World War II Fallen: A-B

Douglas Aiken was born in Sarnia on June 9, 1921, the son of Norman Russel and Loretta Mae (nee Hillier) Aiken, of 214 Proctor Street. His parents Norman and Loretta “Retta” were both born in Sarnia Township and were married in February 1917 in Sarnia. Douglas had one brother, Laverne Russell (born 1919), who would also serve in the war, a lieutenant with the Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (RCEME).

Norman Aiken’s job as a C.N.R. locomotive engineer in Sarnia unfortunately cost him his life when, in April 1937, he was killed in a train accident. It was a difficult time for the family, and for Douglas, who was 16 years old when he lost his father. His father saw him graduate from Johnston Memorial Public School (1927-1934, now Pauline McGibbon Public School), but not from Sarnia Collegiate (September 1934 to May 1940). Despite the family’s tragedy, Douglas remained active in gymnastics, swimming, rugby, hockey, baseball and basketball.

To help support his mother Retta, Douglas worked part-time as a paper carrier and wrapper for the Canadian Observer from 1937-1940 and part-time at Brown’s Ice Company where he checked the ice and cared for the books in 1939. Not one to shy away from work, Douglas also worked at the Sarnia Bridge Company, as a fitter and welder’s helper from July through October 1940.

Douglas also served in the Cadet Corps for five years. He had attempted to enlist in the RCAF in early November 1939, but was turned away because he was too young. On October 12, 1940, the same year he graduated from high school, Douglas, 19, successfully enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in London, Ontario. One of Douglas’ reference letters was from R.J. Knowles, Circulation Manager at the Canadian (Sarnia) Observer. In the letter, Mr. Knowles wrote of Douglas: This is to give Douglas Aiken an unqualified recommendation. For three years previous to last January, he was a carrier salesman for the newspaper under the writer’s personal supervision. In that time he performed all duties to our entire satisfaction. He displayed qualities of promptness, financial responsibility and shown a willingness to snap into any job assigned him. He is a hustler. Douglas Aiken is a fine type of young man.

Douglas stood five foot seven inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, and was single. Although he had been residing with his mother before he enlisted, Douglas was now on the move: first to No. 1 Manning Pool, Toronto, and then to Dunnville, Ontario, where he began his air training at #6 Service Flying Training School (SFTS). The teenaged Aiken impressed at #6 SFTS. When the course ended, his Commanding Officer wrote a report assessing Douglas as being Very conscientious and hard working. Has shown marked ability in all jobs he has handled… Highest possible recommendation and am sure will succeed in anything he undertakes… Recommended for Pilot.

Douglas continued his training at #1 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto, #7 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Windsor, and #9 SFTS in Centralia, Ontario. It was at Centralia on April 6, 1943, that Aiken was awarded his Pilot’s Flying Badge. After spending a two-week furlough in Sarnia with his mother and friends, Douglas returned to duty in Halifax by late April 1943.

A few weeks later, on May 16, Aiken embarked overseas from Halifax for the United Kingdom and arrived on May 24. He soon discovered that his training was not over. Initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre (PRC), he continued his training at #15 (Pilots) Advanced Flying Unit (AFU); and #18 (P) AFU, #82 Operational Training Unit (OTU); and at #1657 Conversion Unit (CU). The Chief Instructor at No. 5 Lancaster Finishing School wrote that Pilot Douglas Aiken was Slightly above average Pilot and Captain. Good crew. Drills O.K. Sound type of N.C.O. Will do well with experience. During all his training, Douglas had flown many different types of aircraft, including Anson, Moth, Oxford, Wellington, Stirling, and Lancaster.

In March 1944, Douglas Aiken became a member of RAF #44 Rhodesia Squadron “Fulmina Regis

lusta” (The King’s Thunderbolts are Righteous), part of Bomber Command.

Loretta in Sarnia received the news that her son had been promoted to the rank of pilot officer-pilot early in the month of June 1944. He had written to his mother the week before, mentioning that he had been engaged in missions over enemy-held territory in Europe.

During the course of the war, one of this country’s most significant contributions was the approximately 50,000 Canadians who served with the RCAF and RAF in Bomber Command operations. Next to Britain, Canada was the largest contributor to Bomber Command, making up more than a third of all of Bomber Command personnel. The men who served in Bomber Command faced some of the most difficult odds of anyone fighting in the war.

At the outbreak of the war, #44 Squadron was part of RAF No. 5 Group bomber unit, equipped with Handley Page Hampden aircraft. In 1941, the squadron was renamed No. 44 Rhodesia Squadron in honour of that colony’s contribution to Britain’s war effort. In December 1941, it became the first squadron to receive the Avro Lancaster. The squadron spent the rest of the war as part of Bomber Command’s main bombing force. It was based at RAF Waddington until May 1943, then relocated to RAF Dunholme Lodge and later to RAF Spilsby.

The Battle of Normandy began for the Canadians with the June 6, 1944, D-Day landings at Juno Beach. After breaching the “Atlantic Wall” of “Fortress Europe”, Allied armies began their break out from the narrow Normandy bridgehead to carve out a foothold on the French mainland. To accomplish this took a whole summer of tenacious fighting that saw the Canadians pushing against fierce and ruthless German forces to advance east across France. In a brutal campaign of attrition, the Canadian army, supported by the navy and air force, faced fierce battles and vicious counterattacks as they clawed their way forward to liberate villages and towns.

On June 25, 1944, approximately one year after he arrived overseas, the Lancaster aircraft ND751 (markings KM-J) that Douglas Aiken was piloting on a bombing mission in France was lost during operations in the Battle of Normandy. A total of 730 aircraft had set off at 22:30 hrs. on June 24 to bomb various locations. No. 44 Squadron had embarked from RAF Dunholme Lodge to bomb its target—the Pommereval V-1 site in France. Despite it being nearly midnight, the operation was carried out on a clear moonlit night. The consequences were fatal. With the help of effective searchlight units, German night fighters destroyed many aircraft. Twenty-two Lancasters were lost, including Lancaster ND751 piloted by Douglas Aiken that crashed at Criquetot-sur-Longueville. It was Aiken’s 18th and final operational sortie.

In late June 1944, Loretta Aiken received a telegram in Sarnia from the R.C.A.F. Casualty Officer in Ottawa informing her that her son PILOT OFFICER DOUGLAS AIKEN WAS REPORTED MISSING IN ACTION AFTER AIR OPERATIONS OVERSEAS ON JUNE 25. The missive provided no other specific details, but stated that further details would be forwarded when available.

In April 1945, Loretta would write a letter to the Secretary, Department of National Defence for Air in Ottawa in response to a request from them. The letter, in part, reads as follows:

Dear Sir:

            In conjunction with your recent request relevant to information concerning my son P/O Douglas Earl Aiken, it is with the deepest regret that I must inform you that no further news of him has been received…

A year passed after she had received the initial telegram and a frustrated and worried Loretta wrote the

following letter to Lady Ellissen in England. The Sarnia mother was desperately looking for news about her son, 

Douglas. The letter, sent in early June 1945, in part, reads as follows:

Dear Madam,

My son, P/O Douglas Earl Aiken, J85822, R.A.F. has been missing since June 24-25/44. I have never received any word whatever of him and in this length of time he hasn’t been presumed dead. Could you possibly tell me something about him. I am so anxious and worried about him now that the war in Europe is over.

Would you please tell me about the mission he was on and what you think could possibly happen to him. I would be so grateful and it would relieve my mind so much if you could tell me all. Also could you do anything about having his personal belongings sent home, also any moneys.

It was not until late June 1945 that Loretta Aiken received the dreaded telegram from Ottawa about her missing son, informing her that PILOT OFFICER DOUGLAS E. AIKEN IS NOW FOR OFFICIAL PURPOSES PRESUMED TO HAVE BEEN KILLED IN ACTION JUNE 25 1944.Douglas Aiken was later officially recorded as Previously reported “missing” after air operations, now for official purpose, “presumed dead,”  

overseas (France). Perishing with Douglas Aiken were WO. Robert Alexander Riddoch; P/O Alfred Montigue Simmons; Sgt. John Hare (RAF); Sgt. Horace Arnold Lewarne (RAF); John Lewis (RAF); and FS. Frank Sidney Rawson (RAF).

In June 1946, Loretta received a War Service Gratuity of $562.82 for the loss of her son.

In October 1946, the R.A.F. Missing Research and Enquiry Unit released a report to the Air Ministry in London, England, detailing their findings about Lancaster ND751. After visiting and investigating the area around the scene of the crash in Criquetot-Sur-Longueville, they compiled a report. It reads in part as follows:

… I visited M. ARSON, a witness named in the Gendarmerie Report, and obtained the following information: Six burnt bodies were removed from the crash by the Germans. A seventh body, fairly intact, was found in a field some distance away, and before it was removed, the French obtained the name SHEPHERD from the man’s clothing…. The bodies were buried in the local cemetery, the intact one in a coffin by itself and the other six in three further coffins, two in each coffin.

… I visited the cemetery and found four graves fairly well kept with four wooden crosses, the inscriptions on which had been obliterated by the weather.

… To sum up, it would appear that the seven airmen interred at Criquetot are in fact the crew of the Lancaster that this enquiry concerns. It is possible that the name SHEPHERD may have been obtained from a piece of borrowed clothing worn by the victim… The only means of obtaining further information seems to be by exhumation.

In January 1947, the RAF exhumed the four graves at Criquetot-Sur-Longueville Communal Cemetery. In Grave No. 2, they determined that there were “definitely two bodies in the coffin, one at head and one at foot” and “both were badly burnt and decomposed.” There were also a few scraps of clothing, flying suit, and parachute harness inside. After exhuming the four graves, the R.A.F. No. 1 Missing Research and Enquiry Unit (MREU) released their findings to the Air Ministry in London, England. A portion of the Wing Commander’s report is as follows:

… Grave No. 2 – This grave contained two bodies. Number one had a CANADA flash and Sgt stripes. It was impossible to see whether there had been a crown above the stripes, as the sleeve was badly burned. There was also a shirt of greenish hue, which I have since confirmed, is supplied to airmen of the R.C.A.F. From these facts, it seems probable that the body is that of J.89960 P/O. SIMMONS, A.M. (R.C.A.F.), who was at the time of the crash

R.151533 F/S/ SIMMONS, A.M. In addition, he was the only Canadian in the crew who would have been wearing Sgt. stripes.

            The second body is probably that of J.85822 P/O AIKEN, D.E., for, as will be seen after reading the summaries of GRAVES 3 and 4, he is the only one of the crew left unaccounted for.

… To sum up, all the members of the crew have now been accounted for. Their graves have also been identified, though on calculation, rather than positive facts…

Nearly four years after her son had been declared dead, in her Proctor Street home, Loretta Aiken was still searching for answers about her son’s final resting place. Following is a portion of a letter she wrote to the Air Ministry in February 1948:

Dear Sir,

March 3 – 1947 I rec’d a letter from you stating that you had found my Son’s grave at Criquetot Communal Cemetery, Seine, Inferieure, France, and exhumation would be carried out in an endeavor to effect individual

identification. You haven’t let me know yet whether you have done so and I would like to have his identification discs. 

It is nearly a year and I feel I should have some proof that he is buried there by now. I would also like to know if the Gov’t would return his body to Canada to be buried in our family plot. I cannot afford to do that myself. Please give me this information as soon as possible.

The Wing Commander, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa responded to Douglas’ mother in April 1948:

Dear Mrs. Aiken,

… The results of the exhumations carried out in Criquetot-Sur-Longueville Communal Cemetery have just been received. Grave 1 was found to contain Sergeant Lewis; your son and Pilot Officer Simmons were in Grave 2, Flight Sergeant Rawson and Warrant Officer Riddoch were in Grave 3, and Sergeant Lewarne and Sergeant Hare were in Grave 4…. I regret that your son’s identification discs were not recovered. The above identifications were reached through the tracing of laundry marks, and regimental numbers on clothing, supplemented by rank and aircrew trade badges, and physical descriptions…. Following the cessation of hostilities with the German Reich, the

Imperial War Graves Commission, which is comprised of representatives of all parts of the British Empire, seriously considered the possibility of returning the remains of deceased personnel who died while serving Overseas to their respective countries for re-internment. After careful and sympathetic consideration, it was unanimously agreed by the concerned that the remains of personnel who died while serving overseas should not be returned to their

respective countries for burial either at the expense of the Government concerned or of the next-of-kin. Among the reasons for this decision was the fact that to allow the removal of a few individuals would be contrary to the principle of equality of treatment. The reverent and perpetual care of the burial places of all who served in the Royal Canadian Air Force is the task of the Imperial War Graves Commission (of which Canada is a member). The Commission will also erect a headstone at the grave. Unhappily, there are great numbers of these headstones to be erected, and it will quite naturally take considerable time. May I again offer you and the members of your family my deepest sympathy in the loss of your gallant son.

Twenty-three-year-old Douglas Aiken is buried in Criquetot-Sur-Longueville Churchyard, France British Plot, Joint grave 2. On his headstone are inscribed the words, REST IN PEACE.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

William Anderson was born in Sarnia on May 20, 1921, the youngest son of Edward James and Mary R. Anderson of 111 Alfred Street, Sarnia. His parents were married in Sarnia on May 29, 1910, and in the next decade they would have five children together. One of their children, Kenneth Anderson, passed away in June 1914 at the age of 5 months. After the war, surviving William were his four siblings: his two brothers—Stanley C., serving as a patrolman in the R.C.N.V.R. in Halifax and Edwin J., in St. Thomas, Ontario—and his two sisters: Mrs. Margaret Olenuik of St. Catharines and Eileen A. Anderson in Sarnia.

Before the war, young William Anderson attended St. Patrick’s High School and Sarnia Collegiate Institute and was a member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Parish. Prior to enlisting, William had been a machine operator employed with Electric Auto-Lite Limited in Sarnia for approximately one year.

On August 28, 1941, 20-year-old William Anderson enlisted in the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve (RCNVR) in Windsor, Ontario. He stood six feet tall, had blue eyes and black hair, was single, and resided on Alfred Street with his parents at the time. After initially being posted to Windsor Division (HMCS Hunter) as an Ordinary Seaman, he was transferred to St. Hyacinthe, Quebec, where in May 1942, he celebrated his 21st birthday while attending naval school. He continued his naval training at several HMCS bases and ships including Stadacona, Hochelaga, Kentville, Fort Ramsay, and HMCS Toronto. In April 1944, William returned to Sarnia on a nine-day leave to visit his family and friends, the first furlough he had in 20 months. On June 9, 1944, William of the RCNVR became a member of the corvette HMCS Shawinigan, with the rank of leading coder.

Beginning on the opening day of the Second World War, the Battle of the Atlantic would be the longest continuous campaign of the war, and one in which Canada played a central role. The Royal Canadian Navy, along with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and Canada’s Merchant Navy, played a vital role in defending the country’s eastern coast, and escorting convoys of ships carrying men and essential machinery, arms, fuel, and basic resources between North America and Europe.

HMCS Shawinigan (K136) was a Flower-class corvette, originally designed to accommodate a standard crew of less than 50. Commissioned on September 19, 1941, at Quebec City, it was one of the sturdy little “work horses” of the RCN, and was to become the 9th corvette and 19th Canadian warship lost in the war. She was in the navy’s convoy escort and patrol fleet. Her sea miles totalled more than 150 000, and she had been one of the busiest vessels of her class, escorting convoy runs in the Atlantic Ocean and off the east coast of Canada. Few ships of her class spent more time at sea during the period when German U-boats were most active in the North Atlantic. During the two years prior to her sinking, she did not lose a ship under her charge. Men who served aboard her had been acclaimed for fighting efficiency, for rescue work, and for attacks on enemy U-boats. She escorted hundreds of thousands of vital war supplies and shipping to Allied ports.

On the morning of November 24, 1944, HMCS Shawinigan and a United States Coast Guard Cutter Sassafrass escorted the ferry Burgeo from Sydney, Nova Scotia, to Port aux Basques, Newfoundland. Ferries on this route were always escorted after the tragic loss of the passenger ferry S.S. Caribou two years earlier. In mid-October 1942, the Caribou had been torpedoed on the same route and 136 lives were lost, including 10 children.

In November 1944, the three ships made an uneventful crossing to Port aux Basques, at which time the Shawinigan detached to continue doing an independent anti-submarine patrol in the area. The Shawinigan was scheduled to rendezvous with the Burgeo the following morning for the return to Cape Breton. But the Shawinigan never made it.

On that fateful November 24 moonlit night, the Shawinigan maintained radio silence, as ordered, while performing a solo anti-submarine patrol in the Cabot Strait between Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island. Nearby, German U-boat U-1228 was trying to repair a faulty snorkel without success and had decided to return to Germany for repairs. It was now 9:30 p.m. As soon as U-1228 started her return route into the Atlantic, she sighted the Shawinigan. In her first recorded attack on enemy shipping, U-1228 fired a single T-5 Gnat torpedo that struck the corvette in the stern.

Four minutes after the attack, the Shawinigan and her entire crew disappeared in a plume of frigid Atlantic water and a shower of sparks. The ship had no time to transmit any messages, and authorities later speculated that the Shawinigan’s depth charges exploded as she sank, adding to the destruction.

The next morning, the Burgeo left Port aux Basques on schedule in the fog but could not find the Shawinigan. She maintained radio silence and did not inform command of Shawinigan’s failure to appear.

Unescorted, the Burgeo made for Sydney and arrived on November 25 at 1800 hours that evening. Suspecting something had happened to Shawinigan, naval officers in Sydney ordered an air and sea search for the missing corvette, but bad weather put a stop to much of that. A day or so later, searching ships came upon fragments of wreckage, an empty Carley float, and six bodies, which were all that remained to indicate what had happened to the Shawinigan.

A third of Shawinigan’s crew were 20 years old or younger and no crewmember survived the tragic sinking. Seven officers and 84 crew members, including William Anderson, were lost. It is impossible to record exactly what happened to Shawinigan during her final moments. Some sailors were probably killed instantly by the horrific explosion; others inevitably died in the icy water as the ship sank. Those fortunate enough to get into their life vests and survive the explosion died later in the freezing North Atlantic.

The Shawinigan was one of only three RCN ships lost with all hands. Twenty-seven-year-old Petty Officer Stoker Michael Paithouski, another Sarnian, was also on board the corvette and he also perished in the sinking. His name is inscribed on the Sarnia cenotaph, and his story is included in this Project.

In late November 1944, Edward and Mary Anderson in Sarnia received a telegram from the Department of National Defence informing them that their son LEADING CODER WILLIAM J. ANDERSON HAS BEEN REPORTED MISSING AT SEA.The message contained no other information and intimated that a letter would follow. Mary had received a letter from William only one week prior, in which he had stated that he was well and getting along O.K.

On December 7, 1944, in a dispatch from Ottawa, the Hon. Angus L. Macdonald, Minister of National Defence for Naval Services, announced the loss of the H.M.C.S. Shawinigan, while she was on operational duty in the North Atlantic. He gave no details but said the ship’s complement had been lost and five bodies have been recovered and identified. It was announced locally that two Sarnia seamen, William Anderson and Michael Paithouski, were members of the crew of the Shawinigan and were reported missing. In December 1944, Edward and Mary Anderson received a letter from the Secretary of the Naval Board. A portion of it reads as follows:

Dear Mr. Anderson,

Further to my letter of the 29th of November, 1944, details of the disaster in which your son has been reported missing are now being released. H.M.C.S. “SHAWINIGAN”, a Royal Canadian Navy corvette, was lost while on operational duty at sea. Seven officers, including her Captain, Lieutenant W.J. Jones, R.C.N.R., and seventy-eight ratings are missing. The bodies of five other ratings have been recovered and identified. There are no known survivors. It is requested that you will regard this information as confidential until an official announcement is made. May I again express sincere sympathy with you in your anxiety. 

In mid-February 1945, Edward and Mary Anderson in Sarnia received a telegram from Ottawa informing them that their son LEADING CODER WILLIAM J. ANDERSON WHO WAS REPORTED MISSING AT SEA LAST NOVEMBER IS OFFICIALLY PRESUMED LOST.Later, the Navy informed the Anderson family that William Anderson was officially recorded as Missing, presumed dead, when the ship in which he was serving, H.M.C.S. ‘Shawinigan’ was lost while on operational duty at sea.

It was understood that Mary would receive the Memorial Cross in the near future.

In July 1945, Edward and Mary received a War Service Gratuity payment of $442.73 for the loss of their son. In August 1945, they received another letter from the Secretary of the Naval Board:

Dear Mr. Anderson:

Further to my letter of the 15th of February, 1945, the Department is now able to release additional information regarding the loss of your son’s ship and I am accordingly passing on the following particulars which will, no doubt, be of interest to you.

H.M.C.S. “SHAWINIGAN” sailed from Sydney, N.S., on the 24th of November, 1944, to escort a merchant ship to Port Aux Basques, Newfoundland, and arrived off Port Aux Basque that night. In accordance with orders she was then to carry out a patrol in the area for the duration of the night, after which she was to meet the same merchant ship the next morning and return with her to Sydney.

The merchant ship arrived in Sydney unescorted on the night of the 25th of November and after it was ascertained that “Shawinigan” had not appeared at the designated rendezvous to provide escort as instructed, searches were instituted and “Shawinigan” was discovered to be missing.

It was the opinion of the Department at the time that the ship had been torpedoed by an enemy submarine

during the night of the 24th/25th of November, 1944, as submarines were known to be operating in the area; and this has since been confirmed from German evidence. Although no survivors were found, a few bodies were recovered by later searches, due to tidal movements, some distance from the area in which “Shawinigan” was known to be operating. As a result, the position of the sinking can not be exactly ascertained, although from German evidence and the Department’s computation, it is estimated to be in the vicinity of the three mile limit off Channel Head, near Port Aux Basques, Newfoundland.

It was not until after the war ended and U-1228 surrendered, that the details of what had happened to the Shawinigan that night were uncovered. When the U-boat commander was interrogated in May 1945, he stated the ship sank quickly, followed by two underwater explosions. He saw no survivors in the water.

Fifty-three years after the sinking, on June 14, 1997, at Trois Rivieres, Quebec, Canadian Prime Minister, Jean Chrietien, and his wife took part in a Royal Canadian Navy ceremony to officially commission the new HMCS Shawinigan (704). A memorial stone monument dedicated to the 91 lost was also unveiled.

Twenty-three-year-old William Anderson has no known grave. He is memorialized on the Shawinigan monument, and the Halifax Memorial, Nova Scotia, Canada, Panel 12.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

George Andrew was born at 111 North College Avenue on January 11, 1923, the son of former Sarnia mayor and harbour-master, George A.C. and Elizabeth Harriet (nee Varnum, born in Moore Township, Lambton) Andrew. Parents George A.C. and Elizabeth were married on October 24, 1906, in Moore Township, Lambton County. When George Varnum enlisted to fight in 1941, he was emulating his father.

George A.C. (or George Senior, born 1882 in Lambton County), a carpenter by trade, was a World War I veteran. In October 1917, at age 35 and married with two children, he enlisted in Toronto to serve with the Royal Flying Corps. He stood five feet four-and-a-half inches tall and was transferred to the Royal Air Force with the rank of second-class air mechanic. He served in Canada and, after the Great War, he served as a City of Sarnia alderman on a couple of occasions. He was elected Sarnia’s 42nd mayor in 1924. In that year, his second youngest son and namesake was a year old.

Typical of this time, the Andrew family was large and included six children besides George (born 1923): Florence Evelyn (born March 24, 1909 in Brigden); twins George Edwin and Ralph Varnum (born 1912, but both died six months after birth in October 1912); Muriel Eileen (born June 1915 in Sarnia); William Charles (born 1921); and Robert Barrett (born 1926). Both of his sisters later married, becoming Mrs. John (Muriel) Little (of Sarnia), and Mrs. Stephen (Florence) Endico (of Detroit). George’s younger brother, Robert, was a member of the Central Century Club and attended the University of Toronto. George’s older brother, William Charles, also lost his life while serving in World War II (see below).

George Andrew was an active youth. He was educated at George Street Public School from 1929-1936 and then at Sarnia Collegiate from 1936-1940. During his high school days, George participated in rugby, hockey, basketball, and baseball. Perhaps it was during this time that George incurred a serious injury to his knee. He was also on the Signalling Team and was an officer in the High School Cadets for two years. His church was very important to him. George was an active member of Central United Church and, even while serving in war, corresponded with Rev. E.W. Jewitt, pastor of the Church.

The next stage of George’s young life determined his fate. When he left high school, he was qualified to be an electrician but could not find work. Now 17, George applied to join the RCAF in London, Ontario, in January 1940, but was turned away because he was too young. After not being accepted, he then applied to enter the Royal Canadian Navy as a Boy Seaman in the same month. He was accepted and was posted to HMCS Naden in Esquimalt, British Columbia beginning in May 1940; however, the continual marching during training aggravated his bad knee. Two months after being posted in B.C., George was declared “medically unfit” due to a left knee joint issue and was discharged from the Navy.

George was determined to serve his country. A year later, on March 3,1941, he enlisted again in the Royal Canadian Air Force in London, Ontario. This time, the 18-year-old was successful. He stood five feet eight- and-a-half inches tall, had brown eyes and dark brown hair, was single and resided at home with his parents on College Street at the time. George also expressed an interest in making the Air Force a career after the war. The Recruiting Officer recorded that George Andrew was Well qualified and recommended-rugged type. Keen to learn and anxious to fly as fighter pilot. Best fitted for Pilot or Observer.

