For Posterity's Sake         

A Royal Canadian Navy Historical Project

They made the Ultimate Sacrifice

DOBBYN, Matthew, Sto 1c, VR7057, RNCVR, MPK - 30 Oct 1918, HMCS GALIANO - Born 06 May 1894, South Shields, Durham, England son of George and Elizabeth Dobbyn, late of South Wellington, Nanaimo, BC. Matthew came to Canada on the Teutonic, arriving March 12, 1912 in Halifax, NS. Matthew joined the 2nd Depot Battalion, BC Regiment on 21 Apr 1918 at Victoria, BC. He was discharged on 19 Sep 1918 to joined the RNCVR.

On 29 Oct 1918 the GALIANO was sent with supplies to the light house at Triangle Island off Cape Scott at the northwestern tip of Vancouver Island. A number of her regular crew were unable to make the trip due to illness as the 1918 flu pandemic had reached her base at Esquimalt. She set out towards the Queen Charlotte Islands from Triangle Island at 5 pm on Oct 29th. When she made her only distress call at 3 am the next morning, she was estimated to be within visual range of the light at Cape St. James 95 miles from Triangle Island. She was never heard from again and went down with the loss of all hands.

Matthew Dobbyn is listed on the Victoria Memorial in the Ross Bay Cemetery on Vancouver Island, BC

Casualty record from Naval service file of Matthew Dobbyn          Army service file of Matthew Dobbyn