Flight-Lieutenant Grant Leandre Parent C.D.

Flight-Lieutenant Grant Leandre Parent served as a Navigating Officer with the 424 Squadron Royal Canadian Air Force during World War Two. He flew 21 missions over Germany. He is entitled to the 1939-45 Star, France-Germany Star, Defence Medal, War Medal, Canadian Volunteer Service medal with clasp and the Canadian Decoration. Also he received the Irvin Caterpillar Pin, this pin was given to every airmen to anyone who saved his life by parachuting from a disabled or flaming aircraft.

He was born April 24, 1919 in Richmond, Quebec and graduated from McGill University in 1940 with a B.A. in Agricultural.

He commenced his training on June 6th 1943 in Toronto at the No 6 Initial Training School. He served until February 16th, 1946 but since he received the Canadian Decoration he must also has served after that period.

He died January 24, 2012.

I once had access to his flight book and made a transcription of it.

This is the transcription of his flight log book that include his training flights and bombing missions over Germany during WW2.

1944

Trained on Anson (Picture below)

April 10th                   Pilot : Sgt Rychlik                 Flight time (day) : 3:40 hour

April 11th                    Pilot : Sgt Stack                     Flight time (day) : 3:05 hrs

April 15th                   Pilot : F/O Bowskill              Flight time (day) : 2:40 hrs

April 20th                   Pilot : Keppie                         Flight time (day) : 3:35 hrs

April 24th                    Pilot : F/S Cundall                 Flight time (day) : 3:30 hrs

April 25th                    Pilot : F/S Dix                          Flight time (day) : 25 min

April 25th                    Pilot : F/S Dix                         Flight time (n) : 2:35 hrs

April 26th                    Pilot : P/O Skipton                Flight time (d) : 30 min

April 26th                    Pilot : P/O Skipton                Flight time (n) : 2:05 hrs

April 27th                    Pilot : F/S Gilmore                Flight time (d) : 2:50 hrs

April 28th                    Pilot : F/O Stapley                 Flight time (d) : 3:30 hrs

May 2nd                      Pilot : F/S Hamilton             Flight time (d) : 3:25 hrs

May 4th                       Pilot : F/O Boyd                    Flight time (d) : 3:15 hrs

Total for the month : 35 hrs 5 min

From July 12th,1943 to November 26th, 1943 he followed his navigator course.

Trained on Wellington (Picture below)

July 16th                     Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (d) : 1:35 hour

July 18th                     Pilot : F/O White                   Flight time (d) : 4:35 hrs

July 19th                      Pilot : P/O McManus             Flight time (d) : 35 min

July 20th                     Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (d) : 4:55 hrs

July 21st                      Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (d) : 45 min

July 22nd                     Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (d) : 35 min

July 23rd                     Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (d) : 6:00 hrs

July 25th                     Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (d) : 2:20 hrs

July 28th                     Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (d) : 3:00 hrs

July 31st                      Pilot : W/O Butler                Flight time (d) : 1:25 hour

Total for the month : 26 hrs 15 min

August 4th                   Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (d) : 1:45 hour

August 6th                   Pilot : F/O Gray                     Flight time (n) : 1:10 hour

August 7th                   Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (n) : 1:55 hour

August 9th                   Pilot : W/O Butler                 Flight time (n) : 3:00 hrs

August 11th                 Pilot : F/O Clifton                 Flight time (n) : 4:00 hrs

He and his crew had to bailed out of the air plane after engines problems, two members did not have time to exit and died in the plane crash. This is most propable the incident where he received his Irvin Caterpillar Pin.

Total for the month : 11 hrs 50 min

August 23rd                Pilot : F/S Saunders               Flight time (d) : 4:20 hrs

August 25th                 Pilot : F/S Saunders               Flight time (d) : 4:40 hrs

August 28th                 Pilot : F/S Saunders               Flight time (d) : 2:30 hrs

Total for the month : 11 hrs 30 min

The squadron transferred on Lancaster Halifax (picture below)

October 30th,              Pilot : F/O Graham                Flight time ( day) : 2:25 hrs

Commending officer of the Squadron 424 C.C.W. Marshall D.F.C

November 1st              Pilot : F/O Graham                Flight time (d) : 1:45 hrs

November 3rd            Pilot : F/O Graham                Flight time (d)  : 35 min

November 3rd            Pilot : P/O Saunders              Flight time (d) : 3:15 hrs

November 6th             Pilot : F/O Graham                Flight time (d) : 25 min

November 7th             Pilot : F/O Graham                Flight time (d) : 3:15 hrs

November 8th             Pilot : P/O Saunders              Flight time (d) : 2:55 hrs

November 9th             Pilot : P/O Saunders              Flight time (d) : 4:00 hrs

November 12th           Pilot : P/O Saunders              Flight time (d) : 5:20 hrs

November 19th           Pilot : F/O Sherwood             Flight time (d) : 2:30 hrs

November 20th           Pilot : P/O Saunders              Flight time (n) : 2:30 hrs

November 21st             Pilot : P/O Saunders              Flight time (n) : 3:20 hrs

November 23rd           Pilot : F/LT Rogers                Flight time (n) : 6:15 hrs

November 24th           Pilot : P/O Saunders              Flight time (d) : 4:55 hrs

November 25th           Pilot : P/O Walton                 Flight time (n) : 4:15 hrs

Total for the month : 48 hrs 05 min

November 26th, he arrived at 424th squadron in Skipton on Swale, his crew is compose of those persons;

P/O Saunders(pilot)            F/O Parent (navigator)          Sgt Andrews

Sgt Laforce                            Sgt Witham                               Sgt Olafson (rear gunner)

Sgt Ellis

November 29th                     Pilot : P/O Saunders          Flight time: 4:40 hrs

December 2nd                       Pilot : P/O Saunders           Flight time: 1:00 hour

December 4th                       Pilot : P/O Saunders            Flight time: 4:15 hrs

December 5th                        mission # 1                             Objective Soest

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 5:45 hrs  Flight distance : 2081 km

Comments : Moderate flak, one bomb stayed in bomb bay and short petrol

16:24              waiting on the runway

18:14              take off

18:40              near off Barnsley

19:18              Reading, new course 136 o

19:35              Eastbourne

19:50              20.5 km north – west d’Abbeville

20:18              57 km east de Saint – Quentin, new course 20 o

20:50              42 km north – west of Aachen

21:09              44.5 km north of Gladbeck

21:23              bombs dropped on target, altitude 18 000 feet

21:24              new course 222 o

21:42              20 km south of Bonn, new course 272 o

21:55              new course 246 o

22:09              new course 290 o

23:18              12 km north – east of Dunkerque, new course 318 o

00:07              Orfordness, new course 305 o

00:27              landing at Horham

December 6th                                    Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 1:05 hrs              Horham to base

December 12th                      Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 2:55 hrs

December 13th                      Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 1:55 hrs

December 18th                      mission # 2                             Objective Berg

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 6:00 hrs  Flight distance : 2055 km