He was constantly on the move during training, not unusual at the time. After being posted initially to #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, George then received air training at #6 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) in Dunnville; at #1 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto; and at #21 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Chatham, New Brunswick.

George’s personal life changed as well. In New Brunswick on September 13, 1941, the 18-year-old married Esther Jones, the daughter of Mrs. Annie Jones of Sarnia. At the wedding ceremony at the United Church manse in Chatham, Miss Catherine Anne Richards of Newcastle, New Brunswick, served as bridesmaid, and Leading Aircraftman Donald Allen of Toronto served as the best man.

George’s brother-in-law was Glyn Jones—he joined the Canadian Army later and was killed during the raid on Dieppe, on August 19, 1942 (Glyn Jones is included in this Project). While her husband was overseas, Esther resided with her mother at 114 ½ North Christina Street, Sarnia.

After George’s posting in Chatham, he continued his air training at #9 SFTS in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, before returning to Sarnia on a leave in November 1941. On November 5, 1941, while at home with his family, George received startling news about the German U-boat attack on SS Vancouver Island in the Atlantic.The news was devastating—with reports that the ship was missing, presumed sunk, with no survivors. George’s brother, William, was aboard the Vancouver Island.

Despite the terrible news of William’s death, George continued his intensive air training at Composite Training School (KTS) in Trenton; #1 Wireless School (WS) in Montreal; #4 Bombing and Gunnery School (BGS) in Fingal, Ontario; and #34 Operational Training Unit (OTU) at Pennfield Ridge, New Brunswick. In August 1942, George graduated receiving his Air Gunners Badge and Sergeant stripes at Fingal Bombing and Gunnery School. The Commanding Officer at #4BGS wrote that Andrew was Very keen about his job, hard working and reliable with a good knowledge of his work.

On September 25, 1942, George embarked overseas from Halifax and arrived in the United Kingdom on October 8. In Sarnia, Esther’s fears were allayed when a cable from her husband in early October confirmed his safe arrival in England. Initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre (PRC), he was transferred to #22 Operational Training Unit (OTU) in late October 1942. In mid-February 1943, George became a member of RCAF #426 Thunderbird Squadron “On Wings of Fire”, part of Bomber Command, with the rank of Flying Officer Air Gunner.

During the course of the war, one of this country’s most significant contributions was the approximately 50,000 Canadians who served with the RCAF and RAF in Bomber Command operations. Next to Britain, Canada was the largest contributor to Bomber Command, making up more than a third of all of Bomber Command personnel. The men who served in Bomber Command faced some of the most difficult odds of anyone fighting in the war.

No. 426 Squadron was established at RAF Dishforth, Yorkshire, on October 15, 1942, as part of No. 4 Group. In January 1943, it was transferred to No. 6 (RCAF) Group. The squadron was equipped with Vickers Wellington aircraft tasked with delivering bombs and mines to the enemy. In June 1943, the squadron transferred to RAF Linton-on-Ouse and switched to Avro Lancaster bombers. Later in April 1944, the squadron began to convert to Handley Page Halifax bombers that they used until the end of the war in Europe. The thunderbird crest used by the squadron originates from North American natives and, according to myth, signifies disaster and death to anyone on the ground who perceives it.

As part of #426 Squadron, George took part in many daring raids over enemy territory, including raids on Berlin, Leipzig, and Frankfurt. Their crew had a very close call during a raid on Essen on May 27/28, 1943. Eight minutes after their bomb run, at 14,000 feet over Bochum, heavy flak hit their Wellington. Shrapnel made a flying sieve of their aircraft, with holes appearing in the astrodome, the top and side of the rear turret, the bomb aimer’s Perspex screen, the port propeller, the bottom of the port engine, the port and starboard tail plane, and the tail. Despite the severe damage, the aircraft limped back to Dishforth with no one on board injured.

In September 1943, while in England, George cabled Esther and informed her that he had been promoted

to flight-sergeant retroactive to February 3. What the 22-year-old had accomplished was not for the faint of heart, however. On August 23, and again in early September of 1943, George was part of a group of Halifax and Lancaster squadrons of the R.C.A.F. that, along with scores of other Canadians flying big R.A.F. bombers, carried out massive night poundings known as “blitz raids” on Berlin. From his position as a rear gunner during the heavy bombing of Berlin, George saw puffs of exploding flak, enemy night-fighters streaking by, powerful German searchlights reaching upward, and German planes dropping numerous flares in an attempt to light up the attacking bombers.

In a letter dated September 1943 to his parents at their College Avenue home, 20-year-old George described being a rear-gunner of a Lancaster bomber in the Berlin raids. This excerpt could represent any air-gunner’s typical experience.

Perhaps you’d like an idea of the feelings that run through us on a trip. First of all we are warned for operations. That is the signal for us to inspect our aircraft and equipment carefully. Then a lot of us write letters home. It helps a lot to build up courage. Next comes briefing, where we are told the target and given all the possible details on hazards, routes, etc., and are given take-off times. We usually spend the rest of our time playing cards, reading or writing more letters. Believe me, we are all thinking very much of home at that stage, for we have been told the target, and having probably been there before, we realize only too well the hell we must go through to reach it.

An hour or so before the take-off we go down to the hangers and start dressing for the job at hand. This entails a lot of work, for putting on all our gear is like harnessing a horse, only worse. Now the time for take-off is drawing near and we are watching our watches closely while we smoke a final cigarette and drink a cup of hot coffee. We look out and see the crash wagon and ambulance standing by. We call them “vultures.” And here comes Happy. He is our padre, a flight-lieutenant, and a swell guy. He comes down for every take-off, and is always the first one to greet us when we come back. I wouldn’t feel right taking off without Happy around. Now the flight commander tells us to get cracking. We all hold our breath until we are safely off the deck, for we are carrying quite a load of cookies for Hitler.

Over the target, the crew finds itself in a heavy barrage of smoke and flak. The bomb-aimer has his sight on the target and is directing Freddy along an accurate course. We are all watching the sky closely for fighters who sometimes fly through their own hell to get to us. We are also watching the searchlights to see if they are probing for us or some other poor beggar. Once they get the lights on us, hell breaks loose, for then they pump the flak right at the intersection of the lights, where we are supposed to be. Freddy doesn’t care for the stuff any more than we do, and makes sure that we don’t park in that intersection for too long at a time.

All this time we are drawing near to our aiming point and the bomb-aimer is still giving directions to bring it up to the hair-line of the sight. Now he’s got it, the bomb bays swing open and release their tons of explosive, the camera clicks and takes a picture of the target – the aiming point we hope, for it is an honor to bring back a picture showing the exact aiming point. He shouts, ‘Okay, Freddy, bombs gone. Let’s get the hell out of here!’ Freddy sets a new course to get us out of the target area. I can see the target, for we are passing over it now, and it is exposed to my view. The air-gunner gets the last view and is therefore relied upon for a good description of bombing results. The target is blazing brilliantly in many colours, and I can see explosions billowing up thousands of feet into the air.

Homeward bound, we cannot relax until we are circling over our base. Now we are down, and Happy is handing out the cigarettes while we talk it all over. We report to intelligence and give him the stuff you read in the papers as well as a lot you don’t see there. Now a meal, then to bed to rest up in case we are on again tonight.

At no time were the dangers of flying over enemy territory more evident than on the night of October 20, 1943. On that night, George took part in a bombing raid by RCAF bombers of the Thunderbird and Goose Squadrons and a heavy force of R.A.F. bombers. Their mission was to flatten objectives in Leipzig, Germany. Take-off was scheduled for 17:15 hrs, the round trip being about seven hours. George was flying in Lancaster bomber DS686, nicknamed “D for Donald”, that was carrying one 4,000-pound bomb and 3,120 pounds of incendiaries. About halfway to the target, a single-engine night-fighter, a German Messerschmitt 109, attacked their bomber. The enemy aircraft attacked four times, hitting the plane tail and fuselage, disabling the mid-upper turret, and wounding the mid-upper gunner (Sgt. McGovern) with cannon shells. He suffered wounds in the arms, legs and chest, and was temporarily blinded in one eye.

The Lancaster flew corkscrews and diving turns while the gunners returned fire, in particular, Fl/Sgt. George Andrew, the rear gunner, who warned his pilot of each attack. They shook off the fighter and, with their aircraft now being so badly punctured from the night fighter’s guns, they could have turned and gone home then; however, they kept going to Leipzig. Several minutes later, a German Junkers-88 attacked them three times. The Lancaster was able to shake that attack and lost the enemy in the clouds. The damage to the bomber was extensive: the mid-upper turret was disabled; two of the rear turret guns were inoperable; the pilot’s windscreen was smashed; a hydraulic-system failed; the navigation and wireless equipment were riddled with bullets; the trailing aerial had been shot away; and many bullet holes were in the fuselage, the wing, and near the inner fuel tank. Only the pilot’s skillful flying and George Andrew’s marksmanship saved it from certain destruction. During the seven attacks, Andrew had fired 2200 rounds.

 Despite the damage, Lancaster DS686 continued on to its target. Since the release mechanism had been shot up, the bombs had to be released manually. The pilot (Frederick Stuart), in the words of other members of the crew, had “to perform superbly” with his damaged navigating instruments to bring them back to England.

In a Canadian Press dispatch describing the raid, George was mentioned for helping to keep the Nazis at a distance, especially over the target where his plane was attacked seven times by enemy fighters. The returning fliers described it as one of the toughest nights the Canadians had ever experienced. Ice, rain, and lightning, all played havoc with the aircraft and heavy clouds sheltered the target. The Leipzig raid involved 358 Bomber Command Lancasters, and 17 were lost that night. It was George Andrew’s 20th raid. When their aircraft arrived back at its base, more than one hundred cannon and machine gun holes were counted in the fuselage.

George Andrew was promoted from flight sergeant to pilot-officer for exceptional work as rear gunner in the raid on Leipzig. Flying Officer Jimmy Dodge was on board the Lancaster aircraft on that fateful October 20th

bombing mission. In a letter to his mother in Spirit River Alberta, Dodge wrote that Too much praise cannot be given to Fred Stuart our RAF skipper and George (Andy) Andrew our rear-gunner. They were the ones mostly responsible for getting us out of the jam we were in, and of course Rod Dunphy (Winnipeg) our navigator, who did a marvellous piece of work.

Sadly, Pilot-Officer George Andrew lost his life exactly two months later as part of a bombing mission involving 650 Bomber Command aircraft. On the night of December 20, 1943, and on his 22nd raid, Andrew’s Lancaster Mark II aircraft LL630 (markings OW-D) took off from Linton-on-Ouse on a night operation against Frankfurt, Germany. The German controllers were able to accurately plot the route as soon as the main force left the English coast and were therefore able to deploy night-fighters at many points along its route. A diversionary raid on Mannheim failed to draw off many fighters until the main raid was over.

The target was mainly cloud covered whereas the forecast had predicted clear conditions. Pathfinder marking did not, therefore, go to plan. The Germans used decoy fires and also decoy target indicators. By a twist of good fortune, considerable creep-back resulted in the bombing coming back over the city. Pilot Officer George Andrew’s Lancaster aircraft was shot down at 20:30 hrs. near Koblenz, Germany. German documents later stated that the aircraft crashed near Gulz, 13 km N.E. of Belgard, Germany. Of the 650 aircraft taking part in the operation, there were 41 losses, 10 of which were Canadian planes.

Perishing with Pilot Officer-Air Gunner George Andrew were P/O Thomas Herbert Hastings (RAF); F/Os Roderick James Dunphy, John William Flynn (RAF), Albert John Rudman (RAF), and Frederick John Stuart (RAF); and Sgt. Frank Richard Taylor (RAF).

In late December 1943, George Sr. and Elizabeth Andrew received a telegram in Sarnia from the Air Force Casualty Officer at Ottawa informing them that their son PILOT OFFICER GEORGE VARNUM ANDREW IS MISSING AFTER R.C.A.F. AIR OPERATIONS ON DECEMBER 21. No other details were contained in the message. Compounding the tragedy for the family was that only two years earlier they had received the devastating news that their other son, William, was presumed missing in the war. 

In early February of 1944, George’s wife, Esther, now residing on North Christina Street, received a telegram from the RCAF Casualty Officer at Ottawa. It stated that REGRET TO ADVISE INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS QUOTING GERMAN INFORMATION STATES YOUR HUSBAND PO. GEORGE VARNUM ANDREW LOST HIS LIFE DECEMBER 20 BUT DOES NOT GIVE ADDITIONAL PARTICULARS. PENDING FURTHER CONFIRMATION YOUR HUSBAND IS TO BE CONSIDERED MISSING BELIEVED KILLED. PLEASE ACCEPT MY SINCERE SYMPATHY. LETTER FOLLOWS.

In August 1944, Esther received from the Group Captain, RCAF Records Officer in Ottawa, an “RCAF Certificate of Presumption of Death” notice that read as follows: This is to certify that J19070 Pilot Officer George Varnum Andrew, RCAF, has been officially reported as missing since the 20th day of December, 1943, and that, full inquiries having been made, there appears to be conclusive proof that he is dead. For official purposes, therefore, he is presumed to have died on or since the above mentioned date.

Also in August 1944, Esther received a registered letter from the Air Marshal, Chief of the Air Staff:

Dear Mrs. Andrew,

I have learned with deep regret that your husband, Pilot Officer George Varnum Andrew, is now for official purposes presumed to have died on Active Service Overseas on December 20th, 1943. I wish to offer you and the members of your family my sincere and heartfelt sympathy. It is most lamentable that a promising career should be thus terminated and I would like you to know that his loss is greatly deplored by all those with whom your husband was serving.

George Andrew was later recorded as Previously reported “missing” after air operations, now for official purposes, “presumed dead,” overseas (Germany).

For George Sr. and Elizabeth Andrew in Sarnia, this was their second son that they had lost in the war—William Charles Andrew was lost in October 1941. George Sr. also lost a nephew in the war, Sarnia-born Leonard Andrew, who was killed during the Dieppe Raid in August of 1942.

Early in 1945, Esther received a War Service Gratuity of $508.99 for the loss of her husband. In October 1946, she would receive the following letter from the RCAF Records Officer in Ottawa:

Dear Mrs. Andrew:

It is a privilege to have the opportunity of sending you the Operational Wings and Certificate in recognition of the gallant services rendered by your husband, Pilot Officer G.V. Andrew. I realize there is little which may be

said or done to lessen your sorrow, but it is my hope that these “Wings”, indicative of operations against the enemy, 

will be a treasured memento of a young life offered on the altar of freedom in defence of his Home and Country.

In September 1948, Ester received a letter from the Wing Commander, RCAF Casualties Officer in Ottawa informing her that the Graves Registration Service have advised that the Graves 9 to 13 in Plot 10, Row E in the Rheinburg British Military Cemetery have been registered collectively with the names of the five unidentified members of your husband’s crew, including your husband. May I take this opportunity to again extend my sincere sympathy.

Sometime after the war ended, Esther re-married and resided in Sarnia as Esther Sygrove.

Twenty-year-old George Varnum Andrew is buried in Rheinberg War Cemetery, Germany, Coll. Grave 10.E.9-13.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

William Andrew was born at 111 North College Avenue on March 7, 1921. He was the eldest son of ex-Sarnia mayor and harbour-master George A. C. and Mrs. Elizabeth Harriet (nee Varnum, born in Moore Township, Lambton) Andrew. Parents George A.C. and Elizabeth were married on October 24, 1906 in Moore Township, Lambton County.

Serving in the military was a pattern with men of the Andrew family. William’s father, George A.C. (or George Senior, born 1882 in Lambton County), a carpenter by trade, was a World War I veteran. In October 1917, at age 35, and married with two children, he enlisted in Toronto to serve with the Royal Flying Corps. He stood five feet four-and-a-half inches tall, and would be transferred to the Royal Air Force with the rank of second-class air mechanic. He served in Canada and, after the Great War, he served as a City of Sarnia alderman on a couple of occasions. He was elected Sarnia’s 42nd mayor in 1924.

Typical of this time, the Andrew family was large and included six children besides William (born 1921): Florence Evelyn (born March 24, 1909 in Brigden); twins George Edwin and Ralph Varnum (born 1912, but both died six months after birth in October 1912); Muriel Eileen (born June 1915 in Sarnia); George Varnum (born 1923); and Robert Barrett (born 1926). Both of his sisters later married, becoming Mrs. John (Muriel) Little (of Sarnia), and Mrs. Stephen (Florence) Endico (of Detroit). William’s youngest brother, Robert B., was a member of the Central Century Club and attended the University of Toronto. William’s younger brother, George Varnum, became a member of the RCAF, and lost his life while serving in World War II (see above).

Growing up, William showed an interest in technology and communications. An active member of Central United Church, he attended Sarnia public elementary school and graduated in electricity from Sarnia Collegiate. He then took a Radio Operator course at the Canadian Electronic School in Toronto and, upon his return, spent his spare time experimenting with wireless equipment. In the winter of 1940, 19-year-old William applied for enlistment when the RCAF issued a call for radio technicians.

He was rejected because of a slight defect in his one knee, but another opportunity arose six months later, in the summer of 1941. William, now age 20, answered the call for recruits put out by the British Civilian Technical Corps, headquartered in Washington, D.C. The British Civilian Technical Corps was recruited largely in the United States and Canada and comprised young men not likely for call for actual military service. The British CT Corps’ purpose was to assist civilian technicians in Britain by repairing vital equipment used by the British Armed Forces. Salaries ranged from $24-$38 per week. Technicians included skilled radio and automobile mechanics, electrical wiremen, instrument repairers, metal workers, and other technical trades.

William passed his Civil Service exam as a radio technician and wireless expert in Port Huron with marks of 100% on his examinations. He reported for duty as a radio technician with the British Civilian Technical Corps at Montreal on September 4, 1941. His family heard from him for the last time on October 5, 1941.

Beginning on the opening day of the Second World War, the Battle of the Atlantic would be the longest continuous campaign of the war, and one in which Canada played a central role. The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN), along with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and Canada’s Merchant Navy, played a vital role in defending the country’s eastern coast and escorting convoys of ships carrying men and essential machinery, arms, fuel, and basic resources between North America and Europe.

In September 1940, the Royal Canadian Navy armed merchant cruiser HMCS Prince Robert was deployed from the British Columbia coast to South America to support Britain’s blockade of ships. Britain hoped to prevent German merchant ships in neutral ports from returning to Germany or to be fitted as raiders. On September 25, 1940, the Prince Robert captured the 9,500-ton German merchant ship Weser off the coast of Mexico, one of the first important Canadian prizes of the war. The Weser was brought to the British Columbia coast and renamed S.S. Vancouver Island for service in the Royal Canadian Navy. The RCN moved the ship to the east coast where she made several trans-Atlantic crossings until she met her end from a German U-boat.

On October 1, 1941, William was aboard S.S. Vancouver Island as she left Cape Breton Island as part of a 52-ship convoy on its way to Belfast and Cardiff. On October 15, 1941, the convoy was intercepted by 13 U-boats that over the next three days sank 11 ships. On the first day of the attack, S.S. Vancouver Island was sailing behind the main convoy as a straggler when one of the German U-boats spotted her. In the mid-Atlantic, at about 10:50 p.m., two torpedoes fired by German U-boat U-558 struck S.S. Vancouver.

Back in Sarnia, word of the attack and possible loss of 19 men of the British Civilian Technical Corps was received by the Canadian Observer on November 4, 1941. The British Press Service announced the loss on behalf of the Royal Air Force delegation at Washington. The information released was that the boat was presumed to have been sunk in the Atlantic Ocean, but the date was uncertain and no information was available yet of any survivors. Despite the meager details available, relatives and friends of William Andrew were hopeful that he would be safe. William’s parents had been worried about their son, because they hadn’t heard from him for so long, and they wanted to send Christmas presents to him.

On November 5, 1941, while William’s brother, LAC George Andrew of the R.C.A.F. was home on leave from his Eastern Air Command post, the following official news arrived to his parents:

It is with most profound regret that I have to convey to you, the news that your son is among the list of missing passengers from a ship on which he was taking passage to the United Kingdom as a member of the British Civilian Technical Corps. The ship is missing and is presumed sunk, but the date is unknown and there is no news of any survivors. In expressing their deepest sympathy the Air Council gratefully acknowledges the generous motives which inspired your son to give his services in the defence of human liberty and progress.

W.C.G. Cribett, R.A.F. Delegation, Washington, D.C.

Later, it was disclosed that no one survived the attack on the S.S. Vancouver Island. William Andrew and 18 other members of a detachment of the British Civilian Technical Corps were lost at sea. In total, the sinking of S.S. Vancouver Island resulted in 102 deaths: 64 crew, 6 DEMS gunners, and 32 passengers.

Two years later, in December 1943, George Sr. and Elizabeth Andrew lost a second son in the war—George Varnum Andrew. George Sr. also lost a nephew in the war, Sarnia-born Leonard Andrew, who was killed during the Dieppe Raid in August of 1942.

Twenty-year-old William Charles Andrew is memorialized on the Ottawa Memorial, in Ottawa, Canada, Panel 1, Column 3.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Joseph Aubin was born in Sarnia on September 22, 1923, the only son of Frederic Wilfred and Marie Stella (nee Thibault) Aubin, of Cemetery Road, Sarnia. [Note: Cemetery Road was later renamed Colborne Road, and the Aubin’s address was 824 Colborne Rd.] Wilfred (a labourer) and Stella were married on January 31, 1921, in Sarnia. The young couple experienced tragedy later that year when Stella gave birth to a still-born baby in December.

Their only son was named Joseph, and they also had one daughter, Laurette, born in 1926. Joseph did not complete grade eight and finished his schooling at age 16. He was active in baseball, softball, and bowling, and was a member of Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Parish. After leaving school, Joseph had several odd jobs which included washing cars and working in a factory before the Sarnia Bridge Company hired him.

Nineteen-year-old Joseph enrolled under the National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) on November 24, 1942, in London, Ontario. He was residing at home with his mother on Cemetery Road and was working at Sarnia Bridge Company as a steelworker at the time. His plan was to become a motor-mechanic after the war. Joseph received his Basic Training in Chatham and his Advanced Training at Camp Ipperwash. In April 1943, Joseph was transferred to the 1st Battalion, Victoria Rifles of Canada in Sussex, New Brunswick, with the rank of rifleman. In September 1943, he continued his training at Niagara-on-the-Lake and then at Allanburg in March 1944.

In June 1944, 20-year-old Joseph Aubin completed his Canadian Army Attestation Papers when he became a member of the Canadian Infantry Corps. He stood five feet eight inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, and was single at the time. On November 20, 1944, Joseph embarked overseas from Halifax bound for the United Kingdom, as a rifleman with the Victoria Rifles. Once in England, he became a member of the Canadian Infantry Training Regiment (3 CITR). On January 23, 1945, he embarked from the U.K. to Italy, where he became a member of the Loyal Edmonton Regiment, Royal Canadian Infantry Corps (R.C.I.C.).

The Italian Campaign, the first sustained Canadian Army operation of the War, began with the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. The fierce fighting on the island lasted more than four weeks, during which the Canadians advanced through difficult mountainous terrain against an ever-stiffening German resistance. By August 17, the Germans had evacuated the island to the Italian mainland. In early September, Canadian and Allied forces invaded Italy. Though Italy surrendered shortly after, the occupying Germans made it clear their fight was not over. Liberating Italy would be a painstaking northward crawl, lasting 20 months, over a range of landscapes, through challenging weather, and against a series of well-protected defences held by some of the German army’s best troops.

Approximately one month after arriving in Italy, Private Aubin lost his life on February 24, 1945, at the very end of the Italian Campaign. During fighting, Joseph was severely wounded by a mortar and died as a result of his wounds. His remains were buried on February 25, at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “2 CIB Cem Bagnacavallo sh 89/III NW Fusignano MR 424395”.

ln early March 1945, Joseph’s parents in Sarnia received a telegram from Ottawa informing them that their only son PTE. JOSEPH LEOPOLD AUBIN HAS DIED IN ITALY OF WOUNDS RECEIVED IN ACTION.No other details were received. At the end of March 1945, Stella Aubin received the following letter from the Acting Director of Records, for Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Aubin:

Further to this Headquarters’ telegram of the 4th of March 1945, informing you of the regretted death of your son, A-115076 Private Joseph Leopold Aubin, in keeping with the policy of the Canadian Army of informing the next-of-kin of all details of battle casualties, the following paragraph informs you of the wounds sustained by Private Aubin.

According to information obtained by this Headquarters from the Canadian Army Medical Authorities, your late son died as a result of a bomb (mortar) fragment large wound to the left tempero-parietal region with cerebral laceration and a wound to the large left biceps (no fracture but) with dissolution of the main nerves and arteries. Please accept my sincere and heartfelt sympathy for the irreparable loss you have suffered.

Joseph Aubin was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, Died of wounds received in action, in the field (Italy). In mid-March of 1945, a requiem high mass was celebrated in Our Lady of Mercy Church for the repose of the soul of Pte. Joseph Aubin. In October 1945, Stella received a War Service Gratuity of $92.10 for the loss of her only son. In August 1946, Stella received a letter from the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Madam:

Information has just been received from overseas that the remains of your son, A115076 Private Joseph Leopold Aubin, have been carefully exhumed from the original place of internment and reverently reburied in grave 4, row G, plot 5, of Ravenna British Empire Cemetery, five miles West of Ravenna, Italy. Marked map is enclosed. This is a recognized military burial ground and will receive care and maintenance in perpetuity.

