More help please - My great-grandfather, Driver William Hancock, Royal Corps of Signals

I have been emailed the following picture of William's POW record held at the Thailand-Burma Railway Centre, which confirms he worked on the railway. He also sent me the following information -

Looking at the information that you have supplied William was part of Group 2 in Thailand and would have left Singapore in Oct to Nov 1942 and starting from Chungkai would have worked in the area up to Arrow Hill or (Wang Pho) before marching further north to the area from Prang Kasi to Konkoita in April 1943.

In early 1944 Group 2 moved back to Chungkai and in early march the 1st group of men to go to Japan left for Nong Pladuk and then to Singapore in June. A second group left Chungkai also in June so I am assuming William was in one of these groups as the Toyofuku (Hofuku) Maru left Singapore with Japan Party 2 on the 4th of July 1944, the Japan Party 1 having left on the 5th of Jun.

After sailing from Singapore on the 4th of July the Toyofuku Maru parted from the convoy at Miri in Borneo on the 8th July and then sailed to Manila arriving on the 19th July. The Toyofuku Maru then waited in Manilla harbour with the men sweltering on board for 2 Months until the 20 September when it sailed with another convoy only to be sunk by allied aircraft on the 21 September.

 

Good work being done here Kivo,

Wang Pho is further along than Arrow Hill by a few Kms. Wang Pho is famous for the "viaduct" which runs hundreds of metres cut into a shear cliff face with the river a hundred or so metres down. An amazing thing to see from an engineering point of view, as they laboured with picks & shovels & woven baskets. Its probably about an hour or so from Kanchanaburi railway station,

On the other side of the viaduct is the hamlet of Tham Krasae, I got off the train there & had lunch at 1 of the restaurents. there is some evidence of the allied attacks on the area with a couple of US 250lbs bombs used as ornaments around the place.

Strangely enough I was also at Bataan last year, so in the area of where the ship went down, as i was holidaying at Subic Bay.

here is an interesting link for you

Hellships Memorial Project

 

Kivo,

I think you should be congratulated on the headway you have made in such a short space of time. I admire your drive and persistence.

 

I'm guessing you have seen papiermache's brilliant recent contribution here:

http://www.ww2talk.com/forum/prisoners-war/24553-hofuku-maru.html

 

I have compiled the following two timelines, both of which I think are almost certainly relevant to my great grand-father -

Thai Work Group 2 Timeline
1942
October/November - Left Singapore to work on Thailand-Burma railway from Chungkai to Wang Pho

1943
April - Marched north to Prang Kasi/Konkoita

1944
Early - Moved back to Chungkai
March - First batch of prisoners leaves Chungkai for Nong Pladuk
June - First and Second batch of prisoners leave Nong Pladuk for Singapore

Hofuku Maru Timeline
1944
26th June - 1,287 prisoners embarked at Singapore Harbour
4th July - Set sail as part of convoy SHIMI-05
9th July - Arrived in Miri, Borneo for engine repairs
14th July- Set sail in a convoy
19th July - Arrived in Manila, Philippines for unloading of cargo and engine repairs. 50 sick prisoners sent ashore to the American Prisoners of War Hospital. 94 prisoners died while in Manila Bay.
20th September - Set sail as part of convoy MATA-27
21st September - American air strike hits convoy, sinking all eleven ships. 1,047 prisoners drowned. 98 prisoners had died aboard the ship since embarkation (excluding the 94 who died while in Manila Bay)

 

Nice work Lee. Well done, from not knowing much at the start of this thread, you have done an amazing job.

Mark

 

Wholeheartedly concurn

You have done a great job to get this far, any thoughts of an "in there footsteps" in the future?

Regards

Simon

 

Dear Kivo,

You are very kind to make compliments towards me on the Hofuku Maru trail site. Thank you. I got copies of the originals from the National Archives and typed them into Word for Mac with the intention of sending them to the web so people could do as they wished with them. The discovery of the file was down to the fact that newspapers in Australia have been digitised and then it was a case of finding a very small article from 1947 which links the name Jotani to the Hofuku Maru and then search for Jotani in the National Archives, which was as long ago as March 2010. I am used to this sort of thing as a hobby. I type with one and a half fingers.

