Born in Wallaceburg the son of the late Thomas and Mrs. Margaret Murphy (nee Thorpe) of 220 Oak St. and 465 King St., CDN 16/09/42, Wallaceburg, ON. Pat attended public school in Wallaceburg and was later employed at the Dominion Glass Co., working in the packing department.

He was one of the first three from Wallaceburg to enlist enlisting with the Essex Scottish in 1940 along with Danny Franklin that was killed in England after heroically throwing himself on a live grenade, also joining was Joe Foster. A brother of Patrick also serving with the Essex Scottish returned from Dieppe. CDN 14/09/39.

Reported as a casualty on the Dieppe Raid in the Windsor Star of 16 September, 1942. WS 16/09/42.  Patrick was confirmed as a POW at Dieppe 19/08/42.

Pat trained in Canada and in England with the 1^st Bn. of the Essex Scottish

There was a well organized ‘under ground” which brought in news of the war . When the Allied offensive rolled into Germany his camp was liberated 23 April,1945. He was eventually flown to England.

An article in the CDN 18/06/45 “Dieppe Vet Returns Home”, paints a good picture of what harrowing events Pte. Murphy endured in and after the attack on the town of Dieppe in August of 1942.

“Pat was with a group of men who were able to get into a boat after the fighting at Dieppe and they were fairly well out in the open  sea when a German shell blew the boat to pieces. Pat was thrown into the water and swam about 1 ½ miles to shore where he was captured along with others left behind. Suffering from a wound he was taken to Rouen and later on a hospital train into Germany.

After he recovered from the wound he was removed to Stalag 9-C wher he was handcuffed and chained and had to wear them almost 13 months. Like others he was forced to work in salt mines but the boys had a well-organized ‘underground” which brought in news of the war. Later on when the Allied offensive rolled into Germany, he was liberated by US troops and eventually flown to England. His liberation was on April 23, 1945.”

Curators Note:

A larger group of Canadians fell into German hands after the Dieppe Raid on 19 Aug 1942. Some 119 officers and 1,755 Other Ranks surrendered that day.

During the Raid, a copy of the extensive operation order was taken ashore (against instructions) and captured by the Germans. A small passage in the order noted that German prisoners were to have their hands bound as a security measure. Tying hands was a common procedure for the British Special Service Brigade (ie the Commandos). As Dieppe was planned with heavy influence from Combined Operations staff, the clause, after some discussion with the Canadians, had remained in the order.

This was a costly mistake that made the lives of thse captured at Dieppe very difficult and uncomfortable for over a year in the POW camps. JRH

After his return to Wallaceburg he made a point to thank the employee committee at the Glass Company and the Wallaceburg Knights of Columbas for their supply of ‘smokes’ that helped pass the time in the Stalag in Germany.

The CDN 18/06/45 reported that Pte. P. Murphy a liberated POW from Wallaceburg had arrived home from overseas. In the article in the WN of 21/06/45 Pat , like other returning men thanked the Glass Company for the supply of smokes as well as the Knight of Columbus for their support.

 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Sources

Name found in “No Return Ticket”  by Alan Mann (pg. 80), CDN   (14/09/39)

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