The grave will have been marked with a temporary cross which will be replaced in due course by a permanent headstone suitably inscribed. While it cannot now be stated when this work of permanent commemoration will begin, before any action is taken you will be communicated with and an opportunity will be given you to submit a short personal inscription of your own choice for engraving on the headstone…

Twenty-one-year-old Joseph Aubin is buried in Ravenna War Cemetery, Italy, Grave V.G.4. On his headstone are inscribed the words HEAR MY UNWORTHY PRAYER. PRESERVE ME FROM ALL DANGER. GIVE MY IMMORTAL SOUL A PLACE AMONG THE CHOSEN.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

James Banks was born on May 5, 1923, the son of Ambrose and Doris Lewella Banks (later Rumohr), of 221 Tecumseh Street, Sarnia. His parents were married in Sarnia on May 24, 1922. James Keith, or Keith as he was known, had one brother, William Lyle; one sister, Hannah Betty; and a half-brother, Raymond Vern Rumohr.

When Keith was 11 years old, he lost his father Ambrose, who died on February 24, 1935. His mother later married Fredrick Nelson Rumohr. Growing up in Sarnia, Keith attended London Road and Devine Street public schools and then Sarnia Collegiate for two years where he completed grade 10. While in high school Keith kept himself busy. He participated in baseball, rugby, soccer, and swimming, and his hobbies included fishing, cooking, playing the guitar and the mouth organ, and collecting stamps and coins. Prior to enlisting, Keith had been employed as a pinsetter at a Sarnia bowling alley (August 1937-September 1938) and then at a Sarnia lumber mill (December 1938-August 1940).

At the outbreak of World War II, the military set requirements for volunteers, one being that they had to be, at minimum, 18 years of age. For overseas service, the minimum age was 19. At recruiting centres, birth and baptismal certificates were not required—those in line were simply asked to state their age. Enlistees aged 17 required a written letter of consent from a parent. So some boys obtained the blessing of a parent, while others lied about their age; or used falsified written consent letters from a parent; or they simply applied at another recruiting centre or in another service. In World War II, an estimated 30,000 underage soldiers from across the country fought for Canada.

Seventeen-year-old Keith Banks enlisted in the Canadian Army in Chatham, Ontario, on August 11, 1940—his mother signed him up. He stood five feet eleven-and-a-half inches tall, had blue eyes and light brown hair, was single, and resided with his mother at the time. Keith recorded that he joined the army to help his mother and that his plan for after the war was to enter the field of carpentry. On his Occupational History Form, he recorded his date of birth as May 5, 1923. On his Attestation Paper he declared his birthdate as May 5, 1921, making himself two years older than he was. All of his subsequent military records (including his Registration of Death) therefore record his date of birth as May 5, 1921. When Keith enlisted, his brother Lyle was 16, his sister Betty was 13, and his half-brother Vern was only a couple of months old.

Passing himself off as being two years older than he actually was, 17-year-old Keith Banks was taken on strength into the Kent Regiment and began his training in Chatham, Ontario. He continued his training with the Kent Regiment in London, Ontario, and in New Westminster, British Columbia. He embarked overseas for the United Kingdom on December 29, 1942, where he became a member of the Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU). He continued his training, and on February 27, 1943, Keith was transferred to the Highland Light Infantry of Canada, R.C.I.C., with the rank of private. By March 1944, he had advanced to the rank of lance corporal. As a member of the Highland Light Infantry of Canada, Keith embarked from the U.K. in early June 1944 and arrived in France on June 6, 1944—D-Day.

The Canadian landings on Juno Beach marked their beginning of the Battle of Normandy. After breaching the “Atlantic Wall” of “Fortress Europe”, Allied armies began their break out from the narrow Normandy bridgehead to carve out a foothold on the French mainland. To accomplish this took a whole summer of tenacious fighting that saw the Canadians pushing against fierce and ruthless German forces to advance east across France. In a brutal campaign of attrition, the Canadian army, supported by the navy and air force, faced fierce battles and vicious counterattacks as they clawed their way forward to liberate villages and towns including Bretteville, Carpiquet, Caen, and Falaise.

Once while on leave in London, England, Keith got to meet his grandfather and his uncle for the first time. Keith and his mother Doris exchanged letters often (though they were edited by the military). Doris told him about the coupon books for food, gas rations, and the things that the radio and newspaper were saying about the war in

England. Keith was originally paid $1.40 per day as a private, and his first pay cheque sent home was used to pay for

his sister Betty’s first two wheeled bicycle, where she became the envy of the neighbourhood. Keith’s letters told of the deaths he saw and the bad living conditions he endured. In his last letter home, one his mother received the day before Keith was to die, he described how, because his Major was killed, he had become a Corporal.

After the Allied breakout from Normandy, Canadian forces were assigned the “Long Left Flank”, the less glamorous but vital tasks of clearing coastal areas in the north of France and Belgium of German occupiers; opening the English Channel ports for supplies essential to the Allied advance; and capturing the launching sites of German V-1 rockets. In a series of stop-and-start advances against stiff resistance in fortified positions, the Canadians liberated ports and villages including Rouen, Dieppe, Dunkirk, Boulogne, and Calais. It was during the early stages of this operation, in a series of attacks against a determined enemy, that Corporal Keith Banks lost his life.

On the morning of September 6, 1944, Keith and his regiment were on first patrol. Their task was to provide reconnaissance of enemy activity near the town of Isques located between two of the enemy-defended hills. While making their way toward the objective, the patrol came under heavy fire from the hills and was pinned down. Corporal Keith Banks and Major G.D. Sim were severely wounded at this time. While they were pinned down, a relief was assembled and sent out while the three-inch mortars of the battalion plastered the hills. The patrol was successful in extricating itself, but Cpl. Banks and Major Sim did not survive. Their bodies were not recovered until the following day. When soldiers recovered the bodies, 25 prisoners, badly shaken by the pounding they received, were also brought back. Keith Banks’ remains were buried at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “MR.696458 France Near Churchun Condette S of Boulogne”.

Keith’s stepfather, Fred, and mother, Doris Rumohr, in Sarnia received a telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa during the third week of September 1944 informing them that their son LANCE CORPORAL KEITH BANKS WAS REPORTED MISSING IN ACTION IN FRANCE.The next day, they received another telegram from the Director of Records, this one reading MINISTER OF NATIONAL DEFENCE DEEPLY REGRETS TO INFORM YOU THAT A50059 LANCE CORPORAL JAMES KEITH BANKS PREVIOUSLY REPORTED MISSING IN ACTION HAS NOW BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED KILLED IN ACTION SIXTH SEPTEMBER 1944 STOP IF ANY FURTHER INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE IT WILL BE FORWARDED AS SOON AS RECEIVED.

In October 1944, Doris received the following letter from the Brigadier, Acting Adjutant-General at her home on Tecumseh Street:

Dear Mrs. Rumohr:

            It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your son, A50059 Lance Corporal James Keith Banks, who gave his life in the Service of his Country in the Western European Theatre of War, on the 6th day of September, 1944.

            From official information we have received, your son was killed in action against the enemy. You may be assured that any additional information received will be communicated to you without delay.

            The Minister of National Defence and the Members of the Army Council have asked me to express to you and your family their sincere sympathy in your bereavement. We pay tribute to the sacrifice he so bravely made.

Keith Banks was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (France). In October 1945, Doris Rumohr received a War Service Gratuity of $543.26 for the loss of her son.

In January 1946, Doris received a letter from the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Madam,

Information has just been received from overseas that the remains of your son, A50059 Lance Corporal James Keith Banks, have been carefully exhumed from the original place of internment and reverently reburied in grave 7, row B, plot 8, of Calais Canadian Military Cemetery, St. Inglevert, France. Marked map is enclosed. This is a recognized military burial ground and will receive care and maintenance in perpetuity.

The grave will have been marked with a temporary cross which will be replaced in due course by a permanent headstone suitably inscribed. While it cannot now be stated when this work of permanent commemoration will begin, before any action is taken you will be communicated with and an opportunity will be given you to submit

a short personal inscription of your own choice for engraving on the headstone…

Twenty-one-year-old (though listed in records as 23 years old based on Attestation Papers) James Keith Banks is buried in Calais Canadian War Cemetery, Leubringhen, France, Grave 8.B.7. On his headstone are inscribed the words SO EASILY REMEMBERED BUT HARD TO FORGET. MAY GOD GRANT YOU, KEITH ETERNAL REST.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

James “Jim” Barclay was born on July 5, 1923, in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, the youngest son of John George and Ann (nee: Burnette) Barclay, who were married in Aberdeenshire, Scotland on November 18, 1920. John (born October 1901 in Aberdeenshire) and Ann (born April 1903 in Turiff, Aberdeenshire) had two sons, both born in Newbyth, Aberdeenshire; Alexander “Alex” Burnett, on September 18, 1920; and Jim, on July 5, 1923.

John Barclay immigrated to Canada in 1923. Ann and their two young sons, Alex (age 6) and Jim (age 3), arrived in the port of Montreal on September 26, 1926, aboard the SS Athenia. Their intended destination was to join their father John at 194 Collingwood St., Sarnia. John and Ann resided at 360 Stuart St. (1935); at 484 Campbell St. (1938); at R.R. #2, Sarnia (1940); at 512 Campbell Street; and at 764 Campbell Street. John supported his family working at CNR, a job he held for 33 years. Both of his two sons, Alex and Jim, also worked at CNR for a time, and worked part time on a farm.

Alex Barclay also served in the war, as a gunner with a Royal Canadian Artillery unit. He served in Italy, Belgium, and Holland. During his time overseas, Alex met and married Norah Wood. They wed at New Pitsligo Parish Church in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on July 19, 1945. They had two children together; Morven (born April 18, 1946) and Donna (born in Sarnia). Donna’s married name was Dauber, and she and her husband reside in London, Ontario.

After the war ended, Alex returned to Canada. Not long after, on September 18, 1946, his British war bride Norah and their 5-month-old son Morven departed from Southhampton aboard the RMS Aquitania. They arrived in Halifax on September 25. Norah and Morven joined Alex at their home at 512 Campbell St. in Sarnia. Alex later built a home on Angus St., which was just around the corner from where John and Anna lived at 764 Campbell St.

Jim Barclay attended Johnston Memorial and Russell Street Public elementary schools, before leaving school at age 15. He worked on farms for a time and then worked as a labourer/carman’s helper at the Canadian National Railway in Sarnia for three years. He had just joined the lodge (Union) before enlisting.

Eighteen-year-old Jim Barclay enlisted in the Canadian Army on November 7, 1941, in London, Ontario. He stood five feet seven inches tall, had hazel eyes and brown hair, was single, and resided at home with his parents at R.R. #2, Sarnia at the time. He recorded his next-of-kin as his mother Ann, at R.R. #2 Sarnia. James had expressed his desire to return to the CNR as a mechanic after the war, and the company had promised to give him employment. From #1 District Depot in London, Jim received his army training in Kitchener (#10 Basic Training Centre); then Red Deer, Alberta (A20 Advanced Training Centre RCASC – Royal Canadian Army Service Corps, where he earned qualification as a Class II Driver, and Phase II Motor Mechanics); and then in Hamilton (CATS – Canadian Army Training School). In November 1941, Jim completed his Will, bequeathing “all of my Estate” to his mother, Ann. He was granted embarkation leave from December 9 to 18, 1942.

He embarked overseas for the United Kingdom on December 29, 1942, where he became a member of the Canadian Army Service Corps Reinforcement Unit (CASCRU). Jim’s brother, Alex, had arrived overseas a year earlier, in December 1941, as a member of the Royal Canadian Artillery, with the rank of gunner.

Jim arrived overseas in early January 1943. At one time, the two brothers, both in the army, were stationed only four miles apart for six months. And on one occasion, they were able to spend two days together. Jim would attain the rank of private with No. 35 Company of the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps (RCASC), where he earned $1.50 per day.

On September 26, 1943, Private Jim Barclay and a Private Mallette were travelling together on two motorcycles on a road in Tadworth, Surrey, England. They were involved in a motorcycle accident where both motorcycles collided head-on into a 3-ton lorry. Jim was initially taken to #6 C.C.S. (Casualty Clearing Station), and then admitted to No. 1 Neurological Hospital in Basingstoke, Hampshire. With the outbreak of the Second World War, the Montreal Neurological Institute had organized, staffed, and outfitted this hospital in an estate house (Hackwood House) in Basingstoke, England to treat head, brain, and nerve injuries suffered by both troops and civilians.

Jim’s injuries included a fractured skull and laceration of the brain. He died one day later as a result of his injuries at approximately 0955 hours, at No. 1 Neurological Hospital.

On September 26, John and Ann Barclay of R.R. #2 in Sarnia received the following telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa: SINCERELY REGRET INFORM YOU A9908 PRIVATE JAMES BARCLAY OFFICIALLY REPORTED DANGEROUSLY ILL AS RESULT SEVERE CRANIAL CEREBRAL INJURY DUE TO MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT ON DUTY STOP FURTHER INFORMATION FOLLOWS WHEN RECEIVED.

On September 27, John and Ann received another telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa: REGRET DEEPLY A9908 PRIVATE JAMES BARCLAY NOW OFFICIALLY REPORTED DIED TWENTYSEVENTH SEPTEMBER 1943 STOP FURTHER INFORMATION FOLLOWS WHEN RECEIVED.

A few days later, John and Ann received another telegram from Ottawa informing them that their son PTE JAMES BARCLAY, DIED IN AN ARMY HOSPITAL OVERSEAS, FROM INJURIES SUSTAINED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT THE PREVIOUS DAY.The telegram stated that the cause of Jim’s death was SEVERE CRANIAL CEREBRAL INJURY DUE TO MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT ON DUTY SUNDAY.Theywere given no details as to how or where the accident that took the life of their son occurred nor were they given any word as to the funeral. John and Ann hoped that his brother Alex would be able to attend the funeral services in England.

On September 29, the Sarnia Observer informed local citizens of the death of Jim Barclay under the heading SARNIA SOLDIER DIES OVERSEAS;

Motorcycle Accident Fatal To Pte. James Barclay; Enlisted Early

            Pte. James Barclay, 20-year-old son of Mr. and Mrs. George Barclay, 512 Campbell street, died on Monday, September 27, in an army hospital overseas from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident the previous day. His parents received word of his death from Ottawa yesterday following an earlier telegram informing them of the accident. Cause of the death was given as severe cranial cerebral injury due to motorcycle accident on duty on Sunday. Pte. Barclay was born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, but came to Sarnia with his parents when he was two years old and lived here until he enlisted in London in September, 1941. He attended the Johnston Memorial and Russell Street schools and worked at the C.N.R. until he joined the army. His brother, Alex, is also overseas with the Canadian Army.

In early October 1943, Ann, still at R.R. #2 in Sarnia, received the following letter from the Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Madam:

            I deeply regret to inform you that your son, A.9908 Private James Barclay, gave his life in the Service of his Country in the United Kingdom on the 27th day of September, 1943.

            You may be assured that any additional information received will be communicated to you without delay. The Minister of National Defence and the members of the Army Council have asked me to express to you and your family their sincere sympathy in your bereavement. We pay tribute to the sacrifice he so bravely made.

A court inquiry was held on September 26, 1943 to investigate the circumstances of the accident. Pte. Barclay died in the accident and Pte. Mallette was seriously injured. A summary of findings was released on November 26, 1943. The court determined that the accident was caused due to the two motorcycle drivers, Pte. J. Barclay and Pte. F. Mallette, were travelling at an excessive rate of speed. The driver of the lorry, Pte. E.J. Sim, provided a sworn statement that stated that when he started to a turn, the road was clear as far ahead as he could see, approximately 500 feet. Before the lorry had completed its turn, two motorcycles had rounded the curve, travelled the 500 feet and collided with the lorry. This was substantiated by another witness who stated that the damage to the lorry could not have been done by motorcycles travelling at a normal rate of speed.

The court also concluded that the accident was not due to willful misconduct on the part of Pte. Barclay and Pte. Mallette. Also, that Pte. Barclay and Pte. Mallette, who were both on duty at the time, were not guilty of improper conduct.

Jim Barclay’s death certificate recorded his cause of death as fractured skull, laceration of the brain, severe cranial cerebral injury due to motorcycle accident while on duty.

In July 1945, John and Ann received a War Service Gratuity of $255.86 for the loss of their son.

In September 1946, Ann received the following letter from the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Barclay:

I am forwarding herewith a photograph of the grave and marker over the burial place of your late son, A9908 Private James Barclay, the location of which is grave 10, row J. plot 45, Brookwood Military Cemetery, Woking, Surrey, England.

Enclosed also is the original negative for your retention from which you may wish to have printed additional copies.

Any errors appearing in the inscription will be corrected when the permanent headstone is erected.

                                                                                    Yours faithfully

Jim was awarded the Defence Medal; the War Medal, and the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal with Clasp.

One year after Jim Barclay’s death, the following In Memoriam was printed in the Sarnia Observer:

In loving memory of our dear son and brother, Pte. James Barclay, who died in England one year ago today, September 27, 1943.

Had he asked us, well we know

We should cry “O spare this blow.”

Yes, with streaming tears should pray;

“Lord, we love him; let him stay.”

Sadly missed by Father, Mother and brother Alex (overseas).

After the war ended, parents John and Ann Barclay never talked about Jim or the war. Alex, a veteran of the war, also never talked about the war afterwards. Morven Barclay, Alex’s son, often asked his dad and his grandparents about his Uncle Jim, but “they never said anything about him. After a while, I just gave up . . . it must have been too painful for them.” But every November 11, Ann and Alex laid a wreath at the foot of the Sarnia cenotaph.

John Barclay, age 56, passed away in 1958, and Ann Barclay passed away in 1988. They are buried together at Resurrection Cemetery in Sarnia. On the grave marker are inscribed the names: John 1901-1958, Ann 1913-1988, and Jim 1923-1943.

Alex Barclay, age 80, passed away in January 2001, and Norah passed away in 2008. They are buried together in Resurrection Cemetery, beside the grave of John and Ann Barclay.

Early in the 1990s, Sarnia Council decided to name several streets after local soldiers who had lost their lives fighting for Canada. One was Barclay Drive. The unveiling ceremony was held on a cold, bitter day, and in attendance, along with Sarnia Mayor Mike Bradley, were Alex and Norah Barclay; Morven Barclay and his wife Janis and their daughter Lisa; and Donna (nee Barclay) Dauber and her husband Gernot.

After the street naming ceremony in May 1994, Mayor Bradley received this note from a member of the Barclay family. In part it reads, “His [Jim’s] parents would have been deeply touched had they been witness to this commemorative recognition of Jim’s supreme sacrifice, so that we may all have the benefits of God’s providence in a hoped for peaceful world. Thank you all.”

Twenty-year-old Jim Barclay is buried in Brookwood Military Cemetery, Surrey, United Kingdom, Grave 45.J.10. On his headstone are inscribed the words AT PEACE IN JESUS’ ARMS SAFE AND SECURE FROM ALL HARMS.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

William Barr was born at Sarnia General Hospital on May 11, 1924, the son of Joseph William and Edith Isabella (nee Chester) Barr, of 260 Devine Street, Sarnia. Joseph and Edith were married in Detroit, Michigan, on January 7, 1906. William had two sisters and one brother at the time of his death. His sisters were Leona Marie (born 1906, who became Mrs. Robert J. Weston), residing at 214 Confederation Street; and Pauline Jessie (born 1907), who became Second Lieutenant Pauline Jessie Barr serving with the U.S. Army as a nurse in Port Huron. His brother, Donald Alexander (born 1909), also resided at 214 Confederation Street, Sarnia, with his sister Leona.

William was educated at Devine Street and St. Joseph elementary schools and was a member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Parish, Sarnia. He attended Sarnia Collegiate Institute from September 1937 to 1942 and graduated at age 18. He participated in basketball, swimming, and handball, and beginning in 1940 played the French horn as a member of the Lambton Garrison Band.

Tragedy struck the Barr family on December 22, 1940, when the patriarch of the family, Joseph, a former railroad employee, passed away at the age of 62. William was 16 years old at the time.

William Barr enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force on May 14, 1942, in Sarnia, three days following his eighteenth birthday. The military had set the requirement for volunteers that they had to be a minimum age of 18, and for overseas service, the minimum age was 19.

William attended high school until mid-June 1942 and accepted odd jobs until he was called to serve in July 1942. He stood five feet eight-and-a-half inches tall, had grey eyes and brown hair, was single, and resided at home on Devine Street with his mother at the time. His plan for after the war was to attend university. The RCAF officer who interviewed him at enlistment wrote that William was Better than average material in every respect. Keen to become a Pilot and willing to work.

Initially posted to #1 Manning Depot (Toronto), William received his air training at #6 Initial Training School (ITS Toronto); #4 Bombing and Gunnery School (BGS Fingal); #4 Air Observer’s School (AOS London); #1 Air Gunner’s Ground Training School (AGGTS Quebec); and #9 Bombing and Gunnery School (BGS Mont-Joli, Quebec). He was awarded his Air Gunner’s Badge on September 3, 1943. Three months earlier, William spent a brief furlough in June at his childhood home on Devince Street with his widowed mother. No one could foresee that William had exactly one year to live.

On October 8, 1943, he embarked overseas from New York for the United Kingdom and arrived safely at RAF Bournemouth. William was soon posted to No. 16 Operational Training Unit (OTU) and later to 1654 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU). On May 25, 1944, he became a member of RAF #630 Squadron “Nocturna Mors” (Death by Night), part of Bomber Command, with the rank of pilot officer-air gunner. During his time in England, he wrote regularly to his mother, insisting often that he wasn’t flying combat missions, because she feared for his life.

During the course of the war, one of this country’s most significant contributions was the approximately 50,000 Canadians who served with the RCAF and RAF in Bomber Command operations. Next to Britain, Canada was the largest contributor to Bomber Command, making up more than a third of all of Bomber Command personnel. The men who served in Bomber Command faced some of the most difficult odds of anyone fighting in the war.

The Battle of Normandy began for the Canadians with the June 6, 1944, D-Day landings at Juno Beach. After breaching the “Atlantic Wall” of “Fortress Europe”, Allied armies with the support of the navy and air force, began their break out from the narrow Normandy bridgehead to carve out a foothold on the French mainland. To accomplish this took a whole summer of tenacious fighting that saw the Canadians pushing against fierce and ruthless German forces to advance east across France.

Based at RAF East Kirkby, Lincolnshire, No. 630 Squadron had been formed in November 1943 and was equipped with Avro Lancaster aircraft, the British four-engine heavy bomber. Between November 18, 1943 and April 25, 1945, the squadron took part in many major raids, including each of the 16 big raids made by Bomber Command on the German capital. This series of bombing missions became known as the “Battle of Berlin”.

BACK L to R: Gray (Sask), Barron B. (Guelph), Anderson (Man), Johnson (Man), Lough R. (Belleville), Beattie A.N. (Montreal)

FRONT L to R: Fisher J. (Ottawa), Reesor D. (Kitchener), Rodgers (Montreal, Missing 25-1-44), William Barr, Lunnon (Sask), Stirling J. (Montreal)

On June 9, 1944, only three days after the D-Day landings, William Barr was part of a seven-member crew aboard Lancaster aircraft PB121 (markings LE-F) that took off from its base at East Kirkby at 21.48 hours. The night operation’s target was to bomb the rail junction at Etaples, France.

Sometime during the night of June 9/10th, after a long-running battle with a night-fighter, the aircraft was hit, burst into flames, and crashed over the Etaples target, near Omerville (Val d’Oise), which is approximately 34 miles northwest of Paris.

William and five other crew members were killed and buried in a plot of ground an estimated 100 yards behind the Mairie at Omerville, France, Grave No. 3. One member of the crew, F/O D.C. Percy, was taken Prisoner of War. Perishing with Pilot Officer-Air Gunner William Barr were P/O Russell Edward Dennis; Claud Morley Houghton (RAF); and Sgt.s William James Bott (RAF), John Charles Cameron (RAF) and Horace Ison (RAF).

In mid-June 1944, Edith Barr in Sarnia received a telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa advising her that her son SERGEANT WILLIAM J. BARR HAS BEEN REPORTED MISSING AFTER AN OPERATIONAL FLIGHT ON JUNE 10.Also in mid-June 1944, she received a letter from the Wing Commander of R.A.F. Station, East Kirkby. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Mrs. Barr,

            Before you receive this letter you will have been notified by the Air Ministry that your Son, Sergeant William

J. Barr, was a member of an aircraft of this Squadron which failed to return from an operational mission last night

and it is with deep regret that I have to write to confirm this.

            The aircraft was detailed to take part in operations against the enemy but, as is usual, radio silence was maintained after take-off and therefore it is not possible to determine the cause of its failure to return.

            Your son was a most capable Air Gunner and a member of an excellent crew who had carried out operations against the enemy successfully. I have every confidence in the Captain, Flight Sergeant Houghton, who would, I know do everything in his power to ensure the safety of his crew both in the air and on the ground in the event of a forced landing. There is, of course, the possibility that the crew were able to abandon the aircraft and land safely in enemy territory. If, as we all sincerely hope, this was the case, then news will reach you from the International Red Cross Committee. May I express the very sincere sympathy which I personally and all members of my Squadron feel for you during this most distressing and anxious time…

In mid-July 1944, Sgt. William Barr’s name appeared on the Department of National Defense for Air casualty list as missing on active service after air operations overseas.