Comment : Moderate flak

03:25              take off

03:34              near off Barnsley

04:28              Reading

04:45              near Brighton (English coast) new course 168 o

05:18              29 km south of Dieppe, new course103 o

05:52              41 km south of Charleroi, new course 46 o

06:22             bombs dropped on target, altitude 19 000 feet

06:23              new course 301 o

06:28              new course 231 o

07:08              32 km south-west of Charleroi, new course 269 o

07:30              near Beach Head, new course 355 o

07:51              near Reading, new course 355 o

08:25              near off Barnsley

08:49              landing at Hethel

December 23rd                      Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 1:05 hrs              Return to base

Total for the month : 28 hrs 40 min

The squadron transferred on Lancaster (picture below)

January 4th,1945                    Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 4:15 hrs

January 5th                            mission # 3                             Objective Hannover

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 5:50 hrs  Flight distance : 1742 km

Comment : Slight flak

17:01              take off

17:14              Scarborough, new course 88 o

17:55              North Sea

18:19              North sea, new course 125 o

18:37              23 km north – west de Gronigen

18:48              32 km south – east de Gronigen, new course 96 o

19:11              32 km south-east de Bremen, new course 143 o

19:21            bombs dropped on target, altitude 18 500 feet, new course 222 o

19:31              course 306 o

19:42              32 km south – east d’Osnabrück

19:59              course 280 o

20:33              6 km north of La Haye, course 295

21:05              Southwold

21:49              near Doncaster

22:06              landing

January 6th                            mission # 4                             Objective Hanau

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 7:30 hrs  Flight distance : 1975 km

Comment : Slight flak

15:48              take off

16:02              near off Doncaster

16:41              Reading

17:23              25 km north – west of Dieppe, new course 89 o

17:58              50 km north – east de Saint – Quentin

18:25              44.5 km south of Liege, new course 66 o

18:58              new course 148 o

19:07              Frankfort

19:10             Bombs dropped on target, altitude 19 500 feet

19:15              37 km south of Frankfort, new course 292 o

19:31              44.5 km south of Koblenz, new course 241 o

19:42              25 km south of Kier, new course 296

19:57              37 km west of Luxembourg, new course 319 o

20:21              30 km west de Charleroi

20:42              40 km north – west de Lille

21:08              Cork (English coast)

21:58              near off Doncaster

22:14              landing

January 22nd                          Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 3:00 hrs

January 26th                           Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 3:05 hrs

January 28th                          mission # 5                             Objective Stuggart

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 7:15 hrs  Flight distance : 2412 km

Comment : Slight flak

The Intelligence Officer who was responsible to debrief him made this comment «if you don’t like this, complain to me»

19:19              take off

20:17              near Doncaster

20:55              Reading, new course 136 o

21:12              near Beachy Head

21:23              16 km north-east of Dieppe

21:58              25 km north-east of Paris, new course 80 o

23:06              19 km east of Saarbrucken, new course 81 o

23:30              44 km south-east Mannheim, new course 178 o

23:38             bombs dropped on target, altitude 19 500 feet

23:40              10 km south of Stuggart, new course 273 o

23:41              new course 326 o

23:51              38 km north of Strasbourg

00:24              new course 292 o

01:02              25 km north-east of Paris, new course 334 o

01:56              16 km north-east of Dieppe

02:16              Beach Head

04:09              Landing

January 29th                           Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 50 min

Total for the month : 31 hrs 45 min

February 11th                         Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 35 min

February 13th                         Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 1:35 hrs

February 14th                         Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 3:30 hrs

February 15th                        Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 5:25 hrs

February 18th                         Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 15 min

February 20th                         mission # 6                             Objective Dorthund

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 6:40 hrs  Flight distance : 1787 km

Comment : Moderate to heavy flak

21:35              take off

22:19              near off Barnsley

22:59              Reading

23:17              Eastbourne

23:35              19 km north – west of Abbeville

23:41              19 km south – east of Abbeville, new course 91 o

00:28              52 km south – east of Charleroi, new course 17 o

00:50              35 km north of Liège, new course 88 o

01:05              Remscheid, new course 32 o

01:14             bombs dropped on target, altitude 18 500 feet

01:17              19.5 km north-west de Dortmund, new course 312

01:22              30 km south-west of Munster, new course 276 o

01:32              33 km north-west of Gladbeck, new course 238 o

02:05              19 km south of Bruxelles, new course 277 o

02:41              24 km south of Boulogne, new course 307

02:57              English coast

03:18              Reading

03:55              near Barnsley

04:08              landing

February 21st             mission # 7                             Objective Duisberg

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 6:30 hrs  Flight distance : 1183 km

Comment : Moderate to heavy flak and oxygen system failure

19:58              take off

20:14              near off Doncaster

20:59              near Reading

21:20              Eastbourne

21:39              20 km north – west of Abbeville

21:46              15 km south – east of Abbeville, new course 34 o

22:26              25 km east of Charleroi

22:44              31.75 km west of Aachen

23:04             bombs dropped on target, altitude 18 000 feet

23:05              new course 285 o

23:15              new course 220 o

23:25              31.75 km north – west of Liège, new course 256 o

23:40              25 km north – east of Charleroi, new course 281 o

23:59              Lille

00:15              Boulogne

00:33              15 km north – east of Eastbourne

00:53              Reading

01:31              Doncaster

01:44              landing

February 24th                         Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 3:35 hrs              Sea search

February 26th                         Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 3:00 hrs

Total for the month : 31 hrs 05 min

 March 1st                              mission # 8                             Objective Mannheim

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 7:20 hrs  Flight distance : 1351 km

Comment : Slight heavy flak

12:17              take off

12:32              Doncaster

13:13              Reading

13:25              Portsmouth

13:30              over the English channel, new course 84 o

14:01              19.5 km north of Abbeville

14:07              12 km north – east of Abbeville

14:52              4 km south – east of Luxembourg

15:14             bombs dropped on target, altitude 18 500 feet

15:15              new course 96 o

15:20              25 km south – east of Manheim, new course 267

15:56              23 km north – east of Nancy, new course 313

17:12              6.35 km south – west of Ostende (Dutch coast)

17:39              Southwold (English coast), new course 313

18:24              Doncaster

18:40              landing

March 2nd                              mission # 9                             Objective Cologne

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 5:55 hrs  Flight distance : 1754 km

Comment : Slight heavy flak and the objective was probably never reached

07:41              take off

08:31              Reading, new course 138 o

09:07              Beachy Head, new course 86 o

09:13              16 km south of Boulogne

09:38              19 km south of Charleroi, new course 40 o

10:00              left Belgium, new course 102 o

10:12              bombs dropped on target, altitude 19 000 feet

10:13              new course 213 o

10:20              12 km south of Bonn new course 285 o

11:30              25 km north of Charleroi, new course 329 o

12:00              over Ostende, left the coast of France, new course 308 o

12:44              Southwold, new course 351 o

12:54              landing

March 5th                               mission # 10               Objective Chemnitz

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 9:00 hrs  Flight distance : 1796 km