As far as your further progress is concerned your next move re the Hofuku Maru lists must be, and I stress "must", to contact James W. Erickson through his website sites.google.com/site/powsof thejapanese or just search for "Jim Erickson/pows of the Japanese". He has lists of POWs, has spoken to survivors of the vessel, and is THE expert on hell ships lists.

Jim Erickson is at Texas A&M University, judging by his email address. He prepares lists for other hell ships and waits until he has got as close to perfection before publishing.

This is not to say that there is anything wrong with your enthusiastic approach, indeed, it has helped me to see your relative's Army records.

Jim Erickson believes that there were about 1315 POW on board the Hofuku Maru when she left Singapore. He knows that 71 were taken off the vessel at Manila and sent to Bilibid camp.

Please get in touch with him, tell him what you have done, and take it from there. In the meantime, I have to edit a further 25,000 words of Military Tribunal proceedings transcript for general publication.

Good Luck.

 

Dear Kivo,

I have found out some more information about your relative today at the National Archives.

This is the first time that I have been able to look at a few of the files released by the Ministry of Defence on 22nd April 2011 in WO 361, which generally deals with missing personnel.

Amongst other things, including more statements about the s.s. Hofuku Maru I had not previously seen on several files ( search at the National Archives under the ship's name and you will find the references) I also glanced at file WO361/ 2189 which contains the first part of the "Pilot Roll" for the Royal Corps of Signals.

This is a typed list where an individual has all of one line of information in English. Undoubtedly this was prepared by the Bureau of Record and Enquiry previously referred to with reference to Captain David Nelson.

At the front of the book there is a list of the abbreviations used and I here type out what "C.S." means as it is typed:

C.S. Malaya Command 155 Field Regt.
Signals 80 Anti-Tank Regt.


The entry for your grandfather is:

2317493 L/C Hancock W C.S. Ovl 22.6.42


"Ovl" is Captain Nelson's abbreviation for "overland" ( as opposed to 'overseas' ) which means a journey on land rather than on a transport ship.

The parties that left Changi, where Nelson was based, in June 1942 as described in his book, previously mentioned, " The Story of Changi" were:

18.6.42 First Mainland Party ( 18 Div) Major R.S. Sykes, R.A.S.C., 18 Div

This means that Major Sykes was the Commanding Officer.

20.6.42 First Mainland Party ( 11 Div & Medical )
Major W.E. Gill, R.A., 137 (A) Fd. Regt.

22.6.42 First Mainland Party ( Southern Area)
Lt-Col. H.C. Pargeter, R.C.O.S.

24.6.42 First Mainland Party ( 18 Div) Major P.D.Weir, R.A., 118 Fd. Regt &
Major M.T. Read R.A.M.C. i/c of 196 Fd. Amb. Regt.


These parties were about 500 to 600 in strength and forced into railway trucks. A study of all the BRE lists now available will render an exact figure for the 22.6.42 party.

Rather easier to translate than a lot of Japanese but Army units are a mystery to me.

Someone on the forum will be able to explain what Malaya Command Signals was and why the other two units were listed as well.

All I can say is that Captain David Nelson and his band of comrades, struggling with precious few pieces of paper, deserve to have several glasses raised in their memory.

John

 

Brilliant work John, it must have been quite exciting exploring all those new files.

 

Brilliant work John, it must have been quite exciting exploring all those new files.

Thank you for that: as usual, I forgot to mention that there was yet another group, thus:

26.6. 42 First Mainland Party ( Southern Area & Medical )
Lt.Col. J.R. Williamson, I Ind. H.A.A.

Nelson says of these parties that they totalled 3,000; that they went "up-country"; they were referred to as "June Mainland" and that the destination was Thailand.

I also forgot to mention that my relative was in the same party on 22nd June.

It was certainly exciting to look at another file which contained the leaves of a home made book which had been created out of paper used for rifle-range targets and originally sewn together very neatly, with numerous entries and different inks. It has ended up with a Treasury Tag punched through and rather ignominiously put in a file cover that did not extend far enough to cover it, so returned it to the duty archivist's desk suggesting that it deserved a better modern binding. That was file WO361/2139.