            In early February 1945, his mother received notification from Ottawa that her son, Sergeant William J. Barr, missing since June of 1944, has been promoted to the rank of Pilot Officer by the R.C.A.F. The promotion dated back to June 8.

In mid-May 1945, three months after receiving the promotion notification, and one week after VE Day, marking the end of the war in Europe, Edith received a telegram from Ottawa informing her that her son PO. WILLIAM BARR, R.C.A.F. WAS KILLED IN ACTION OVER OMERVILLE, FRANCE ON JUNE 10 LAST.Though reported missing shortly after June 10, 1944, this was the first official word of his death to reach his family.

William Barr was later officially recorded as Previously reported missing in action after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas (France).

Twenty-year-old William Barr is buried in Omerville Communal Cemetery, Seine-et-Oise, France, Coll. Grave 3. On his headstone are inscribed the words ETERNAL REST GRANT UNTO HIM, O LORD; MAY HIS SOUL REST IN PEACE.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Isaac Bell was born on December 28, 1920, the only son of George Issac (occupation janitor) and Sylvia Gladys (nee Ellis) Bell, of 467 ½ Nelson Street, Sarnia. George and Sylvia were married in Sarnia on August 1, 1912. Isaac was born on his father’s farm in Dawn Township, and the family moved to Sarnia in 1929 when Isaac was nine. Isaac was the youngest in the family, and he had three sisters: Rachael Daisy (born 1910), Alma Eva (born 1913), and Catherine (born 1914). Isaac attended public schools in Sarnia and, prior to enlisting, he was employed as a sailor for seven months, followed by stints at the Sarnia Fish and Chip Shop and the Park Meat Market. At some point before Isaac enlisted, his mother Sylvia passed away.

Nineteen-year-old Isaac Bell enlisted in the Canadian Army on August 14, 1940, in Chatham, Ontario, where he became a member of the Kent Regiment. He stood five feet five-and-a-half inches tall, had blue eyes and red hair, was single, and he recorded his occupation as being a sailor for three years. His plan for after the war was to gain employment with Imperial Oil Limited in Sarnia. Isaac received his army training in Chatham, London, Halifax, Niagara-on-the-Lake, and New Westminster, British Columbia.

He embarked overseas for the United Kingdom on May 1, 1942, where he was attached to the Canadian Division Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CDIRU). In July 1942, Isaac became a member of the Highland Light Infantry, R.C.I.C., with the rank of private.

Isaac continued his training in the U.K. for almost two years and rose to the rank of lance corporal. Like many Canadian soldiers there at the time, he finally got his chance to see action against the enemy in the summer of 1944. Issac, as a member of the Highland Light Infantry of Canada, embarked from the U.K. in early June 1944 and arrived in France on June 6, 1944 – D-Day.

In Sarnia, his father, George, received a letter from Isaac not long after the Normandy landings. George said that in the last letter he received from Isaac, his son stated that he had not had his uniform off in 18 days.

The Battle of Normandy began for the Canadians with the June 6, 1944, D-Day landings at Juno Beach. After breaching the “Atlantic Wall” of “Fortress Europe”, Allied armies began their break out from the narrow Normandy bridgehead to carve out a foothold on the French mainland. To accomplish this took a whole summer of tenacious fighting that saw the Canadians pushing against fierce and ruthless German forces to advance east across France. In a brutal campaign of attrition, the Canadian army, supported by the navy and air force, faced fierce battles and vicious counterattacks as they clawed their way forward to liberate villages and towns including Bretteville, Carpiquet, Caen, and Falaise.

Corporal Isaac Bell lost his life on July 8, 1944, when he was killed in action during the Battle of Normandy. His remains were buried at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “MR 987813 Beny-Sur-Mer, France”. On July 13, 1944, Isaac’s name appeared in the Canadian (Sarnia) Observer as “is now with the D-Day invasion forces in France.”

Approximately one week later, his widowed-father George received the following telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa: MINISTER OF NATIONAL DEFENCE DEEPLY REGRETS TO INFORM YOU THAT A50270, ACTING LANCE CORPORAL ISAAC GEORGE BELL HAS BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED KILLED IN ACTION EIGHTH JULY 1944 STOP IF ANY FURTHER INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE IT WILL BE FORWARDED AS SOON AS RECEIVED.

At the end of July 1944, George received the following letter from the Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mr. Bell:

It is with deep regret that I learned of the death of your son A50270 Acting Lance Corporal Isaac George Bell who gave his life in the Service of his country in France on the 8th day of July, 1944. From official information

we have received, your son was killed in action against the enemy. You may be assured that any additional

information received will be communicated to you without delay.

The Minister of National Defence and the members of the Army Council have asked me to express to you and your family their sincere sympathy in your bereavement. We pay tribute to the sacrifice he so bravely made.

Isaac and another Sarnian, Private Frederick Birkinshaw (included in this Project), both lost their lives on July 8, 1944, while fighting with their Canadian Army units in France during the Battle of Normandy.

Isaac Bell was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (France). At the time of his death, he was survived by his widowed-father George, an employee of Electric Auto-Lite Limited, and his three sisters: Mrs. Perry (Catherine) Ferns of Cecil Street; Mrs. Edward (Alma) Cuthbert of South Mitton Street; and Mrs. Daisy Reynolds of Devine Street, Sarnia. In October 1945, George Bell received a War Service Gratuity of $507.74 for the loss of his only son.

In January 1946, George Bell received a letter from the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Sir,

Information has just been received from overseas that the remains of your son, A50270 Lance Corporal Isaac George Bell, have been carefully exhumed from the original place of internment and reverently reburied in grave 1, row C, plot 15, Beny-sur-Mer Canadian Military Cemetery, Beny-sur-Mer, France. Marked map is enclosed. This is a recognized military burial ground and will receive care and maintenance in perpetuity.

The grave will have been marked with a temporary cross which will be replaced in due course by a permanent headstone suitably inscribed. While it cannot now be stated when this work of permanent commemoration will begin, before any action is taken you will be communicated with and an opportunity will be given you to submit a short personal inscription of your own choice for engraving on the headstone…

Twenty-three-year-old Isaac Bell is buried in Beny-Sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery, Reviers, France, Grave XV.C.1. On his headstone are inscribed the words I HAVE FOUGHT A GOOD FIGHT. I HAVE FINISHED MY COURSE. I HAVE KEPT THE FAITH.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Joe Bell was born in Brantford, Ontario, on February 18, 1922, the only child of Navy Lieutenant Joe “Griff” and Edith Laura Bell, who grew up at 144 Davis Street, Sarnia. His parents had been married in Woodstock on September 17, 1917, five years before Joe’s birth. At some point, the family moved to Sarnia.

Joe was a talented young man. He received his education at Brantford, at Sarnia public schools, and at Sarnia Collegiate. As well, he was a member of Central United Church and the Central Century Club. With the latter, he played softball and basketball, but his athleticism shone at SCITS. At Sarnia Collegiate, he was an outstanding all-round athlete who starred in high school football, in WOSSAA basketball and rugby, and in boxing and wrestling. He was also on the school’s track, shooting, and swimming teams and was a member of the Boy’s Athletic Association at Sarnia Collegiate. His talents weren’t confined to sports. Joe wrote Sarnia Collegiate news for the Canadian (Sarnia) Observer. In October 1940, prior to enlisting, Joe became a banker, employed with the Canadian Bank of Commerce in the Sarnia and Parkhill branches, as Senior Ledger Keeper. The bank granted him a leave of absence for him to enlist.

The men in the Bell family had much in common. They were, for instance, both eager to do their duty. In an unusual twist, father Joe “Griff” Bell followed his son by joining the navy in August of 1943. The navy was a natural fit for him, for “Griff” had been active in marine affairs for years; for example, at the Sarnia Yacht Club during its early history, his main hobby was building outboards, motorboats, and sailboats. His shop was situated in the building known as the H.M.C.S. Repulse, the local Sea Cadet headquarters at the corner of Front and Johnston Streets.

Like his son, “Griff” Bell was talented. Prior to coming to Sarnia, “Griff” was a member of the Brantford Symphony. In Sarnia, he was a drummer and xylophone soloist with the Lambton Garrison Band and a member of the Devine Street United Church Sunday School orchestra. To join the navy, he was granted leave of absence by the Ontario Hydro Electric Power Commission, where he had been employed for 31 years. “Griff” Bell became a lieutenant in the special branch of the Supervising Naval Engineers’ Department, Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve, stationed at Deep Brook, Nova Scotia.

Prior to joining the navy, Joe Bell had attempted to enlist in the air force, but was unsuccessful. Eager to serve, Joe, at age 20, was successful in enlisting in the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve on May 4, 1942, in Windsor, Ontario. He stood five feet ten inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, and was single. When he enlisted, he was residing with his parents at the family home on Davis Street.

Joe’s navy training was extensive. It included serving on a number of establishments and ships: the HMCS Hunter (Windsor); HMCS St. Hyacinthe (Quebec); HMCS Stadacona (Halifax); and the HMCS Avalon (St. John’s, Nfld.). He was also posted on the corvette HMCS Morden (K170) on the North Atlantic convoy for approximately one month in November-December 1942. Ironically, the Morden was involved later in rescue operations involving the ship on which Joe Bell lost his life.

Beginning on the opening day of the Second World War, the Battle of the Atlantic would be the longest continuous campaign of the war, and one in which Canada played a central role. The Royal Canadian Navy, along with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and Canada’s Merchant Navy, played a vital role in defending the country’s eastern coast and escorting convoys of ships carrying men and essential machinery, arms, fuel, and basic resources between North America and Europe.

Joe’s athleticism served him well in two situations that occurred within two months of each other. An article, dated December 14, 1942, in the Canadian Observer, provided details about an attack on a merchant ship that occurred on October 22, 1942. On that date, the German submarine U-443 had torpedoed the Canadian Pacific Steamships cargo and passenger vessel Winnipeg II as she was en route from Liverpool to St. John, New Brunswick. Joe was a member of the gallant crew of the corvette HMCS Morden that rescued the approximately 200 crew members and passengers of the torpedoed merchant ship. Everyone aboard was rescued before the Winnipeg II sank—from the crew and the adult passengers to the children, including a 7-month-old baby. Though the Morden had living quarters for only 60 persons, the crew somehow managed to find space for the 200 survivors before she docked in St. John’s Atlantic port.

Later that same year, on December 12, when he was stationed in Newfoundland, Joe suffered second-degree burns when he helped rescue several people from a disastrous fire that swept the Knights of Columbus Hostel in St. John’s. Though Joe’s parents in Sarnia were pleased to learn that their son participated in the rescue, they were still worried. They had been reading the dispatches from St. John’s, Newfoundland, that described the ravaging fire that had destroyed the K. of C. hostel. Reportedly, a large number of service men had lost their lives. Mr. and Mrs. Bell in Sarnia anxiously awaited further news about their son Joe, fervently hoping that their son’s ship had not been docked in St. John’s. Only days after the fire, Joe’s mother Edith in Sarnia, received the following registered letter from the Secretary of the Naval Board:

Dear Mrs. Bell,

            I regret I must confirm the telegram of the 14th of December from the Minister of National Defence for Naval Services informing you that your son, Joseph Griffiths Bell, Ordinary Coder, O.N. V35750, Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve, has been admitted to hospital in St. John’s, Newfoundland suffering from injuries.

            According to reports received, your son was one of a large number of Service personnel who were being entertained in the Knights of Columbus Hostel in St. John’s when that building was completely destroyed by fire late in the evening of Saturday, 12th December.

            While the extent of his injuries is not known, you may rest assured that your son is receiving the best possible medical care and you will be notified immediately of any change in his condition.

The fire in the hostel was devastating for two reasons. Ninety-nine people died, and many more were burned horribly, including Joe Bell, who spent time convalescing in a St. John’s hospital. Beyond the deaths and injuries, however, were the suspicious circumstances of the tragedy. The fire occurred on a Saturday night when the K. of C. hostel was crowded, for it was a gathering place for Newfoundland civilians and U.S. servicemen based on the island. Wartime blackout regulations meant that plywood shutters covered the windows, thus preventing light from escaping into the inky night sky. Those shutters became death traps for the hundreds of people scrambling to get out through the smoke and flames in the auditorium. Investigators concluded that the fire had been deliberately set, likely enemy sabotage orchestrated by agents of Nazi Germany. The hostel tragedy was one of many suspicious fires in St. John’s that winter.

In early February 1943, nearly two months after the fire, Edith had still not heard any more information about her son’s condition. She wrote the following letter to the Secretary of the Naval Board:

Dear Sir,

On December 14th we were advised by telegram from your office, that our son Joe Griffiths Bell… was

injured in the St. John’s K. of C. fire and admitted to the Naval Hospital there. In a letter which followed two days later, you stated that you did not know the extent of his injuries. Now, with the exception of one letter written by our son about the Dec 22, we have not received any communication from Naval authorities, Naval Hospital, no, not even a chaplain. Naturally we are very much concerned. Civilian morale is of paramount importance at this time. The citizens of our country are entitled to the utmost consideration in cases such as this. We have tried to be patient but at a loss to know, why we are not further advised as to his condition. After seven (7) weeks we feel that we are perfectly within our rights in asking for full particulars as to our sons condition. Thanking you in anticipation of an early reply…

Following is a portion of the response from the Secretary of the Naval Board she received later that month:

… I am directed to inform you that the department has received no information concerning your son… The injuries which he sustained in the Knights of Columbus Hostel fire were not of a sufficiently serious nature to warrant his being placed on the seriously ill or dangerously ill lists and in the absence of further reports, it must be presumed that he is progressing satisfactorily.

Under the stress of wartime conditions it is not possible to render individual reports on Naval personnel confined to hospital and it is only cases of serious or dangerous illness that such reports are received…

Joe did not report for active duty for three months. He spent almost three weeks recuperating in hospital and even played basketball for the Naval Basketball Team. On April 16, 1943, he was posted on the Canadian destroyer HMCS St. Croix with the rank of coder. In a letter to his mother not long after that, Joe told of being transferred to a destroyer, but did not name the ship. He also told of his enjoyable visit to Scotland, a country that he spoke of in glowing terms and his expectation of being home on furlough shortly.

The Canadian Town Class destroyer HMCS St. Croix (181) operated in the North Atlantic. Aboard the same ship were at least two other seamen with local connections: Ordinary Telegraphist Robert C. Rigby (included in this Project), and Stoker Second Class William Norman Roder, of Arkona.  

The St. Croix was one of the “four-stacker” destroyers acquired by Great Britain from the United States Navy in September 1940, in exchange for sites for air and naval bases on British territory in the Atlantic area (she was formerly U.S.S. McCook). The St. Croix and six other destroyers, transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy at the time, were manned immediately by Canadian crews and performed invaluable service on Atlantic convoy duty. Of note, one of those transferred destroyers was the St. Clair.

Despite repeated problems with minor equipment failures, HMCS St. Croix had put to sea time and time again and distinguished herself in the early days of the Battle of the Atlantic. Guarding vital convoys and patrolling for German submarines, she was credited with two U-boat kills (U-90 in late July 1942, and U-87 in early March 1943) and picked up many survivors of German U-boat attacks on Allied ships. The St. Croix became the first of the destroyers to be lost.

In August 1943, St. Croix was transferred from the Mid-Ocean Escort Force (MOEF) to the Royal Navy’s Western Approaches Command. Along with RCN Town Class destroyer St. Francis and RCN corvettes Chambly, Morden, and Sackville, the St. Croix became part of Escort Group 9, a support group of North Atlantic convoys. The support groups were designed to reinforce the close escort of endangered convoys or to hunt submarines in mid-ocean and sink them.

In mid-September 1943, Escort Group 9 was ordered to reinforce Escort Groups B3 and C2, which were guarding the westbound convoys ONS-18 and ON-202, respectively. ONS-18, the slower convoy, had sailed from the United Kingdom on September 13; the faster ONS-202 had departed several days later on a similar track and was now approaching the south of Iceland, just behind the first convoy. At sea, a patrol line of U-boats awaited.

On September 20, after the Admiralty picked up increasing signs of a German submarine concentration, they ordered the two convoys to merge, a combined assemblage of 63 merchant ships. As the convoys closed their gap, the escorts were picking up U-boat signals. Undoubtedly, the U-boats were gathering in large numbers and the wolf pack was maneuvering into position for a night attack. They were about to measure the success of their newest “secret weapon”, the Gnat acoustic torpedo. Fired in the direction of the intended victim, the Gnat was designed to circle until it picked up the appropriate propeller noise and then to hone in on it.

Escort Group 9 took up outer screening positions ahead and astern of the merchant ships, on the port (south) side of the convoy. Unfortunately, as the collection of escorts and merchant vessels headed west, fog and rain engulfed them. On the night of September 20, St. Croix was on station to the rear of the merging convoys when it was ordered to proceed farther astern to check out a possible U-boat sighting reported by an orbiting Coastal Command aircraft. In the gathering gloom, St. Croix turned eastward, and headed back along the convoy track, zigzagging at 24 knots. As it approached the spot where the sighting was reported, her captain ordered the St. Croix to begin an asdic sweep.

At 9:51 p.m., the German U-boat U-305 struck HMCS St. Croix with two Gnat torpedoes near her port propellers. With the two massive explosions, the ship glided to a stop, and listed immediately and uncontrollably. To the British frigate HMS Itchen, a few miles away, she sent the cryptic message “Am leaving the office.” It was the last word from St. Croix. Seconds later, a third electrically directed torpedo, the final blow, hit the stern of the St. Croix. A tremendous explosion occurred, flames shot into the air, and within three minutes, the St. Croix was gone. Eighty-one members of her crew were able to scramble off the sinking ship and remained on life rafts and Carley floats, clinging to whatever they could.

Two RN ships from the escort force, HMS Itchen and the corvette Polyanthus, rushed to the area, to see what had taken place and what could be done. The frigate HMS Itchen signaled “St. Croix torpedoed and blown up. Forecastle still afloat. Survivors in rafts and boats. Torpedoes fired at me. Doing full speed in vicinity. Will not attempt to P.U. survivors until Polyanthus arrives.” But the Polyanthus was herself torpedoed by U-952 just after midnight. She sank rapidly with the loss of all hands save one. Itchen then had to become involved in attempting to locate the attacking U-boat.

Later, in the foggy daylight of September 21, the Itchen was eventually able to pick up one Polyanthus survivor and 81 St. Croix survivors, but only after they had been in the very cold water for 13 hours. Most of those lost had perished in the sea after abandoning the ship.

The few hours of rescue came to an ironic and bitter end two days later. On September 23, 1943, at approximately 2:00 a.m., the German U-boat U-666, using a Gnat torpedo, struck HMS Itchen. Apparently hit in its magazine, the Itchen exploded with an ear-splitting roar and a spectacular display of pyrotechnics, and then vanished into the sea. Only three men survived this time: two from the Itchen, and one from the St. Croix, 23-year-old Stoker William Allan Fisher of Black Diamond, Alberta. In total, 147 lives were lost from the St. Croix, including 21-year-old Joseph Bell.

In October 1943, the sole survivor of the St. Croix, Stoker William A. Fisher, told his story in a newspaper account. Following is a portion of his account:

We were part of an escort detailed to a large convoy. We received a signal that submarines were about. We stayed astern of the convoy, but on September 20, we had come up and take on oil from a tanker in the convoy. On our way back to our position we saw a Canadian four-motored Liberator signaling us. We were told that they spotted a submarine and dropped depth charges. We flashed two boilers and made for the spot at 24 knots. As we neared, we had to reduce speed. As we slowed up we were hit in the screws. Fisher said there was no panic and no one thought of abandoning ship. But in two minutes another torpedo struck, this time near the mess deck, and water began to pour in. The captain, Lieutenant Commander Dobson, then issued orders to abandon ship.

Some men were injured by the explosions which followed the torpedoes; some were burned and cut. They were put in the motor launch before it was lowered over the side. The motor boat pulled away. Meanwhile attempts were made to lower a 60-passenger oar-driven whaler… Carley floats were dumped over the side and the men began jumping into the water. No one seemed worried then, many of the crew laughed that they would be due for 29 day survivors’ leave. The rowboat pulled away from the sinking destroyer and picked men out of the water. Even then I thought the ship would be saved. Then I saw the captain dive off the boat. I knew everyone was off then and that the captain had given up hope.

Fisher was in charge of the motor boat. No one in the boats died during the night. It was morning that everything happened. Men on the Carley floats insisted on getting into the rowboat. As the men got in, it settled lower in the water. Just before the rescue ship came along, it sank. The whaler did not have any injured men aboard. They were oil-grimed and cold. I saw men who were tough, big men. They hung out all night in the hope a boat would pick them up. Then when the boat did not come into view they died. I guess they couldn’t hang out any longer. We dropped them into the sea.

Sixty men were still alive on the whaler. The ship that headed to their rescue was the Royal Navy frigate Itchen, completed last September. As the frigate steamed through the lifting morning mist, the men in the whaler received the signal that the Itchen would come directly to their rescue. As the Itchen neared, a torpedo was seen to explode 30 yards to her stern. A message was flashed to the Polyanthus, a corvette of the Flower class, to come out of the convoy escort and to circle the Itchen while the men were taken aboard. The Polyanthus was just coming in and she was struck. I guess she went down in about 10 minutes. We rescued 10 men in our whaler. The Itchen headed for the convoy…. On September 2, two days after we were rescued, we were ordered to our action stations because submarines were around. We had three orders. The first started at 6 at night. There was another one at 7 and again at 9. At 9 o’clock I was standing beside the funnel when a torpedo struck. I was knocked 30 feet and landed against a gun platform. As I crawled toward the rail I kept yelling for my pal… He didn’t answer and I jumped over the side.

As I hit the water there was another explosion and I felt that my stomach was being squeezed through my ears. The water just cracked. When he reached down to tug off his boots, his left boot was missing. It had been blown off.  

Fisher grabbed a board and looked to see other men jumping from the ship. Most of them drowned. A Carley float drifted by and Fisher jumped on. During the night others jumped on, but most of them died.

In late September 1943, Edith Bell in Sarnia received a cable from the Navy informing her that her son JOE GRIFFITHS BELL, R.C.N., HAS BEEN REPORTED MISSING AT SEA.Father Lieut. J. Griff Bell, a member of the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve, was away from home in Cornwallis when the news arrived in Sarnia. For parents Griff and Edith, the last thing they knew was that Joe was aboard a destroyer. It was not until October 1, 1943, that the Honourable Angus L. MacDonald, the Minister of National Defence for Naval Services, officially announced the sinking of the destroyer St. Croix. No details of the sinking were released, other than the list of names of 147 men who lost their lives. Included in the list were Surgeon-Lieutenant William Lyon MacKenzie King, nephew of the prime minister; Ordinary Telegraphist Robert Charles Rigby (a Sarnia-connection, and included in this Project); Stoker Second Class William Norman Roder of Arkona; and Sarnian Coder Joseph Griffiths Bell.

Joe’s death was officially recorded as loss of H.M.C. ship, at sea. The sinking of the St. Croix was the heaviest single loss suffered by the R.C.N. in the war. Within weeks of this incident, the Royal Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy began to equip their escorts with towed decoy devices to counter the homing torpedoes—the British used Foxer, and the Canadians utilized the simpler and lighter CAT gear—thus effectively neutralizing one of Germany’s most important innovations.

In early January 1945, a morning service was held in Central United Church, Sarnia, to honour the memory of Coder Joseph Griffith Bell, lost at sea in September of 1943; and Private Melvin Fisher, killed in action in Italy in December of 1944 (included in this Project). Both men were members of the congregation. The Rev. E.W. Jewitt extended the sympathy of all the congregation to the bereaved parents, and voiced the hope for a just and enduring peace.

In July 1945, Joe “Griff” and Edith Bell received a War Service Gratuity of $189.85 for the loss of their only child in war.

Twenty-one-year-old Joseph Griffiths Bell has no known grave. His name is inscribed is on the Halifax Memorial, Nova Scotia, Canada, Panel 10. On the Sarnia cenotaph, his name is inscribed as J.C. Bell.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Max Berger was born in Sarnia on November 6, 1919, the son of Morris (Mozes) and Regina (Rezsin nee Fried) Berger of 167 Davis St., Sarnia. The Bergers had two other children besides Max: a son, Joseph (born in 1905 in New York, USA), and a daughter, Laura (born on April 15, 1921 in Sarnia). The patriarch, Morris, was born in the village of Gesztered, Hungary, in July 1877, and he married Regina (also born in Gesztered, Hungary, in March 1881), in Miskolc, Hungary, on December 19, 1901.

The Bergers immigrated to New York in 1902 and then moved to Michigan. By 1914, they were residing at 167 Davis Street in Sarnia. Morris was a shoemaker by trade who operated his business out of his home. Max grew up in Sarnia and attended three years at Sarnia Collegiate and, as the Bergers were a Jewish family, was active in Canadian Young Judaea. The Ahavas Isaac Synagogue was located at 219 Davis Street, only three blocks from the Berger home. Tragically, when Max was only 10 ¹/₂ years old, he lost his mother. On July 5, 1930, Regina Berger passed away in Sarnia due to heart disease at the age of 49. She was buried in Mount Sinai Cemetery, Port Huron.

Morris Berger did remarry not long after. On July 31, 1932, his new wife, Pearl Berger, arrived in Sarnia by ferry from the US. She was born in Austria-Hungary in the 1880s, and was working as a seamstress when she immigrated to Canada. On arrival she was recorded as 48 years old and was joining her husband, Morris, at 167 Davis Street where she’s be a housewife.