Comment : No flak

17:18              take off

17:32              near Doncaster

18:08              near Reading, new course 128 o

18:28              near Eastbourne

18:47              21 km north – west of Abbeville

18:54              15 km south-east of Abbeville, new course 84 o

19:38              new course 61 o

20:16              19 km north-west of Koblenz

20:56              new course 145 o

21:34              30 km north – west of Halle, new course 86 o

21:48              25 km north – east of Leipzig

21:57              25 km south – east of Leipzig

21:59             bombs dropped on target, altitude 15 500 feet

22:01              17 km au south -east of Chemnitz, new course 257 o

22:13              new course 305 o

22:36              new course 238 o

22:57              30 km south – east of Darmstadt

00:53              15 km south – east of Amiens, new course 294 o

01:00              21 km north – west of Abbeville

01:22              near of Eastbourne

01:45              near off Reading

02:31              near off Doncaster

02:48              landing

March 6th                               Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 55 min    Return to base

March 7th                               mission # 11               Objective Dessau

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 8:45 hrs  Flight distance : 3025 km

Comment : Slight to heavy flak, large belt of search light before T and four air crafts down

17:07              take off

17:23              near off Barnsley

18:07              Reading, new course 140 o

18:26              Beachy Head, new course 139 o

18:47              16 km north-east of Dieppe, new course 88 o

19:37              new course 42 o

20:23              19 km north of Cologne, new course 63 o

21:11              new course 34 o

21:42              32 km south of Salzwedel near Elbe Channel, new course 72 o

21:57              19 km west de Brandenburg, new course 184 o

22:07             bombs dropped on target, altitude 16 000 feet

22:10              12 km north of Halle, new course 210 o

22:28              new course 180 o

22:44              new course 250 o

23:08              44 km west of Stuggart, new course 301 o

00:50              50 km west of Chalons sur Marne, new course 322 o

01:57              Pointe Haut banc

Reading

Landing

March 8th                               Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 1:20 hrs  Return to base

March 11th                             mission # 12               Objective Essen

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 5:45 hrs  Flight distance : 2100 km

Comment : Slight flak

12:06              take off

12:22              near Barnsley

13:07              Reading

13:30              Eastbourne, new course 139 o

13:51              19 km north-west of Abbeville, new course 98 o

14:12              25 km north-west of Saint – Quantin

14:34              27 km south-east of Charleroi, new course 51 o

15:04              Gladback

15:15              bombs dropped on target, altitude 19 000 feet

15:16              new course 321 o

15:20              12 km west of Gladbeck, new course 260 o

15:49              10 km south of Bruxelles, new course 297 o

16:07              19 km south of Ostende, left the coast of France, new course 341 o

16:34              Southwold, new course 313 o

17:11              near Barnsley

17:23              landing

March 12th                             mission # 13               Objective Dortmund

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 6:45 hrs

Comment : Slight flak

March 14th                             mission # 14               Objective Zweibrucken

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 6:35 hrs  Flight distance : 1265 km

Comment : Moderate to heavy flak

17:13              take off

17:28              near off Doncaster

18:13              Reading

18:35              near d’Eastbourne

18:55              19.5 km north – east of Abbeville

19:03              Amiens

19:45              + de 50 km north – east of Chalons sur Marne

19:55              new course 95 o

20:07              25 km west of Saarbrucken

20:16              bombs dropped on target, altitude 12 800 feet, new course 158 o

20:19              19.5 km south – east of Saarbrucken, new course 237 o

20:34              25 km south – east of Nancy, new course 306 o

21:50              Amiens

21:57              19.5 km north – west of Abbeville

22:15              near of Eastbourne

22:36              Reading

23:14              Doncaster

23:27              landing

March 15th                             mission # 15               Objective Hagen

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 6:40 hrs  Flight distance : 2356 km

Comment : Moderate to heavy flak, two aircrafts down and many fighters

17:18              take off

17:35              Doncaster

18:23              Reading

18:45              Eastbourne

19:05              21 km north – east of Abbeville, new course 98 o

19:36              25 km south – west of Charleroi, new course 53 o

19:59              course 120 o

20:12              25 km west of Bonn, course 179 o

20:23              37 km east of Cologne, course 348 o

20:32             bombs dropped on target, altitude 19 000 feet

20:33              6 km north of Hagen, course 307 o

20:42              8.5 km east of Krefeld, course 253 o

20:59              course 240 o

21:19              25 km south – east of Charleroi, course 274 o

21:50              21 km north – east of Abbeville, new course 316 o

22:07              Eastbourne

22:25              Reading

23:03              Doncaster

23:16              landing

March 16th                             Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 1:15 hrs              Practice bombing

New commanding officer R.W. Norris

March 29th                             Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 1:55 hrs

March 31st                             mission # 16               Objective Hamburg

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 5:30 hrs  Flight distance : 1419 km

Comment : Heavy flak over Hamburg, four aircrafts down over Hamburg – two collided and many fighters

6:47              take off

6:58              Scarborough

7:33              between England and Holland

7:51              Island of Texel (Holland), new course 107 o

8:10              20 km south – east of Leeuwarden

8:37              32 km south of Bremen, new course 32 o

8:56             Bombs dropped on target, altitude 18 000 feet

9:00              24 km north –west of Hamburg, new course 319 o

9:13              near Kaiser Wilhem Channel, new course 271 o

9:23              Coast Norwegia, new course 274 o

9:39              21 km south of the island of Heligoland (North sea), new course 278 o

10:28              North sea

11:38              Scarborough

11:52              landing

Total for the month : 67 hrs 20 min

April 4th                                  mission # 17               Objective Leuna (Merseberg)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 9:00 hrs

Comment : Synthetic oil plant and Moderate to heavy flak

April 8th                                  mission # 18               Objective Hamburg

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 5:55 hrs

Comment : Moderate to heavy flak

April  9th                                Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 45 min    Return to base

April 10th                                mission # 19                                       Objective Leipzig

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 8:00 hrs  Flight distance : 1309 km

Comment : Moderate predicted flak, unable to drop bomb and hit by flak F/O Saunders hit in left eye

13:59              take off

14:17              near off Doncaster

15:13              Orfordness

15:45              12,5 km north of Bruges

16:00              19 km east of Ghent, new course 81 o

16:16              36 km east of Antwerp

16:32              44,5 km west of Duisberg

17:02              30 km south of Osnabruick, new course 96 o

17:04              11 km north of Halberstad

17:52              15 km east of Halle

18:02             bombs dropped on target, altitude 16 500 feet

18:06              19 km south east of Leipzig, new course 181 o

18:10              23 km north – west of Chemnitz, new course 256 o

18:30              31,75 km south of Erfuit

18:54              42 km north – east of Frankfort

19:17              37 km west of Koblenz, new course 286 o

19:51              21 km west of Bruxelles

20:02              Weastkapelle

20:31              32 km from the English coast

20:50              Boston

21:04              Doncaster

21:15              landing

April 16th                                mission # 20               Objective Schwandorf

Flight time: 8:50 hrs

Comment : Moderate to heavy flak, Hydraulic system failure and bombs door open on return

April 18th                               Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 4:0 hrs

April 19th                               Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 2:30 hrs

April 22nd                               mission # 21               Objective Bremen

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 5:20 hrs  Flight distance : 1376 km

16:36              take off

16:50              Scarborough

17:07              1/4 of the English Channel crossed

17:33              2/3 of the English Channel crossed

17:53              near the coast of Holland, new course 80 o

18:22              new course 28 o

18:44              19 km south – west of Wesermunde, course 141 o

18:52             bombs dropped on target, altitude 17 800 feet

18:54              15 km south – east of Bremen, course 252 o

19:08              22 km north of Osnabrück, new course 300 o

19:53              left the coast of Holland, new course 305 o

20:15              2/3 of the English Channel to cross

20:48              1/4 of the English Channel to cross

21:10              Scarborough

21:21              landing

Total for the month : 44 hrs 20 min

May 15th                                 Flight (d)

Pilot : F/S Saunders   Flight time: 1:25 hrs

Total for the month : 1 hour 25 min

October 1st : New commanding officer R.P.D. Blagrave

October 15th : Squadron 424 east at Skipton on Swale, Yorks

War time flight

Day 98 hours 40 minutes

Night 104 hours 30 minutes

Total 203 hours 10 minutes

September 6, 1946 : He retired from the army but he reenlisted sometime after the war because he did receive the Canadian Decoration (12 years of service)

If you know more information on this gentleman, please leave me message so I can add it to his small biography.

Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Spring Walker, C.B.E., M.I.D.

Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Spring Walker served in the Royal Army Medical Corps
He was a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (Military). He was also entitled to the Queen’s South Africa Medal with the Orange Free State and Cape Colony clasps, the 1914 Star with clasp, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal .

He was born January 6^th 1876 at Glanbehy, County of Kerry

April 5^th, 1894: He is listed as a Midshipman on the Royal Navel Reserve List

July 29^th, 1898: He received his diploma for Licentiate Midwifing from the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland. He is listed as living at the Hurricane Lodge, Glenbeigh, and County of Kerry

April 25^th, 1900: He was promoted Lieutenant in the Royal Army Medical Corps

June 18^th: He sailed to South Africa (from the London Times) with the 9^th General Hospital

November 14^th: He embarked on the HMS Assaye. He had been invalidated. He arrived in South Hampton, United Kingdom on December 5th (from the London Times)

He served in India from 1902 to 1903

He was promoted Captain in April of 1903

He was sick from February 1904 and was back at his rank on October 19^th, 1904. During that period he was probably sent back to United Kingdom.

He went back to India and served from 1905 to 1908.

March 29^th, 1908: He was promoted Major and was stationed at the Magistrate Department Cantonment in India.

April 25^th, 1912: He was promoted Major

September 13^th, 1914: He disembarked in France with the 26^th Field Ambulance (British Expeditionary Forces)

He was promoted the Assistant-Director of the 6^th Division at some point during the war.

February 17^th, 1915: He was Mentioned-in-Despatches for the first time.

August 3^rd: He arrived on the Island of Malta from England

August 20^th: He embarked on HMHS Valdivia and sailed for Mudros Harbour on the small Greek Island of Lemnos. At the time the Island of Mudros was used a rear medical base for the sick and wounded of the Gallipoli campaign. The number of casualties was so high Eastern Campaign, especially in the Dardanelles, that the British putted a lot of resources to help reduce the pressure on the medical units.

September 19^th: He returned from the Island of Mudros to the Island of Malta.

January 5^th, 1916: He sailed back to England.

December 26^th, 1917: He was promoted Lieutenant-Colonel

May 30^th 1919: He was awarded the Order of the British Empire (Commander level) for valuable service in connection with the war (London Gazette June 3^rd)

July 10^th: He was Mentioned-in-Despatches for a second time.

July 29^th: He was Mentioned-in-Despatches for a third time. In a period of 5 months he was decorated three times for his valuable services in connection with the war. It is rare for someone to receive so many official recognitions in such a short period, although 1919 was the period to close the book for WW1 decoration.

September 9^th: He applied for his 1914 Star

May 15^th, 1920: He retired from the Army. He was again taken off strength for medical reasons from May 15^th, 1920 until December 20^th, 1920.

December 20^th, 1922: he was taken off the Officer Reserve List and retired from pay

1927: He is listed as living at Woodquest, Crosshaven, County of Cork in the Medical Register. He lived there until his death in 1941.

June 24th 1941: He died Ripley Lodge Caragh Lake in Kerry County

He had one daughter named Marjorie Rose

click on the image to enlarge

If you know more information on this gentleman, please leave me message so I can add it to his small biography.

Lieutenant-Colonel John Warwick Illius

Lieutenant-Colonel John Warwick Illius served in the Indian Medical Service during WW1 and after the war in the Balkans, Egypt, Persia and the Persian Gulf. He is entitled to the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal, the Victory Medal, the General Service Medal 1918 clasp South Persia and the India General Service Medal 1908 clasp Waziristan 1919.

October 9^th 1875: He was born in Campo Grande, Bahia, Brazil. he is the son of John Guillermo and Ellen Illius, Superintendent of the Bahia Steam Navigation Company. He had a brother Henry Warkwick that was most probably his twin.

1881 United Kingdom Census: He was living with his parents at 48 St John’s Road Tonbridge, Kent, England. He had 2 brothers and 4 sisters. He was in a wealthy family they had one nurse, one housemaid, one cook and one governess.

1891 United Kingdom Census: Living at 142 Halloween Bannisters Road Millbrook, Hampshire, England. They only had one maid

February 1900: He received his medical training at St. Bart’s and gained the Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons (M.R.C.S.) 1900 and Licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians  (L.R.C.P.) London. His address was 13 Esplanade Road, Bombay India

July 26^th, 1902: He entered the Indian Medical Service and was appointed a Lieutenant.

July 26^th, 1905: He was promoted Captain.

1912: He was appointed a Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh

January 26^th, 1914: He was promoted Major

January 1922: He was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel. That year also saw the birth of his son Andrew Bruce Warwick Illius

He served in the WW1 in France and Belgium, 1914-15;

He served in the Balkans and Egypt in 1915-16.

He served in Persia and the Persian Gulf between 1916 and 1919

He retired from the Indian Army on 4 September 1925.

1927: According to the Medical List of that year he was a partner of the Coulson, Buckley & Illius Medical Practice in Temple Combe, Somerset.

August 24^th 1943: His son Officer Andrew Bruce Warwick Illius, 156 Squadron, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve was killed over Berlin at the age of 21.

September 10^th, 1946: He died at the Ashs Prior Nursing Home in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. He left a sum of 23 610 £ to his wife Marion Elizabeth Fleming. He is buried in Cheltenahm Cemetery in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. His wife died on May 29^th, 1976 and is buried with him.

Pictures of his gravestone Cheltenahm Cemetery

click on the images to enlarge

If you know more information on this gentleman, please leave me message so I can add it to his small biography.

Lieutenant Julian Garth Harley

Lieutenant Julian Garth Harley served with the Royal Army Medical Corps in Borneo and Northen Ireland. He is entitled to the General Service Medal clasps Borneo and Northern Ireland. He is also entitled to the Good Conduct and Long Service Medal EII (Bar Regular Army). His service number was 23948593.

Enlisted early 1960’s

He served in North Borneo, Sarawak or Brunei between 24 December 1962 and 11 August 1966. This conflict claimed the lives of 114 Commonwealth personnel killed, 180 wounded.