The end binding of that file has some accounts showing dealings in shares and dividends received for 1932/1933 for an Andrew Wish....?

e.g. June 30 (1933) Div. of 2 1/2 % on 2000 Talam Mines....( unknown total.)

Another file has some severed minutes following a call by the "Visiting Justices" to Changi Prison who had no objection to giving Weekly Papers (1939 issues) to prisoners to engage their interest ( this was dated 18.6.40 ) but who did object to the distribution of Malay poetry books.

Certainly rather an exciting day, but the newly found statements are the usual fare to leave me shaking my head in disbelief.

 

papiermache - many thanks once again for your research!

One question - my great grand-father has the record '2317493 L/C Hancock W C.S. Ovl 22.6.42'. Does the 22.6.42 indicate the date he left Singapore to work on the railway?

I ask because, I have down that he was part of Thai Work Group 2 on his POW card, and they left Singapore in October/November 1942?

 

Thank you, kivo, and apologies for calling your great-grandfather your "grandfather".

The dates given are the dates that the parties left Changi. Nelson does not say what work they were going to perform.

You said in an earlier post that the "Thailand-Burma Railway Centre" had told you that: "looking at the information that you have supplied William was part of Group 2 in Thailand and WOULD have left Singapore in Oct to Nov 1942....." ( i.e. not certain that your great-grandfather DID leave at any time in those two months. )

No doubt the said organisation will be beating a path to the National Archives to bring their information, and card system, up to date in line with the great mass of information released by the UK Ministry of Defence in April of this year and contained in WO361.

 

Thanks once again papiermache.

Is there any way of me finding out when the party would have left Singapore for Chungkai?

Or where they went from Chungkai?

Did all those that Left Chungaki in June 1942 fully make-up Work Group 2?



Revised timeline as a POW- would you accept this as correct?

1942
15th February - Captured in Singapore, designated part of Work Group 2
?? - Left Singapore for Chungkai with Work Group 2
22nd June - Left Chungkai with First Mainland Party (Southern Area)

1943
April - Marched north to Prang Kasi/Konkoita

1944
Early - Moved back to Chungkai
March - First batch of prisoners leaves Chungkai for Nong Pladuk
June - First and Second batch of prisoners leave Nong Pladuk for Singapore

 

I am guessing that you want to be as brief as possible for a good reason but it does make things a little difficult.

I would say that we know the following:

1942: William Hancock serving with Malaya Command Signals ( source WO361/2189) as a Lance Corporal with the Royal Corps of Signals.

Sunday, 15th February 1942 at 20.30 hours: ceasefire comes into force.

Tuesday, 17th February 1942 at 1200 hours: British Troops ordered to move to Changi ( extreme north-east corner of Singapore Island ).

22nd June 1942: Departure of W.H. from Changi with a party of about 600 prisoners of war with First Mainland Party ( Southern Area) under Lt. Col H.C. Pargeter, R.C.O.S. Destination is Thailand. ( source WO361/2189 and Nelson, D.: "The Story of Changi" )

17th August 1942. It is recorded on W.H.'s Prisoner of War Card ( or the replacement card: the original was probably lost at sea ) that on this date he was in Thailand and that his number was II: 966. From this we know that he was with Group II."

That is all we can reasonably say that we know.

My research into the deaths of some of the party my relative travelled with ( the same as L/Cpl W. Hancock ) on 22nd June shows that their bodies are buried at Kanchanaburi and at Chungkai, and at no other place, between June 1942 and December 1943. This may or may not mean that they worked at these places. I have no proof as to where my relative was for nearly two years, but this is the best "start" I have yet extracted. There is a great deal more research to be done.

As to the selection and collection of "fit" POWs for transport from Singapore to Japan, a process which began after the railway construction was completed, I would have to look at all the affidavits and statements again to see what dates and places are the most likely. There is a lot of variation.

I have found that fifteen soldiers who were attached to the Royal Army Ordnance Corps and who were with the 22.6.1942 party embarked on the final voyage of the s.s. Hofuku Maru and did not survive the voyage.

Twenty-one RAOC members are buried at Kanchanaburi or at Chungkai and are listed as being on the 22.6.1942 party.

I have now worked out that " Malaya Command Signals" means just that without reference to the other two units. I had misread my notes. Apologies.