After graduating high school at Sarnia Collegiate, Max, age 17, worked for Maidment’s Taxi. He was later employed at St. Thomas as an electrician for six months and then worked as an assistant manager at a Toronto fish and chips shop for over two years. In July 1940, he began serving as a private with the Second Elgin Reserve Regiment (militia) in Sarnia. With the Elgins, Max received training at #11 Military Training Centre (MTC) in Woodstock and then #1 District Depot in London, Ontario. In September 1940, Max completed his Will in which he bequeathed all of his estate to his father in Sarnia.

On March 26, 1941, Max Berger, age 21, completed his Attestation Paper and enlisted with the regular forces of the Canadian Army (Canadian Active Service Force) in Windsor. At that time, he stood five feet four inches tall, weighed 143 pounds, had brown eyes and dark brown hair, and was single. He recorded his occupation as an electrician, his present address as the family home on Davis Street, and his next-of-kin as his father Morris. He also listed his religion as Hebrew and his languages as English and Jewish. Max planned to continue his work as an electrician after the war.

From the Army District Depot in Windsor, he received training at Canadian Army Training School (CATS) in Hamilton, where he was qualified as an electrician in late July 1941. In mid-October 1941, he was transferred to #2 District Depot in Toronto, becoming a member of the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps (RCASC), Headquarters “C” Force where he served as an electrician with the rank of private.

Max’s first overseas assignment was an important one. On October 27, 1941, he was part of a force of 1,975 Canadians who embarked from Vancouver, B.C. for Hong Kong to help defend the isolated Crown Colony. While on board the ship to Hong Kong, Max wrote a letter home in November 1941. It would be the last time the Bergers would hear from Max.                        

When World War II began in September 1939, events in the Far East were of little concern to Canadians. By late 1941, as the war in Europe continued into its second year, the political situation between Japan and the United States and Britain grew more strained. Recognizing its vulnerability, Britain decided to reinforce its crown colony of Hong Kong with more troops in the hopes that this deployment would deter Japan from attacking or at least delay any Japanese advances. Britain believed that reinforcing Hong Kong might even deter war. After all, the United States had moved its Pacific Fleet from California to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

With two British and two Indian infantry units already in Hong Kong, Britain asked Canada to provide more troops for its defence. The British had already decided not to commit more of their own forces to the colony, based on various studies that determined that defending Hong Kong would be extremely difficult—a conclusion never communicated to Canadian authorities. In September 1941, Canada agreed to Britain’s request to reinforce Hong Kong, as many of its leaders were anxious for the army to increase its role in the war. It would be the Canadian army’s first engagement of the Second World War, and it would be a disaster.

The size of the Canadian force signified the urgency of its mission. The Canadian Hong Kong force comprised two battalions: the Winnipeg Grenadiers and the Royal Rifles of Canada (RRofC). It also included a brigade headquarters group and various specialist details (including a signal section, two medical officers, two nursing sisters, and three chaplains). The Canadian force would be a part of 14,000 Allied troops (also from the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, China, and India) who were tasked to defend the island of Hong Kong and the adjacent mainland areas.

It would be a difficult and almost impossible task for two reasons. First, the Canadian battalions had no battle experience when they arrived at Hong Kong on November 16, 1941. Strategists counted on the Canadian soldiers having some time in Hong Kong to get more training. Instead, they became the first Canadian soldiers to fight as a unit in the Second World War when Japan attacked almost simultaneously Pearl Harbor, Northern Malaya, the Phillippines, Guam, Wake Island, and Hong Kong.

The Battle of Hong Kong began when the Japanese attacked the Colony’s mainland positions on December 8 (December 7 in North America), less than 8 hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The attack forced all Allied mainland troops to withdraw to the island. It was here that the first Canadian infantryman to die in World War II was killed. Private John Gray was captured and executed by the Japanese on December 13, 1941, in Hong Kong.

On December 18, the Japanese crossed the one-kilometre narrow passage from the mainland to the island of Hong Kong. The invasion force of battle-toughened troops was overwhelming in strength and was backed with a heavy arsenal of artillery and air support. Heavily outnumbered, the Allied troops had no significant air or naval defence and no hope of being relieved or resupplied. The Canadians performed valiantly and held out for as long as possible.

Upon arrival in Hong Kong on November 16, Max Berger’s RCASC unit was attached to the Royal Rifles of Canada (RRofC) battalion. Max spent his first days delivering supplies to frontline units despite a dwindling pool of motor transport, including local taxis. When the Japanese attacked and cut off supply routes, Max’s role changed. It became impossible to continue their supply activities, so his unit became part of an ad hoc fighting unit attached to the RRofC, tasked with defending the Allied positions. They joined another scratch force comprising Royal Canadian Army Ordnance troops who were holding the north end of what was called the Ridge position. The Ridge position was the only link between the two main British positions and, if it were lost, the Allied formations would be split in two.

The fighting for the position was fierce and, faced with overwhelming odds, the British forces tried to pull back on December 18th. It took them two tries, and they succeeded the second time. Sometime between December 19 and 22, Private Max Berger and Corporal Albert Jackson of the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps were killed, along with Corporal G.G. Desroches, Staff Sergeant G. Jackman, and Private F.C. McGuire of the Royal Canadian Army Ordinance troops.

On Christmas Day, 1941, after 17 ½ days of fighting, the British Colony surrendered. Even before the battle had officially ended, Canadians endured great hardships at the hands of their Japanese captors. On December 24, the Japanese overran a makeshift hospital in Hong Kong, assaulting and murdering nurses and bayoneting wounded Canadian soldiers in their beds.

The fall of Hong Kong marked the end of the Canadian Army’s first combat action in the Second World War and was the only significant action in Canadian military history in which 100 percent losses were inflicted—not a man escaped either capture or a grave. The Canadian Army’s significant losses included 290 dead and 493 wounded. Most of the Canadian survivors were held in prisoner of war camps either in Hong Kong or in Japan. Many of them died there; others endured almost four years of suffering until the end of the war.

Of the 1,975 Canadians who sailed from Vancouver to Hong Kong, 557 were killed in battle or died in POW camps and 493 were wounded, a casualty rate of more than 50%. Altogether, over 2000 men and women of the British Commonwealth died in the defence of Hong Kong.

The Windsor Star newspaper in late December 1941 had the following report;

Sarnia, Dec. 29 – Max Berger, 22-year-old son of Mr. and Mrs. Morris Berger, Davis street, is the only Lambton County soldier who took part in the defence of Hong Kong.

Up to last night, Private Berger’s father, a shoemaker, had received no word of his son since the Japanese attack on the island. A letter that came two weeks ago, written before the war on the Pacific, informed the parents that “I am well and everything is quiet here.”

Private Berger was born in Sarnia. He attended Wellington Street Public School and Sarnia Collegiate Institute and Technical School. At the time he enlisted in August 1940, he was employed at St. Thomas. Trained at Woodstock, Chatham, Windsor, Hamilton and in British Columbia, he is one of 150 men from Ontario regiments who volunteered to transfer to the Hong Kong contingent to bring it up to strength when it went overseas.

Private Max Berger was not listed as Missing in Action until 10 months later, in October 1942, and it was not until January 1943 that Max Berger was eventually recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (Hong Kong) between December 8th/25th, 1941.

In mid-January 1943, Morris Berger on Davis Street in Sarnia received the following letter from Army Lieutenant-Colonel F.W. Clarke, Department of National Defence in Ottawa:

Dear Mr Berger:

I wish to express to you my deep sympathy in the loss of your son A-56551 Pte. Max Berger who, as you have now been officially advised, has been killed in action. I know that you will derive some comfort from the fact that he laid down his life bravely for his country. You will already have received from National Defence Headquarters a pamphlet containing information regarding pension regulations, disposal of personal effects, and other matters. Please feel free to write to me if there is anything in connection with which you think I can be of any assistance to you.

That same month, the Times Herald newspaper in Port Huron had the following obituary;

Sarnia, Jan. 9 – Pvt. Max Berger, son of Mr. and Mrs. Morris Berger, Davis street, this city, has been officially reported as killed in action in Hong Kong. He had been unheard of since he wrote home from a ship in the ill-fated Canadian expedition.

In February 1943, Lieutenant-Colonel W.E.L. Coleman, Officer in Charge of Records, for Adjutant-General, Department of Defence, Ottawa, completed Max’s Certificate of Death. It read as follows: This is to certify that according to information received at the Department of National Defence from overseas authorities, No. A.56551, Private Max BERGER, of Headquarters “C” Force, Canadian Army, was killed in action between the 8th and 25th of December, 1941.

It was not until November 1945 that the date of Max’s death was confirmed to have taken place and was amended to December 19, 1941. His body was never recovered. Records from Brigade Headquarters listed eleven other members killed in action and three members wounded on that same day.

In April 1946, Morris Berger received a War Service Gratuity of $124.91 for the loss of his son. Max Berger was awarded the following citations posthumously: 1939-1945 Star, Pacific Star, War Medal 1939-1945, and the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal and Clasp.

Twenty-two-year-old Max Berger is commemorated on the Sai Wan Memorial, Victoria, Hong Kong, China, Column 28. On this white granite memorial are inscribed the names of over 2,000 men of the land forces of the British Commonwealth and Empire, 228 of them Canadians, who died in Hong Kong and who have no known grave.

The dedicatory inscription reads 1939-1945 The officers and men whose memory is honoured here died in the defence of Hong Kong in December 1941 and in the ensuing years of captivity and have no known grave. The northern side of the Memorial looks out over the War Cemetery where some 1,500 men lie buried.

Private Max Berger, one of the 290 Canadian soldiers killed during the defence of Hong Kong from December 8-December 25, 1941, has his name inscribed on the panels of Portland stone on this memorial, as a member of the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps.

Max’s name is also inscribed on the Hong Kong Veterans Memorial Wall in Ottawa, Ontario. Unveiled in August 2009, the six-metre granite wall is etched with the names of the 1,975 Canadians who fought in the Battle of Hong Kong.

Max Berger and 13 other local men had their names engraved on a plaque honouring 14 Jewish members of the armed services from Sarnia. The plaque was unveiled in the Ahavas Isaac Synagogue, Davis Street, Sarnia, on March 30, 1945. The men, all from Sarnia, honoured on the plaque were M. Berger, S. Bernard, R. Heller, I. Haber, M. Kirk, Dr. I. Mann, A. Rosen, G. Shabsove, M. Skosov, Mitchell Smith, Murray Smith, L. Swartz, I.B. Zierler, Isaac Zierler. Three of the men—Max Berger, Mitchell Smith and Isaac Buck Zierler—made the supreme sacrifice.

In 2008, the city honoured Max Berger further by naming Berger Drive in his memory.

Max’s brother, Joseph, who resided in Port Huron for 15 years before returning to Sarnia, passed away in Sarnia in February 1951 (he is buried in Mt. Sinai Cemetery, Port Huron); his father Morris passed away in 1953 (he is also buried in Mt. Sinai Cemetery, Port Huron); and his sister Laura, who moved to Illinois in 1961, married Frank Eagle in 1967, became a US citizen in 1973, and passed away in April 2005 in Libertyville, Illinois.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Charles Berry was born in London, Ontario, on January 1, 1923, the son of Edward Lee and Mary Philip Berry. The family moved to Sarnia a few years later, residing at of 142 North Brock Street and then at 234 Queen Street, Sarnia. Charles’ upbringing was unsettling at times. It began in February 1932 when his father, Edward, passed away when Charles was only nine years old. Mary then remarried, but her second husband, Mr. Bailey, also died before Charles enlisted. The new union, however, meant some half-siblings from the Bailey family for Charles and his brother, Lorne Kenneth, and his sisters, Elaine and Mildred.

Their new family included three half-brothers—Milton, Harold, and Wilfred—and two half-sisters: Edith and Winnifred Bailey. At the time of Charles’ death, Milton and Harold Bailey were both on active service overseas, and Wilfred was stationed at a training camp in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Charles’ two half-sisters later became Edith Riley of Sarnia and Winnifred Anderson of Windsor. 

 Charles completed his formal education after grade eight when he left school at the age of 14. He enjoyed swimming and playing football. He then put his athleticism to good use in the work field for the next four years. Prior to enlisting, Charles was employed as a truck driver from 1938-40, hauling coal and moving furniture and earning $18.00 per week. For the summers of 1940 and 1941, he worked as a sailor and deckhand on lake freighters with the Toronto and Sarnia Elevator Company for which he earned $22.00 per week.

On December 15, 1941, in London, Ontario, Charles Berry, 18, enlisted in the Canadian Army. He stood five feet eight-and-a-half inches tall, had grey eyes and brown hair, and was single. He recorded his address as 142 N. Brock Street, his occupation as truck driver, and his reasons for joining the army were “a sense of duty and my brothers are in the army”. Like other recruits, Charles was soon on the move. He started at No. 1 District Depot in London and then received Basic Training in Kitchener. He was later transferred to Royal Canadian Engineers Training Centre (RCETC) in Petawawa. His biggest move came on September 26, 1942, when Charles, 19, embarked overseas from Halifax bound for the United Kingdom.

In November 1942, his mother Mary in Sarnia received a cable from Charles informing her that he had arrived safely and was posted somewhere in England. Charles received further training as a member of the Canadian Engineer Reinforcement Unit (CERU), attached to the #8 Canadian Field Squadron, Royal Canadian Engineers. After spending a year-and-half in England, Charles finally had the opportunity to see action against the enemy—in early June 1944, he embarked from the U.K. and arrived in France on June 9, 1944.

The Battle of Normandy began for the Canadians with the June 6, 1944, D-Day landings at Juno Beach. After breaching the “Atlantic Wall” of “Fortress Europe”, Allied armies began their break out from the narrow Normandy bridgehead to carve out a foothold on the French mainland. To accomplish this took a whole summer of tenacious fighting that saw the Canadians pushing against fierce and ruthless German forces to advance east across France. In a brutal campaign of attrition, the Canadian army, supported by the navy and air force, faced fierce battles and vicious counterattacks as they clawed their way forward to liberate villages and towns including Bretteville, Carpiquet, Caen, and Falaise.

In July 1944, a month into the Normandy Campaign, Charles became a member of the Royal Canadian Engineers, 6 Field Coy, with the rank of sapper. After the Allied breakout from Normandy, Canadian forces were assigned the “Long Left Flank”, the less glamorous but vital tasks of clearing coastal areas in the north of France and Belgium of German occupiers; opening the English Channel ports for supplies essential to the Allied advance; and capturing the launching sites of German V-1 rockets. In a series of stop-and-start advances against stiff resistance in fortified positions, the Canadians liberated ports and villages including Rouen, Dieppe, Dunkirk, Boulogne, and Calais.

As a member of the Royal Canadian Engineers (RCE), Charles was part of the troops that enabled the army to move—they repaired and built roads, airfields and bridges; cleared mines and road blocks; and filled in craters and anti-tank ditches, all while working alongside combat troops at the front and often under fire.

On September 22, 1944, Charles Berry lost his life while fighting along the “long left flank” in France. In early October 1944, Mary Berry in Sarnia received the following telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa: MINISTER OF NATIONAL DEFENCE REGRETS TO INFORM YOU THAT A20681 SAPPER CHARLES EDWARD BERRY HAS BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED KILLED IN ACTION TWENTYSECOND SEPTEMBER 1944 STOP IF ANY FURTHER INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE IT WILL BE FORWARDED AS SOON AS RECEIVED.

In late October 1944, Mary, now residing on Queen Street, received the following letter from an Army Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Berry,

It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your son, A20681 Sapper Charles Edward Berry, who gave his life in the Service of his Country in the Western European Theatre of War, on the 22nd day of September, 1944. From official information we have received, your son was killed in action against the enemy. You may be assured that any additional information received will be communicated to you without delay. The Minister of National Defence and the Members of the Army Council have asked me to express to you and your family their sincere sympathy in your bereavement. We pay tribute to the sacrifice he so bravely made.

Charles Berry was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (France). His remains were originally buried at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “MR.672474 sheet 49 S.W. Buried in rear of Mde Duval-Grisette’s house on West side of road at Ecault France.” In December 1945, Mary would receive a letter from the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Madam,

Information has just been received from overseas that the remains of your son, A20681 Sapper Charles

Edward Berry, have been carefully exhumed from the original place of internment and reverently reburied in grave

10, row D, plot 4, of Calais Canadian Military Cemetery, St. Inglevert, France. Marked map is enclosed. This is a recognized military burial ground and will receive care and maintenance in perpetuity.

The grave will have been marked with a temporary cross which will be replaced in due course by a permanent headstone suitably inscribed. While it cannot now be stated when this work of permanent commemoration will begin, before any action is taken you will be communicated with and an opportunity will be given you to submit a short personal inscription of your own choice for engraving on the headstone…

In July 1945, twice-widowed Mary Berry received a War Service Gratuity of $475.83 for the loss of her son.Twenty-year-old Charles Berry is buried in Calais Canadian War Cemetery, Leubringhen, France, Grave 4.D.10. On his headstone are inscribed the words OUR DEAR SON & BROTHER. HE LIES AMONG THE BRAVE. AT HIS COUNTRY’S CALL HIS LIFE HE GAVE.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Frederick Birkinshaw was born in Nottingham, England, on October 19, 1910, the only son of William and Lucy (nee Sands, born 1886) Birkinshaw. William and Lucy, both born in Nottinghamshire, England, were married on February 2, 1907, at Holy Trinity Church in Nottinghamshire. In the 1911 census, William, a lace winder, was residing in Nottingham with his wife Lucy, their two children at the time—Mae and Frederick—and their visitor Sarah Jackson (a domestic servant). William immigrated to Canada in 1912 from Liverpool aboard the Tunisian, arriving in Quebec on June 23, 1912. His final destination was Sarnia where he found work as a lace hand. He was later employed by Imperial Oil as a mason. He was one of the very first men to enlist—on August 15, 1914—eleven days after the United Kingdom, including Canada, declared war on Germany.

William Birkinshaw, born December 2, 1885, in Nottingham, England, enlisted in the Canadian Over-Seas Expeditionary Force in Sarnia on September 14, 1914, becoming a member of the 1st Battalion. The twenty-five-year-old married father stood five feet three-and-a-half inches tall, and had brown eyes and brown hair. The recruiter recorded William’s age as 28. William recorded his address as 213 Tecumseh St., Sarnia, his next-of-kin as his wife Lucy in Nottingham, England, and his trade or calling as lace trade (later Imperial Oil). He also recorded his prior military service: “7 years Territorials and Nott. and Derby Regiment and several months with the 27th Regiment St. Clair Borderers”.

Eight days later, William underwent his medical examination in Valcartier, and one week later, on September 30, 1914, he embarked overseas bound for the United Kingdom. He was part of the First Canadian Contingent—a little more than 31,000 men, 100 nurses, and over 7,000 horses, departed the port of Quebec aboard an armada of 30 ocean-liners, hastily painted in wartime grey.

After just over four months of training in England, on February 10, 1915, Private William Birkinshaw arrived in France as a member of 18th Infantry Battalion. He served in France for 10 months.

In early April 1915, William arrived along with the rest of the 1st Division of Canadians at the Ypres salient battlefield in Belgium, an area traditionally referred to as Flanders. They were positioned at the centre of the salient jutting into the German line. The battlefield was an enormous open graveyard, a quagmire of mud and shallow trenches, littered with human excrement, pools of water and unburied corpses. They were surrounded on three sides by enemy soldiers and artillery.

It was here that the Canadians engaged in their first battle of the war, the Second Battle of Ypres—their baptism by fire. It was where the Germans unleashed the first lethal chlorine gas attack in the history of warfare. In the first 48 hours at Ypres (April 22-24), there were more than 6,000 Canadian casualties—one Canadian in every three became casualties of whom more than 2,100 died and 1,410 were captured.   

It was during the Ypres battle that William was buried while in action. He survived the incident and remained on duty, but did not feel right.

In June 1915, William received medical attention at Etaples—he was suffering with lumbago and rheumatism, and later became troubled with back pains. In mid-July, he was hospitalized at No. 20 General Hospital in Etaples due to myalgia and was hospitalized twice more with the same condition. William remained in Reserve in France until he was transferred on December 22, 1915 to the 36th Reserve Battalion at West Sandling in England.

In February 1916 at Shorncliffe, William was recorded as “suffering with myalgia, pains in back and legs since June 1915, approved for light duty for 2 months”. From March 18 to April 12, 1916, he was in Moore Barracks Casualty Hospital in Shorncliffe due to myalgia, before being returned to duty. He was hospitalized again in early June at West Sandling, and again in mid-September at Folkestone, with the “disability myalgia”.

In March 1917, William was transferred to the 4th Reserve Battalion at Bramshott, and in January 1918, was posted to Western Ontario Regimental Depot (W.O.R.D.), returning to Canada in February 1918. Three months later, in late May, he returned to England, posted to the 4th Reserve Battalion at Camp Witley. The Great War ended in November 1918. In May 1919, William returned to Canada, and was discharged on June 5, 1919 in Quebec on demobilization.

The rest of the Birkinshaw family—Lucy with their four children— immigrated to Canada in June 1919 and arrived at a Quebec port aboard the Metagama passenger ship that had departed from Liverpool, England. Frederick was eight years old at the time. The family initially settled at 197 Rose Street in Sarnia. After the war, William was employed as a fireman and mason at Imperial Oil.

Besides Frederick, the Birkinshaw family comprised his older sister, Mae (b. July 1907), and his two younger sisters, Margaret (b. July 1913) and Gladys Irene (b. January 1917). Tragedy struck the Birkinshaw family and Frederick when he was just 12 years old. The matriarch of the family, Lucy, passed away at age 36 on October 30, 1922. She is buried at Lakeview Cemetery.

Widowed William remarried on July 14, 1927. His new wife was Scottish-born widow Marion Philp (nee Ross). Her first husband was Scottish-born William Philp, and in 1921 the family resided at 406 S. Christina Street. Marion and William Philp had five children together—daughters Isabela (b. 1905) and Flora (b. 1920), and sons William (born 1907, died in 1923), Edward (b. 1914) and Donald (b. 1918). Both Donald and Edward Philp served in the Canadian Army. William Philp, an engineer, passed away in Sarnia at age 47 in December 1925. He is buried at Lakeview Cemetery.

Frederick received his education in Sarnia and left school at the age of 14. Between leaving school and finding work, Frederick, on his 21^st birthday, married a young Margaret Elizabeth Quinn in Port Huron, Michigan, on October 19, 1931. Margaret was the only daughter of Henry and Elizabeth (Libby) Quinn. Frederick and Margaret had four sons together: Bruce Fredrick (b. January 18, 1932); William Henry (b. July 7, 1934); Charles Edward (b. September 24, 1937); and Frederick Clarence (b. December 1, 1942). Their youngest son, Frederick Clarence, was born when Frederick was overseas, so he never had the opportunity to see his newborn son. Sadly, infant son Frederick Clarence, died due to influenza pneumonia when he was just three-and-a-half months old, on March 4, 1943.  

At wartime, the family resided at 279 Shamrock Street and both parents worked to support their family. Margaret was an employee of Sarnia Refinery and a female delegate on the Joint Industrial Council for Sarnia Refinery for 1945. Frederick worked at Imperial Oil Limited for two years as a clay filter worker and painter.

Their lives changed on August 11, 1940, when Frederick, age 29, and the father of three, enlisted in the Canadian Army. Enlisting in Chatham, he stood five feet five inches tall, had brown eyes and black hair, and he and his family were residing on Shamrock Street at the time. His army training kept him busy and on the move. He was taken on strength into the Kent Regiment and received training with that Regiment in London, New Westminster (B.C.), and Windsor, Ontario. In April 1942, he was transferred to the Highland Light Infantry (H.L.I.) of Canada, R.C.I.C., posted in Windsor. On May 1, 1942, Private Frederick Birkinshaw of the H.L.I. made the biggest move of his life when he embarked overseas for the United Kingdom.

Once in the U.K., he became a member of the Canadian Division Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CDIRU), remaining with his unit, the Highland Light Infantry. He continued his training in the U.K. and advanced to the rank of lance corporal in August 1943. In mid-September 1943, he reverted to the rank of private at his own request. All of this training was in preparation for one of the most historic battles in history. Private Frederick Birkinshaw arrived with the Highland Light Infantry on the beaches of France on June 6, 1944—D-Day.

The Battle of Normandy began for the Canadians with the D-Day landings at Juno Beach. After breaching the “Atlantic Wall” of “Fortress Europe”, Allied armies began their break out from the narrow Normandy bridgehead to carve out a foothold on the French mainland. To accomplish this took a whole summer of tenacious fighting that saw the Canadians pushing against fierce and ruthless German forces to advance east across France. In a brutal campaign of attrition, the Canadian army, supported by the navy and air force, faced fierce battles and vicious counterattacks as they clawed their way forward to liberate villages and towns including Bretteville, Carpiquet, Caen, and Falaise.

On July 8, 1944, one month after the D-Day landings, the father of three lost his life while fighting at Caen during the Battle of Normandy. Frederick’s remains were originally buried on August 7, 1944, at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “Buron France 98857245”.

Frederick Birkinshaw and another Sarnian, Corporal Isaac Bell (included in this Project), both lost their lives in France on the same day: July 8, 1944.

In mid-July 1944, Margaret in Sarnia received a telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa with information about her husband stating that PTE. BIRKINSHAW WAS KILLED IN ACTION ON JULY 8. FURTHER INFORMATION WILL BE FORWARDED WHEN RECEIVED.The telegram did not state where Pte. Birkinshaw was killed, but Frederick’s father, William, had several letters from his son recently in which he intimated he had participated in the D-Day invasion of France, and had been at Caen.

