• Operation Market Garden

Date of birth:

April 22nd, 1912 (Halifax/Nova Scotia, Canada)

Date of death:

September 21st, 1944 (Arnhem/Gelderland, The Netherlands)

Buried on:

Commonwealth War Cemetery Arnhem Oosterbeek
Plot: 26. Row: B. Grave: 2.

Service number:

J/24002

Nationality:

Canadian

Reginald was born on April 22 1912 in Halifax Nova Scotia, the son of Clement Spencer Gibbs (born at Barbados) and Charlotte Cecilia Gibbs nee Gibbs (deceased in 1933) of Victoria British Columbia. He was married on August 15 1935 in North Bay Ontario with Violet Irene Gibbs nee Graves, of Burks Falls Ontario. His brother was J.S. Gibbs and his sister was Mrs. Florence Dunne and another sister deceased during the infancy.

He was a teacher and member of the Church of England. His hobbies were astronomy, crafts and mathematics and his sports were squash, basketball and badminton.

He enlisted on December 13 1941 in North Bay and he went thereafter on June 4 1943 overseas to the UK.

Reginald died of wounds on Thursday September 21 age 32 due to a crash at Arnhem, northeast of Dennenkamp/Grijsoord before or after an attack on Arnhem during operation Market Garden. He was temporarily buried then near the municipality hospital in Arnhem before being reburied on August 22 1945 in Oosterbeek. The other fallen RAF member was Sgt Dennis A. Matthews in grave 4-C-5 and the other fallen RAF Volunteer Reserve crew members were F/O George H. Powderhill age 33 in grave 4-B-17 and the fallen passenger F/O Frank D. Chalkley age 23 in grave 4-D-19. The other fallen passenger of the RNVR Aircm 2 Leonard A. Hooker age 23 was buried then in grave 4-B-9. The other fallen (British) RASC crew member Dvr. William J. Chaplin age 35 died of wounds on November 11 1944 and he was buried then at the Rheinberg War Cemetery in Germany in grave 13-C-25. The fallen RASC crew member Dvr. Frederick G. Smith age 33 was missed then and he is therefore at the Groesbeek Memorial on panel 9. The other RAAF crew member W/O K. Prowd survived the crash and became then a prisoner of war as well as the RCAF crew member F/Sgt J.A. Gordon.

On his gravestone: IN LIFE LOVED AND HONORED, IN DEATH REMEMBERED

His name is on the Memorial in the basement of the Soldier’s Tower of the University of Toronto.

He served in the 196 (R.A.F.) Sqdn. Royal Canadian Air Force.

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• Photo 1: Operation Picture Me (Public Domain)
• Photo 2: Edwin v.d. Wolf
• - Flying Officer Reginald Cuthbert Gibbs | War Casualty Details 2644673 | CWGC
  - Service records

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