Boatswain Albert Charles Mattison Albert Medal Regimental Number: NA Regiment: Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve Unit: HMCS Niobe Enlistment Date: Date of Birth: Date of Death: December 6, 1917 Action: Halifax Explosion Date of Award: December 6, 1917 Citation: Date of Citation: Citation Source: Award exists: Unknown Award location: Award comments: From the Dept of National Defense site On December 6, 1917, in Halifax Harbour, the Norwegian freighter Imo collided with the French munitions carrier Mont Blanc. Sparks from the impact igniting the Mont Blanc's deck cargo of benzol and the fire quickly spread to the hold, which contained 2 766 tons of picric acid, TNT and guncotton. The captain of the Royal Canadian Navy depot ship HMCS Niobe sends its tender, a steam pinnace, with a volunteer crew of seven under the command of Boatswain Petty Officer Albert Mattison to board Mont Blanc and scuttle her. At the same time, Commander T.K. Triggs of HMS Highflyer races to the burning ship in a whaler rowed by five Royal Navy matelots, and Captain Horatio Brannan brings his civilian ocean-going tug Stella Maris alongside and starts fighting the fire with the tug's single hose. Under Cdr Triggs' direction, PO Mattison and the Niobe party board the Mont Blanc and secure a 5-inch hawser from the tug to the burning ship's stern so Stella Maris can haul her to a less dangerous location in Bedford Basin. The 5-inch hawser is not strong enough, and Cdr Triggs and the Highflyer whaler crew are on their way with a 10-inch hawser when Mont Blanc blows up. The explosion releases a shock wave that flattened most of the north end of Halifax, followed by a tidal wave that bulldozed the few surviving structures. The wreckage of clapboard houses collapsing over their roaring stoves and furnaces then causes a massive fire. The explosion kills about 1 600 Haligonians and injures 9 000 more, including 200 blinded by flying shards of glass; the casualties amount to more than 21 percent of the population. Material damage is equally severe: 1 600 buildings are destroyed and 12 000 are damaged, leaving 6 000 people homeless and 20 000 without adequate shelter at the beginning of a typically cold, wet Halifax winter. For his heroic efforts, Petty Officer Mattison became the only Canadian recepient of the Albert Medal. Soldier Notes: Husband of Annie Alice Jones (formerly Mattison), of 159, Bleecker St., Toronto, Ontario. Soldier Details

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