At the end of July 1944, Margaret received the following letter from an Army Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Birkinshaw,

It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your husband A50051 Private Frederick Birkinshaw who gave his life in the Service of his Country in France, on the 8th day of July, 1944. From official information we have received, your husband was killed in action against the enemy. You may be assured that any additional information received will be communicated to you without delay.

The Minister of National Defence and the Members of the Army Council have asked me to express to you and your family their sincere sympathy in your bereavement. We pay tribute to the sacrifice he so bravely made.

Frederick Birkinshaw was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (France). He was survived by his father William, his wife Margaret (later resided at 524 S. Christina St.) and their three sons: Bruce (age 12), William (age 10) and Charles (age 7), along with his step siblings—Isabela (married Louis Roy Gratton), Edward, Donald and Flora Philps (married Fred Lethbridge)—and his three sisters Mae (married Archie Grant McDonald of Pontiac, Michigan), Margaret (married Harry Alexander McDonald, resided on Shamrock Street, Sarnia) and Irene (married Leonard James Cooper, resided on Rose Street, Sarnia).

William Birkinshaw, patriarch of the family and Great War veteran, passed away in February 1959 and is buried in Lakeview Cemetery in Sarnia. William’s second wife Marion predeceased him, passing away in October 1945.

In June 1945, Margaret Birkinshaw received a War Service Gratuity of $676.67 for the loss of her husband. In August 1947, the Director of Records sent her a photograph of the grave and the marker over the burial place in Bretteville-Sur-Laize, France, of her late husband. Margaret later resided at 524 South Christina Street, Sarnia.

Thirty-three-year-old Frederick Birkinshaw is buried in Bretteville-Sur-Laize War Cemetery, Calvados, France, Grave XXVI.H.7. His name is also inscribed on the Sarnia Refinery Plaque. Unveiled in 1949, the plaque has the names of 24 Sarnia Imperial Oil employees who made the ultimate sacrifice in World War II.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Hugo Borchardt was born in Berlin, Ontario, on September 25, 1913, the only son of Maximilian Paul and Mary (Mae) Almera (nee Hysert) Borchardt. In 1916, the city of Berlin, Ontario, was renamed Kitchener. Max (born in Neustettin, Germany) immigrated to Canada in 1906, and four years later, on April 19, 1910, married Mae in Kitchener. Mae Hysert was born in Toronto, and her heritage was Pennsylvanian Dutch and German. In 1916, the Borchardts moved to Sarnia and resided at 257 Emma Street where Max supported the family by working as a stone carver and a cutter. 

Max and Mae were blessed with four children: three daughters—Ruth Eleanor (born 1912), Clara Louise (born 1916), and Frieda Marie (born 1919)—and one son, Hugo. Hugo attended Central United Church and was educated at Devine Street Public elementary school from 1920-1927. Sarnia Collegiate provided him a high school education for four years, and Hugo kept himself busy before he graduated in June 1931. He took technical courses in electrical, drafting, machine shop, auto mechanics, and woodworking and was a member of the gymnastics team.

Hugo’s hobbies were landscape oil painting and amateur radio, but work took much of his time. It seems as if he was always on the move, earning money in a variety of jobs. His work ran the gamut from being a deck hand with Canada Steamship Lines and Morse Steamship Company, to being a mechanic with Electric Auto Lite and with

Collingwood Ship Yard. He was also hired as a painter with Kellogg Construction, with C.D. Shand, and with H.A. Miller in Sarnia. If that weren’t enough, he spent time as a steel rigger for six months with Superior Steel Products.

During these busy years, a young lady from Sarnia caught his fancy. Violet Constance Mary Shand was her name, and on March 6, 1936, at age 23, Hugo married Violet (the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William C.D. Shand of 203 North Vidal Street) at St. George’s Church in Sarnia. Hugo and Violet resided initially at Oakwood Corners (now the corner of Colborne Road and Lakeshore Road), and later at 356 ½ Nelson Street. In the next few years, Violet gave birth to their daughter, Marilyn Dianne (born July 24, 1937), and a son, Hugo Sergei Junior (born January 1943).

On November 21, 1941 in London, Ontario, Hugo Borchardt, age 28, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He stood five feet seven inches tall and had hazel eyes and dark brown hair. The married father of one (at the time), expressed his ambition to be a pilot. The RCAF Medical Board evaluated Hugo as “physically fit, [his] personality as stolid, intelligent, methodical, co-operative, and good air crew material.” The RCAF interviewer recorded Hugo as “keen for air service. Has good personality for aircrew. Bright clean cut young man. Very ambitious to become a pilot. Excellent aircrew material and would consider him likely prospect for officer material.”

Like every other serviceman, Hugo was soon on the move, drawing farther and farther away from his family.

From #2 Manning Depot in Brandon, Manitoba, he first received air training at Service Flying Training Schools (SFTS) in Penhold and in Calgary. Next up was #2 Initial Training School (ITS) and then Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Regina, before he attended Composite Training School (KTS) in Trenton, Ontario. He then trained at #4 Bombing and Gunnery School (BGS) in Fingal, close to St. Thomas, before he was transferred to Quebec.

Instructors’ comments about Hugo included “dependable, steady, works hard in the air” and “a good type. Has a serious attitude. Well spoken, a good personality… a keen and industrious pupil…should be a good assistant instructor.” After attending #8 Air Observer School (AOS) in Ancienne, he was awarded his Air Observer’s Badge and commission as a Pilot Officer on November 20, 1942. At home, his wife Violet was now seven months pregnant.

Following his graduation and a seven-day leave, he instructed at Mountainview and at Mossbank, Saskatchewan.

In late January 1943, Hugo spent a 10-day furlough at his Nelson Street home with his wife and two young children—Marilyn was 5 ½, and Hugo Jr. was only a few months old. After what must have seemed a much-too-brief break from the war, Hugo returned to his duty as an instructor at Mossbank Bombing and Gunnery School.

The next significant change in Hugo’s life, that included moving to Sarnia, marrying Violet, and being a father to two young children, was going overseas to fight. On a Saturday evening in early August 1943, Bob and Frieda Powers hosted a farewell party at their Sarnia home to honour Hugo before he went overseas. Around 30 friends gathered to wish him good luck during an evening of dancing and singing. Bob Powers offered a toast to the guest of honour, and Archie Reeves, after an appropriate speech, presented Hugo with a black leather Gladstone bag. The evening was brought to a close with the singing of “He’s a Jolly Good Fellow” and “Auld Lang Syne.”

Hugo embarked overseas for the United Kingdom in late August 1943. He initially continued his operational training in England. He then went on operations with the RAF #90 Squadron. Here, he flew the British “heavy” Lancaster bombers from this squadron’s base at Tuddenham, Bury-St.Edmunds, Suffolk, England. As a member of RAF #90 Squadron “Celer” (Swift), part of Bomber Command, he attained the rank of flying officer bomb-aimer in December 1943.

During the course of the war, one of this country’s most significant contributions was the approximately 50,000 Canadians who served with the RCAF and RAF in Bomber Command operations. Next to Britain, Canada was the largest contributor to Bomber Command, making up more than a third of all of Bomber Command personnel. The men who served in Bomber Command faced some of the most difficult odds of anyone fighting in the war.   

No. 90 Squadron was reformed from previous incarnations in May 1941 at RAF Watton, equipped with the American B-17 Flying Fortress and tasked with carrying out daylight missions. The squadron was disbanded in February 1942. The squadron, part of No. 3 Group at RAF Bottesford, was reformed in November 1942 as a night bomber squadron and was equipped with Short Stirlings. By June 1944, the squadron was equipped with Avro Lancasters, the British four-engined heavy bomber.

Hugo had been in the U.K. less than a year when he was killed in action on his twelfth mission over enemy territory. On July 21, 1944, he was a member of the crew of Lancaster Mk. 1 aircraft LM183 (markings WP-L) that took off at 2313 hours from RAF Tuddenham on a night operation targeting the Rheinpreussen oil plant at Moers-Meerbeck (Homburg), in Germany. Hugo’s Lancaster was part of a group of 147 Lancasters and 11 Mosquitoes taking part in the operation.

The night was clear and cloudless, making it relatively easy for the bombers to find their target; however, the conditions also favoured the enemy night fighters and anti-aircraft defenses on the ground. The bombing raid on the aviation fuel-producing plant went as planned, but during the return trip to England, German night fighters caught the Allied bombers by surprise over Holland.

Just before 0140 hours, Lancaster LM183, while flying west over Boxtel, a town in southern Holland, was attacked by a German night fighter—a Messerschmitt Bf 110 G4, with a crew of three. More than likely, the Bf 110 attacked the Lancaster from below, its cannons strafing the bomber causing it to burst into flames. The Lancaster spiralled erratically as she plummeted to the ground. Borchardt’s Lancaster LM183 crashed near Boxtel (Noord-Brabant) in the southern part of the Netherlands.

All seven crew members aboard Lancaster LM183 perished—along with RCAF Flying Officer-Bomb Aimer Hugo Borchardt were RAF members Sgts. Spencer Christopher Butcher, Jeremiah Francis Dineen, Harry Richard Hunnisett; WO. James William Butterworth; F/L Philip John Rossington; and F/O Harold Francis Sargent Best (RCAF). The remains of the crew members were buried in Woensel Cemetery, Eindhoven.

That night, German night fighters shot down 20 bombers in the raid, including two other Lancasters from #90 Squadron. Despite the losses, Bomber Command considered the mission a success. Germany’s fuel producing plant incurred severe damage.

The fighter pilot who shot down Hugo Borchardt’s Lancaster was Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer, a legendary German ace whom British bomber crews had nick-named the “Spook of St. Trond.” As a youth, Schnaufer had attended Nazi schools attaining high marks, and he went on to achieve successes at Luftwaffe flight, pilot and fighter-pilot schools. At age 21, he had registered 20 kills, received the German Cross in Gold, and was promoted to a squadron leader. By December 1943, Schnaufer had scored 42 aerial victories, and was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross. Three months later, he was appointed Group Commander of a night-fighter squadron, and in June 1944, he was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Corss with Oak Leaves, with a total of 84 victories.

Schnauffer’s fighter group was based out of St. Trond in German-occupied Belgium. When he shot down Borchardt’s Lancaster, Schnauffer registered his 85^th kill. He then registered his 86^th kill 11 minutes after downing Lancaster LM183. Schnauffer went on to receive the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds, Germany’s highest military decoration at the time. When the war ended, Schnauffer was the highest scoring night fighter ace of World War II, having shot down 121 British and Commonwealth bombers. The tail fin of his Messerschmitt Bf 110 is preserved in the Imperial War Museum in London. Embossed on it are 121 small grey aircraft silhouettes tallying all his kills.

In late July 1944, Violet received a telegram from Ottawa informing her that her husband FLYING OFFICER HUGO BORCHARDT HAS BEEN REPORTED MISSING WHILE ON OPERATIONAL DUTIES OVERSEAS.Days later Violet received this letter from the Wing Commander of No. 90 Squadron, RAF Station, Tuddenham, Suffolk.

Dear Mrs. Borchardt,

            It is with the deepest regret that I have to confirm the notification that you will have already received that your husband, Flying Officer Hugo Hysert Borchardt, is missing from air operations on the night of 20/21st July, 1944. Your husband was detailed to carry out an important raid against the enemy, and his aircraft failed to return. No word has been received from the aircraft up to the time of writing, and any further information received will be immediately communicated to you.

            I do not wish to raise false hopes, but there is every possibility that your husband is either a prisoner of war, or else is attempting to escape from enemy territory. The International Red Cross Society will immediately notify you in the event of any definite news from the enemy. Your husband will be a great loss to the Squadron, where he always carried out his duties in a conscientious and exemplary manner, and on behalf of myself and all members of the Squadron, I would like to offer you our sincere sympathy.

            At a time like this words can be of little avail, but if there is anything I can do to help you, do not hesitate to write to me, for I will do anything within my power.

Approximately seven months later, in late February 1945, Violet received another telegram informing her that her husband Hugo was now officially presumed dead. Days later, she received a letter from the R.C.A.F. Casualty Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa.

Dear Mrs. Borchardt:

            Confirming my telegram of recent date, I regret to inform you that advice has been received from the International Red Cross Committee at Geneva concerning your husband, Flying Officer Hugo Hysert Borchardt, previously reported missing on Active Service. The report quotes German information which states that your husband lost his life on July 21st, 1944, but does not contain any further particulars. The International Red Cross Committee is making every effort to obtain the location of your husband’s grave. However, I feel sure you will appreciate the difficulties attendant upon securing additional details.

            Since this information originates from enemy sources it is necessary for the present to consider your husband “missing believed killed” until confirmed by further evidence, and in the absence of such evidence his death may be presumed for official purposes when the lapse of time has shown that unhappily there is no reasonable doubt that your husband has lost his life. May I assure you and the members of your family of my deepest sympathy.

Approximately two months after Violet received the above letter, VE Day was declared, marking the end of war in Europe.  

Two months after VE Day, in late July 1945, Violet received another letter from the R.C.A.F. Casualty Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Mrs. Borchardt:

            Further to my letter dated February 22nd, 1945, concerning your husband, Flying Officer Hugo Hysert Borchardt, a further report has now been received from Overseas. This report advises that the aircraft of which your husband was a member of the crew was shot down on July 21st, 1944, and that he was buried in the General Cemetery at Eindhoven-Woensel, Section KK, together with the remainder of his crew. Eindhoven-Woensel is located one mile north of Eindhoven, Holland.

            Now that Air Ministry has presumed your husband’s death for official purposes his personal effects, monies, etc. will shortly be forwarded to the Director of Estates… who will distribute them in accordance with his wishes as expressed in his Will. Please be assured that if at any time in the future further word concerning your husband is received you will be advised immediately.

            I sincerely hope that you can find consolation in the fact that your husband risked his life willingly in the defense of freedom. What we all owe to him is beyond estimation. May you be fortified by the spirit of courage and hope which enabled him to discharge his duties whatever the cost.

Hugo Borchardt was later officially recorded as Previously reported missing after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas (Germany). He left behind his wife, Violet, and their two children, Marilyn, age seven, and 18-month-old Hugo Junior. In August 1945, Violet received a War Service Gratuity of $460.84 for the loss of her husband. Hugo was also survived by his three sisters who at the time were Ruth Eleanor Windover, residing in Petrolia; Clara Louise Karr, residing on Kathleen Ave.; and Frieda Marie Powers, residing on Cromwell St. in Sarnia.

In January 1947, Hugo’s mother, Mae, received the Operational Wings of her only son from the Wing Commander for Chief of the Air Staff. Accompanying the Wings was this letter:

Dear Mrs. Borchardt:

It is a privilege to have the opportunity of sending you the Operational Wings and Certificate in recognition of the gallant services rendered by your son, Flying Officer H.H. Borchardt. I realize there is little which may be said or done to lessen your sorrow, but it is my hope that these “Wings”, indicative of operations against the enemy, will be a treasured memento of a young life offered on the altar of freedom in defence of his Home and Country.

In October 1947, the RAF Missing Research and Enquiry Unit released their report on the investigation and findings of four of the graves of the crew of Lancaster LM183 that they had exhumed in Woensel Cemetery in May 1947. A portion of their findings included the following information: Grave 102 – no means of identification; Grave 103 – In this grave were found Sergeant’s Chevrons and an electrically heated flying glove… Since Engineers did not wear electrically heated flying gloves, this grave contains SGT. HUNNISETT; Grave 104 – An A/B Brevet showed that this grave holds F/O BORCHARDT; Grave 105 – No means of identification…

Hugo’s father, Max, passed away in Sarnia in 1952. His mother, Mae, passed away in 1966. Both are buried in Lakeview Cemetery. On the Borchardt headstone at Lakeview are engraved the names of Max, Mary, and BELOVED SON F/O HUGO KILLED IN ACTION 1944.

Violet Borchardt later remarried, becoming Mrs. Frank MacDonald. She passed away at the age of 98 in Sarnia in 2012. She is buried in Lakeview Cemetery and outlived her children who both passed away in 2003.

Thirty-year-old Hugo Borchardt is buried in Eindhoven (Woensel) Cemetery, Netherlands, Plot KK. Grave 103. On his headstone are inscribed the words HE DID WHAT HE COULD.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

More information on this soldier is available in

Valour Remembered: Sarnia-Lambton War Stories by Tom Slater and Tom St. Amand

Jesse Brakeman was born in Toronto on August 7, 1920. He was the only child of the Jesse Clair and Rose Adelle Brakeman of 175 Penrose St., Sarnia. His father, born in Franklin, Pennsylvania, passed away in 1924 when Jesse was only three years old. Jesse’s mother, Rose, was born in Exmouth, Devon, England, and immigrated to Canada in 1909. Rose was a secretary at the local yard office of the Canadian National Railways, where she worked for 40 years. Jesse’s grandmother, Mrs. Harriet A. Clemens, resided at 175 Penrose St., Sarnia.

Jesse received his education at Lochiel Street Public School, 1926-1933, and at Sarnia Collegiate Institute beginning 1934 and graduating in 1940. He was active in football, baseball, hockey, and lacrosse, and his hobbies included model aircraft building, and music. He was a member of St. George’s Church on Charlotte Street and worked part time for five years for the Windsor Daily Star, Sarnia Bureau.

Nineteen-year-old Jesse Brakeman enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force on June 26, 1940, in London, Ontario. He stood five feet eight-and-a-half inches tall, had blue eyes and red hair, and was single. He recorded his occupation as student and was living at home with his mother on Penrose Street at the time of his enlistment. His request was to be an air gunner or air observer.

After being posted to #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, Jesse received his air training at #1 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto; #1 Air Observer School (AOS) in Malton; and #1 Bombing and Gunnery School (BGS) in Jarvis. He was awarded his Air Gunner’s Badge on December 15, 1940, before being posted to RCAF Station Rockcliffe in Ottawa in late December 1940. In early February 1941, he was transferred to Eastern Air Command (EAC) in Halifax.

Jesse embarked overseas for the United Kingdom on February 15, 1941. Upon arrival, he cabled his mother Rose in Sarnia, telling her that he had arrived safely, and he was feeling fine. In the U.K., he was initially posted to #20 Operational Training Unit (OTU) for further training. On May 31, 1941, Jesse became a member of the RAF #214 (Federated Malay States) Squadron “Ultor In Umbris” (Avenging in the Shadows), part of Bomber Command, with the rank of Sergeant-Air Gunner. By July 1941, he had shot down his first German plane.

During the war, one of Canada’s most significant contributions was the approximately 50,000 Canadians who served with the RCAF and RAF in Bomber Command operations. Next to Britain, Canada was the largest contributor to Bomber Command, making up more than a third of all of Bomber Command personnel. The men who served in Bomber Command faced some of the most difficult odds of anyone fighting in the war.

No. 214 Squadron disbanded after World War I and was resurrected in 1935. In April 1937, the squadron was based at RAF Feltwell, and in May 1939, began being equipped with the Vickers Wellington Mark I—a British twin-engine, long-range medium bomber. The squadron’s first offensive operations were in June 1940, while based at RAF Stradishall. In September 1941, the squadron was adopted by the British Malay Federation and had its name was incorporated into its title. Serving in No. 3 Group, the squadron flew many missions against naval and industrial targets in Fortress Europe and took part in mine laying operations. Over the course of the war, the squadron moved to various bases and converted from Wellingtons to Short Stirling and B-17 Flying Fortress II bombers.

Just over a year after he enlisted, on September 3, 1941, Jesse Brakeman’s Wellington Mark IC aircraft R1717 (markings BU-), was lost during a bombing operation over enemy territory. The Wellington took off from Stradishall on a night operation to Frankfurt, Germany. It was presumed to have crashed in the sea off the French coast. Perishing with Sergeant-Air Gunner Jesse Brakeman were FS. James Patrick McKay (RCAF); Sgts. Lionel Black (RAF), Leslie Whitehouse Price (RAF), and Clifford Hambleton (RAF); and F/L. Reginald Hubert May (RAF).

On September 4, widowed Rose Brakeman received a telegram from the R.C.A.F. Headquarters in Ottawa, informing her that her only son SERGEANT-PILOT JESSE CLEMENS BRAKEMAN WAS REPORTED

MISSING AS THE RESULT OF AN AIR OPERATION OVERSEAS RECENTLY. There were no further details

concerning the air operations.

The Canadian Observer reported that “the fact that he was designated as missing held out some hope that he might have been forced down over Nazi-held countries in Western Europe or made an escape in some other manner.” The telegram from Ottawa was a severe shock to Rose, particularly because word that he had shot down his first German plane in July had recently arrived home.

In late June 1942, this “Notification of Death” was issued by the Flight Lieutenant, for Director of Personal Services, Air Ministry, in London, England: CERTIFIED that according to the records of this department CAN/R68117 Sergeant Clemence Jesse BRAKEMAN, Royal Canadian Air Force, was reported missing and for official purposes to have lost his life on the third day of September, 1941, as the result of air operations. Information received through the International Red Cross states that this airman is buried in the Municipal Cemetery, Dunkirk, France.

After the war Rose was able to visit her son’s grave in France. She always kept a framed photo of Jesse in her living room. Rose passed away in 1993. She is buried with her husband Jesse in Lakeview Cemetery in Sarnia.

Twenty-one-year-old Jesse Brakeman is buried in the Dunkirk Town Cemetery, Nord, France, Plot 2 Row 2 Grave 20. On his headstone are inscribed these words: GOD BE MERCIFUL TO MY SON. REUNITE HIS SOUL WITH THOSE OF HIS DAD AND HIS PALS. MOTHER.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

George Brown Jr. was born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, on September 24, 1921, the son of George Morton and Bathia (nee Riddle) Brown, of Sarnia. Both his parents were originally from Scotland—George Sr. from Edinburgh and Bathia from Aberdeenshire. They were married on June 8, 1914, in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.

Bathia gave birth to a baby boy in October 1915, but tragically, he died at only nine days old on October 13, 1915. George Jr., born in 1921, would be their only child. More tragedy hit the Brown family on November 1, 1927, when George Sr., a hotel clerk, died at the age of 46 in Moose Jaw. George Jr. was only six years old at the time. George Jr. attended Alexandria elementary school, 1926-1935, and then Central Collegiate, 1935-1937, both in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. Bathia and her only son came to Sarnia when George Jr. was approximately 16 years old. They lived at 333 Wellington Street.

After George arrived in Sarnia, he attended Sarnia Collegiate from September 1937 until June 1940. He was active in swimming, hockey, and baseball. After graduating, George was briefly employed as a relief clerk in 1940 with the Canadian National Railway Freight Office in Sarnia. He then worked with T.E. Pressey Transport in Sarnia as a truck driver for nine months until he enlisted.

In a reference letter written by the head of Pressey Transport (Christina Street) on behalf of George’s application for the Air Force, the transport head wrote We wish to advise that this man has been with us approximately one year, having come to us from the Sarnia Collegiate and Technical School. We find him to be an able worker, honest and morally above reproach. He is an experienced motor vehicle operator, and his education is of the best. We regret losing a man of his caliber but trust same will be temporary.

Nineteen-year-old George Brown enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force on June 23, 1941, in London, Ontario. He stood five feet nine-and-a-half inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, was single, and lived with his mother Bathia at 333 Wellington Street. He recorded his occupation as truck driver. His preference was to be a pilot or observer, and his post-war ambition was to stay with the Air Force in commercial aviation.

From #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, George received his air training at #6 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto; #20 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Oshawa; and then #6 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) in Dunnville. He was awarded his Pilot’s Flying Badge on June 19, 1942, and then continued his training at Central Flying School in Trenton. He was transferred to #8 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) in Moncton, New Brunswick, where he was a flying instructor, and was then posted to #36 Operational Training Unit (OTU) in Greenwood, Nova Scotia.

In late April 1944, George Brown embarked overseas for the United Kingdom where he was attached to #13 Operational Training Unit (OTU), RAF Colerne. Four months later, on August 21, 1944, George became a member of R.N.Z.A.F #487 New Zealand Squadron “Ki Te Mutunga” (Through to the End), part of Bomber Command, with the rank of Flight Lieutenant, Flying Officer-Pilot.

During the course of the war, one of this country’s most significant contributions was the approximately 50,000 Canadians who served with the RCAF and RAF in Bomber Command operations. Next to Britain, Canada

was the largest contributor to Bomber Command, making up more than a third of all of Bomber Command personnel. 

The men who served in Bomber Command faced some of the most difficult odds of anyone fighting in the war.

RNZAF #487 was formed as a day bomber unit in August 1942, at RAF Feltwell, Norfolk. Initially equipped with the Lockheed Ventura, a twin-engine medium bomber, they were crewed by Royal New Zealand Air Force pilots. In August 1943, the squadron, based at RAF Sculthorpe, Norfolk, began to re-equip with de Havilland Mosquito aircraft—a twin-engine, shoulder-winged light bomber. With a crew of two, the Mosquito served a variety of roles: tactical and night bomber; day or night fighter; maritime strike aircraft; photo reconnaissance; and pathfinder operations. The Mosquito was unusual in that its frame was constructed almost entirely of wood, so was nicknamed “The Wooden Wonder” or “Mossie” by its crews.

On September 17, 1944, George’s Mosquito aircraft MS979 crashed sometime after take-off from #487 Base, then at RAF Thorney Island, while en-route to Holland. No one witnessed the crash, and the aircraft was never recovered. It was assumed that the aircraft went down in the sea.

