250km relates to the distance from the start of the railway in Thailand towards the destination in Burma. 250kms was close to the joining point at Konkoita (262km). This was where the line built from the Thailand end joined the line built from the Burma end in October 1943. Kenneth was attached to work group 2 on the railway and must have worked in this area.

I"m looking for information about Lieutenant Kenneth Lucas Branston of 1st Manchester (number 103254), captured Singapore 15th Feb 1942. I have found his Japanese index card and liberated POW questionnaire so I do have some information and I have tried to make sense of the dates and places he listed he was imprisoned from capture to liberation. There are some gaps in the dates which it would be good to understand, even if they cannot be filled. Also, the only commanding officer he had which I have found out more about is the famous Lt. Col Toosey - the others are a mystery to me. Can anyone explain 259km please and -sorry about this - Shit Creek. Thanks in advance.

Hi Mike.
Thank you so much for the reply. Iv been ill for a long while and did not know I had this reply from you. Yea please any documents would be very helpful. Thank you so much


Original message from you
Hi Naomi, re William Henry Othick. I had difficulty tracking much information on him but hopefully these few facts might help to investigate further. His service number is 7637629 and he was a private in the R.A.O.C. , Royal Army Ordnance Corps. His service number belongs to the RAOC so he must have enlisted with them and you then take your number with you wherever you go, so I cannot see any connection to the Yorkshire Regiment. There may be a possibility he was RAOC attached to Yorkshire Rgt. at one time. However, at the time of being captured on 19.02.1942 he was RAOC attached to the 137th Field Regiment. He appears in records as belonging to 137LAD, which is 137 Field Regiment Light Aid Detachment. He was captured at Banka Island, South Sumatra, and although I have no documented proof, this suggests he was probably on an escape ship from Singapore as the 137th never were in action in Sumatra. William was held at four camps , Mulo School, Chunghwa School Sungei Ron and No.2 camp Palembang. There are documents to show him at camps, and eventually liberated from Sumatra. It is clear he was never in Japan but certainly a prisoner of Japan. Singapore and Sumatra were known as Malaya during the war. I can email a few wartime documents showing his name if required.

Maryann. What "more" information are you looking for. The sea journey home or the war history of 1942/45? If its the war story please tell us all that you already know to save duplications and much time. What was his regiment or squadron, what was his service number etc etc etc.

Not sure if anyone will be able to give any more info.Looking for more information on my father John Williamson
He was on USS Admiral Hughes sailed for Vancouver 24th September 1945
Passenger no 1194.

Hello all, 
I run a FB page and website for the families
of the FEPOWs who were killed on the
Suez Maru. My great uncle was aboard. 
We build a memorial at the NMA in 2013, 
and I wrote a book about it, and campaign for 
recognition of these 550 men.
We have a research project where we are
actively searching for "Suez Maru families",
as many were not told of the facts of the case. 
So many are unaware of the fate of their loved ones. 

The reason for the message is to raise awareness
of this war crime on 29 November 1943, 
to seek families and to seek researchers. 
Please contact me for any further, and thank you for
the opportunity to message your group. 

Jacquelyn 
Show email address
www.facebook.com/suezmaru

Ref: Corp William Gray and Donald duck. Hi I have been researching into my family in Scotland and came across a book called aberdeen at war. Inside the book my grandma has written about Corp W. Gray as he was my grandma"s uncle. She write about Donald as well and how she used to knock her beak against the back door of her grandmother"s (my great great grandmothers)house to get a ration of beer and have the run of the house. The famous picture of William and Donald also contain his mother on the left of him and his sister on the right, my grandma at 8 years old still remembered the picture being taking. She doesn"t know very much about his time as a POW and I wondered what other information was available about his time in the Gordon Highlander"s. Thank you.