He was a drill instructor at R.A.M.C. depot in late 70’s and later became the Chief Drill Instructor there.

He must have served for at least  30 days’ in Northen Ireland after 14 August 1969.

March 6th 1990 : Promoted from Warrant Officer class I to Lieutenant on March 6th, 1990 with the Territorial Army (R.A.M.C.). probably after retiring from the Regular Force

March 6th,1991 : Probation confirmed

May 26th, 1993: To be a Lieutenant with Territorial Army group A

If you know more information on this gentleman, please leave me message so I can add it to his small biography.

Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Henry Carr

Lieutenant- Colonel Charles Henry Carr served in the Royal Army Medical Corps during World War One and in what was then India in 1919. He is entitled to the 1914 Star, the British War medal, The Victory Medal and the India General Service Medal clasp North-West Frontier 1919.

He was born on 20th September 1873 inYoughal, County Cork

March 21^st, 1898: He registered for the first time as a surgeon. He graduated from the University of Dublin

May 30^th, 1900: He was promoted Lieutenant

1901-1902: He served in West Africa

May 30^th 1903: Promoted Captain

1903-1908: He served in India

1911 United Kingdom Census: Married to Edith France Carr and they had no children. He was living in Handover, Hampshire.

May 30^th 1912: Promoted Major and he was stationed at the Commanding Station Hospital in Jullunder, India.

1914: His son, Charles B. Argaville DeVoeux, was born that year. He was married with Edith Frances Carr.

August 17^th 1914: He disembarked in France.

August 9th 1915: He arrived from England.

1916 : At St David’s Military Hospital Malta.

May 2nd 1917 Mobilised St David’s Military Hospital as No 62 General Hospital, and brought its strength to war time establishment.

July 4^th: He embarked for Salonika in command of No 62 General Hospital on the HMTS Ship Abbassieh which sailed out of the Grand Harbour escorted by HMS Aster and HMS Azalea. Both escorts struck mines eleven miles out of Malta, and HMTS Abbassieh returned to Malta and anchored at Marsaxlokk Harbour.

July 6^th: HMT Ship Abbassieh with Nos 61, 62, and 64 General Hospitals sailed out of Marsaxlokk Harbour escorted by two destroyers. The staff was given their first inoculation against cholera.

July 11^th: Appointed Acting Lieutenant-Colonel. HMTS Abbassieh arrived at Suda Bay Crete on 9 July, where all the staff were issued with quinine grs X, as prophylaxis against malaria. They arrived at Salonika Harbour, on 11 July 1917. All the women and doctors were transferred to the hospital ship Llandovery Castle.

January 1918: He was serving as Officer Commanding the 62^nd General Hospital in Italy when he applied for the 1914 Star in January 1918

April 7^th: Promoted Lieutenant-Colonel

January 1920: He was at the Nowshera British Station Hospital in Peshawar, India

September 20^th 1928: He was put on Retired Pay

1943 May 31^st: His son, Charles B. Argaville DeVoeux, was killed in an accident while serving with to the York and Lancaster Regiment but attached to the 6^th Bn The Queen’s Own Royal West Kent Regiment

He died 25^th December 1961 in Worthing, Sussex

If you know additional information on this gentleman, please leave me a comment so I can add the information to his small biography.

Books on the Canadian Army Medical Services and Nursing Sister

Over the years I have read many books on the Canadian Army Medical Corps and its member. These books were not meant to be read like a novel and they are not fast page turner, so sometime they are a little bit hard to read BUT they do hold very valuable information on the Canadian Medical Corps and its members who served during peacetime and wartime period.

This is the list of all the books I have read so far on the subject, if you happen to know a book that is not in this list but related to the Canadian Medical service during a war, please let me know so I can add it to this list.

Some of those are available for free and downloadable from the Internet. I have added the link to those e-book.

CORPS HISTORY

WW1

Official history of the Canadian Forces in the Great War 1914-19 – The Medical Services by Sir Andrew McPhail published in 1925. It can be read online by clicking here

The Canadian Army Medical Corps with the Canadian Corps in the last hundred days of the Great War by Colonel A. E. Snell published in 1924. It can be read online by clicking here

The First Canadians in France by F McKelvey-Bell published in 1917

The War Story of the Canadian Army Medical Corps 1914-1915 by Colonel J. G. Adami published in 1916. It can be read online by clicking here or here

Politics and the Canadian Army Medical Corps by Colonel Herbert A. Bruce published in 1919. It can be read online by clicking here

WW2

Official History of the Canadian Medical Services 1939-1945 (2 volumes) by W. R. Feasby published in 1953. You can read volume 1 by clicking here and volume 2 by clicking here

Death their enemy: Canadian Medical Practitioners and War by Bill Rawling published in 2001

A History of the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps: Seventy Years of Service by Colonel G.W.L. Nicholson published in 1977

Post-WW2

The Myriad Challenges of Peace : Canadian Forces Medical Practitioners Since the Second World War by Bill Rawling published in 2004

UNIT HISTORY

No 1 Canadian General Hospital by Kenneth Cameron published in 1928

No 3 Canadian General Hospital in France (author unknown)

No 3 Canadian General Hospital (McGill) 1914-1919 by R. C. Fetherstonhaugh published in 1928

No 4 Canadian Hospital: The Letters of Professor J. J. McKenzie from the Salonika Front by J. J. Mackenzie published in 1933

A history of no 7 (Queen’s) Canadian General Hospital

Battle for life by A.M. Jack Hyatt and Nancy Geddes Poole published in 2004 (history of 10th Canadian Stationary Hospital in WW1 and 10th Canadian General Hospital in WW2)

Stretcher bearer … at the Double by Frederick W. Noyes (history of the 5th Canadian Field Ambulance)

History records of number 8 Canadian Field Ambulance 1915-1913 by Lieutenant –Colonel J. N. Gunn published in 1929 (history of the 8th Canadian Field Ambulance)

Diary of the Eleventh (history of the 11th Canadian Field Ambulance)

The Military Medical Units of Hamilton, Ontario in Peace and War 1900-1990 by A.R.C. Butson published in 1990

Salute to the Air Force Medical Branch by Harold M. Wright published 1999

NURSING SISTER

Canada’s Nursing Sisters by G.W.L. Nicholson published in 1975

Sister heroines: The Roseate Glow of Wartime Nursing 1914-1918 by Marjorie Barron Norris published in 2002

An Officer and a Lady by Cynthya Toman published in 2007

Canadian Foreign Awards to Nursing Service Mentioned-in-Despatches World War I (1914-1919) edited by Jim Wallace in 2001

PERSONAL ACCOUNT – MEMOIRS – BIOGRAPHY

From a Stretcher Handle: The World War 1 Journal and Poems of Pte. Frank Walker published in 2000

Four Score and Ten – Memoirs of a Canadian Nurse (story of Nursing Sister Maude Wilkinson) published in 2003

Lights Out: A Canadian Nursing Sister’s Tale by Katherine M. Wilson-Simmie published in 1981

Nobody Ever Wins a War by Ella Mae Bongard (edited by Eric Scott) published in 1998

Our Bit: Memories of War Service by a Canadian Nursing Sister by Mabel Clint published in 1934

Agnes Warner and the Nursing Sister of the Great War by Agnes Warner (edited by Swawna M. Quinn) published in 2010

The War Diary of Clare Gass 1915-1918 by Clare Gass (edited by Susan Mann) and published in 2000

Margaret MacDonald Imperial Daughter by Susan Mann published in 2005

Never Leave Your head Uncovered: A Canadian Nursing Sister in World War Two by Doris V. Carter published in 1999

The military Nurses of Canada : Recollections of Canadian Military Nurses (3 volumes) by Edith A. Landells published in 1993

Although it was never published as a book, you can find Nursing Sister Helen L. Fowlds letters and diary on the Trent University website. Her letters can be read by clicking here and her diaries can be read by clicking here.

FRENCH BOOK

Dans la tourmente : Deux hôpitaux militaires canadiens-français (1915-1919) by Michel Litalien published in 2003

Briser les ailes de l’ange : Les infirmières militaires canadiennes (1914-1918) by Mélanie Morin-Pelletier published in 2006

Brigade-Surgeon Alfred Henry Anthonisz

Brigade-Surgeon Alfred Henry Anthonisz served in Egypt in 1882 and 1885, he also served during the Boers’ War. He is entitled to the Egypt medal clasp Suakin 1885, the Queen’s South Africa Medal clasp Cape Colony and the Khedive’s Star.

December 22nd, 1844: Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He was educated at Colombo Academy and Queen’s College. His parents were Gerard Henricius  Anthonisz and Abigail Elizabeth Wright.

1862: He went to the Calcutta to do his medical studies. After completing his schooling he entered the Ceylon Medical Service Department where he served for two years.

1867: Graduated M.B. and C.M. from the University of Aberdeen

November 11^th, 1870: His name appears for the first time in the Medical Register

Between February 20^th and 27^th 1871: He passed his examination for admission in the Medical Service of the Royal Navy and then entered the army as Staff-Assistant-Surgeon. On April 1^st he was sent to Bombay to be stationed there.

September 12^th: Married to Cristian Joanna Sim.

September 19^th: Appointed Staff-Assistant –Surgeon.

1873: Promoted Surgeon and posted to the 108^th Foot Regiment. His first son Alfred George Henry was born that year and would later become a civil surgeon. He died when struck by lightning in South Africa in 1901.

1874: Birth of his daughter Eshel Maud

1876: Birth of his second daughter, Winnifred Maud

1878: Stationed in Bombay

July 19^th, 1879: He was elected as a member of the Asiatic Society of Bombay

1880: Birth of his second son, Edward Guy also became a surgeon and served in WW1 with the British Forces

Egypt Campaign

September 1882: Served during the Egypt Campaign in the Tel-El-Kebir Campaign at the Fork Medical Depot. He was back in United Kingdom in December.

April 1^st, 1883: Promoted Surgeon Major and stationed in Barbados

June 1885: He was attached to General Graham Force in Suakin in March. He came to United Kingdom in July arriving at Portsmouth on the Troopship Jumna. He was then posted to Devonport.

1888: He was stationed in Barbados

April 1890: Transferred from Bengal to Aldershot, United Kingdom. He took charge of the Third Station Hospital in Aldershot in June.

April 1^st, 1891: Promoted Staff Lieutenant-Colonel

May 15^th, 1895: Promoted Brigade-Surgeon (Lieutenant-Colonel)

August 21^st, 1896: Appointed to officiate the Administrative Medical Staff of the Bengal Army with the temporary rank of Surgeon-Colonel. He was officially appointed in October. In November he is appointed to officiate as Principal Medical Officer in the Oude and Rohilkind District.

April 1897: Transferred from Bengal to Gosport

Boers’ War

October 6^th: Arrived in Durban, South Africa onboard the transport ship Breamer Castle with the 1^st General Hospital (From the London Times of October 5^th). The hospital was later sent to Cape Town South, Africa where they arrived on October 27^th. (From the official history book of the Royal Army Medical Corps). He was in charge of the medical function of the hospital that was then moved in Wynberg, South Africa and then opened on October 30^th.

December 1899: Promoted to the rank of Colonel.

While in South Africa in the hospital was inspected by Mrs. Richard Chamberlain and he was accused of mismanagement of the hospital. This did create a commotion and it was found that Mrs. Chamberlain had no experience in hospital management so Colonel Anthonisz was later cleared of any wrong-doing

December 24^th, 1900: He left South Africa for England onboard the Wakool. He is listed as invalids. (From the London Times of December 24^th).

January 1901: He was sent back to Bombay. In June, he then served in India in the Bombay Command and was appointed Principal Medical Officer Secunderabad and Belgaum Districts. In September he was transferred from Bombay to Madras.

December 22^nd, 1904: Placed on the Retired Pay

February 17^th, 1905: He retired

December 6^th, 1907: Departed from London, United Kingdom and sailed to Calcutta, India on board Jelunga with his wife.

October 27^th, 1919: Died at Coonoor, Nilgiri Hills, South India.

If you know more information on this gentleman, please leave me message so I can add it to his small biography.

Picture of Brigade-Surgeon Alfred Henry Anthonisz  taken before his departure for South Africa.

 

Captain Claude Hollingworth Philips

Captain Claude Hollingworth Philips served in the Royal Army Medical Corps during WW1 and after WW1 in Afghanistan. He also served with South African Medical Corps during WW2. He is entitled to the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal, the Victory Medal, the India General Service Medal 1908-35 clasp Afghanistan North West Fronter 1919, the WW2 War Medal (South Africa) and the Africa Service Medal.

July 26th , 1889: He was born in Lucerne, Switzerland. His father was Colonel James Philips of the Indian Staff Corps

1901 UK census : Listed as a school boarder in Bexhill, Sussex, England

1914 : Qualified as Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery of the Society of Apothecaries (London Hospital)

Captain Philips WW1 Medal Index Card

March 18th 1915 : Married to Dorothy Suthers at St-James Church in Middlesex. He was a lieutenant in the Royal Army Medical Corps and his father was a retired Colonel. Listed as living at Milton house, Clarence street, Brighton. He still had the same address in the 1919 medical Register.

Claude H Philips wedding

June 15th : Transferred to France with the rank of Lieutenant.

February 15th 1917: Relinquished his rank of Captain

November 27th: He was promoted to temporary Captain (London Gazette)

November 1919: Promoted to the rank of Captain (full)

Served in the Afghanistan Campaign with an Indian Field Ambulance

1920 : Practised medicine in Tanzania, Africa.

October 1st, 1923 : He applied for the medals. His addresses were given as Lincoln Hall Hotel, Upper Bedford Place, London W.C., and ‘Melrose’, College Hill, Steyning, Sussex.

In the Medical Register of that year his address is in Tanganyika (Tanzania) Territory Medical Service was stationed at Zanzibar for 16 years.

1927-1955 : His address is now East Africa Medical Service

March 1941 : Moved to Durban South Africa (302 Montpelier road) and register as a doctor.

During WW2 : Served with the South Africa Medical Corps.