I bet you wish you hadn't asked now !

 

Purely for your interest, found today on a medals auction site:

A Hofuku Maru “Hell Ship” Japanese POW casualty group. 1939-45 Star, Pacific Star and War Medal 39-45, contained in box of issue with Army Condolence slip to: Pte.A.E.Crawley. (Box addressed to Mrs.H.Crawley,20 Whitecroft Road, Luton, Beds). 5951900 Pte.Albert Edward Crawley of the 5th Battalion Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Regiment died as a Japanese Prisoner of War on 21st

September 1944 when the prisoner transport ship Hofuku Maru on route to Japan was sunk by
American planes 80 miles north of Corregidor. The 5th Battalion Beds.& Herts. were captured at the

fall of Singapore. The POWs were formed into work parties, most of whom were used to provide

for the construction of the Siam-Burma railway. Following completion of the railway, many prisoners were shipped to Japan.

Steve

 

Thanks to both of you, very useful and interesting as usual!

I agree papiermache, there is a lot of guesswork in my original timeline, I have now limited it to facts (or those beyond reasonable doubt)

 

Purely for your interest, found today on a medals auction site:

A Hofuku Maru “Hell Ship” Japanese POW casualty group. 1939-45 Star, Pacific Star and War Medal 39-45, contained in box of issue with Army Condolence slip to: Pte.A.E.Crawley. (Box addressed to Mrs.H.Crawley,20 Whitecroft Road, Luton, Beds). 5951900 Pte.Albert Edward Crawley of the 5th Battalion Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire Regiment died as a Japanese Prisoner of War on 21st

September 1944 when the prisoner transport ship Hofuku Maru on route to Japan was sunk by
American planes 80 miles north of Corregidor. The 5th Battalion Beds.& Herts. were captured at the

fall of Singapore. The POWs were formed into work parties, most of whom were used to provide

for the construction of the Siam-Burma railway. Following completion of the railway, many prisoners were shipped to Japan.

Steve

Private Crawley's name appears on a three page typed list headed "Personnel 5th Beds & Herts" to be found in WO361/1387. This was prepared by a Sergeant A.W. Burgess, 5949044.

In the entry for Private A.E. Crawley it is stated: " Missing believed drowned 21.9.44", and that he had belonged to "D" Company.

( We have my relative's medals.)

Thank you for bringing this to my attention.

John

 

Thanks to both of you, very useful and interesting as usual!

I agree papiermache, there is a lot of guesswork in my original timeline, I have now limited it to facts (or those beyond reasonable doubt)

It is always useful in research to start with a proposition that something had happened and then try and find the proof for it.

The advantage the Thailand/Burma centre have is that they are there on the ground and have seen many researchers, and a few veterans, and can pass on their experience.

Nelson gives figures for the numbers under Thailand Administration and for those in Group II. Without checking the text the figure for Allied POWs under Thailand Administration was about 31,000.

Dutch and British POWs in Group II totalled about 9,500.

Of the members of the RAOC who were in the party under Lt. Col Pargeter departing Changi on 22nd June 1942 about 32 % of them died in Thailand or en route to Japan. This figure should, of course, have been less than 1%.

There are a lot of facts to be sifted through, and I hope that you keep at it.

John

 

papiermache


My research into the deaths of some of the party my relative travelled with ( the same as L/Cpl W. Hancock ) on 22nd June shows that their bodies are buried at Kanchanaburi and at Chungkai, and at no other place, between June 1942 and December 1943. This may or may not mean that they worked at these places.
The Cemetary at Kanchanaburi was created to take all buriels from the southern part of the railway construction from Bangkok to Nieke.

The Chung Kai cemetary was located near the Railway Base camp & contains the remains of those soldiers that were originally buried in the original camp cemetary near the camp hospital.

Note, only British servicemen are buried at Chung Kai whereas British Comonwealth Servicemen are buried in Kanchanaburi.

As an aside, on my way to work today, I ran into a friend whose Father in law was 1 of the senior Australian Officers who had the responsibility of remains recovery along the railway & was also instrumental in designing the cemetary in Yokohama.

His memoirs are now the basis of a book published by his daughter of which i will soon have a copy.

Regards

Simon