Approximately one week later, Mrs. Bathia Brown in Sarnia received a telegram informing her that her son FLIGHT-LIEUTENANT GEORGE WILLIAM BROWN HAS BEEN REPORTED MISSING AFTER AIR OPERATIONS OVERSEAS ON SEPTEMBER 16.One week after the incident, the Wing Commander of No. 487 Squadron, R.A.F. Station Thorney Island, wrote the following letter to George’s mother:

Dear Mrs. Brown,

It is with deep regret that I have to write to you on this sad occasion, about your son George. I am afraid I have very little I can tell you as we have no idea what happened to him or his aircraft. The Squadron was operating over Holland on the night of the 16th September. We never received anything from George on the wireless from the time he took off, nor did any of the other aircraft see him.

I have every hope that he was able to reach our lines and get out in his parachute, in which case it is doubtful if we would hear anything before about a fortnight. In case he came down in the water both he and his navigator Flying Officer Fuller, as well as the aircraft were equipped with rubber dinghies and rations for several days, so they might easily have been picked up and now be a prisoner of war. He may have landed on the enemy side of the line. I am afraid it will be quite a long time before the Red Cross will hear anything. However don’t give up all hope as a number of the people who are listed as missing turn up in the end.

The Service has lost an excellent Officer and Pilot in your son, and we have lost a good friend. The whole Squadron join me in sending you our very deepest sympathy for your great loss.

Approximately 11 months later, Bathia Brown was still waiting for information about the fate of her only child. In a letter to the Secretary, Department of National Defence for Air she wrote I will now confirm that I have had no news nor evidence concerning him since he was reported missing on Sept 16, 1944. I thank you for informing me that the Research & Inquiry Service are investigating into the fate of all missing Air force personnel & I will be glad to hear from you if any trace of my son is secured however small.

In a Post Presumption Memorandum dated August 1946, the file information records the following: LOST AT SEA – The body of the navigator of this crew was washed up from the sea. No news has been received of F/Lt. Brown so it is now assumed that he perished with the aircraft at sea.

In early December 1946, Bathia was still searching for information about her son. In another letter to the Department of National Defence for Air she wrote I am writing you regarding my deceased son, F/L George William Brown J-12195 reported killed in action Sept 17, 1944. He went out his last flight in a light aircraft plane, along with him was his navigator Roy Fuller (RAF). Their mission being finding enemy movements by road and rail in Holland. It has come to my knowledge that when the British forces went into Holland, the inhabitants of South Beveland, an island off the Dutch coast, told them they had found Roy Fuller’s body & had buried him in the church cemetery at Driewegan… & gave them his identity cards & discs. Other things found on his person were sent to his mother, who identified them as her son’s who was flying with George that night. I’m sorry to trouble you after all this time but I’m asking you if you could find out if there was ever any trace of George found because where his navigator was, he would be. I hope to hear from you at your convenience.                         Yours truly,  Bathia Brown

In December 1946, Bathia received the following letter from the RCAF Casualty Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa:

Dear Mrs. Brown:

In reply to your letter I regret that although no further information has been received concerning your son, Flight Lieutenant George William Brown, it is felt that you would be desirous of knowing that investigations have been carried out by the Royal Air Force Missing Research and Inquiry Services on the Continent into the loss of you son and his aircraft.

The lack of news of your son after so long a period and the fact that his Navigator, Flying Officer Roy Allan Fuller, was recovered from the sea and buried in the Driewetan Baarland (Church Cemetery) South Beveland, Holland undoubtedly leaves no doubt that the aircraft crashed into the sea. The possibility, therefore, of obtaining further news seems very remote.

You may rest assured that should any further information come to hand you will be informed immediately. Please accept my sincere sympathy with you in your sad loss and in the anxiety you have suffered.

George Brown was later officially recorded as Previously reported missing after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas (England). In late January 1947, Bathia received the following letter from the Wing Commander for Chief of the Air Staff:

Dear Mrs. Brown:

It is a privilege to have the opportunity of sending you the Operational Wings and Certificate in recognition of the gallant services rendered by your son, Flight Lieutenant, G.W. Brown. I realize there is little which may be said or done to lessen your sorrow, but it is my hope that these “Wings”, indicative of operations against the enemy, will be a treasured memento of a young life offered on the altar of freedom in defence of his Home and Country.

Twenty-three-year-old George Brown has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Runnymede War Memorial, Panel 244.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Paul Brown was born in Domville, Ontario, near Prescott, on July 8, 1920. He was the son of Albert Glen (of Domville, Ontario) and Ada Helena (nee Anderson) Brown. Albert and Ada were married in Ontario on November 15, 1916. Paul had one brother, Charles Russell (who would serve with the RCAF), and two sisters: Jean Anderson and Eleanor Louise. Tragedy struck the Brown family in 1928, when the family patriarch, Albert, passed away on March 12, 1928, at the age of 41. Paul was not yet eight years old at the time.

Ada and family moved to Sarnia sometime after Albert’s death and lived at 225 Maria Street. Paul resided in Sarnia for approximately 11 years, where he attended Johnston Memorial Public School and Sarnia Collegiate. During his school days, he used to spend his spare time on farms. He was also active in Central United Church Century Young Men’s Sunday school for many years. He worked on a farm only one summer before leaving high school in November 1937, so he could volunteer to serve in the navy.

One of Paul’s reference letters in his application to enter the Navy was from Ross W. Gray, Member of Parliament for Lambton West. In his January 1938 letter to the Naval Secretary, Department of National Defence in Ottawa, Gray heartily endorsed the young Sarnian:

Dear Sir:

            This is to certify that I have known Paul A. Brown for the past twelve years. He is anxious to join the Naval Service. His application will show his educational ability and I desire only to say that in my opinion he would make an excellent applicant as he is a good, clean young man of excellent habits and character.

At the outbreak of World War II, the military set requirements for volunteers, one being that they had to be, at minimum, 18 years of age. For overseas service, the minimum age was 19. At recruiting centres, birth and baptismal certificates were not required—those in line were simply asked to state their age. Enlistees aged 17 required a written letter of consent from a parent. So, some boys obtained the blessing of a parent, while others lied about their age; or used falsified written consent letters from a parent; or they simply applied at another recruiting centre or in another service. In World War II, an estimated 30,000 underage soldiers from across the country fought for Canada.

Paul Brown completed his formal “Application for Entry in the Royal Canadian Navy” on January 8, 1938. Because Paul was under the age of 18 when he enlisted, a Consent Paper was required with a parent’s signature. His widowed mother, Ada, provided one, dated January 25, 1938, in Sarnia.

With that consent paper, Brown successfully enlisted in January 1938, six months before he turned eighteen. On April 7, 1938, at the age of seventeen years and nine months, Paul Brown officially became a member of the Royal Canadian Navy. He stood six feet tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, and was single. He was living with his widowed mother Ada on Maria Street in Sarnia at the time.

Life dealt Paul and his three siblings a harsh blow just two years later. On August 14, 1940, Paul and his three siblings were devastated when Ada, a local school teacher, died suddenly. Their mother, age 46, had fallen from an open window on the second storey of their Maria Street home and landed on the pavement below. The impact fractured her pelvis and caused severe brain injuries. She died the following day in Sarnia General Hospital and her cause of death was ruled an accident.

Approximately four months after her death, Paul Brown lost his life while serving in the Navy.

Paul was first stationed at HMCS Stadacona training barracks in Halifax, with the rank of boy seaman. He was part of the guard of honour for King George VI and Queen Elizabeth during their cross-Canada visit, as he happened to be on the same ship as Their Majesties. In October 1938, Ordinary Seaman Paul Brown received his elementary training on HMCS Venture, a training ship that was similar to the Bluenose. On February 11, 1939, he was posted on HMCS Skeena where he advanced to the rank of Able Seaman.

Seven months later, on September 10, 1939, Canada declared war on Germany. Paul Brown was posted to HMCS Stadacona in Halifax on October 21, 1939. On November 26, 1939, Able Seaman Paul Brown became a member of HMCS Saguenay, serving as a pom-pom gunner. In letters received by his relatives, Paul had said that he had been “all over the world.”

Beginning on the opening day of the Second World War, the Battle of the Atlantic would be the longest continuous campaign of the war, and one in which Canada played a central role. The Royal Canadian Navy, along with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and Canada’s Merchant Navy, played a vital role in defending the country’s eastern coast and escorting convoys of ships carrying men and essential machinery, arms, fuel, and basic resources between North America and Europe.

HMCS Saguenay (D 79) was an A-Class destroyer commissioned for service in the Royal Canadian Navy in 1931. The Saguenay, and her sister ship, Skeena (D59), were the first warships specifically built for the Royal Canadian Navy. Weighing 1,320 tons apiece, both ships had a length of 322’ and width of 32.5’, their boilers and engines developed 34,000 hp, and the ships’ design speed was 35 knots. Among other features, the hull was strengthened to withstand ice pressure and an extra margin of stability was given to counter icing on the upper decks.

In July 1936, HMCS Saguenay served a central role in the most remarkable peacetime outpouring of national fervour the country had yet seen—the unveiling of the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in France. In the crowd of more than 100,000 were 6,200 Canadian veterans and their families. Their voyage across the Atlantic was the largest ever peacetime movement of people from Canada to Europe—it required five ocean liners to transport them all. Five ocean liners departed the port of Montreal with the Canadian pilgrims, and HMCS Saguenay provided the lone naval escort for the convoy. At the ceremony, the Royal Guard of Honour was composed entirely of members of the Royal Canadian Navy, specifically, members of HMCS Saguenay. It was the first time in its history that the RCN was tasked with mounting a Royal Guard for a reigning British monarch.

At the dawn of World War II on September 3, 1939, within hours, the Saguenay, despite the fact that she was not yet fitted with sonar gear, began anti-submarine patrols in the entrance of Halifax Harbour. On September 16, the first east-bound convoy departed Halifax bound for the United Kingdom. It was made up of 18 merchant ships and four escorts, one being HMCS Saguenay.

On December 1, 1940, HMCS Saguenay became the first Canadian naval casualty from a torpedo attack. The destroyer had departed Gibraltar (south of Spain) on November 20, part of a group escorting convoy HG-47 (with 30 merchant ships), bound for Liverpool, England. In the early morning hours of December 1, HMCS Saguenay was part of a group escorting a convoy about 300 nautical miles west of Ireland. Travelling at 12 knots and in a zigzag pattern, she periodically made a wide sweep across the rear of the entire convoy. At approximately 3:50 a.m., she noticed a flare shot up from the dark sea, astern and a mile or so to port. It had been fired by a U-boat, still unseen, which was moving in to attack the rear of the convoy. The Saguenay increased her speed and made for the position from which the flare had risen. A moment later the submarine was sighted half a mile distant. Almost simultaneously, a torpedo struck the Saguenay forward on the port side.

The Italian submarine Argo had fired the torpedo and the explosion had severed 30 feet off the Saguenay’s bow.

After firing her first torpedo, the Argo then resurfaced only 800 yards away from the destroyer and began circling to get in a second shot. The Saguenay’s commanding officer, Cmdr. Gus Miles, leapt from the bridge to “B” gun to direct fire on the sub. The first two rounds straddled Argo as she dived. This prompt action saved Saguenay and prevented further attacks on the convoy.

The initial explosion had ignited the destroyer’s paint locker, and the fire was so intense that it drove firefighting parties out of the shattered forward section. Not only was the Saguenay bow blown off, but flames raced through the ship. Able Seaman Clifford McNaught demonstrated the kind of courage indicative of the remaining crew. Clifford was suffering from painful burns to his face, and his hands were horribly mangled. He nevertheless dashed forward to assist the short-handed gun crew by passing shells to them. He continued for the best part of an hour to pass up heavy shells, with each touch of the ice-cold steel further mangling his shredded fingers. 

Joseph Schull, in his book Far Distant Ships, described the initial chaos after the attack:

By the time two rounds had been fired the submarine had dived; and all Saguenay’s attention was required to look after herself. The seaman’s mess decks where the torpedo had struck were so fiercely ablaze that the entire fore part of the ship had to be cleared. Soon smoke and flames funneling up through the bridge structure compelled evacuation of the bridge itself. Inflammable materials in the paint shop forward of the mess decks added to the flames. Salt water, pouring through the jagged gash in the ship’s side, ignited calcium flares which fed their choking fumes into the general inferno.

A fire party which attempted to make headway against the blaze was beaten back. There was nothing for it but to flood the forward magazine; and as this was done the entire fore part of the ship, for some sixty feet back from the bow, began to bend toward the water. Cables and miscellaneous heavy gear rattled overside and then, as a great section of the smashed hull broke off and sank, the blazing forecastle, relieved of the dead weight, began to lift again.

No order had been given to stop engines; and engineers and stokers, still at their posts, kept the ship moving ahead at about two knots. Flames, breaking out with renewed vigour, still swept the bridge section; and the ship had to be conned from the emergency steering position at the after end. An attempt to go astern was made and immediately abandoned when terrific vibration told of a bent shaft. Saguenay had snapped like a whip with the impact of the torpedo, buckling the frames along ten feet of her after part and throwing one propeller shaft out of alignment.

The crew of the stricken Saguenay was able to fend off the Argo.

By 4:50 a.m., Miles feared he would have to abandon ship. The British destroyer HMS Highlander arrived within an hour or so to find the Saguenay limping slowly forward. At 7 a.m., the Highlander reported Saguenay “still floating comfortably, although she was burning fiercely forward: the fires however seemed to be under control.”

 Cmdr. Miles transferred all non-essential personnel—90 officers and men—to Highlander, to reduce casualties in case of another torpedo attack. Throughout the night and most of the next day, a skeleton crew remained on board the smouldering Saguenay to continue fighting the fires. By early afternoon, the crew was able to get the doors opened to the fire-blackened bow. The ship’s engineering officer, Lieutenant H.H. Wright, a mining engineer in civilian life, shored Saguenay’s bows with timber until she resembled, in Miles’ words, “the biggest gold mine in the world.” With the fire out and the fore-ends secure, the destroyer made for home. Two tugs met Saguenay on December 2, just before some of the tangled wreckage of her bow fell away, allowing the destroyer to ride higher and make a respectable six knots. Miles dismissed one tug, and only relied on the other when his ship reached the North Channel where she was struck by a gale on her final leg to Barrow-in-Furness on December 4. She arrived safely the next day. The Saguenay, “the ship that would not sink” had managed to limp to the British port Barrow-in-Furness on one engine.

Because the Argo torpedo struck just as the watches were changing, only 21 men died in Saguenay’s bow, and another 18 were wounded. This was actually higher than it might have been since Saguenay was carrying extra personnel under training in her forward mess decks.

Two of the lost crew members were from Sarnia—Able Seamen Paul Brown and Able Seamen Hector Le Gare. Brown and Le Gare were the second and third casualties from Sarnia to lose their lives in the Second World War. Both of their names are inscribed on the Sarnia cenotaph, and Hector Le Gare’s story is also included in this Project (on the Sarnia cenotaph, Hector Le Gare’s name is inscribed as H. Legarrie).

Paul Brown was reported missing and presumed killed in action in the damaging of the destroyer Saguenay. Paul Brown was later officially recorded as Death due to enemy action, at sea.

In the investigation that followed, Cmdr. Miles was given a mild rebuke for steaming too slow in a dangerous situation and for not having his firefighting training and equipment up to snuff. But these criticisms were offset by praise for the seamanship and skill evident in saving the ship. The Board of Enquiry concluded that “the steaming of this ship safely back to harbour, in the condition in which we saw her, represents a very considerable feat of seamanship and endurance, and it is one that reflects great credit on her Captain, Officers and Ships’ company.” Miles was awarded the Order of the British Empire for his action.

The ship would be out of service for six months and, after undergoing repairs, she arrived in St. John’s where she joined the Newfoundland Escort Force. Misfortune struck the Saguenay again in November 1942 when, while escorting a convoy during foggy conditions, a freighter struck the destroyer. Depth charges from the Saguenay were dislodged overboard and exploded beneath both ships. The Saguenay had her stern blown off, while damage to the freighter was sufficient enough to cause her to sink. The Saguenay stayed afloat and was towed to St. John’s harbour.

At the time of Paul’s death, his siblings were Charles Russell Brown (with the RCAF, stationed at Moncton, N.B.); Jean Anderson (nee Brown) Knight (a school teacher in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario); and Eleanor Louise Brown (later Eleanor Hutchinson, of 230 North Vidal St., Sarnia, and later Toronto, Ontario).

Approximately one week prior to the attack, his sister, Miss Jean (Brown) Knight in Sault Ste. Marie, had received a letter from him, but it was so rigorously censored that she could not derive much information from it. His brother, Charles Russell, had been corresponding with Paul, and the two brothers had hopes of spending Christmas together in Halifax. One week after the attack, his sister, Miss Eleanor Brown in Sarnia, received a telegram from the Minister of National Defence for Naval Affairs, informing her that Paul was missing.

At an assembly at Sarnia Collegiate, principal F.C. Asbury announced the loss of the two former students, Hector Le Gare and Paul Brown, which was followed by a period of silence in respect to the memory of the two Canadian sailors.

Paul’s brother, Corporal Charles Russell Brown of the R.C.A.F, who was posted in Moncton, New Brunswick at the time, received the following letter from the Naval Secretary in mid-December 1940:

Dear Sir:

It is with very deep regret that I confirm the telegram of the 9th December from the Minister of National Defence for Naval Services that your brother, Paul A. Brown, Able Seaman, R.C.N., O.N. 3119, is reported to be missing from H.M.C.S. “SAGUENAY”, believed killed in action following damage to this vessel by a torpedo on the 1st December, 1940.

Please allow me, therefore, to express sincere sympathy with you in your sad loss on behalf of the Chief of the Naval Staff and the Officers and men of the Royal Canadian Navy, the high traditions of which your brother has helped to maintain.     

Paul Brown was the first member of the Central Century Club to pay the Supreme Sacrifice. In mid-December 1940, he was honoured at a service at Central United Church. The pastor of the church, Rev. E.W. Jewitt, paid tribute by saying, “These young men who are giving their lives are giving them to preserve the freedom and liberty of us all.” In August 1945, Paul’s siblings—Charles Russell, Jean and Eleanor—received and shared the War Service Gratuity of $256.77 for the loss of their brother.

Twenty-year-old Paul Brown has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Halifax Memorial, Nova Scotia, Panel 4.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Bill Buchner was born in Montrose Township, Ontario, on May 4, 1923, the son of Warren Hiram (born Welland, Ontario) and Ruth Edith (nee Booth) Buchner. Warren and Ruth were married in Chippewa, Ontario, on September 17, 1923. Tragically, only nine years later, Warren passed away in 1932. Bill was only nine years old when he lost his father.

Ruth Buchner remarried a Mr. Smith, and the family resided at 108 South Mitton Street, and later 142 ¹/₂ North Victoria Street. Bill’s family expanded with his mother’s second marriage. Already a brother to Robert Elmer, Harold (born 1930), and sister Virginia Lumley, Bill now had a half-brother, Peter Huffman, and a half-sister, Dorothy Kemp.   

Bill’s education was brief, typical of the time. Growing up in Sarnia, he attended Wellington Street Public School and played softball in the school league. He left school after completing grade eight at age 15 and, before enlisting, had a number of jobs. He worked as a labourer on a farm; for a junk dealer; in a factory; and as a rigger at a grain elevator. From 1940-1942, he was a labourer at Canadian Carborundum in Niagara Falls.

Bill Buchner, age 18, enlisted in the Canadian Army on January 10, 1942, in London, Ontario. He stood five feet ten inches tall, had grey eyes and brown hair, and was single. He was residing at home with his mother at 225 Cromwell Street at the time. For Bill, enlisting was the first step to a permanent job. His ambition post-war was to remain in the Army.

From #1 District Depot in London, Bill received his army training at #10 Basic Training Centre in Kitchener and then the Infantry Training Centre at Borden. It would be only six months after enlisting that he departed Canada to fight overseas. On June 2, 1942, as a private with the RCR reinforcements, he embarked overseas for the United Kingdom, where he was attached to the Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU).

After further training in the U.K., on June 13, 1943, Private Buchner embarked from the U.K. and arrived in Sicily in early July 1943 as a member of the Royal Canadian Regiment (RCR). The Italian Campaign, the first sustained Canadian Army operation of the War, began with the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. The fierce fighting on the island lasted more than four weeks, during which the Canadians advanced through difficult mountainous terrain against an ever-stiffening German resistance. By August 17, the Germans had evacuated the island to the Italian mainland.

In early September, Canadian and Allied forces invaded Italy. Though Italy surrendered shortly after, the occupying Germans made it clear their fight was not over. Liberating Italy would be a painstaking northward crawl, lasting 20 months, over a range of landscapes, through challenging weather, and against a series of well-protected defences held by some of the German army’s best troops.

The Canadian Army battled northward through tenacious and resilient Axis defences, and then moved on to fight the defiant enemy on the road to Rome. In an October 1943 letter home to his mother, Bill had little to say about the engagements he had been through, but he did describe the Italian country as “pretty” and that “the weather is sure hot over here”. Also in October 1943, Bill was hospitalized for just over a week to be treated for a case of malaria.

Sadly, on Christmas Eve 1943, Bill Buchner was killed in action during the Battle of Ortona. The battle to capture the town of Ortona was a bitter and costly affair. Ortona was situated strategically on a high ridge that was impregnable from three sides. The battle to capture the town was the first episode of urban combat (city fighting) in the Italian theatre. Canadian war correspondents broadcast from the town, providing hour-by-hour progress to Canadians at home. BBC and American radio networks picked up the story and made Ortona an important symbol. The Canadians were victorious but in that week of fierce fighting during the Christmas season, they incurred 2,330 casualties, including 1,372 killed.

One of the fallen at Ortona was Private Bill Buchner. His remains were buried five days later on December 29, 1943, at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “Lanciano Sh 141/2 R. side of road MR316154 Gr 8”. His remains were later exhumed and reburied in Moro River Canadian War Cemetery.

In early January 1944, Ruth Smith in Sarnia received a telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa, informing her that her son PRIVATE WILLIAM HIRAM BUCHNER WAS KILLED IN ACTION ON DECEMBER 24 WHILE FIGHTING IN ITALY.The telegram said that further information would be forwarded when available. In February 1944, Ruth, then residing at Victoria Street, received the following letter from a Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Smith:

            It was with deep regret that I learned of the passing of your son, A.4526 Private William Hiram Buchner, who gave his life in the Service of his Country in the Mediterranean Theatre of War on the 24th day of December 1943.

From official information we have received, your son was killed in action against the enemy. You may be assured that any additional information received will be communicated to you without delay. The Minister of National Defence and the members of the Army Council have asked me to express to you and your family their sincere sympathy in your bereavement. We pay tribute to the sacrifice he so bravely made.

William Buchner was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (Italy). In July 1945, Ruth Smith received a War Service Gratuity of $331.37 for the loss of her son William.

Twenty-year-old William Buchner is buried in Moro River Canadian War Cemetery, Italy, Grave VII.D.15.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

David Warnock Burke was born in Sarnia on October 12, 1918, the only son of Captain David (Sr.) Wilson Burke and his wife Ethel Ellen, of 145 North Euphemia Street. David Sr. and Ethel were married in Penetanguishene, Ontario, on December 31, 1912. The Burke family also included two daughters, Dora Warnock and Marion Wilson Burke, who were both residing in Hamilton at the time of David’s death.

David was educated at a Sarnia public elementary school, and then Sarnia Collegiate High School from September 1933 to June 1937. He was a member of the Central Century Club, and had played hockey for the Club. While in high school, he played junior and senior WOSSA rugby and in City League hockey. He was also fond of swimming and skating. His interests extended beyond athletics. After graduating from a technical program (electricity) at Sarnia Collegiate, he attended the Radio College of Canada in Toronto. There, he took the Commercial Operating Course for six months. While at school in Toronto, David became very interested in amateur radio, and he also took some flying lessons. Following his studies, he received an Amateur Radio Certificate and was employed as a radio operator by Trans-Canada Air Lines in Winnipeg for seven months. When he decided to enlist in the second year of the war, it was a natural fit for Burke, 21, to eventually join the Air Force.

David Burke enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in London, Ontario, on February 21, 1940. He stood five feet nine-and-a-half inches tall, had hazel eyes and dark brown hair, and was single. He recorded his occupation as wireless and electrical mechanic, and was living at the family home at 145 North Euphemia Street.

His training, not surprisingly, was quite extensive. He received training in wireless, and then served as an instructor at No. 1 Wireless School in Montreal, and at No. 3 Wireless School in Winnipeg. In February 1942, he switched his focus and was successful in his application to re-muster as a pilot. He received his air training at #2 Initial Training School (ITS) in Regina, and at #2 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Fort William, flying Tiger Moths and Harvards.

David made an excellent impression on his commanding officer at #2EFTS. In one report, he wrote this of Burke: A capable, dependable airman who has done well and who has cooperated well in assisting as instructor of signals. He is quiet, self-confident and determined to succeed. He has the bearing and ability along with the experience to make a good officer. David continued his training at #2 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) at Uplands, where he was awarded his Pilot Flying Badge on December 18, 1942.

Nearly a year after enlisting, Burke embarked overseas from Halifax bound for the United Kingdom on January 15, 1943. He continued his training in England and in Scotland at #9 Elementary Flight Training School (EFTS) and #14 Advanced Flying Unit (AFU).