1946 : Moved back from South Africa to United Kingdom. His address in South Africa was 302 Montpelier road, Durban

July 31st, 1948 : Arrived from in South Hampton, U.K. on the Durban Castle from Port Elizabeth, South Africa

March 14th, 1958 : Arrived in UK on the Warwick Castle from Port Elizabeth, South Africa. He intended to stay 11 months in United Kingdom.

December 4^th: Sailed from South Hampton, United Kingdom on the Winchester castle to Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

1959 : From the Medical Register, listed as living Port Elizabeth, South Africa

December 30th, 1960 : Sailed on the Athlone Castle from Durban, South Africa and arrived in South Hampton United Kingdom on that day. He intended to stay 12 months in United Kingdom.

1964 : From the Medical Register, listed as living on 5 New Road, Steyning, Sussex.

1968 : Not listed in the Medical Register.

1973 : Died in Sussex (in the fourth quarter)

This gentleman had a most interesting military and medicine career serving in three military campaigns (WW1, Afghanistan and WW2) with two countries. He also practiced medicine in four countries and two continents. One of a few men who probably seeked adventure before money.

If you know more information on this gentleman especially about his military service, please leave me message so I can add it to his small biography and also I would like to know the whereabouts of his military medals.

Dieppe Raid – 70 years after – The journals of Doc Alexander

Sunday August 19th 2012 will be the 70th anniversary of the Dieppe Raid. To commemorate that anniversary I recommend the reading of the the journals of Dr. L. G. “Doc” Alexander, Medical Officer with the Calgary Tank Regiment during the Dieppe Raid.

His grandson is putting his grandfather war journals online exactly 70th years after the entries were written, it is a fascinating story.

Tomorrow will be the entry of the Raid and I am most curious to see how this how this event was viewed by someone who lived it front row.

I love reading personal war diaries because they give you a real account about what happened. You find many information in these journals that you do get with the official history or books that were written many years after the facts by historian that were never there but try to make an analysis of the events with “if” and interpretation of the facts.

You can go to the website by clicking here.

Canadian Army Medical Corps – some gravestones

During my many research over the years, I was able to find some men who served in the Canadian Army Medical Corps in WW1 and WW2 who died while in service and in Canada. Here are a few of those for which I took a picture of their gravestone.

Private Peter Joseph Cotton (02695) died on July 29th, 1915 at the age of 33. He was with the 2nd Field Ambulance Depot. He is buried at the Hamilton Cemetery in Hamilton, Ontario.

click on the image to enlarge

Private Albert William Richards (C 27255) died on November 7th 1940 at the age of 40. He is buried at the Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario.

click on the image to enlarge

Regimental-Sergeant-Major William A Church D.C.M. (C 474500) died on May 12th, 1941. He was born December 1st, 1895 in Stirling, Scotland. He is buried at the Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario.

click on the image to enlarge

Private Charles Timothy Lindsay (C 42321) died on November 22nd, 1943 at the age of 64. He is buried at the Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario.

click on the image to enlarge

Private Francis Owen Enright (C 64753) died on May 1st, 1945 at the age of 26. He is buried at Notre-Dame Cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario.

click on the image to enlarge

Private Sylvester J Rozak (C 51525) died on October 7th 1947 at the age of 26. He is buried at Notre-Dame Cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario.

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Captain Reginald John Brown died on December 7th 1941 at the age of 48. He is buried at the Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario.

click on the image to enlarge

If you know more information on these gentlemen, please leave me message so I can add it to their small biographies.

Captain Aylmer McIntosh Gilbert C.D.

Captain Aylmer McIntosh Gilbert served in the Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineer (RCEME) during WW2 and the Korean War. He is entitled to th Canadian Volunteer Service Medal (no clasp), the 1939-1945 War Medal, the Canadian Korea Medal, the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal for Korea, the United Nations Service Medal Korea and the Canadian Decoration with clasp.

His father, Henry Victor Gilbert served with the Canadian Expeditionary Forces during WW1. His story can be found by clicking here

1935: He enrolled in the Non-Permanent Active Militia Ontario Regiment tank as a boy soldier

 

March 1936: He enrolled in the Non-Permanent Active Militia 98^th Field battery. Honourably released in April 1938

 

March 1939: He transferred in the Royal Canadian Artillery

 

October 14^th, 1941: He transferred in the 55^th Field battery Canadian Artillery Canadian Army (Active forces) SA-64776

 

February 2^nd, 1943: He was confirmed in the rank of Acting-Sergeant

 

April 14^th: He was awarded the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal

 

July 1^st: He was confirmed in the rank of sergeant

 

January 30^th, 1946: He was accepted in the Interim Force

 

July 12^th: The War Service badge no 1079170 was issued to him

 

September 30^th: He received the War Medal 1939-46. He enlisted at the RCEME School in Barriefield

 

October 25^th, 1948: He transferred to no 6 RCEME in Halifax, Nova Scotia

 

February 21^st, 1949: He was promoted Warrant Officer class II

 

October 19^th, 1950: He transferred to RCEME in Kingston

 

November 17^th: He transferred to CASF (Fort Lewis U.S.A.)

 

May 4^th, 1951: He disembarked Far east (Korea) with the No. 25 Canadian Support Workshop

 

January 2^nd, 1952: He started attending the Officer School candidate program in Borden, Ontario. He was given the service number ZA4896

 

July 16^th: He was promoted Lieutenant with Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineer

 

September: He was transferred to the 1^st Radiation Detection Unit

 

December 15^th, 1952 6:00: He was to proceed to Chalk River, Ontario. A nuclear accident just happened on December 12^th. He returned from that assignment on December 20th 18:30. 170 military personnel were affected to the clean-up

 

January 13^th, 1953: He was sent to the Canadian Army Staff in Washington. He was back from Washington in Barrifield on March 1^st

 

January 18^th, 1954: He received his Canadian Decoration (issue # 370)

 

April 1955: Armed forces special weapons project (U.S.A.)

 

May: He was transferred with the 1^st Radiation Detection Unit

 

August: He was transferred to the Army Headquarter Quartermaster General Branch Directorate R.C.E.M.E.

 

June 9^th, 1956: He was part of the Atomic Weapons Research Project (Operation Buffalo – United Kingdom) to Maralinga, Australia until November 16th. He was part of a select group of Australian, New Zealand, Canadian and British officers to see the effects of a nuclear explosion on target response items. These servicemen were known as the Indoctrination force.

Picture of the bomb explosion at Maralinga

December: He was transferred to the Army Headquarter Quartermaster General Branch Directorate R.C.E.M.E.

 

May 1957: He flew to Sydney, Australia from Vancouver, Canada

 

July 1957: He was part of the Atomic Weapons Research Project (United Kingdom)

 

October: Army Headquarter quartermaster General branch Directorate R.C.E.M.E.

 

July 11^th, 1960: He was promoted to the rank of Captain

 

March 24, 1963: He arrived in Boston, Massachusetts. He departed on March 27th.

 

September 3^rd, 1964: He arrived in London, England. He returned to Canada September 13

 

March 31^st: He received the clasp for his Canadian Decoration (issue # 769)

 

March 26^th, 1965: He arrived in Marville, France. He departed on April 4th. Marville was the site of a Canadian air base near Belgium border. The RCAF First Canadian wing had a tactical nuclear attack squadron stationed there.

 

March 1966: He was transferred to Materiel Command Headquarters CFB Rockcliffe

 

September 16^th, 1968: He retired Canadian Forces headquarters. He is listed as living at Wolfdale Crescent Ottawa, Canada

 

February 4^th, 1987: Received the Canadian Services Force pin

 

September 25^th, 1992: He was awarded the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal for Korea

Picture of miniature medals attributed to Captain Gilbert

The Canadian Letters and Images Project

The Canadian Letters and Images Project, I remember discovering that website when it started a few years ago and I’ve recently revisited it. It is a really interesting website that does put online transcription of letters of Canadian soldiers

“The Canadian Letters and Images Project is an online archive of the Canadian war experience, from any war, as told through the letters and images of Canadians themselves.”

It’s the largest collection of that type of material online.

So instead of collecting dust in an attic or a desk drawer, those letters can be seen by everyone who has access to internet.

You can get to the website by clicking here

Lieutenant George Davidson Christie

Lieutenant George Davidson Christie served in the Royal Army Medical Corps during WW1. He is entitled to the 1914 Star, the British War medal, the Victory medal and the Army Long Service and Good Conduct medal. His enlisted as a Private and his number is 15948.

November 1880 Born in Edinburgh, Scotland

Trade : clerk       Religion : Church of England   Hair : brown

Height : 5’5”       Weight : 116 lbs.       Eyes : brown

March 31st 1891 Scotland census : Living in Edinburgh with his father and grandfather

March 31st, 1901 United Kingdom census : Living with his parents in Southampton at 116 John Park Terrace. He was a brewery clerk

July 15th : Enlisted in the RAMC in Winchester. He stated three years of previous military service with the Royal Scots

October 25th : Appointed 3rd class orderly

March 1st, 1902 Appointed Lance-corporal

June 5th : Left for South Africa for the Boers’ War. He arrived too late to qualify for the Queen South Africa medal

April 1903 : Posted in Mauritius.            November 14th : Promoted corporal

mid-june 1904 : Back in South Africa

June 1st, 1905 : Promoted sergeant

April 5th, 1906 : Sailed back from Africa

July 6th, 1907 : Transferred to the Colonial Office in Northern Nigeria. He served there for 2 years 94 days. In 1907 the governor of Northern Nigeria was Percy Girouard, Canadian engineer who was in charge of the railway system during the Boers’ war.

October 1908 : Last semester of the year : Married in Elise Johanna Kibles in Ulverston

August 10th, 1910 : Reengaged to complete his 21 years service period.

November 1st : Promoted Staff-sergeant

1911 UK census : Listed as living at Ladysmith Barracks

Daughter : Elise Louise born 1909       Son : Edgar Davidson born 1911

August 10th, 1914 : Promoted Quarter-Master Sergeant.

August 14th　: Landed in France with the 10th British Stationary Hospital. The hospital was stationed in Le Mans until October when it moved to Clerques.

December 12th : Promoted Sergeant-Major

March 16th, 1915 : Transferred to the 14th Field Ambulance

December 7th : Transferred to the 14th British General Hospital which was in Wimereux

October 1st, 1917 : Awarded his Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal without gratuity (General Orders No 3123)

November 23rd : Transferred to the Native Labour General Hospital

July 5th, 1918 : Discharged from the army

July 18th : To be temporary Quartermaster with the rank of Honorary Lieutenant

WW1 pair were sent to 26 Cotton Vale, Bristol

1968 : Died (last semester)

If you know more information on this gentleman, please leave me message so I can add it to his small biography

Lieutenant George Davidson Christie medal Index Card WW1

Lieutenant George Davidson Christie enlistment form WW1 (page 1)

Lieutenant George Davidson Christie enlistment form WW1 (page 2)

Major – Dr. Laurence Guy Alexander

I found a blog that is entirely devoted to one man, Dr. Laurence Guy Alexander BA, MD, MBE, MC, and Order of St. John. You will find this blog by clicking here. It’s his journal, his story.

Dr. Alexander served with the Canadian Army Medical Corps during WW1 in the 11^th Field Ambulance and as a Medical Officer with the 14th Army Tank Battalion, Calgary Regiment, in WW2, landing on Dieppe Beach on August 19th 1942.

What’s interesting about this blog is the author is posting his grand-father 1942’s entries of his journal, exactly 70 years after the fact. So in 2012 we will be able to follow him with the much anticipated entries of the Dieppe Raid.

I’ve never met Dr. Alexander, but if I had, I’m sure I would have been suspended to his lips, listening to all the stories he had to tell.

Major Laurence Guy Alexander

Reverend Robert Milner Gibson K.H.C.

Reverend Robert Milner Gibson served as a chaplain with the British Expeditionary Force in France during WW1 and in United Kingdom during WW2. He is entitled to the British War Medal, the Victory Medal, the Defence Medal and the 1937 Coronation Medal.

March 16th 1889 : Born in Kingston, United Kingdom.

1891 UK census : Living in Wimbledon, Surrey

Father : Robert Francis Gibson         Mother : Alice Victoria Jones

1901 UK census : Listed as living in Edgbaston

1909 : Graduated from Cambridge College

1911 UK Census : Listed as an under graduate student and living Kings Norton, Worcestershire

1912-16 : Church of St-Mary, Handsworth

1916 : Married to Lois Rathlin

1916-17 St-Michel. Boldmere

March 27th 1917 : Appointed Chaplain of the Forces 4th class as a Chaplain in the BEF. Reported to the War Office on April 17th and landed in France on April 24th

Reverend Robert Milner Gibson K.H.C. WW1 enlistment form

Religion : Church of England    Height:  5’10”    Weight : 154 lbs.

His wife was Lois Rathlin Gibson, living at Handsworth Wood 22 Selborne rd, Birmingham

April 24th, 1918 : Relinquished his commission. He did not serve for a full year in France and there is no note in his service file that he was wounded, I guess the battlefield was not meant for him.

March 5th, 1920 : Applied for his medals

Reverend Robert Milner Gibson K.H.C.

1918-20 : Church of St-Augustine, Edgbaston

1919-21 : He was the Honorary Chaplain Force

1920-27 : Vicair of St-Germain, Edgbaston (living at 461 Ciy rd.)

1923-27 : Clerical Secretary for the Birmingham diocese conference

1926 : Chief messenger for the World Call

1926-27 : Honorary Chaplain to Bishop of Birmingham.

1927-32 : Vicair of St-John Baptist of Peterborough 1931-32 : Honorary Canon of Peterborough

1921-39 : Chaplain of the Forces (Territorial Army) from 1933. 1939 he was the senior chaplain of the 47th Division

From 1933 to 1938, his residence was on Crandley Gardens, Brompton Ward, London

1936-40 : Chaplain to His Majesty the King (July 20th 1936 London Gazette 4664). As a Chaplain to His Majesty the King he would have worn the badge of the Chaplain to the King (Picture of the Badge)

1941-46 : Vicair of St-Stephen, St-Mary Westminster

1959 : Still alive and probably died in 1967

If you know more information on this gentleman, please leave me message so I can add it to his small biography