True and Fascinating Canadian History
Reg.#9525, William Charles Gibson Memorial
Cambridge Bay, NU. Canada
William Charles 'Paddy' Gibson was born in Kells, Ireland on July 23, 1987. He fought in WWI with British Forces, and after the war he returned to Ireland where he served with the Royal Irish Constabulary from 1919-1920.
After WWI, the RCMP was hiring, so 'Paddy' Gibson joined a Contingent of young men who arrived in Québec City on October 9, 1920 aboard the “Minnedosa” for the purpose of joining the RCMP. He travelled by train to Regina, SK., and he signed with the RCMP on October 9th, 1920.
He was first posted to Jasper, Alberta and then to what is now Nunavut. He left the Force in 1925 to become Post Manager for the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) in King William Land, in the Western Arctic, rising through the ranks to become District Inspector.
During the first voyage of the RCMP Schooner St. Roch through the Northwest Passage, the Vessel was iced in and spent the winter in Walker Bay, on the east coast of Victoria Island. HBC records show that 'Paddy' Gibson delivered mail to the crew of the St. Roch by dogsled team.
'Paddy' Gibson was a prolific contributor to the Canadian magazine "The Beaver" and he was also the subject of the book entitled "Kabloona" written by Count Gontran de Poncins who had spent a winter with 'Paddy' Gibson in the Arctic. 'Paddy Gibson was a member of the Royal Geographic Society, and he is also famous for discovering, and burying remains of crew members of the Franklin Expedition.
'Paddy' died on February 22nd 1942 in an airplane crash (CF-BDG) on Dumas Lake, near Coppermine. A Coroner's Inquest report into his death was sealed for 50 years, and upon the file being reviewed in 1992, it was sealed for another 50 years.
After his death, Paddy's remains were returned to his sister (my grandmother) who had emigrated from Ireland and was living in Toronto. He was buried in the Resthaven Memorial Gardens in Scarborough, ON.
Because of his love of the North, the family purchased 4 plots so that Gibson's body could be buried on a diagonal directly in line with the Canadian Flag, facing to the North.
A Memorial was erected in 'Paddy' Gibson's memory at Cambridge Bay, Nunavut.
I would like to thank 'Paddy' Gibson's great nephew RCMP Reg.#36842, Bruce Clark for his help with the notes which I used for this memorial page. I would also like to thank Ancestry.com and Toronto RCMP Veteran Jack O'Reilly for the photo of 'Paddy' Gibson's grave marker which is illustated directly above.