He then served with #20 Operational Training Unit (OTU), and then #1658 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU), making a number of trips over Germany in Halifax bombers. On February 12, 1944, David became a member of RAF #640 Squadron, part of Bomber Command, with the rank of Pilot Officer-Pilot.

During the course of the war, one of this country’s most significant contributions was the approximately 50,000 Canadians who served with the RCAF and RAF in Bomber Command operations. Next to Britain, Canada was the largest contributor to Bomber Command, making up more than a third of all of Bomber Command personnel. The men who served in Bomber Command faced some of the most difficult odds of anyone fighting in the war.

RAF #640 Squadron was formed at RAF Leconfield, Yorkshire, on January 7, 1944. It was equipped with Handley Page Halifax Mk III bombers and operated as part of No. 4 Group in Bomber Command. In March 1945, the squadron re-equipped with Halifax VI bombers.

On August 7, 1943, David wrote a letter on Canadian Legion War Services letterhead to his older sister, Dora, who was residing in Toronto at the time. Following is that letter:

Dear Dora,

I hope you agree with the old saying “better late than never”, because I’m afraid I’m late answering you this time. I’ve had a couple letters from you since I last wrote; from now on I’ll keep up better because we are night flying now and it means hanging around all day sleeping and resting – no time to go out much.

If we fly at mid night, we are briefed at 5:30 pm and again at 9:30 and then start getting ready. It takes quite a bit of preparing, before you go out on a big trip in a big ship. We leave the crew room ¾ of an hour before take off and go to dispersal in a truck with all our equipment – parachutes, rations, oxygen gear, maps, gen sheets (general information sheets), sextant and a million other things. The bomb aimer checks his bombs and bombing circuits, sights, etc. The navigator checks his charts and gets his computer and all his instruments out on his table. The radio opr gets his equipment all tested etc. I run up the engines and double check them and all the fuel cocks and flying instruments radio aids. The tail gunner gets his guns all adjusted and stores the rations away etc. Finally when all this is done we roll out on the field and away we go.

Our trip run from 5 to 6 hours and we fly away up in the oxygen region. We made one trip of six hours without ever seeing the ground or the stars – we were in thick cloud flying instruments and dead reconning by the navigator. It sure is different than any flying we did before. It is quite interesting and I like it.

The whole crew all live together in one hut now and we are getting to know each other very well. The navigator and I hang around together more than anybody else – I mean we go together, to town, and usually one or two of the other guys.

Ted Paige the bomb aimer is next friendliest, I suppose the reason being that the Pilot Nav and Bomb Aimer work together more than the rest. The WOP, Bill Haden sort of keeps to himself (although he gets along with us fine)

but there are some guys on this camp who he knew before and of course he goes out with them: besides he doesn’t

work so close to the rest of us he is in his cubby hole, pretty well by himself listening out on the wireless. Don Buckler the rear A.G. doesn’t say very much and doesn’t go out with us very much, he is quite a lot younger than the rest of us and I think that sort of puts a line between us so far as social time goes. Of course as far as crew work goes, he is right there.

I expect to get a leave about August 21 or 31 at the very latest and after that we will go (I expect) on to four engine Halifax bombers. At present I’m flying a Wellington Bomber which is the biggest twin engine bomber in existence. Its an old name, but the new Marks are right up to date. I like them very much. There is a small chance we may stay in Wellington, but I doubt it.

Have you seen the pictures I sent Mom, the ones I took in London last winter? I suppose by now your holiday boat trip is gone for another year. What about the new job prospects? Any gen from the British Government people?

You asked me if the crew is all Canadian, no it isn’t. Wally Mustoe (NAV) is English and Bill Haden is English as well, the rest are Canadian.

Well Dora, I guess I’ve about run out of gossip for now,

So long

Your little brother Dave

On March 31, 1944, Pilot Officer-Pilot David Burke took part in his fourth operation over enemy territory. He was part of a crew aboard Halifax bomber LW500 (markings C8-Z), that took off from Leconfield on a bombing raid targeting Nuremburg, Germany. Approximately 795 aircraft took part in the operation. High-cloud was expected to offer some protection for the bomber stream on its way, but the target would be clear for the bombing run. A Mosquito meteorological flight had predicted that but, in fact, that would not be the case. The raid went ahead anyway.

The German controllers ignored the diversionary raids on other locations and had their fighters circling close to the route of the main force. Consequently, the enemy fighters engaged the bombers before they reached the Belgian border. The clear conditions allowed the fighters to pick off bombers at will. Strong winds meant that some of the bombers went off the intended route and, as a consequence, many bombed Schweinfurt in error, some 50 miles from Nuremburg.

Burke’s Halifax bomber LW500 made it to Nuremburg and unleashed its bombs, but neither the bomber nor the crew made it back to base. As it returned from the raid, it was hit by German flak over the French coast near Dieppe. All seven crew members of LW500 were lost in the crash. Halifax LW500 was one of 108 Allied aircraft that were lost on this night. The operation had one of the highest percent of losses of any raid, and little damage was caused to the target.

Perishing with Sarnian David Burke were Sgts. Weir Crory, Reginald Arthur Eastman, William Haden, Allan James N. Jamieson and Michael Martin Stilliard; and F/O Frederick Walter Woods. Days after the crash, Captain Burke in Hamilton received a telegram informing him that his only son was REPORTED MISSING 31-MARCH-44 AFTER AIR OPERATIONS (OVERSEAS) OVER NUREMBURG GERMANY.

In early 1948, investigators believed that they had found the remains of Halifax LW500 at a crash site at Weimar Schmieden, Germany. After notifying the next of kin of the find, it was later determined that the crash site was, in fact, that of another Halifax (LW537) lost the same night.

Along with David Burke, one of the crew members lost in Halifax LW500 was F/Sgt. M.M. Stilliard (RAF). The father of M.M. Stilliard (in Surrey, England) received word in January 1948 that the crash site and graves of the crew had been located; however, in July 1949, the Casualty Branch in England wrote a letter to Mr. Stilliard informing him of the error that they had made. David Burke’s father received a similar letter. Following is a portion of the letter sent to Mr. Stilliard:

Dear Mr. Stilliard,

            I am very sorry to reopen a subject which I am sure must be most painful to you, but since this Department’s letter of 7th January, 1948, the Missing Research Organisation in Germany has submitted a report of its investigations, and it is with reluctance that I have to convey to you details of a distressing nature.

            You will recall that in the letter of the 26th November, 1947, reference was made to burial of unknown airmen in the local cemetery at Weimar Schmieden and to a search of records of aircraft crews known to have operated over enemy territory on the night of 30/31st March, 1944. Unfortunately, this search was confined only to aircraft crews of which no news had been received since time of “take off”.

            German documents have now come to light which leave no doubt that the acceptance of graves 9 to 11, Row H, Plot 4, in the British Military Cemetery at Hannover (Limmer) for your son and his six companions was an unfortunate error.

These documents show that a Halifax aircraft was shot down at 1 am. on the 31st March, 1944, near

Fladungen, East North-East of Frankfurt on Main and Midway between Eisenach and Schweinfurt, and that five members of the crew were taken prisoners,… and two unknown dead who were buried in the local cemetery at Weimar Schmeiden.

            The two unknown were later identified as 1452226 Flight Sergeant M.M. Stembridge (pilot of Halifax LW 537) and the rear gunner 1822442 Sergeant J.D. Goskirk. The evidence revealed at exhumation of the grave at Weimar Schmeiden, (chiefly “pilot’s wings and a ring with initials M.M.S.”) confirms the information contained in the German documents. In view of these circumstances, no doubt, you will wish to return the ring sent to you so that I may send it on to the next of kin of Flight Sergeant Stembridge.

            I feel sure that you would wish to know that should the Royal Air Force Missing Research and Enquiry Service fail to locate the resting places of your son and his companions, their names will be perpetuated on the Memorial to the Missing which is to be erected in this Country to commemorate those gallant airmen who gave their lives and have no known graves. In conclusion, please accept my sincere regrets for the distress occasioned by the contents of this letter.

David Warnock Burke was later officially recorded as Previously reported missing after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas (Germany). In January 1951, his parents received a War Service Gratuity of $624.09 as compensation for the loss of their only son.

Twenty-five-year-old Pilot Officer-Pilot David Burke has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Runnymede War Memorial, Surrey, United Kingdom, Panel 249.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

 Kenneth Burr was born in Sarnia Township on August 9, 1923, the son of Gordon Nelson and Harriet Isabel (nee Kemsley) Burr, of Lakeshore Road, R.R. #3, Sarnia (875 Lakeshore Rd.). Gordon Burr (born 1895) and Harriet “Hattie Bell” Kemsley (born 1897) were married on March 28, 1918, in Sarnia, and they would be blessed with nine children over the next two decades. Daughters Helen Matilda (born March 15, 1919); Mary Elizabeth (born 1929); and Ruth Ann (Handy); and six sons: John Nelson (born 1921); Kenneth (born 1923); Gordon Jr. “Howard” (born July 26, 1925); James Robert (born 1927); Franklin Stuart (born 1933); and Gerald Norman (born 1938). Gordon supported his growing family by being a pipefitter with Imperial Oil. Tragedy devastated the family on two occasions when two family members passed away at a young age: Helen Matilda died on February 9, 1927, at age eight, and Howard died in November 1942, at age 17.

Kenneth received his early education at Clark’s two-room schoolhouse on Point Edward Road and then at Sarnia Collegiate. He was enrolled in a technical course there from 1934 to 1936, and in his spare time he played rugby, hockey, and baseball, and he enjoyed swimming and hunting. After leaving high school at age 13, he worked as a fisherman, then as a gravel truck driver for 2 years, and later at Holmes Foundry as a blacksmith and core makers helper for 3 years. Family members recalled that Kenneth enjoyed dancing, and always liked driving, and recalled that he owned both a Harley motorcycle and a car.

Family members recalled that he would park his car at the side of the road near the family home, and holler, “Maw, I’m home” before he came into the house. He would then take his youngest brother Jerry and sister Ruth Ann into the rumble seat of the car and drive them to the corner store to pick out a treat.

Immediately prior to enlisting, he was employed at Anglin-Norcross Limited at the Polymer Plant in Sarnia where he worked in construction as a blacksmith and a rigger. When a letter from the government arrived encouraging him to enlist, Kenneth did so. He reasoned that if he enlisted early, he’d get to choose in what capacity he would serve.  Ken didn’t want to fight with the infantry; he much preferred the technical aspects of the war, so serving in the artillery suited him best.

Kenneth was assured he would have a job with Anglin-Norcross Limited at the Polymer Plant on his return from war. He had much to look forward to in post-war Sarnia. He had a serious girlfriend before he enlisted. And he had a desire to learn arc-welding and wanted to start his own trucking business eventually.

At 19, Kenneth Burr enlisted in the Canadian Army on October 23, 1942, at No. 1 District Depot in London, Ontario. He stood five feet ten inches tall, had blue eyes and fair hair, and was single at the time. He was living with his parents at R.R. #3, Sarnia (Lakeshore Road) at the time. He recorded his trade as “blacksmith” and his next-of-kin as his mother “Mrs. Harriet Isabel Burr”. Recruiters’ comments described Kenneth as “quite mature” and “a serious, conscientious young man of better than average aptitude” and that he “was friendly, neat, and healthy.”

Accompanying Kenneth to his enlistment was his younger brother Howard. One month later, on November 4, 1942, Howard was killed in a tragic industrial accident at the new Polymer plant in Sarnia. He was just 17 years old. 

For Kenneth, from #1 District Depot, he received his army training at #12 Basic Training Center (B.T.C.) in Chatham, and then at A-1 Canadian Army Training Center (CATC) in Petawawa, Ontario. He advanced in rank from private to gunner. By April 1943, he had advanced in pay to $1.40 per diem and was a qualified Class III driver. Following this, he completed a Driver Mechanics course at S-5 Canadian Driving and Maintenance School (C.D & M.S.) in Woodstock; then a Special Automotive Course at #1 Vocational Training School (V.T.S.) in London, Ontario; and then a Motor Mechanics course at A-1 CATC in Petawawa. He added qualifications as a Driver/Mechanic Grade 1 and Motorcyclist Class III. In November 1943, he was a Qualified Motor Mechanic Group “C”, and was entitled to receive $1.50 per diem. A commanding officer evaluating Kenneth recorded the following about him: Disposition-Friendly, Appearance-Neat, Physical appearance-Healthy, Mechanical Knowledge-Superior, and “A sensible young man with a rather mature manner. Knows he wants to be a M.M. [Motor Mechanic] and should be a good one.”

Burr embarked overseas on November 25, 1943, a little more than a year after he had enlisted. He became a member of the Canadian Army Reinforcement Unit (CARU) and a week later (December 3) became a member of the Royal Canadian Artillery, 2nd Survey Regiment, Motor Mechanic Group “C”, with the rank of gunner.

The 2^nd Survey Regiment RCA, along with the 6^th Anti-Tank Regiment RCA, and the 6^th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment RCA, were part of the II Canadian Corps Troops. The II Canadian Corps was a corps-level formation that, along with the I (British) Corps and I Canadian Corps, comprised the First Canadian Army in Northwest Europe.

In early December 1943, parents Gordon and Hattie received a telegram from Kenneth informing them that he had arrived safely overseas in the U.K.

Six months later, on July 26, 1944, he arrived in France. He completed his Will the next day, bequeathing his estate to his mother, Mrs. Harriet Isabel Burr of R.R. #3, Sarnia. He would advance in rank to Lance Bombardier on August 21, 1944, and to Acting Bombardier on September 24, 1944.

The Battle of Normandy began for the Canadians with the June 6, 1944, D-Day landings at Juno Beach. After breaching the “Atlantic Wall” of “Fortress Europe”, Allied armies began their break out from the narrow Normandy bridgehead to carve out a foothold on the French mainland. To accomplish this took a whole summer of tenacious fighting that saw the Canadians pushing against fierce and ruthless German forces to advance east across France. In a brutal campaign of attrition, the Canadian army, supported by the navy and air force, faced fierce battles and vicious counterattacks as they clawed their way forward to liberate villages and towns including Bretteville, Carpiquet, Caen, and Falaise. According to letters that his parents later received, Kenneth had gone to France only a short time after the June 1944 D-Day invasion, and he had most recently been in Germany with the Canadian Forces.

After the Allied breakout from Normandy, in late August 1944, the Canadian forces were assigned the Long Left Flank, the less glamorous but vital tasks of clearing coastal areas in the north of France and Belgium of German occupiers; opening the English Channel ports for supplies essential to the Allied advance; and capturing the launching sites of German V-1 rockets. In a series of stop-and-start advances against stiff resistance in fortified positions, that continued into early October, the Canadians liberated ports and villages including Rouen, Dieppe, Dunkirk, Boulogne and Calais. In September 1944, Burr advanced from the rank of lance bombardier to the rank of full bombardier, with the Royal Canadian Artillery, 2 Survey Regiment.

In early September 1944, Allied forces captured the inland port of Antwerp, Belgium, the second greatest port in Europe at the mouth of the Scheldt River; however, German forces still controlled the 45-mile-long Scheldt estuary (the Belgian-Dutch border area) that connected the port of Antwerp to the North Sea. Beginning in early October 1944, the Canadians were entrusted with liberating the estuary. The Battle of the Scheldt, October 1 – November 8, 1944, was one of the most gruelling struggles in the war as Canadians fought to liberate the German-controlled estuary. Taking place in northern Belgium and the Netherlands, it was the beginning of the Liberation of the Netherlands. The bitter fighting in the Scheldt estuary against a well-fortified and heavily entrenched enemy was made worse by the harsh conditions. Bitter winter temperatures in a wet and muddy quagmire proved challenging, but the Allies prevailed. As the spearhead of the First Canadian Army, II Canadian Corps was heavily involved in the Battle of the Scheldt to clear out the German positions. The cost of victory was high—the Canadians suffered more than 6,300 casualties.

Serving with the 2^nd Survey Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery, Kenneth carried out a number of roles, including servicing military vehicles and driving motorcycles ahead of the lines doing reconnaissance work for his regiment. He loved operating any sort of vehicle, and with the bonus money owed him after the war ended, he planned on buying a new motorcycle for himself. His regiment was constantly on the move as they advanced through France, Belgium, and Holland.

During his time overseas, Kenneth wrote letters home to his family members and his friends, usually 2-3 times a week. In all his letters home he began each one with the salutation “Dear Maw”. He always asked about his father, Gordon, and his siblings, the youngest of whom he referred to as “the angels”. One letter he wrote to his five-year-old sister Ruth Ann, began with “Dear Root” and asked if she was “big enough to beat up on Jerry [her younger brother] yet?” He later mentioned that “I haven’t seen any little girls over here as nice looking as you but I have seen some that behaved a lot better.”

He asked about things at home, such as the Brigden Fair and duck hunting season, and asked about his friends. He wrote about looking forward to getting packages from home.

Hattie Burr sent her son care packages regularly; they were all numbered, and he received every one of them. Items included cigarettes, food, and clothes. In one case, Hattie hollowed out a loaf of bread and hid a bottle of booze inside it. It no doubt brought great joy to Kenneth and his mates.

He wrote about becoming a “barber” and cutting the hair of some of the men in his troop. He spoke of the harsh conditions—very hot weather and no rain for an entire month of summer, and then the damp and chilly conditions at night. He wrote about the Germans flooding the land making it even more uncomfortable.

He requested that some warm leather or hand-made woollen knitted mittens get sent from home to keep his hands warm. He planned to buy a new motorcycle with his bonus money after the war was finished. He stated that he had a pretty good job with the survey regiment and was due for a promotion. One of his jobs with his unit was to drive a motorcycle ahead of the lines and help scout for his regiment. He wrote that he believed that the war would be over soon and that he would be returning home. He stated that the war was “no damn fun” and the Germans were “playing for keeps”. 

After the Battle of the Scheldt, over the winter of 1944-1945, most of the weary Canadians were given a rest, although the front was never quiet, with patrols and large-scale raids remaining constant. Canadian troops were

stationed along the Nijmegen sector in the Netherlands. They were tasked to hold and to defend the Nijmegen salient and a small piece of Allied-held territory close to the Germany border and north of the Maas River. This bridgehead would be used as a starting point for crossing the Rhine (in February 1945), and the Allies had to give the enemy the impression that an assault was imminent, to force it to leave troops in that area.

The Germans did their best to push the Canadians out of “the island” by flooding the area and constantly harassing them with mortar fire, artillery, and aggressive patrols. Constantly vigilant, the men dug deep slit trenches, covered themselves with whatever was handy, and tried to keep warm from the snow and cold during one of the most frigid winters on record in northern Europe. During this supposedly “quiet period” between November 9 and December 31, 1944, approximately 1,239 Canadians were killed or wounded.

Bombardier Kenneth Burr was one of those killed during this period.

Following are two of Kenneth’s letters that parents Gordon and Hattie received in December 1944;

Dec. 6^th

Dear Maw

            Just a few lines to night to let you know I’m fine and I had a letter from you to-day and glad to hear you are all well. Its pretty chilly up here now and very damp and things are pretty rough. I hope it don’t last much longer. Forgot to tell you I got the jacket the other day and another parcel to-day. I had a letter from Chuck to day too. I just got finished having a shave and wash I was dam crummy lookin and I’m going to have a big lunch before I retire for the night. We have been eating a little better the last couple of weeks than we did for awhile. I sent my snapshots to get developed nut they ain’t back yet. I want to take some more some nice day and I’d like to take some when I get to Berlin. If you get a chance to get a couple 120 films send them to me. Did Jerry pass his Xmas exams okay. Tell Mucks if he keeps on getting fatter he will be bigger than me. I still go about 190. Well Maw I think I will close for this time and I’ll write again in a day or so.

Love to all

Ken

Dec 14 10:30 P.M

Dear Maw

            Just a few lines to night to let you know I am fine and hope you are all the same. I just got back to the troop last night. I was back 35 miles to write a trade test. It took 3 days. I think I passed okay. If I did it means more money and chances of another promotion but I don’t care to be a sergeant. There was two letters from you when I got back and I also got Aunt Maudes parcel and one from Betty R. I haven’t opened them yet so I’ve done real good. Its cold as the dickens over here worse than back home and we had 3 inches of snow last week. Its gone again now. We are supposed to get a supply of beer for Xmas and I’ve been saving my ounces of Rum so perhaps we will do some celebrating. We are also suppose to get 9 days leave back to England after New Years that is all of us who have been in action for 6 months so I’m eligible so if I get the chance I’m going to Scotland. Well Maw I have to quit now and go on a fairly dangerous mission so I’ll say good-bye for now and Merry Xmas to all.

Love to all

Ken

The above letters were the last letters that Gordon and Hattie received from their son.

On December 28, 1944, he lost his life while fighting in the Nijmegen sector of Holland, during this early stage of the Liberation of the Netherlands. During the fighting, an enemy shell landed close to where Kenneth was standing. He was hit by shell fragments which knocked him unconscious, and he died minutes later.

Kenneth’s remains were buried on December 29, 1944, at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as Canadian Cemetery Yonkerbosch E690595 Sh. 5. His remains were later exhumed and reburied in Nijmegen Canadian Military Cemetery in Holland.

In early January 1945, Gordon and Hattie Burr at R.R. #3, Sarnia, received a telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa informing them that their son BOMBARDIER KENNETH BURR HAS BEEN KILLED IN ACTION IN GERMANY.

Eight decades later, Ruth Ann still remembers the phone call at her parents’ house on Lakeshore Road. The family waited quietly as her father took the news that a telegram with details of Ken’s death was waiting to be picked up.

Soon after, Hattie received a letter, dated January 3, 1945, from Burr’s Commanding Officer, Lieutenant R.W. Emmans. Following is that letter:

Lieut. R.W. Emmans  P. Battery

2 Cdn Survey Regt. RCA

CAOS   3 Jan 45

Dear Mrs. Burr:

This is a very difficult letter for me to write but I feel that as he was in my section, I knew your son better than any other officer did, and I think that you would like to know some of the circumstances surrounding his death.

He was hit by fragments from a shell which landed close to where he was standing and he died about five minutes later. He felt absolutely no pain as he was unconscious from the time he was hit until he died.

He was buried in a Canadian military cemetery the location of which I am not at liberty to give to you at this time but which will in due course be forwarded to you. The service was conducted by Honorary Captain Harry Encouth (sp?) Langwith a chaplain of the Church of England, and was attended by representatives of all groups of the regiment including the Commanding, the second in command the officer commanding the battery and about thirty five others including his closest friends and myself.

He was admired and liked by everyone who came in contact with him and without exception he was considered by all to be a man, a fine soldier and a gentleman. During our period of fighting he has become irreplaceable.

Although it will be of small consolation to you who have lost so much, I think that you would like to know that your son died in the most decisive phase of the war so that all who survive it may never again be subjected to the conditions which we have seen on this continent.

His name will be placed on the Honour Roles of the most important war in history and his memory will remain in the hearts of all who knew him.

I would like to submit the deepest sympathy of the entire Regiment & particularly of A Troop and myself to you at this time.

                                                            Respectfully

                                                            R Ward Emmands

Hattie Burr also received a letter later that month from the acting Chaplain from the Church of England who performed Kenneth’s burial service in Holland. Following is that letter.  

H/Capt  H.E. Langwith (sp?)

6 C.C.S. R.C.A.M.C.   Jan 22/45

Mrs. Harriet Burr

Dear Mrs. Burr,

            May I at this time express my deepest sympathy for the great sorrow that has come into your life.

            I am the C. of E. Chaplain, who officiated at the burial service of your son Bdr. K.L. Burr, A104953.

The service which was conducted according to the rites of his faith was attended by a large group of his fellow soldiers and officers.

He is buried in a Canadian Cemetery in Holland. A white cross properly engraved marks his resting place.

Know that neither words nor letters can express ones deepest feelings or take away the pain. If as time goes on and the pain becomes too great, please read the 11^th Ch. of St. John, 21^st verse. Here, I believe the heart can find ease and comfort, the burden lifted.

            May God Bless and keep you at this time.

                                                            Sincerely yours,

                                                            H. E. Langwith

                                                            Chaplain

According to family members, Hattie also received letters from Dutch citizens who expressed their gratitude for how Kenneth Burr had assisted their families.

Kenneth Burr was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (Holland). In early February 1945, a memorial service for Private Kenneth Burr was held in Trinity Anglican Church in Sarnia Township, conducted by the Rev. G.C. Stone.

In January 1946, two years after Kenneth’s death, Hattie received a War Service Gratuity of $342.90 for the loss of her son. In November 1947, the Director, War Service Records, sent her a photograph of Kenneth’s grave and marker over the burial place in Nijmegen, Holland.

Bombardier Kenneth Burr was posthumously awarded the 1939-45 Star, the France and Germany Star, the War Medal 1939-45, the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal (CVSM) and Clasp, and the Defence Medal.

After the war, Gordon and Hattie rarely spoke about Kenneth. Hattie believed it was important to “keep going for the ones that are left.”

Many years later, in March 1963, Kenneth’s brother, Jimmy, and his wife, Yvonne, named their son Kenneth in honour of his uncle. Kenneth Burr’s overseas grave was visited by a number of his brothers and family members. His mother Hattie never had the opportunity to visit her son’s grave, something she always regretted. Gordon Burr passed away in 1958, and Harriet “Hattie Bell” passed away in 1967. Both are buried in Lakeview Cemetery in Sarnia.

Twenty-one-year-old Kenneth Burr is buried in Groesbeek Canadian War Cemetery, Netherlands, Grave II.F.7. On his headstone are inscribed the words, AT REST.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo