World War II Fallen: M-N

Donald MacGregor was born in Petrolia on November 21, 1914, the only son of Donald (Sr.) Cameron MacGregor and Margaret Ellen (nee MacEachern, born in Paisley, Ontario) MacGregor of 208 South Mitton Street, Sarnia. Scottish-born Donald Sr. worked at Imperial Oil Limited to support Margaret and their two children, Donald Jr. and Mary (later became Mary Turnbull).

While his father was employed in the oil industry in Peru, the MacGregor family lived there and Donald Jr. attended public elementary school in Peru from 1924 to 1929. The MacGregors returned to Sarnia, and Donald attended Sarnia Collegiate from 1929 to 1934. He was an outstanding athlete at SCITS, where he was a member of the school’s football teams, swimming team, and the gymnastics team that won the junior championship of Canada in 1932.

Donald kept himself busy after he graduated from SCITS. He continued to be active in sports by playing golf, rugby, skiing, basketball, and boxing. Between 1931 and 1936, Donald served with the Lambton Regiment NPMA (Non-Permanent Active Militia) with the rank of sergeant. He was also a member of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church. In 1935-1936, Donald attended a business college where he took an accounting course.

Beginning in 1936, Donald attended Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) in Guelph, where he worked towards his Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture. Each summer, Donald worked a variety of summer jobs: as a labourer at Imperial Oil (April-Sept 1937); as a construction worker in Sarnia (May-Sept 1938); and as a life-guard/swimming instructor at the Lion’s Club Camp in Seaforth (June-Sept 1939 and 1940).

It was during his fourth year of a chemistry course at the Ontario Agricultural College when Donald enlisted.  Two reference letters in his application for the Air Force that signify the type of person Donald was. From the OAC Registrar: I have known MacGregor for some years. He is a man of excellent character and considerable ability. I am very pleased to recommend him to you.

From the Director of Physical Education: This young man has served under me for the past four years in executive, as well as athletic capacities. I have found him to be a gentleman in every sense of the word. He undoubtedly rates well above the average and I am sure would be of value to the Royal Canadian Air Force. 

On May 2, 1941, Donald MacGregor, age 26, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in Toronto. He stood five feet seven inches tall, had blue eyes and light brown hair, was single, and was living at home with his parents on Mitton Street at the time. He requested flying duties and his plan following the war was to complete his final year at Guelph to obtain his agriculture degree.

From #4 Manning Depot in St. Hubert, Quebec, Donald received his air training at #5 Equipment Depot in Moncton, New Brunswick; at #3 Initial Training School (ITS) in Victoriaville, Quebec; and then at #3 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in London (Crumlin). It was while training at EFTS Crumlin that Donald had the opportunity to fly over Sarnia during his training flights.

The Chief Instructor and Commanding Officer at EFTS wrote the following assessment of Donald: A good pilot, absorbs training easily. Is good on aerobatics and will do well with further training,” and “Vigorous, enthusiastic in what he undertakes. Very responsible and conscientious. Quick to grasp a situation and to take the initiative in acting promptly. Donald continued his training at #2 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) at Uplands, Ontario, where he was awarded his Pilot’s Flying Badge on January 16, 1942. On February 15, 1942, Donald was posted to #1 Y Depot in Halifax.

Donald MacGregor embarked overseas bound for the United Kingdom on March 8, 1942. He was initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre before being transferred to RAF Station Exeter, on May 1, 1942. There, he became a member of the RAF #286 Squadron, flying Oxford aircraft with the rank of sergeant-pilot.

No. 286 Squadron had been formed at RAF Filton in November 1941. It operated a wide number of different aircraft in detachments at a number of airfields in the south-west of England. These aircraft, including the Westland Lysander, Hawker Hurricane, Boulton Defiant, and Airspeed Oxford, were used for gun-laying training and for target towing for anti-aircraft gun practice.

On May 11, 1942, tragedy struck. Donald was aboard Oxford aircraft DF253 when she crashed at Dymonds Farm, Honiton Clyst, near the aerodrome at Exeter RAF Station, Colerne, England. He was killed in the crash. Along with Sergeant-Pilot Donald MacGregor, two RAF members of the crew were also killed.  

The next day, his parents Donald Sr. and Margaret on Mitton Street received a telegram informing them that their only son had lost his life while on active service in England. No other details were provided. Donald MacGregor’s remains were buried on May 15, 1942. He was later officially recorded as Killed during flying operations, overseas.

In January 1943, St. Andrew’s Church in Sarnia held a memorial service for three parishioners, all members of the Royal Canadian Air Force, who had paid the supreme sacrifice in the previous year—George William Knowles, Howard Fraser Thompson, and Donald Cameron MacGregor (Knowles and Thompson are included in this Project). The service was arranged at the request of family members with Rev. Dr. J.M. Macgillivray officiating. In his brief address, Dr. Macgillivray’s words expressed the sentiment of many at the time:

These men, as well as others like them, went forth possessed, perhaps, of a spirit of adventure not unnatural in young men. But it was not only the call of adventure that led them to the King’s service in the clouds. There was a deeper motive than that. They had a vision of a new and better world; a world free of tyranny, oppression, injustice and fear. They knew that the only way to secure such a world was by overthrowing forever the forces of evil now threatening mankind; and to that holy task they dedicated their lives. They have entered into the larger life; and to God’s keeping we commend them in the Easter hope of a final resurrection to eternal life.

It is my personal conviction that they are not now far away from us, and I read to you as suggestive and appropriate some words written by a French soldier killed in 1915 during the First Great War: ‘I believe the dead live close to the living, invisible but present; and perhaps it is they whom God sends to us in answer to our prayers, so that their spirit, which is His, may continue to guide us and inspire us.’

In April 1946, Donald Sr. and Margaret MacGregor received a War Service Gratuity of $114.62 for the loss of their only son.

Donald MacGregor, 27, is buried in Exeter Higher Cemetery, Devon, United Kingdom, Section Z.K. Grave 54. On his headstone are inscribed the words HOLY FATHER, LOOK ON US TODAY, AS WE THINK OF HIM OUR DEAR ONE GONE AWAY.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Emerson (Sr.) and Ina Agatha (nee Renshaw) Martindale, of 413 Nelson Street, Sarnia. Ralph Emerson Sr. (born October 12, 1903 in Haldimand) married Ina Agatha (born March 25, 1904 in Haldimand) on August 13, 1921. Ralph Sr. and Ina Martindale were blessed with four children: sons Ralph Jr., Ernest Albert, and Edward Lorne (died March 14, 1926), and daughter Geraldine Jane.

Ralph Jr. attended two years of high school at Sarnia Collegiate and left at the age of 17. For a year prior to enlisting, Ralph worked as a machinist at Canadian Machinery Corporation in Galt, Ontario. Also, for several years, he had a steady girlfriend in Sarnia and there was talk of marriage in the future.

On December 27, 1941, Ralph Martindale, age 19, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve in London, Ontario. He stood five feet seven-and-a-quarter inches tall, had blue eyes and auburn hair, and was single at the time. His plan after the war was to continue his employment as a machinist.

Ralph began his training as an ordinary seaman, at HMCS Prevost, the Naval Reserve base in London, Ontario. In mid-February 1942, he was transferred to HMCS Stadacona, the naval base in Halifax, where he continued his training until mid-April 1942. On April 21, 1942, Ralph Martindale was transferred to HMCS Raccoon. Two months later, in June 1942, Ralph returned home while on leave to visit his parents and friends in Sarnia.After his leave, Ordinary Seaman Ralph Martindale returned to service aboard HMCS Raccoon.

HMCS Raccoon (S14) was a 148-foot, 377-ton civilian yacht (formerly the Halonia), originally built in 1931, and commissioned for military service by the RCN in June 1940. Beginning in the spring of 1942, HMCS Raccoon was assigned to the naval base at Gaspe to patrol the river and Gulf of the St. Lawrence and to escort convoys of ships sailing from Quebec to Sydney, Newfoundland, and Halifax.

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.

The Battle of the St. Lawrence was an extension of the larger Battle of the Atlantic. It began on May 12, 1942 when, after entering the Gulf of St. Lawrence, German U-boat U-553 sank two steamers south of Anticosti Island. Canadians were shocked when they heard the news. Between May 1942 and late 1944, German U-boats repeatedly penetrated the waters of the St. Lawrence River and the Gulf of St. Lawrence—sinking ships, destroying valuable cargo, and costing hundreds of lives. It was the first and only time since the War of 1812 that naval battles were waged in Canada’s inland waters.

In early September 1942, the armed yacht HMCS Raccoon, along with RCN corvette HMCS Arrowhead, the minesweeper HMCS Truro, and two Fairmile launches, Q-64 and Q-83, were escorting the convoy QS-33 in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The slow-moving convoy, bound for Sydney, Nova Scotia, was unaware that two German U-boats, U-165 and U-517 were lying in wait on opposite sides of the river, by Cap Chat and Pointe-des-Monts, Quebec. Late on the night of September 6, 1942, west of Pointe-des-Monts where the St. Lawrence narrows to 50 kilometers in width, German U-boat U-165 intercepted and struck the starboard side of the Greek steam merchant ship Aeas with one torpedo just under the bridge. The Aeas sank, two of the crew died, and the 29 others survived by abandoning ship and climbing into life rafts.

One of her escorts, HMCS Raccoon, left the convoy at midnight, zig-zagging in search of the German U-boat. Shortly after, at 1:12 a.m. (September 7), a loud explosion ripped through the night air when HMCS Raccoon was torpedoed almost point-blank range by U-165. The Raccoon’s boiler exploded and the ship sank in minutes. Other ships in the convoy speculated they were hearing depth charges being dropped by the Raccoon as it pursued the U-boat. Explosions from both sinkings, which lit up the sky, could be heard for miles around, and windows of houses close to shore were rattled by the detonations.

Three days later, only a few bits of debris from HMCS Raccoon were found on the south coast of Anticosti Island: a portion of the ship’s bridge, some signal pads, and a life preserver. One body was found—that of a well-known McGill University footballer, Sub-Lieutenant Russell McConnell, RCNVR. The entire Raccoon crew of 37 men were lost, including Ralph Martindale, who had served less than five months aboard the Raccoon.

Days after the sinking, Ralph Sr. and Ina Martindale in Sarnia received a cable informing them that their son was reported missing when the Canadian patrol vessel Raccoon was lost while in convoy duty. Ralph Martindale was later officially recorded as At sea, presumed lost on board H.M.C.S. ‘Raccoon’.

Another sad story in the loss of the Raccoon is that of Supply Assistant John Sheflin, one of Ralph Martindale’s crew-mates, who also perished in the sinking. At the very moment that the Raccoon was going down, a train sped through nearby Riviere-la-Madeleine carrying John Sheflin’s wife, Marguerite, and their two pre-school children. They had made a spur-of-the moment decision to move from Toronto to join family in Eureka, Nova Scotia, so that they could see John when he took his occasional shore leave. It would be years before his family discovered just how close together they were before tragedy tore them apart forever.

Less than three weeks after the sinking of the Raccoon, U-165 experienced the same fate. The German submarine had been commissioned in early February 1942 and was commanded by Captain Eberhard Hoffman. She carried out only a single war patrol, beginning with her departure from Kiel, Germany, on August 7, 1942. U-165 sailed across the North Atlantic, making her first two strikes off the northern tip of Newfoundland on August 28, 1942 (damaging an American merchant vessel and an American oiler). Just over a week later, U-165 sank the Aeas and the Raccoon in the St. Lawrence River. By mid-September, she began her return voyage across the Atlantic. On September 27, 1942, on her 52nd day at sea, U-165 was sunk in the Bay of Biscay by depth charges from an RAF #311 Squadron Wellington aircraft. All 51 hands aboard U-165 were lost.

On January 9, 1945, a little over two years after the loss of her son, Ina Martindale passed away at the age of 40. Ina is buried at Lakeview Cemetery in Sarnia.

Over a period of just over two years, Ralph Sr. had lost a son and then his wife. In July 1945, Ralph Sr. received a War Service Gratuity of $107.59 for the loss of his son. Ralph Sr., passed away on October 10, 1987, two days before his 84th birthday. He is buried with his wife at Lakeview Cemetery.

Twenty-year-old Ordinary Seaman Ralph Omar Martindale has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Halifax Memorial, Nova Scotia, Canada, Panel 9.  

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Albert “Robert” McCallum was born in Parry Sound, Ontario, on January 29, 1919, the only son of Gordon and Johanna (Joan) Katherine (nee Morrison) McCallum. Gordon McCallum (born in Dunchurch, Ontario) married Joan Morrison (born in Orville, Ontario) on January 6, 1918. Gordon and Joan had two children together: a son, Albert Robert, and a daughter, Margaret Dorothy, born in 1921. Gordon supported his family by working as a fireman with the C.N.R. in Sarnia. The McCallums lived at 555 Confederation Street in Sarnia.

Robert attended Confederation Public Elementary School in Sarnia from 1925 to 1932. He then moved to Parry Sound where he completed his high school education in 1937 at the age of 18. Robert was active in sports, especially hockey, swimming, and softball, along with rugby, tennis, badminton, and bowling.

Robert was not afraid to be busy. After completing high school, he had several jobs: a Junior Clerk at Canadian Bank of Commerce in Parry Sound (1937-1938); a ledger-keeper in Seaforth (1938-1940); and a teller in Dublin, Ontario. He was an assistant scoutmaster for one year ending in March 1940 and also served in the Middlesex and Huron Regiment NPMA (Non-Permanent Active Militia) “D” Company as a private from July 29 to November 14, 1940 in Seaforth, Ontario.

On November 15, 1940, Robert McCallum, age 21, enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force in London, Ontario. He stood five feet eight inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, was single, and recorded his address as Dublin, Ontario (where he was employed as a bank teller), and his permanent address as 555 Confederation Street, Sarnia (where his parents were living). He requested flying duties with a preference to be a pilot. His plan for after the war was to enter the field of aviation. His training was extensive.

From #1 Auxillary Manning Depot in Picton, Ontario, Robert received his air training at a number of British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) facilities across the country: #2 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) in Uplands, Ontario; #3 Initial Training School (ITS) in Victoriaville, Quebec; #1 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Malton; and #5 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) in Brantford, Ontario.

Sergeant-Pilot Robert McCallum was awarded his Pilot’s Flying Badge and “Wings” on September 1, 1941, at SFTS Brantford, along with two other Sarnians: Sergeant-Pilot Wesley K. McDermid, and Sergeant-Observer Howard Fraser Thompson (Thompson’s story is included in this Project). On September 5, 1941, Robert continued his training at #31 General Reconnaissance School (GRS) in Charlottetown, P.E.I., and in late November 1941, was posted to #31 Operational Training Unit (OTU) in Debert, Nova Scotia.

Robert embarked overseas bound for the United Kingdom on March 29, 1942. He was one of the first group of Canadians to ferry Hudson aircraft to England. Once in the U.K., he was initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre. On April 11, 1942, he was transferred to RAF #119 Squadron where he continued his training in the spring and summer of 1942 on Catalina flying boats at Loch Erne, Northern Ireland. In mid-August 1942, he returned to Canada and his home in Sarnia on a two-week furlough, where he spent time with his family and friends. At the end of the month, he returned to the U.K. and #119 Squadron. In October 1942, his parents in Sarnia received news of Robert’s promotion from pilot officer to flying officer.

No. 119 Squadron was part of RAF Coastal Command. Coastal Command played a pivotal role in the Allied war effort, most notably against U-boats during the Battle of the Atlantic. They also sank enemy warships and merchant vessels, protected Allied shipping from aerial attacks, and carried out reconnaissance and air-sea rescues.

RAF #119 Squadron “By night and by day” began as a flying boat squadron that used civilian aircraft for maritime patrols from March to November 1941. The squadron reformed as an operational unit at RAF Lough Erne, Northern Ireland, on April 14, 1942, originally operating the Consolidated Catalina aircraft. The first aircraft arrived in May 1942 and, three months later in August, 11 crews went to Canada to ferry new aircraft across the Atlantic. The last of these aircraft arrived in mid-September 1942 but, by then, the squadron was based at RAF Pembroke Dock and was preparing to convert to the Short Sunderland Mks. II and IIIs (a British flying boat patrol bomber). As part of Coastal Command, Sunderland patrols began on November 20, 1942, but only continued for approximately five months before disbanding in mid-April 1943. The squadron formed again in mid-July 1944 as a torpedo-bomber squadron that attacked German E-boats and R-boats.

On December 14, 1942, eight months after arriving overseas, Robert was promoted to flight lieutenant-pilot. The next morning, taking off at dawn in turbulent weather, he was on a mission with #119 Squadron as the pilot aboard Sunderland Mark III DV971 aircraft. The crew of 11 on board were on a daytime anti-submarine patrol over the Atlantic Ocean.

At approximately 12.15 hours, an SOS was received from the aircraft giving her position as south-west of the Scilly Islands (an archipelago off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain). After that, nothing else was heard from the aircraft. Sunderland DV971 failed to return to her base. Sea conditions at the time were reported to be rough. An extensive search failed to locate the aircraft or dinghies. It was assumed that the crew lost their lives at sea.

Perishing with Flight Lieutenant-Pilot Albert Robert McCallum were F/Sgts. Raymond Ingham Law, Bliss Dunfield King, and William George Milne (all RCAF); F/O. E.N. Jackson (RNZAF, a passenger); and Cpl. H.R. Watkinson, F/Sgt. G. Hamilton, Sgts. A.G.E. Wilson, T.C. Gallagher, A.G. Shum and G.S. Crossan (all RAF).

The day after Robert’s aircraft failed to return, Gordon and Joan McCallum in Sarnia received a telegram informing them that their son Albert was MISSING AFTER AIR OPERATIONS OVERSEAS.On December 18, 1942, the McCallums received the following letter from the Commanding Officer of #119 Squadron, RAF, Home Forces:

Dear Mrs. McCallum,

            Before receiving this letter you will have been informed by telegram that your son Flight Lieutenant Albert Robert McCallum is reported missing while engaged on active operations against the enemy.

            The aircraft took off at dawn on an overseas reconnaissance and failed to return. A sustained and determined air search has not been successful.

            It is with deep regret and a very real sense of personal loss that I convey this news to you. “Bob”, as he was affectionately known to all of us was one of the best aircraft Captains in the Squadron. His ability, good humour and unfailing sense of duty was an inspiration to all ranks. His loss is a very severe blow to the Squadron as a whole and myself in particular. In view of his excellent work he had been very recently promoted to the rank of Flight Lieutenant which he had well earned. His steadiness and reliability made him one of the main supports of the Squadron. There is a possibility, and I am still hoping, that he may have been picked up by a small vessel or fishing boat, if so the news will be immediately conveyed to you.

Your son’s effects have been carefully collected together and forwarded to the Royal Air Force Depository, where they will be held until better news is obtained or for a period of six months, after which they will be sent to you.

            The whole Squadron, very many of whom are Canadians, and myself as Commanding Officer, offer you our very sincere sympathy during this period of anxiety. If I can be of any assistance please let me know and I will do my best to help I any way possible.

In late December 1942, the McCallums received a letter from their son, dated December 14, 1942, in which he stated, “The weather has been bad but we expect to be out tomorrow to see some action.”

In September 1943, Albert Robert McCallum was officially recorded as Previously reported missing after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas.

In November 1945, six months after the war ended in Europe, the McCallums received a War Service Gratuity of $350.55 for the loss of their only son.

In July 1946, the McCallums, then residing in Palmerston, Ontario, received the following letter from R.C.A.F. Records Officer in Ottawa:

Dear Mrs. McCallum:

            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 A.R. McCallum. 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.

Albert Robert McCallum, 23, has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Runnymede War Memorial, Surrey, United Kingdom, Panel 99.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Donald McClure was born in Euphemia Township in Lambton County, Ontario, on March 23, 1921, the middle son of William Alexander (born in Brooke Township, Lambton County) and Edna Isabella (nee Bissell) McClure, of 249 Cromwell Street, Sarnia. It was Edna’s second marriage. She had married Victor Ivinson in 1914, but he passed away in February 1916. They had one child together, a son, Edward Leland Ivinson, born in Oil Springs on February 5, 1916 (he was the grandson of Oil Baron Edward Ivinson, 1846-1918).

Widowed Edna Ivinson married William Alexander McClure on January 14, 1919. William and Edna had three sons together: James Kenneth (born May 15, 1920, see below); Donald Leonard (born March 1921); and John William Alexander ‘Jack’ (born March 6, 1922). Along with Edward Leland Ivinson, their half-brother, the three McClure boys grew up with Edna at 249 Cromwell Street. Sadly, when Donald was only five months old, his father, William, a local Sarnia grocer, died of heart disease on August 27, 1921, at Sarnia General Hospital at the age of 35.

The McClure boys never shied away from doing their duty. At the time of Donald’s death in 1943, his brother, John William ‘Jack’, was residing in Sarnia; his half-brother, Edward, was in Detroit with the U.S. Navy (he would be stationed in Pensacola, Florida, but was never allowed to serve overseas); and his brother, James, was in the Canadian Army stationed on the east coast. John ‘Jack’ McClure also served in the war, but was sent home after his two brothers were killed in action.

Donald McClure attended Central United Church and was educated at Sarnia public schools and at Sarnia Collegiate which he attended for three years, until he was 16 years old. During his high school days, he was a member of the rifle team. Upon graduating from a technical course in machine shop, he was first employed at Goodison Threshing Company and then at Holmes Foundry as a core-maker for two years prior to enlisting.

On May 10, 1941, Donald McClure, age 20, married Ethel Mamie McClure in Sarnia. They initially resided at 249 Cromwell Street (with his mother), and later 264 Cameron Street, Sarnia. The year 1942 was one of change for both Donald and Ethel. Just over a year after getting married, Donald enlisted in the Canadian Army in June 1942. Four months later, on October 16, the young couple had one child together but, sadly, their son that was born stillborn. It must have been a horrible time for the young couple.

On June 15, 1942, Donald McClure, age 21, enlisted in the Canadian Army in London, Ontario. He stood five feet nine-and-a-quarter inches tall, had blue eyes and fair hair, and was residing with his wife Ethel and his mother at 249 Cromwell Street at the time. His plan for after the war was to return to Holmes Foundry.

From #1 District Depot in London, Donald received his army training at #10 Basic Training Centre (BTC) in Kitchener and then at #A8 Canadian Armoured Corps (Advanced) Training Centre (CACATC) at Camp Borden. On November 17, 1942, he was granted his two-week embarkation leave.

On December 12, 1942, Trooper Donald McClure embarked overseas bound for the United Kingdom. Initially a member of #2 Canadian Armoured Corps Reinforcement Unit (CACRU), he continued his training in England and later in Scotland. During his training, he attained qualifications as a driver in charge (carrier), and a driver in charge Class III (tank). On May 20, 1943, Donald was transferred to the 12th Canadian Army Tank (CAT) Regiment.

Almost one year to the day after enlisting in the Army, on June 16, 1943, Donald embarked from the U.K. bound for Sicily. At some point, Donald wrote home, and his letter included descriptions of Gibraltar and Algiers, which he had visited en route to Sicily. Trooper Donald McClure, as a member of the 12th Canadian Tank Corps of the Three Rivers Regiment, Royal Canadian Armoured Corps (R.C.A.C.), took part in the initial invasion force of Sicily on July 10, 1943. Donald, the co-driver of a tank, was part of a five-man tank crew.

The Italian Campaign, the first sustained Canadian Army operation of the War, began with the invasion of Sicily on July 10, 1943. Code-named Operation Husky, the multinational invasion force was made up of British, American, Canadian, and French personnel, commanded by General Dwight D. Eisenhower. It was the largest armada ever assembled to date. They would need it, for Sicily posed several challenges for the invaders.

Sicily was a mountainous island and, for the Italian and German forces there, the interior was a defensive planner’s dream. For the Canadians, as they marched up Sicily island’s dusty mountainous winding roads, in scorching temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius, their designated route had them fated to run into major

concentrations of German troops offering an ever-stiffening resistance, while holding the high ground in a series of lines. The fierce fighting on the island would last more than four weeks, and 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. The Italian Campaign came at a cost of more than 26,000 Canadian casualties including nearly 6,000 Canadians killed.

Three weeks into the Sicily battle, on July 30, 1943, Donald McClure’s tank was hit by enemy fire. Donald suffered a mortar wound that perforated his lower abdomen and, despite being administered plasma and blood, and being operated on by an Army surgeon, he died as a result of his wounds at approximately 0245 hours on July 30.

Of his other crew members, the other driver of the tank was killed instantly; two were wounded; and one member escaped injury.

Donald’s remains were buried on July 31, 1943, at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “East side of Olive Orchard near Leonforte MR.348925”. Donald McClure was the first Sarnia fatality in the Sicilian campaign.

On Cameron Street, Ethel McClure received a telegram in mid-August from the Director of Records. It informed her that her husband of two years TROOPER MCCLURE HAD BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED DIED OF WOUNDS ON A DATE NOT YET AVAILABLE. It added that further word would be forwarded when received. In mid-September 1943, Ethel received the following letter from the Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Madam:

            I deeply regret to inform you that your husband, A103300 Trooper Donald Leonard McClure, gave his life in the Service of his Country in Sicily on the 30th day of July, 1943

            From official information we have received, your husband died as the result of wounds received 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.

Donald McClure was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, died of wounds received in action, in the field (Sicily).

In mid-October 1944, Ethel received another letter from the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General. Following is a portion of that letter:

No. A.103300, Trooper Donald L. McClure

Dear Madam:

With reference to the regretted death of your husband, the marginally named Canadian soldier, I am to advise that information has recently been received from overseas that his remains have been reburied in grave 486, row G, plot D, of the new Canadian Military Cemetery at Agira, Sicily. This is a recognized military burial ground.

The grave will have been marked with a temporary cross which will be replaced in due course by a permanent headstone suitably inscribed. For obvious reasons it cannot now be stated when this work of permanent commemoration will begin, but you may rest assured that before it is carried out you will be communicated with and given an opportunity of selecting a short personal inscription for engraving upon the memorial…

In May 1945, Ethel, then residing in Acton, Ontario, received a War Service Gratuity of $184.64 for the loss of her husband Donald.

Donald McClure, 22, is buried at Agira Canadian War Cemetery, Sicily, Grave D.G.486. On his headstone are inscribed the words UNTIL THE DAY BREAK AND THE SHADOWS FLEE AWAY.

For Donald’s twice-widowed mother, Edna, a little over one year later, she would lose a second son, James, who was killed in action in Italy.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

James (Jim) McClure was born in Norville, near Toronto, on May 15, 1920, the eldest son of William Alexander (born in Brooke Township, Lambton County, Ontario) and Edna Isabella (nee Bissell) McClure, of 215 ½ North Christina Street and later 249 Cromwell Street, Sarnia. It was Edna’s second marriage. She had married Victor Ivinson in 1914, but he passed away in February 1916. They had one child together, a son, Edward Leland Ivinson, born in Oil Springs on February 5, 1916, (he was the grandson of Oil Baron Edward Ivinson, 1846-1918).

Edna Ivinson married William Alexander McClure on January 14, 1919, and they had three sons together: James Kenneth (born May 1920); Donald Leonard (born March 23, 1921, see above); and John William Alexander ‘Jack’ (born March 6, 1922). Along with Edward Leland Ivinson, their half-brother, the three McClure boys grew up with Edna at 249 Cromwell Street. Sadly, when James was only 15 months old, his father William, a local Sarnia grocer, died of heart disease on August 27, 1921, at Sarnia General Hospital at the age of 35.

The McClure boys never shied away from doing their duty. At the time of James’ death in 1944, his brother, John William ‘Jack’, was residing in Sarnia; his half-brother, Edward, was in Detroit with the U.S. Navy (he would be stationed in Pensacola, Florida, but was never allowed to serve overseas); and his brother, Donald, a member of the Canadian Army, had been killed in action in the Battle of Sicily the previous year. John ‘Jack’ McClure also served in the war, but was sent home after his two brothers were killed in action.

James McClure was educated at a Sarnia public school from which he graduated in 1935. He then attended Sarnia Collegiate for only two months and left school at the age of 15. James was very interested in farming, so after leaving high school, he spent five years working on a farm. His responsibilities included managing a farm of 200 cleared acres over a two-year period. Following that, he was a seaman with Canada Steamship Lines and sailed for one season (8 months) on the S.S. Huronic.

On January 13, 1942, James McClure, age 21, enlisted in the Canadian Army in London, Ontario. He stood five feet seven-and-three-quarter inches tall, had blue eyes and dark brown hair, and was single. He recorded his occupation as a labourer, and that he was residing with his mother on North Christina Street at the time. His post-war plan was to return to farming.

From #1 District Depot in London, and then #1 District Depot (Active Force) in Windsor, James received his army training as a gunner at #10 Basic Training Centre (BTC) in Windsor and later at the Advanced Canadian Army Training Centre (CATC) at Petawawa until May 1942.

On May 2, 1942, James McClure, now nearly 22 years old, married Miss Norma Louise Gehm, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. H.C. Gehm, in a quiet ceremony at the military chapel at Camp Petawawa. The couple were attended by Gunner Sidney Morr, R.C.A. and Gunner Lloyd Illman, R.C.A. After their marriage, James returned to service and Norma resided in Watford for a short time, before moving to Sarnia to live with her mother-in-law, Edna, at 249 Cromwell Street.

After his marriage, James was transferred to Debert, Nova Scotia, where he became a member of the 30th Anti-Aircraft Battery (30 LAA), Royal Canadian Artillery. In January 1943, while still a member of 30LAA, he was posted to Goose Bay, Labrador. Part of this unit’s role was to guard the airport in Labrador while it was under construction. In July 1943, James was posted to St. John, New Brunswick, as a member of #22 Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery. During his time in St. John, James learned that his younger brother, Donald, a member of the Canadian Tanks Corps, had been killed in action during the Battle of Sicily in late July of 1943.

It was during this time that the army was short in Infantry Reserves. Due to this shortage, in February 1944, Gunner James McClure transferred to the infantry and reverted to the rank of private. In mid-February, he attended #12 Canadian Infantry Basic Training Centre (CIBTC) in Chatham, Ontario. The following month, he continued his training at A-29 Canadian Infantry Training Centre (CICTC) at Camp Ipperwash. In late May 1944, he was transferred to #1 Transit Camp in Windsor, Nova Scotia.

Private James McClure embarked overseas bound for the United Kingdom on June 4, 1944. He was initially posted to #2 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (#2CIRU) and then to #3CIRU. A month later, James became a member of the Perth Regiment, Royal Canadian Infantry Corps (RCIC), of the Central Mediterranean Force (CMF). On July 16, 1944, a little more than one month after arriving overseas, James McClure embarked from the U.K. bound for Italy.

One year earlier, the Italian Campaign, the first sustained Canadian Army operation of the War, began with the invasion of Sicily on July 10, 1943. His brother Donald had been killed on July 30, 1943 in Sicily. The fierce fighting on the mountainous 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 1943, 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 campaign came at a cost of more than 26,000 Canadian casualties including nearly 6,000 Canadians killed.

James McClure served with the Perth Regiment as they advanced northward through Italy. On December 13, 1944, fewer than five months after arriving in Italy, Private James McClure was killed in action while fighting during the Italian Campaign. His remains were buried on December 14 at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “5 C.A.D. Cemetery No 11. sh.89/III. NW MR. 452418 Gr.A10”.

In late December 1944, Captain A.J. Goldring of Military District No. 1 Headquarters, London, arrived at 249 Cromwell Street. Living there were James’ mother, Edna, and her daughter-in-law (James’ wife), Norma. At the time, Norma was eight months pregnant. Captain Goldring informed the two women that James had been killed in action while serving in Italy. It must have been an extremely painful time for everyone—for Edna, this was her second son lost in the war; for Norma, she lost her husband who would never see their child.

As for Captain Goldring, he must have known how difficult it was to be the bearer of such horrible news. According to the District Chaplain’s report to the Director of Records in Ottawa, this is what occurred at the visit to Edna and Norma: Captain Goldring proceeded on to Sarnia and located Mrs. McClure (Norma) at the address given. She received the sad news of her husband’s death bravely and calmly, but the mother of Pte. McClure was somewhat overcome as this was the second son killed in action during the present conflict. Mrs. McClure is expecting her child some time in January, and it is presumed that she will be remaining at the Sarnia address.

In early January 1945, Edna wrote a letter to the Department of National Defence, Director of Records in Ottawa. In it, she requested information about her fallen son Donald (see above) and the fate of her other son, James. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Sir

            …. I am writing to ask that any further information you receive (about Donald’s gravestone) you will kindly notify me if that is in order. Don was living at home here with me & his younger brother (James) & his wife was also here of course when he enlisted and this was his only home so I feel that I am entitled to know anything that can be learned about his grave. Also I am concerned about my older son Pte. James K. McClure A28723 who was reported killed in action in Italy Dec 13/44. His wife at present is here with me and is expecting to go to Petrolia hospital  almost any time now so if possible will you kindly inform us here of any information you may receive regarding his death. It is now over a month and we have not heard any more than that he was killed in action…. Hoping for further information soon and thanking you…

In mid-January 1945, Norma received the following letter from the Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. McClure:

            It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your husband, A28723 Private James Kenneth McClure, who gave his life in the Service of his Country in the Mediterranean Theatre of War on the 13th day of December, 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.

James McClure was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (Italy).

Two months after James’ death, on February 13, 1945, Norma gave birth to their daughter, Carol Louise, born in the C.E.E. Hospital in Petrolia. The baby was baptized in Central United Church, the same church where a memorial service was held for her father when Carol Louise was two months old.

In mid-June 1945, a month after the war in Europe ended, the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General wrote the following letter to Norma:

Dear Madam:

            Information has now been received from the overseas military authorities that your husband, A28723 Private James Kenneth McClure, was buried with religious rites in grave A10, of a temporary Cemetery located at Villanova, approximately eight miles North-West of Ravenna, Italy.

            The grave will have been temporarily marked with a wooden cross for identification purposes and in due course the remains will be reverently exhumed and removed to a recognized military burial ground when the concentration of graves in the area takes place. On this being completed the new location will be advised to you, but for obvious reasons it will likely take approximately one year before this information is received.

 In late August 1945, Norma received another 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 husband, A28723 Private James Kenneth McClure, have been buried in grave 10, row A, plot 7, of 5th Canadian Armoured Division Cemetery, Villanova, seven 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…

In October 1945, Norma received a War Service Gratuity of $342.33 for the loss of her husband.

In December 1945, more than one year after James’ death, Edna McClure wrote the following letter to the Officer of Records, Department of National Defence:

Dear Sir

            Would you kindly let me have a card of sympathy from the Can. Gov. like the one you sent Jim’s wife. I received one relating to my other son Tpr. Donald McClure but so far have not received one regarding Pte. James K. McClure A-28723 killed in action Dec. 13/45. I would like to have the two to put together. Hoping this is not out of order. I am gratefully yours.

                                                                                                Edna I. McClure (mother)

For James’ twice-widowed mother, Edna, this was her second son lost in the war. Her son Donald, had been killed in action the previous July in 1943 in Sicily.

James McClure, 24, is buried in Villanova Canadian War Cemetery, Italy, Grave VII.A.10. On his headstone are inscribed the words UNTIL THE DAY BREAK AND THE SHADOWS FLEE AWAY.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Gilbert McFadyen was born in London, Ontario, on September 15, 1924, the eldest son of George Henry and Isabel May (nee Campbell) McFadyen, of 222 South Mitton Street, Sarnia. George (born in Sarnia) and Isabel (born in Caradoc Township) were married in Welland, Ontario, on June 28, 1919. George and Isabel had two children together: Gilbert Campbell, and John Robert, born in April 1926. George supported his family working as a department store manager in Sarnia.

Gilbert spent the first seven years of his life growing up in London, Middlesex, then in Waterloo and then back to Middlesex. The McFadyen family moved to Sarnia when Gilbert was seven years old. Gilbert received his education at Lochiel Street Public School in Sarnia (1930-1938) and then Sarnia Collegiate (1938-1943). He was active in basketball and baseball, and his hobby was music. He was an avid member of the Young Men’s Christian Association and also took a very active part in Central United Church where he served as an usher. Gilbert was also a member of the Central Century Club, and was its vice-president during 1942. He was working part time at Zellers Department Store in 1943 as a stockroom clerk when he left school and his part-time job to join the service.

On April 30, 1943, Gilbert McFadyen, age 18, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in Sarnia. 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. Gilbert stood six feet one-and-a-half inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, was single, and lived at home with his parents on Mitton Street at the time. He requested ground duties (general duties) with the Air Force. The Air Force medical officers deemed him unfit for aircrew due to his visual acuity (myopia).

From #3 Recruiting Centre in London, and after a 12-day leave in Sarnia, Gilbert was posted to #2 Manning Depot in Brandon, Manitoba, on May 13, 1943. On June 5, 1943, he was transferred to No. 3 Reception Depot in Vancouver, British Columbia. On July 14, 1943, he was posted to RCAF Headquarters of Western Air Command (WAC) in Vancouver, with the rank of aircraftman 2nd Class. Two-and-a-half months after he enlisted, Gilbert was assigned to the RCAF vessel M427 B.C. Star on July 15, 1943.

Before the start of the war, RCAF’s Western Air Command operated four high-speed crash vessels and a scow seaplane tender. During the buildup of the war effort on the West Coast, many new remote early warning radar units were built and maintained. The RCAF would requisition a fleet of fishing vessels and tugs for patrol, transport, and supply duties to the remote defence sites along British Columbia’s coast. These vessels were attached to the RCAF Marine Section. They were the “work horses” that plied back and forth on their unscheduled runs and moved construction crews, material, and heavy equipment up and down the coast of British Columbia. To keep the radar units’ existence and locations secret, radio silence was enforced on these runs, and all information regarding the movement of this type of marine vessel was classified. All communications were coded.

The M427 B.C. Star was one of the vessels engaged in the coastal supply of all the Air Force stations along the British Columbia coast. She was a former salmon seine fishing vessel built in Vancouver in 1940, 67 feet long with a wooden hull and diesel engine. RCAF Western Command requisitioned her in January 1942.

On July 21, 1943, the B.C. Star left Vancouver with over 40 tons of gravel, cement, and other supplies bound for a RCAF construction detachment at Cape St. James. She carried a crew of 10 (including McFadyen) and three CMU (construction and maintenance unit) personnel. Two days later, the ship put in at the RCAF Station Bella Bella where she took aboard another 2.5 tons of cargo and three CMU personnel.

In the late afternoon of July 24, at approximately 1720 hours, the B.C. Star departed RCAF Station Bella Bella with her cargo of 43 tons of gravel and cement; her 10-man crew; and five No. 9 CMU personnel assigned to the construction project. They were bound for the new RCAF radar site at Cape St. James off Kunghit Island on the southern tip of the Queen Charlotte Islands. The vessel carried complete safety equipment including a lifeboat, two life rafts, eighteen life jackets, and two life buoys. Unfortunately, the B.C. Star never arrived at her destination.

The crew at No. 28 Radar Unit (RU) Cape St. James had no way of knowing that the supply boat was on her way, having not yet received the necessary cypher equipment to decode the movement message. Radio silence was enforced on the ship and no one missed her until August 3 when construction crews queried about their supplies. An intense sea and air search covered a wide area during the next several weeks. All crew and passengers were lost.

Gilbert McFadyen had been aboard the B.C. Star less than two weeks when the vessel disappeared. Only two bodies were recovered weeks later, and very little wreckage was found. On September 3 an unidentified airman’s body was found on Price Island. A tombstone was erected at the Meadow Island Cemetery, Bella Bella, to remember the unknown airman.

In the aftermath, speculation and rumours circulated about the vessel being attacked by a Japanese submarine. This information was enhanced by crewmembers aboard another RCAF Marine vessel inbound to Alliford Bay. They reported that they were listening to a Ketchikan, Alaska, radio station when its program was interrupted by a strange and unidentified transmission. The broken-up message read: Star… out of bread and water… Alliford repeat message… Thank you… Good afternoon. However, no conclusive evidence ever came to light that explained why the B.C. Star went down. Speculation was that the hull had simply opened up under the weight of her cargo and she sank so quickly that no lifeboats were launched and no distress signals were sent out.

This supply mission resulted in the largest loss of life in the history of the Marine Branch. One month after the loss, marine craft procedures were revised to ensure prompt reporting of arrivals and departures.

In early August 1943, George and Isabel McFadyen in Sarnia received a telegram from Royal Canadian Air Force Casualty officials informing them that their eldest son, AC2 Gilbert C. McFadyen, attached to a boat plying coastal waters, was missing after marine operations. Approximately one week later, it was confirmed that Gilbert was a member of the crew of the missing boat, and it was believed that all personnel had been lost. Time of the disappearance of the vessel was not disclosed by air force officials, but it was believed to have been sometime during the previous two weeks.

            In mid-August 1943, George McFadyen received a letter from G. Hollis Slater, whose son, Sergt. Jonathan C. Slater, was among the ship’s crew. In the letter, Hollis stated that he was hopeful that the airmen were still alive. Mr. Slater wrote It would appear that the ship left the mainland on July 24 for Cape St. James at the southern tip of the Queen Charlotte Islands and a day’s run away. On August 5 the following message was reported to have been picked up by the radio at Ketchikan, Alaska, ‘B.C. Star – Bread and water. Cumshaw Aliford, repeat’. Reference to Cumshaw and Aliford were not clear, but Mr. Slater interpreted the message as meaning that the men were on Louris Island in the Queen Charlottes and were attempting to travel by land to Sandspit or Aliford Bay on the northeast of Moresby Island.

Also in mid-August 1943, Isabel received a letter from F/L H.S. McDonald, Chaplain, Western Air Command, Vancouver, B.C. Following is a portion of that letter:

My dear Mrs. McFadyen:

            … At present there is nothing further to report on the loss of the “B.C. Star” and I can assure you that a diligent search is being pursued daily in an endeavor to find wreckage or other evidence of the boat. So far no word has been heard from any of the crew. As long as there is the faintest hope of finding any of the crew, the search will be kept up.

            The “B.C. Star” operated with Vancouver as a base and journeyed from Station to Station under the direction of the Commanding Officer of No. 9 Construction & Maintenance Unit. It was while on one of these routine voyages that the boat was reported missing after leaving a west coast base.

            It is the policy of the Station Chaplains to visit all boats that tie up at their wharf and I am quite sure that wherever your son’s boat was docked and there was a chaplain on the Station they would have a visit. As a matter of fact it was the custom for the chaplain to have his morning coffee with the crew in the galley.

            I recall meeting your son when he passed through No. 3 Repair Depot in Vancouver at which time I was one of the chaplains on that Station. I recall him because he came from Sarnia and I intimated the fact that my father had been one of the engineers that constructed the Sarnia tunnel and in that way we had a point of contact. He was not at

the Station very long before he was posted to duty. This made him very happy because like any other boy he was anxious to ‘get going’ since that is what he joined up for. He was quite happy and satisfied in his work and I am sure that he did his job well. I can assure you that if he is alive there is no danger of him being a prisoner of war and should any member of the crew be found I am quite sure that he would want to contact all the next of kin of the remainder of the crew.

            Let me assure you that in the R.C.A.F. we know the boys, we have many chats and contacts with them and through this personal touch are able to help them in many ways. Should anything further develop to change the situation of missing to that of another category, you will be notified immediately. With all good wishes to you and praying for the safety of your son.

In March 1944, Gilbert Campbell’s name appeared on the official casualty list of the Royal Canadian Air Force as Previously reported “missing in sinking of ‘B.C. Star’” 24-July-43 life rafts only wreckage found presumed vessel sunk, now “presumed dead” 24-July-43 for official purposes.

Aircraftman Class II Gilbert McFadyen was one of 16 RCAF airmen lost when the B.C. Star vessel sank. There were no survivors. Also killed were LACs Harold Frederick Dakenfold, George Thornton Stead, and Clarence James Sherlock; Sgts Philip Eric Olsen, Jack Douglas Hearfield, Jonathan Charles Slater, and William Murray MacNeill; Cpls Charles Gordon Glover, and Tadeusz Ledwig Polec; ACs Titus Vollhoffer, Maurice Daniel Onuski, and Arthur Garnet Davies; FSgts Roy Henry Drouillard, and William Ernest Mitchell.

An enquiry was held to investigate the circumstances of the loss of the B.C. Star. In September 1946, Isabel McFadyen received a letter from the R.C.A.F. Casualty Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa, informing her of the enquiry’s findings. Following is a portion of that letter:

            I regret there are very few particulars known of the tragedy in which your son AC.2 Gilbert Campbell McFadyen lost his life. The British Columbia Star departed from Bella Bella on July 23, 1943 for Rose harbor giving an estimated time of arrival at the latter port as 10 A.M. July 24. The last word received from the ship was a wireless message despatched at 6.10 P.M. Pacific War Time July 23 which read as follows: “Departed Bella Bella 17.20 hours 23-7-43 E.T.A. Rose Harbour 10.00 hours 24-7-43”.

            A Court of Enquiry was convened at Prince Rupert for the purpose of investigating the loss of this vessel and their findings revealed that the vessel was a good ship, in good repair and suitable for the voyage; that it was well fitted with all necessary and sufficient life saving, fire fighting and wireless equipment. It was commanded by an able and experienced Master. Its crew were sufficient in number for the safe handling of the vessel and were able and experienced. There is no evidence of negligence on the part of the Master or any of the crew and no blame is attached to any of them. An intensive search for the lost vessel was carried out by air and by sea and it is the opinion of the Court that in this connection everything was done that could have been done.

            The possibility of the vessel getting off course and running aground appears unlikely as the extensive air and sea search would have been almost certain to disclose the whereabouts of the wreck. Loss by fire could not be seriously considered due to the fact that the two life rafts which were recovered showed no evidence of this. Had an explosion occurred wreckage would have been discovered. The possibility of the shifting of the cargo was given consideration by the Court but this cause could not be substantiated due to the fact that the hold was loaded almost to capacity and under the direct supervision of the Master thus eliminating the possibility of the cargo shifting in rough seas…

            I deeply regret having to convey such distressing news and I only hope your sad loss will leave you fortified to face the future.

            In October 1955, Isabel received the following letter from the Wing Commander, R.C.A.F. Casualties Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff:

Dear Mrs. McFadyen:

            I am sorry indeed that after so long an interval I must refer to the loss of your son, Aircraftman Second Class Gilbert Campbell McFadyen, who has been officially recorded as not having a “known” grave.

            Due to the extreme hazards attending air, land and sea operations, many Royal Canadian Air Force boys do not have a “known” grave. All are being commemorated by name on Memorials erected at a number of locations, each Memorial representative of a theatre of operations.

            The Memorials are erected by the Imperial War Graves Commission (of which Canada is a member) who has announced that one of the Memorials will be erected in Ottawa, Canada. The name of your son will appear on that Memorial.

            It is believed that the Memorial will be erected during 1956, and during the period of construction, before

the name of your son is engraved on the Memorial, you will receive a Verification Form to complete and mail to the Imperial War Graves Commission.

            May I take this opportunity to express to you and the members of your family my deepest sympathy in the loss of your gallant son.

Eighteen-year-old Gilbert McFadyen has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Ottawa War Memorial, Ontario, Canada, Panel 2, Column 5.

On a beautifully clear, sunny day on July 6, 2013, the Denny Island War Memorial was dedicated on Denny Island, British Columbia, at the former Bella Bella RCAF base. On that day, dignitaries, military personnel, family members, RCMP, pipers, and 17 Chiefs and members of the First Nations took part in a memorial service and dedication ceremony. The dedication of the Bella Bella RCAF War Memorial began with the unveiling of the Cenotaph and then the Warriors Pole (dedicated to the memory of the Pacific Coast Militia Rangers and First Nation War Veterans). Then a memorial service was held for those who served and those that lost their lives serving which included the crews of Canso 9789 and the BC Star.

There were also several commemorative plaques unveiled that day: one telling the story of RCAF Station Bella Bella; one honouring Canso 9789 (crashed July 30, 1943); and one honouring the BC Star, that includes the names of the 15 crew/passengers who lost their lives on July 24, 1943. Sarnia’s AC2 Gilbert Campbell McFadyen’s name is included on that plaque.

BC Star plaque at the Bella Bella RCAF War Memorial

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Victor McKeown was born in Portadown, Co Armagh, Northern Ireland, on May 7, 1911, the son of John and Mary Ellen (nee Hewitt) McKeown. John and Mary Ellen were both born in Ireland, and were married on December 23, 1901, in Portadown, Northern Ireland. At some point, the McKeown family immigrated to Canada, first residing in Toronto, and then in Sarnia, at 355 George Street. John McKeown supported his family by working as a carpenter in Sarnia.

John and Mary Ellen McKeown had eight children together: sons Victor; Thomas Douglas (“Doug”, who became a sergeant in the same R.C.A.F. unit as Victor); Joseph W.; William H. (the latter two both later resided in Toronto); and Robert John (died in March 1909). Their daughters were Mrs. Alice Burr in Toronto; and Mrs. James Struthers and Mae (Mrs. Roy Chalmers) who both resided in Sarnia.

Victor spent the first seven years of his life in Toronto before the family moved to Sarnia. Victor was educated in Sarnia, attending London Road Public Elementary School (1918-1926) and then Sarnia Collegiate Institute from 1926 to 1928. While at high school, Victor was a well-known athlete who was very active in lacrosse, football, softball, boxing, and hockey. His hobbies included photography and rifle shooting.

After leaving school at the age of 18, Victor was employed as a repairman at the Dominion Salt Company in Sarnia from 1928 to 1940. In August 1940, Victor had served in the 2-26th Battery, Royal Canadian Artillery in Sarnia, with the rank of bombardier. Later in 1940, he moved to Toronto to work at De Havilland Aircraft as an aircraft inspector. He worked there from 1940 to 1942 when he left to enlist.

On September 14, 1942, Victor McKeown, age 31, enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force in Toronto. He stood five feet six inches tall, had gray eyes and brown hair, was single, and was residing at the time at 11 Clarendon Avenue, Toronto. Having doubts about his eyesight, he applied for ground crew, but was recommended for air gunner by the RCAF Selection Board.

From #11 Recruitment Centre and then #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, Victor received his air training at #6 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) in Dunnville; and #23 Pre-Aircrew Education Detachment (PAED) at University of Toronto; followed by #2 Air Gunner School (AGGTS) in Trenton; and then #3 Bombing and Gunnery School (B&GS) in MacDonald Manitoba. The Chief Instructor at #3B&GS wrote that Victor was Keen on his work; has a deep sense of responsibility; obliging to others; carries weight with his fellow students; displays ample initiative in carrying out air exercises should make a capable crew member. Victor was awarded his Air Gunner’s Badge at #3B&GS in Manitoba on June 25, 1943. The next day, he began his 14-day embarkation leave. On July 10, 1943, he was stationed at #1 Y Depot in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Victor McKeown embarked overseas from Halifax bound for the United Kingdom on July 16, 1943. Initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre (PRC), he was transferred to #1664 Conversion Unit (CU) on August 7, 1943. One month later, on September 10, 1943, he became a member of RCAF #434 Bluenose Squadron “In Excelsis Vincimus” (We Conquer the Heights), part of Bomber Command, with the rank of Pilot 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. 434 Squadron was formed at RAF Tholthorpe, Yorkshire, on June 13, 1943 as part of No. 6 (RCAF) Group. The unit was equipped with Handley Page Halifax aircraft, a four-engine heavy bomber. The squadron was adopted by the Rotary Club of Halifax and took the nickname “Bluenose” in reference to the schooner “Bluenose” and the common nickname for Nova Scotians (many of the initial squadron members were Maritimers). On December 11, 1943, the squadron transferred its base to RAF Croft where it remained for the rest of the war. In mid-December 1944, the squadron converted to the Canadian-built four-engine Avro Lancaster.

On the night of November 18, 1943, Pilot Officer Victor McKeown was one of a group of R.C.A.F. airmen taking part in a bombing mission on Mannheim, Germany. For more than eight hours, they withstood a temperature that fell to more than 35 degrees below zero but it didn’t stop them from carrying out their part of the smashing attack on the important industrial city.

Two months later, on January 29, 1944, Victor was a member of Crew #31 aboard Halifax MK V aircraft LK916 (markings WL-D) that took off from RAF Croft on a night operation targeting Berlin. It was the third day of a

heavy Anglo-American aerial offensive on Germany. On that fateful night, their Halifax aircraft was blown up over their target of Berlin. Of the 677 aircraft involved in the operation there were 46 losses.

Perishing with Pilot Officer-Air Gunner Victor McKeown were P/Os. Wallace Kingdon Maxwell, Carl Thomas Edward Lee, Edward Philip Devaney, William (Bill) Henry Martin, Sgt. Ernest Parker (RAF) and F/S Kenneth James Scales.

Several days later, John and Mary Ellen McKeown on George Street in Sarnia received a telegram from the R.C.A.F. Casualty Office in Ottawa informing them that their son SERGEANT VICTOR HERBERT MCKEOWN HAS BEEN REPORTED MISSING AFTER AIR OPERATIONS OVERSEAS.

Victor’s brother, Thomas Douglas (Doug), a member of the same unit, sent their parents an encouraging word. Doug cabled his parents the following DON’T WORRY ABOUT VIC HIS CHANCES OF BEING SAFE ARE VERY GOOD. Another set of Sarnia parents, Howard and Margaret Thompson, received the same RCAF Casualty Office telegram on the same day about their son, Arthur Cameron Thompson, who was also listed as missing in the same bombing raid over Berlin (Arthur Thompson’s story is included in this Project).

In early February 1944, Mary Ellen received the following letter from the Officer Commanding No. 434 Squadron in Great Britain:

Dear Mrs. McKeown:

            By the time you receive this letter you will doubtless have received official notification of the fact that your son, R.190962 Sergeant Victor Herbert McKeown, has been missing on operations since 28/29 January, 1944.

            Your son was not only a valued Air Gunner of this Squadron but he was highly popular with all the ranks and will be sorely missed by his many friends and acquaintances here.

            I can well understand the shock and grief that the sad tidings brought to you and I join with all the Officers, Non Commissioned Officers and Airmen of this unit in extending to you our heartfelt sympathy in this hour of bitter trial. There is always the possibility that your son may be alive and well even if a prisoner of war in enemy hands and we are all hoping for the best. There is no information to hand at the present time to justify this hope but you may rest assured that any information which may be received at some future date will be forwarded to you immediately.

Your son’s personal effects have been carefully gathered together and forwarded to the Standing Committee of Adjustment, Central Depository, Royal Air Force, Colnbrook, Slough, Bucks., and they will communicate with you in due course. Please allow me once again to express the deep and lasting sympathy which we all feel with you at this time.

Victor’s brother, Doug, who was a sergeant-air gunner with the R.C.A.F., arrived home in Sarnia in April 1944 to spend a leave with parents John and Mary Ellen. He had been overseas for two years and three months. He had been injured in a crash in England a year-and-a-half prior, spent six weeks in hospital, and had been

assigned to ground duty since. At the time of Doug’s visit, neither his parents or he had received any further

news of Victor’s status.                                                                                                                                    

In July 1944, John and Mary Ellen received a letter from Flight Lieutenant J.L. Westman of the R.C.A.F. Casualty Office at Ottawa informing them that their son, Sergeant Victor Herbert McKeown, had been advanced to the rank of pilot officer on January 23, 1944, but regretted no further information had been received as to his fate.

In November 1944, Mr. M. Hewitt (Victor’s uncle), in Portadown, Ireland, wrote to the Canadian Casualty Branch in London, England, seeking information about his nephew Victor. A portion of his letter reads: I know that sometimes it takes many months before any news is received of missing personnel, however I am still living in hopes that he may be a Prisoner of War somewhere and not been notified. I should be very much obliged if you would keep in touch with me regarding any future news that may become available…

Later that month, Mr. M. Hewitt received a reply from the Wing Commander, for Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, R.C.A.F. Overseas. Following is a portion of that reply: I regret that no news has been received regarding him since the date on which he was reported missing, and due to the time which has elapsed, and the absence of any further information, action to presume, for official purposes, that his death has occurred, will shortly be taken. Please accept my sympathy with you in the loss of your nephew.

In December 1944, John received the following letter from the Air Marshal, Chief of the Air Staff:

Dear Mr. McKeown:

            I have learned with deep regret that your son, Pilot Officer Victor Herbert McKeown, is now for official purposes presumed to have died on Active Service Overseas on January 29th, 1944. 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 son was serving.

Victor Herbert McKeown’s death was later officially recorded as Previously reported missing after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas (Germany).

In October 1945, the McKeown’s received a War Service Gratuity of $211.70 for the loss of their son.

One year later, in November 1946, Mary Ellen received the following letter from the Wing Commander for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa:

Dear Mrs. McKeown:

            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, Pilot Officer V.H. McKeown. 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.

More than three years after Victor’s aircraft went missing, the McKeown family was still searching for answers. In February 1947, Victor’s sister-in-law, Mrs. Joseph W. McKeown, wrote the following letter to the Secretary, Department of National Defence for Air, in Ottawa:

Dear Sir,

            In a number of recent publications I have read of some of the searches for missing aircrew in Europe, and I was wondering if perhaps there might have come to light any additional information regarding my brother, Pilot Officer Victor Herbert McKeown, missing on operations on Jan. 29, 1944.

            I am in hopes that you have this information but have held it back for fear of re-opening our grief. We would much rather know the facts than spend the rest of our days wondering. Hoping we have an early reply.

Following is a portion of the reply sent from the R.C.A.F. Casualty Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff:

We regret that up until the present time no definite information has been received concerning your brother or any members of his crew. The loss of this aircraft is at present the subject of a Casualty Enquiry with our Air Force Missing Research and Enquiry Units. An airman believed to be Sergeant Parker, the Flight Engineer of your brother’s crew, was washed ashore at Danemare in Denmark. You may be assured that should any information become available concerning your brother it will be forwarded to you. May I offer you my deepest sympathy in your sad loss.

In May 1952, Mary Ellen received the following letter from the Wing Commander, R.C.A.F. Casualties Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff:

Dear Mrs. McKeown:

            It is with reluctance that after so long an interval, I must refer to the loss of your son, Pilot Officer Victor Herbert McKeown, but due to the lack of any information concerning him since he was reported missing, it must be regretfully accepted and officially recorded that he does not have a “known” grave.

Due to the extreme hazards attending air operations there are, unhappily many thousands of British aircrew

boys who do not have “known” graves and all will be commemorated on General Memorials that will be erected at a number of locations by the Imperial War Graves Commission (of which Canada is a member), each Memorial representative of a theatre of operations. One of these Memorials will be erected at Runnymede, England, and the name of your son will appear on that Memorial.

            I realize that this is an extremely distressing letter and that there is no manner of conveying such information to you that would not add to your heartaches. I am fully aware that nothing I may say will lessen your great sorrow, but I would like to express to you and the members of your family my deepest sympathy.

Thirty-two-year-old Victor McKeown has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Runnymede War Memorial, Surrey, United Kingdom, Panel 251.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Patrick McLaughlin was born in Sarnia, on May 8, 1923, the youngest son of James and Lenora (nee Kemsley) McLaughlin. James, born September 1890, was the son of James Sr. and Mary (nee Wynn) McLaughlin, and in 1911, his family, which included four boys and three girls, was residing at 230 Rose St., Sarnia. At the time, James Sr., supported his family by working as a steam fitter at Imperial Oil, and James Jr., age 20 and the oldest child, was working as a labourer. Lenora Kemsley, born in 1905 in Sarnia, was the daughter of William and Catherine (nee McCue) Kemsley

 On May 17, 1920, James McLaughlin, age 29, and a boilermaker by trade, married Lenora Kemsley, age 15, in Sarnia. Five years later, in 1925, James and Lenora separated when Patrick was two years old. Patrick lived with his father at 444 South Brock Street, and Lenora later resided in Timmins, Ontario. Patrick had an older brother, James, who later resided in Detroit, Michigan.

After being educated at St. Joseph’s Separate School, Patrick attended Sarnia Collegiate Institute and Technical School for two-and-a-half years. He liked listening to music and he read as much as possible. He also enjoyed swimming, skiing, and snowshoeing, but left high school early, at age 15. Instead, he joined the work force to help support his father by finding various jobs: doing farm work; working at Auto-lite factory for six months; working as a clerk in a drug store for one year; and, prior to enlisting, working as a clerk for six months at Loblaws Groceteria.

On March 19, 1941, Patrick McLaughlin, age 17, enlisted in the Canadian Army in London, Ontario. When Patrick enlisted, he recorded his birthdate as May 8, 1921 (not 1923), making himself two years older than he actually was. As a result, many of the documents in his Military Service File, including his Death Certificate, have the incorrect birthdate.

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 found different ways to enlist: some lied about their age; others used falsified written consent letters from a parent; or many simply applied at another recruiting centre or in another service.

Patrick stood five feet five inches tall, had hazel eyes and dark brown hair, was single, and was residing at home with his father on Brock Street at the time. Patrick’s plan for after the war was to become a machinist.

From #1 District Depot in London, Patrick received his army training as a gunner at #10 Basic Training Centre (BTC) in Kitchener; his advanced training at Canadian Army Training Center A2 (CATC) at Petawawa, and 3A District Depot in Kingston (training as a tradesman – motor mechanics); and at Canadian Army Training School (CATS) in Hamilton. He returned to CATC in Petawawa in early April 1942.

The previous March, in 1941, Patrick completed his Will bequeathing “all my estate” to his father James on Brock St. in Sarnia.

His additional training was extensive. On May 5, 1942, Patrick became a member of the 30th Light Anti-Aircraft (30^th LAA) Battery, Royal Canadian Artillery, serving in Debert Nova Scotia. On June 16, 1942, he proceeded by command to “G” Force as a bombardier with the 30^th LAA, still in Debert. In early October 1942, he was posted to Goose Bay, Labrador. Being a young man far from home, and trying to find his place while adhering to strict military rules, he did commit the occasional offence: he was AWL (Absent without leave) on three occasions—for two days in June 1941 in Petawawa; for two days in October 1941 in Hamilton; and for seven days in February 1942 in Hamilton. In October 1942 in Goose Bay, Patrick was disciplined for drunkenness, resisting an escort, and being improperly dressed. He was demoted to the rank of gunner for a time but, ultimately, proved himself to be a very good and valuable soldier.

On July 1, 1943, he became a member of the 22nd Anti-Aircraft Regiment, serving in St. John, New Brunswick. In late August 1943, he advanced in rank to lance bombardier. Comments from several of his commanding officers in his Personnel Selection Record mentioned that “he is alert and intelligent…a sociable person and a good worker…will do the best he can in the army…his troop officer reports he is one of the best men in the troop, with good learning ability. He is reliable, hard worker, and shows some leadership potentialities.”

Patrick served in St. John until January 1944, when he was transferred to #1 Transit Camp in Windsor, Nova Scotia. In February 1944, he was stationed at #24 Basic Training Centre in Brampton, and reverted to the rank of private. In August 1944, he was granted a three-week embarkation leave.

On October 11, 1944, Patrick McLaughlin embarked overseas from Debert, Nova Scotia bound for the

United Kingdom. He was initially posted to #2 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU), and later to #2 Canadian Infantry Training Regiment (CITR) where he continued his training in the U.K.

One month later, on November 10, 1944, McLaughlin departed from the U.K. and arrived the next day in the North-West Europe Theatre. He disembarked as a member of the Royal Regiment of Canada (RRofC), Royal Canadian Infantry Corps (RCIC), with the rank of private.

The Royal Regiment of Canada had mobilized for active service on September 1, 1939; embarked for garrison duty in Iceland in June 1940; and arrived in Great Britain in late October 1940. Prior to Patrick joining the RRofC, the “Royals”, as they became known, were part of the Dieppe Raid on August 19, 1942. They landed near Puys, and by the end of the Raid, the Royals had suffered almost 500 casualties and prisoners of war, 227 of which were fatal. The Royal Regiment of Canada proved to have the highest casualty rate of all the participating units. After the Raid, the Royal Regiment was rebuilt. It landed again in France on July 7, 1944, and continued to fight in North-West Europe until the end of the war.

Patrick McLaughlin served with the Royal Regiment as they advanced through North-West Europe. All during the time Patrick was serving, he sent his pay home to his father, James, on Brock Street, to help him keep his home. His father James needed the money—he was handicapped, having lost one of his legs. 

Patrick McLaughlin arrived with the Royals soon after the brutal struggle for the Battle of the Scheldt, October 1 – November 8, 1944—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 cost of victory was high—the Canadians suffered more than 6,300 casualties.

After the Battle of the Scheldt, most of the weary Canadians were given a rest over the winter of 1944-1945. The front was never quiet, however, 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 north of the Maas River. 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.

After surviving the frigid winter in the Nijmegen sector, the Royals joined the Allies in their next advance. In February 1945, the Allies launched an effective offensive, the Battle of the Rhineland that was designed to drive the Germans eastward back over the Rhine River. There would be two formidable thrusts: one by the Ninth U.S Army; and one by the First Canadian Army, strengthened by the addition of Allied formations. The resilient Germans had spent months improving their defences; winter rains and thaw had turned the ground into a thick, muddy quagmire; and the enemy fought fiercely to defend their home soil. During one month of fighting, the Canadians succeeded in clearing the Reichswald Forest, in breaking the Siegfried Line and in clearing the Hochwald Forest. But victory came at a high cost—between February 8 and March 10, 1945, over 5,300 Canadians were killed, wounded, or captured.

It was during the fighting in the Battle of the Rhineland that Private Patrick McLaughlin lost his life. On February 27, 1945, a little over three months after arriving in the NW Europe Theatre, Patrick was killed in action in north-western Germany. His death occurred when the Fourth Infantry Brigade, which included The Royal Regiment of Canada, was tasked with clearing the northern sector of the Hochwald Forest. According to the regiment’s war diary, they began clearing the forest on February 26 and the Germans immediately launched a counterattack. The regiment pushed back the counterattack before continuing the advance on February 27. In the unit’s war diary, it was written that although they had many casualties, the division “has a large proportion of young enthusiastic soldiers who fight like demons.”

Patrick’s remains were buried at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “ Germany Bedburg Cleve 932527 R.19 Gr. 19”.

In early March 1945, James McLaughlin in Sarnia received a telegram from Ottawa informing him that his son PTE PATRICK MCLAUGHLIN WAS KILLED ON THE WESTERN FRONT. In late March 1945, James received the following letter from a Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mr. McLaughlin:

            It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your son, A28522 Private Patrick Douglas McLaughlin, who gave his life in the Service of his Country in the Western European Theatre of War on the 27th day of February, 1945.

            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.

 Patrick McLaughlin was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (Germany). In early November 1945, James submitted his Application for War Service Gratuity form. On the back of it he wrote the following note:

Dear Sir,

            All during the time that the deceased was in the service of his country this boy always sent his pay home to me to help me to keep up my home as I am handicapped by the loss of one of my legs. This is why I am asking for his gratuity in these troubling times.

In March 1946, James received a War Service Gratuity of $380.12 for the loss of his youngest son.

Five months later, in August 1946, James 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, A28522 Private Patrick Douglas McLaughlin, have been carefully exhumed from the original place of internment and reverently reburied in grave 12, row B, plot 7, of Nijmegen Canadian Military Cemetery, four miles South-East of Nijmegen, Holland. 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 January 1948, the Director of War Service Records in Ottawa sent James McLaughlin on Brock Street a photograph of Patrick’s grave and the marker over his burial place in Nijmegen, Holland.

James passed away in Sarnia in 1967 at the age of 77. He is buried in Our Lady of Mercy Cemetery in Sarnia,  

Twenty-one-year-old Patrick McLaughlin is buried in Groesbeek Canadian War Cemetery, Netherlands, Grave VII.B.12. 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

Allan “Cap” McLellan was born on March 28, 1904, in Southampton, Ontario, the son of Alexander and Mary (nee Longe) McLellan. Alexander McLellan (born 1874 in Michigan) and Mary Longe (born 1875) were married on April 7, 1898, in Port Huron. Alexander and Mary were blessed with six children together: Beatrice Alberta (born 1898); Harold Alexander (born 1901); Allan Joseph (born 1904); John Angus (born 1906); Adeline ‘Ada’ (born 1909); and Arnold James (born 1911). Alexander McLellan supported his family by working as a marine captain. The McLellans lived first at 264 Devine Street and later at 286 South Vidal Street, Sarnia.

Allan was a member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Parish in Sarnia and attended two years of high school. In his younger days, he was an outstanding softball and soccer player and was also prominent in other forms of athletics. Allan had several jobs prior to joining the military: as an acetylene burner for six months with the Canadian Kellogg Company (construction); as a clerk in the Ontario Liquor Control Board store on Front Street in Sarnia; and as a seaman with Imperial Oil Shipping Company.

After serving for some time with Imperial Oil Shipping, Allan McLellan, age 36, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve (RCNR) in London, Ontario, on January 20, 1941. He stood five feet five-and-one-quarter inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, was single and was residing with his parents on Vidal Street in Sarnia at the time. From London Division Head Quarters, on April 22, 1941, Allan was posted to HMCS Stadacona in Halifax with the rank of able seaman.

The Stadacona was originally a 682-ton, 196-foot yacht named SS Columbia, that was launched in 1899. It was commissioned by the RCN in August 1915 and renamed HMCS Stadacona. The Stadacona was one of several private yachts acquired by the RCN during the First World War—she was a patrol vessel based out of Halifax. The Stadacona was sold in 1924, ending her RCN naval duties. The Royal Canadian Navy Maritime Command base in Halifax, Nova Scotia, became the HMCS Stadacona in 1925. During World War II, this RCN shore establishment served as a depot and training base, with machine shops, stores buildings, barracks, administration offices, and drill halls needed to maintain the hundreds of corvettes being commissioned during the Battle of the Atlantic.

Able Seaman Allan McLellan received his training at HMCS Stadacona and served only in Canada, from January 1941 to October 1941. It was during his service in Halifax, in May 1941, that he became ill, with symptoms that included a cold, sore chest, loss of voice, and a sick stomach. He was treated in the Halifax Military Hospital and later diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis. He was discharged on October 6, 1941, as “Medically Unfit”.

After his discharge from the navy, Allan McLellan entered the Queen Elizabeth Sanitarium in Byron, where he remained for most of his time until his death. In January 1945, Allan received a War Service Gratuity of $60.00 for his 260 days of qualifying service. On May 23, 1947, two years after the war ended in Europe, 43-year-old Allan McLellan passed away at the Queen Alexander Sanitarium.

After his death, it was determined that his pulmonary tuberculosis condition had existed prior to his enlistment, but became worse during his service, and was “aggravated as a result of his military duties”. His cause of death was officially recorded as Far advanced pulmonary tuberculosis due to left broncho pleural fistula with pyoneumothorax. Death was related to military service.

Besides his parents, Alexander and Mary McLellan, on Vidal Street in Sarnia, Allan was survived by his three brothers—Harold, John, and Arnold—and his two sisters: Mrs. Beatrice Birmingham of Sarnia and Mrs. Kenneth Haines (Ada) of Talara, Peru. Allan’s funeral was held on May 27, 1947, out of the McKenzie & Blundy Funeral Home with a Requiem High Mass celebrated at St. Joseph’s Church. Pallbearers were members of Sarnia Branch No. 62 Canadian Legion.

Internment was at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Cemetery, Sarnia, Ontario, Lot 11, Range 6, Grave D. On Allan’s headstone are inscribed the words, BELOVED SON OF ALEX AND MARY McLELLAN.

His name was not originally on the “new” Sarnia cenotaph, rededicated in 1955 with the names of Sarnia’s World War II fallen. In November 2019, his name, along with 25 others, was added to the Sarnia cenotaph, engraved in stone to be remembered always.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Howard McRae was born in Sarnia on September 1, 1923, the eldest child of James Howard and Johan Margaret (nee McKay) McRae. As a young lad, James McRae (born July 9, 1899 in Glengarry, Ontario) spent a lot of time riding horses and working in the barn because his father, John Angus McRae (“Red Jack”), was a farmer.

Years later, on December 3, 1924, James McRae, age 25, married Johan McKay (born June 1900 in Plympton Township, Ontario) in Sarnia. At the time of their marriage, James was residing at 301 South Christina Street and was employed as a city fireman, while Johan was living at 258 South Vidal Street. James and Johan had seven children together: Howard (born 1923); William John (born 1926, Sarnia); Roderick (born 1932, Sarnia); and Robert Angus (born 1934, Sarnia); and daughters Catherine May (born 1927, Sarnia, died May 1940); Lila (born 1928, Sarnia); and Johan Margaret (born 1935).

Howard was an active youth, but his teenage years got off to a rough start. In 1937, when he was 14 years old, his mother Johan passed away at the age of 38. Howard attended high school for one year, but left school at the age of 16 before passing his exams. He was active in baseball, rugby, swimming, and hockey (a goaltender), and his hobbies included hunting and stamp collecting. Howard worked several jobs in Sarnia before enlisting: as a labourer unloading cars for C.N.R.; as a truck driver with Langs Transport (Aug – Dec 1941); and as a labourer with Dominion Alloy Steel Company (from Dec 1941 until he enlisted). Howard served with the Royal Canadian Engineers (R.C.E.) from March 1942 until the time he enlisted.

On January 4, 1943, Howard McRae, age 19, enlisted in the Canadian Army in London, Ontario. He stood five feet eight-and-one-quarter inches tall, had blue eyes and red hair, was single, and was residing with his younger siblings and widowed father at 268 Cameron Street at the time. He stated that his reasons for joining the army included, “duty, and to be with friends”. Howard’s plan for after the war was to return to Dominion Alloy to become a welder.

From #1 District Depot in London, Private Howard McRae began his army training in late January 1943 at A-29 Canadian Infantry Training Centre (CITC) at Camp Ipperwash. In July 1943, he became a member of the Lincoln and Welland Regiment, Royal Canadian Infantry Corps (R.C.I.C.), based in Aldershot, Nova Scotia. Six months after enlisting, on July 20, 1943, Howard McRae embarked from Halifax bound for the United Kingdom.

Howard continued his training with the Lincoln and Welland Regiment in the United Kingdom. One year after arriving in the U.K., he sailed across the English Channel and arrived in France on July 25, 1944. He fought with the Lincoln and Welland Regiment, part of the 10th Infantry Brigade, 4th Canadian Armoured Division, as they advanced through North-West Europe until the end of 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 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.

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 that included 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 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. The cost of victory was high—the Canadians suffered more than 6,300 casualties.

In late October until mid-November 1944, Howard McRae was absent without leave for 20 days, so he missed the last week of fighting at the Scheldt.

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 north of the Maas River. 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.

In February 1945, the Allies launched a massive offensive, the Battle of the Rhineland that was designed to drive the Germans eastward back over the Rhine River. There would be two formidable thrusts: one by the Ninth U.S Army; and one by the First Canadian Army, strengthened by the addition of Allied formations. The resilient Germans had spent months improving their defences; winter rains and thaw had turned the ground into a thick, muddy quagmire; and the enemy fought fiercely to defend their home soil. During one month of fighting, the Canadians succeeded in clearing the Reichswald Forest, in breaking the Siegfried Line, and in clearing the Hochwald Forest. But victory came at a high cost—between February 8 and March 10, 1945, over 5,300 Canadians were killed, wounded, or captured.

In March 1945, the 1st Canadian Corps (who had been fighting in Italy) joined their comrades of the 2nd Canadian Corps (who had fought through France, Belgium, and Germany). For the first time in history, two Canadian Army corps fought together. The two Canadian Corps were tasked with the Liberation of the Netherlands, on two fronts—western Holland and northeastern Holland and northern Germany. Joyous crowds of grateful Dutch residents greeted the Canadians as heroes while they liberated towns and cities in what came to be known as the “sweetest spring.” It was never easy. The freedom fighters faced destroyed roads, bridges and dykes; experienced days of fierce clashes against a resilient, sometimes fanatical enemy; and engaged in house-to-house fighting.

Howard McRae was absent without leave again, this time for 82 days from late February 1945 until mid-May 1945. So, he missed a portion of the fighting in the Rhineland and the Netherlands. The war in Europe ended when Germany surrendered in early May 1945.

In mid-May 1945, he surrendered himself at Oldenburg, Germany. When Howard returned to his Regiment in Holland, he volunteered for duty in the Pacific Theatre. He would not have the opportunity to serve in the Pacific, because in mid-August 1945, Japan surrendered, ending the war.

Almost three months after the Second World War ended, Howard McRae was still in Europe, waiting like so many of the troops to get home. Tragically, on November 9, 1945, Howard died as a result of a motor vehicle accident in Holland. In the Court of Inquiry that followed, based on eyewitness accounts, investigators determined the following facts: on November 8, the Lincoln and Welland Regiment held a dance at the 61 Club (canteen) in Bussum; the dance ended at 2300 hours; after leaving the dance, a few of the Dutch girls discovered that their bus to Amsterdam had already left; several Canadian soldiers offered to return the girls to their homes in Amsterdam; a Willys 5 cwt jeep was taken without authority from a courtyard in Bussum between 2230 and 2359 hours on November 8.

It was determined that the jeep containing the driver and seven passengers was on an unauthorized journey to Amsterdam; the jeep occupants included four members of the Lincoln & Welland Regiment (all Canadian) and four civilian Dutch girls (one of the girls was Howard McRae’s girlfriend, Hedwig van den Hout); one of the other soldiers drove the jeep to the Valkenweg ferry boat, and after the canal crossing, Private Howard McRae was the driver of the jeep at the time of the accident; the accident occurred at approximately 0030 hours November 9 on the Meeuwenlaan, North Amsterdam.

The accident was caused by excessive speed and a slippery road due to the rain and many leaves. As the vehicle rounded a corner, the jeep jumped a curb and swerved to avoid two persons walking on a sidewalk and then glanced off one tree and collided with a second tree, overturning next to the road; two of the occupants died at the scene of the accident, including Private Howard McRae (badly crushed skull), and one of the Dutch girls (H. Volkers); another Dutch girl had severe injuries and all other occupants would survive.

Howard McRae’s body was buried on November 14, 1945, in the Canadian Military Cemetery, Nijmegen, Holland. On November 15, 1945, three months after the Second World war ended, James McRae on Cameron Street in Sarnia received the following telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa; REGRET DEEPLY A105640 PRIVATE HOWARD MCRAE OFFICIALLY REPORTED TO HAVE DIED NINTH NOVEMBER 1945 RESULT OF A MOTOR ACCIDENT STOP YOU SHOULD RECEIVE FURTHER DETAILS BY MAIL DIRECT FROM THIS UNIT.

Widowed father James had last heard from his eldest child several weeks prior, where at the time, he was stationed in Holland.

In late November 1945, James received the following letter from a Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mr. McRae:

            It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your son, A105640 Private Howard McRae, who died while in the Service of his Country in Western Europe on the ninth day of November, 1945. 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.

In January 1946, James 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, A105640 Private Howard McRae, have been buried in grave 2, row B, plot 16, of Nijmegen Canadian Military Cemetery, three and a half miles South-East of Nijmegen, Holland. 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 August 1947, James McRae received a War Service Gratuity of $387.76 for the loss of his son.

Twenty-two-year-old Private Howard McRae is buried in Groesbeek Canadian War Cemetery, Netherlands, Grave XVI.B.2.

Howard’s father, James McRae, joined the Sarnia Fire Department in 1923, and would work there for 26 years. Howard’s mother, Johan McRae, had been sick for quite a long time prior to her death in 1937. During that period, Margaret Ann DeRush became the family’s live in housekeeper/nanny, helping to care for the couple’s seven children. Sometime after Johan’s death, James McRae married Margaret Ann DeRush.

Margaret, born April 24, 1911, in Sarnia, was the daughter of Eli DeRush and Mary Lucy Shaw. James and Margaret McRae resided on Cameron Street and the children loved Margaret as they did their biological mother. In mid-June 1949, James lost his life while on duty. In a fatal accident that occurred at the corner of Russell and Davis Streets, a 9-ton pumper truck accidentally backed over him and killed him instantly. James left behind his wife Margaret, his daughters Lila (in Toronto), Johan (in Sarnia), sons William, Roderick, and Bobby, and stepdaughters Barbara and Betty (Mrs. Robert Macklin).

On January 25, 1950, seven months after James McRae’s death, Margaret McRae gave birth to their son, who she would name Howard. James McRae did not know his wife Margaret was pregnant at the time of his death.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Leonard Meere was born in Aston, Birmingham, England, on September 5, 1924, the youngest son of Thomas William and Edith Meere (nee Hudson). Thomas and Edith were both born in Birmingham, England, and were married in Lozells, Birmingham, England, on August 1, 1915. They had three children together, all boys: Arthur Ernest, Jonathan Frederick, and Leonard. At the time of Leonard’s death, both his brothers were also in the military—Arthur was a corporal of the RCAF, in Dunnville, Ontario; and Jonathan had been overseas with the 5th Armoured Troops of the Canadian Army for two years.

The Meere family immigrated to Canada and arrived on May 14, 1927, aboard the passenger ship Aurania. Leonard was only two years eight-months old when he arrived. Thomas had been a Special Constable in England but, upon arrival, he recorded his occupation as welder-bricklayer. After disembarking, the Meere family resided briefly at Thomas’ mother’s residence at 385 King Street in Toronto.

The Meere family moved to Sarnia sometime in 1928, and they resided at a number of addresses over the years, including; 195 Harkness St. (in 1936), 210 Ontario St. (in 1938), 165 Cameron St. (in 1941) and 386 Brock St. (in 1942). Leonard Meere attended Johnston Memorial public school from 1929 to 1937. He then attended Sarnia Collegiate from September 1937 to June 1942 where he specialized in shop electricity. Leonard was also active in swimming and in basketball. After passing grade 12 and graduating from high school at the age of 17, Leonard worked as a labourer and a stockbroker at the Union

Gas Company of Canada Limited in Sarnia for six months before enlisting.

Also prior to enlisting, Leonard had met, fallen in love, and had made plans to marry Gwen Robinson of Wallaceburg.

On November 12, 1942, Leonard Meere, age 18, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in Sarnia. 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. Leonard stood five feet five inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, was single, and was residing at 386 Brock Street with his parents at the time. He requested flying duties and, following the war, he planned to pursue employment in the electrical trade. The Recruiting Officer’s comments about Leonard included that the young Sarnian was An alert, keen, well-motivated airman, who has lots of youthful enthusiasm, good athletic and work history. Would imagine he is better than average pilot material and Has brother in R.C.A.F., another overseas. Has the right idea as regards to the service. Should do well with training.

His training was extensive. After training at #9 Recruiting Centre in London and then at #2 Manning Depot in Brandon, Manitoba, Leonard received his air training at #20 Pre-Aircrew Education Detachment (PAED) at University of Saskatchewan; at #7 Initial Training School (ITS) in Saskatoon; and at #6 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. At the end of his training, Leonard obtained the rank of leading aircraftman-pilot.

Under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP), the airfield near Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, situated to the north side of the Saskatchewan River, had been converted to No. 6 Elementary Flying School (EFTS) on July 22, 1940. From March 17, 1941 to September 11, 1942, the station also doubled as No. 6 Air Observer School (AOS). At No. 6 EFTS, trainees were given 50 hours of basic flying instruction over 8 weeks on simple trainer aircraft—the De Havilland Tiger Moth and Fairchild Cornell.

Early in the day on September 23, 1943, Leading Aircraftman-Pilot and student Leonard Meere carried out a practice flight of just over two hours. Later, on the same day, Leonard carried out a second practice flight. He took off from #6 EFTS at 1540 hours on a routine solo training exercise in Tiger Moth aircraft #1168. This time, the aircraft reached a maximum altitude of 5000 feet and had achieved an average altitude of 3000 feet. After approximately 35 minutes of flying time, the aircraft inexplicably plummeted from the sky and slammed into the ground about ten miles North-West of the main aerodrome at Prince Albert. The cause of the accident was recorded as obscure. Leonard Meere was killed instantly—his skull and brains were crushed and his heart ruptured.

Shortly after the crash, Thomas and Edith Meere in Sarnia received a cable informing them that their youngest son, Leonard, had been killed in a flying accident at Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.

Two days after Leonard’s death, Edith received the birthday present that her son had sent her. It was a small green leather prayer book with a golden cross on the front. On the outside cover was printed “Common Prayer Hymn Book of Canada”, and inside was his hand-written message, “Happy Birthday, Love – Len”.

One day later, the family received a communication from the Commanding Officer of the #6 Elementary Flying Training School at Prince Albert. It read I would like you to know, that as an honor to one who sacrificed his

life in the course of duty, the remains were enfolded in the Royal Canadian Air Force ensign, before being placed in the casket.

With sincere sympathy, yours very truly, A.T. Chesson.

Among the items collected in Leonard Meere’s personal belongings were some clothes, toiletries, tobacco, post cards, and his Sarnia Collegiate yearbook.

Leading Aircraftman-Pilot Leonard Meere and another Sarnian, Pilot Officer Hugo Farner (who died September 24 on an instruction flight in Quebec and is included in this Project), were buried barely a wingspan apart in Sarnia’s first double military funeral on September 28, 1943.

Hundreds of relatives and friends attended both services, which drew thousands to the streets, around the churches, and along the walking routes to Lakeview Cemetery. Pallbearers, honorary pallbearers, and a firing party came from R.C.A.F. flying school at Centralia. The Sarnia Air Cadet No. 44 Squadron band played at both funerals and they also provided an escort party.

The service for both began at the Robb Funeral Home. The service for Leonard Meere was continued at St. George’s Anglican Church where it was officiated by Rev. F.G. Hardy, while the service for Hugo Farner was led by Rev. J.M. Macgillivray at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church. Led by the firing party, the band, and the escort party, the funeral corteges left their respective churches and marched slowly to the cemetery. At Lakeview, they again slow-marched to the gravesides, with the band playing the hymn “Dead March in Saul”. After the ministers conducted graveside services, the firing party delivered three volleys, with the band playing “Abide With Me” between them. Two buglers who accompanied the firing party from Centralia then stepped to the end of the graves and sounded the “Last Post”. The pallbearers for both funerals were LACS L. Renaud, W. Cline, J. Young, R. McDermott, J. Smuk and R. Hill. One of those in attendance at the funeral of Leonard Meere was his young fiancée, Miss Gwen Robinson.

In September 1945, Thomas and Edith Meere received a War Service Gratuity of $52.50 for the loss of their youngest son. As well as his parents and two older brothers, Leonard was also survived by his grandmother, Lucy Denton of Toronto, and his uncle, Albert Meere of Toronto, the only other living relatives in Canada.

Nineteen-year-old Leonard Meere is buried at Sarnia (Lakeview) Cemetery, Sarnia, Ontario, Section E. Lot 141. On his headstone are inscribed the words REST IN PEACE.

Of the 2467 student pilots trained at No. 6 EFTS, most were RCAF and 475 were RAF airmen. The school closed on November 15, 1944. The aerodrome is now the Prince Albert Airport, and all that remains of the former No. 6 EFTS is one World War II era hanger. The city of Prince Albert renamed the airport Glass Field in honour of a local man with a long history as a pilot and pilot instructor during World War II. A monument was erected in front of the terminal building that commemorates No. 6 EFTS/AOS and pays tribute to the 17 airmen and one civilian who died in training accidents there in wartime. One of the names inscribed on the plaque is Sarnia’s Leonard Meere.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Ralph Mellon was born in Sarnia on May 29, 1924, the eldest son of Allan Alexander and Jessie May (nee Jackson) Mellon. Point Edward-born Allan Mellon married Jessie Jackson of Sarnia on March 30, 1918, and they had three children together: Ralph, and his twin sister, Ruth Evelyn, and Donald Charles, born nearly five years later on May 5, 1929. Allan supported Jessie and his children by working with the Canadian National Railway as a pump man.

Ralph knew how to keep himself busy. He attended S.S. #15 Meadowlea Public School from 1930 to 1937 and then Sarnia Collegiate Institute from September 1937 to March 1941 until he left at age 17. He was active in basketball and softball, and his hobby was motorcycles. Prior to enlisting, Ralph was employed as a truck driver in Sarnia at White Packing Company (1940-August 1941), and then as a machine operator and welder at Electric AutoLite. Ralph also served with the 2-26th Field Battery Reserve in Sarnia as a gunner from June 1941 until he enlisted.

The family dynamic changed when Ralph was 18 years old. On July 13, 1942, his mother, Jessie, passed away when she was only 48 years old. One can only wonder if his mother’s death influenced Ralph’s decision at age 18 to enlist four months after she passed away.

On November 17, 1942, Ralph Mellon enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in London, Ontario. He stood five feet eight inches tall, had hazel eyes and brown hair, was single, and was living at R.R. #1 Sarnia with his widowed father at the time. 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. Ralph requested flying duties, with a desire to be a pilot, but was eager to take on any role as part of an aircrew.

From #9 Recruiting Centre in London and then #1 Manning Depot in Lachine, Quebec, Ralph received his air training with a Pre-Aircrew Education Course in Hamilton; then at #4 Wireless School in Guelph; at #1 Manning Depot in Toronto; and at #9 Bombing and Gunnery School (B&GS) in Mont Joli, Quebec, where he was awarded his Air Gunner’s Badge on March 24, 1944. He then continued his training at #3 Aircrew Graduate Training School (AGTS) in Three Rivers, Quebec, before being posted to #1 Y Depot in Lachine, Quebec, in early May 1944.

Ralph Mellon embarked overseas from Halifax bound for the United Kingdom on May 25, 1944. Initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre (PRC), he was transferred to #22 Operational Training Unit (OTU) in July 1944. Two days before Christmas Day 1944, he was transferred to #433 Squadron. Just over three months later, in early April 1945, Ralph became a member of RCAF #431 Iroquois Squadron “The Hatiten Ronteriios” (Warriors of the air), part of Bomber Command, with the rank of flight sergeant-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.

RCAF #431 Squadron had been formed in Britain in November 1942, based at RAF Burn, and was equipped with Vickers Wellington aircraft. In July 1943, it moved to RAF Tholthorpe and converted to Handley Page Halifax aircraft. In December 1943, the squadron moved again, this time to RAF Croft and remained there for the remainder of the war. In October 1944 the squadron was equipped with Lancasters.

Less than a month after joining #431 Squadron, Gunner Ralph Mellon lost his life in action.

On April 25, 1945, Ralph was a part of a crew aboard Lancaster Mk.X aircraft KB831 (markings SE-E) that took off from RAF Croft for a day bombing operation targeting coastal gun positions on the island of Wangerooge in Germany. In total, taking part in this operation were 92 Halifax aircraft from 408, 415, 425, 426 and 432 Squadrons and 100 Lancasters from 419, 424, 427, 428, 429, 431, 433 and 434 Squadrons. The weather was clear on the way to the target. Crews were over the target at between 10,000 and 12,000 feet and released 2,100,000 lbs. of high explosives. This mission would prove to be the last bombing operation over enemy territory after 2 ½ years of effort. Ralph Mellon’s Lancaster never made it to the target.  

Lancaster aircraft KB831 (SE-E) took off from RAF Croft at 1501 hours. Another Lancaster aircraft from #431 Squadron, KB822 (SE-W), took off from RAF Croft at 1455 hours. On their way to the target, Lancaster KB831 and Lancaster KB822 were in a mid-air collision at approximately 1718 hours, at 12,000 feet, over the Baltic Sea off Norderney Island, Germany. Both aircraft fell into the sea and both crews, 14 airmen, lost their lives. Six of the seven aircraft lost on this mission were as a result of mid-air collisions, despite weather conditions being almost perfect.

Extracts from the report on the flying accident read that daylight, visibility good, aircraft flying in Gaggle formation, and … at 1718 hours, 12000 feet, two Lancaster aircraft collided in mid-air, at position 5352N. 0740E. … One went down on fire, and the other broke up in air. Six chutes were seen, and … There is no conclusive evidence as to the cause of this accident.

Lancaster KB822 casualties were F/Ss Lewis Ullysess Malcom Hiatt, and Joseph Jules Pierre Raymond Roy; F/Os Lloyd Hilbourne Amos, Douglas George Baker, and John Duncan Cruickshank; WO2 Paul Edouard Adolphe Henrichon; and Sgt. Frederic Smith (RAF). Douglas Baker is buried in Sage War Cemetery, Germany; John Cruickshank is buried in Kvilberg Cemetery, Sweden; and the rest of the crew were lost at sea and are memorialized on the Runnymede War Memorial in Surrey, United Kingdom.

Lancaster KB831 casualties were Flight Sergeant-Air Gunner Ralph Mellon along with F/Ls Robert John Stingle, and Barry Desmond Emmet; F/O William Edward Hanna; WO2 Clarence Robert Irwin Mark; Sgt. John Nugent Sims (RAF); and Sgt. Douglas Alexander Faulkner (RAF). Robert Stingle’s body washed ashore and he is buried in Becklingen War Cemetery in Germany. Sgt. John Sims’ body also washed ashore, at Langeoog Island, and he is buried in Sage War Cemetery in Germany. The other crew members, including Ralph Mellon, were lost at sea and are memorialized on the Runnymede War Memorial in Surrey, United Kingdom.

In late April 1945, widowed father Allan Mellon at 205 ½ North Front Street in Sarnia received a telegram from the Department for National Defence for Air in Ottawa informing him that his son FLIGHT SERGEANT RALPH JACKSON MELLON WAS REPORTED MISSING IN ACTION RECENTLY AFTER AIR OPERATIONS OVER ENEMY TERRITORY.

A few days later, Allan received the following letter from the Wing Commander, Officer Commanding, No 431 (RCAF) Squadron:

Dear Mr. Mellon,

            Before you receive this letter you will have had a telegram informing you that your son Sergeant Ralph Jackson Mellon is missing as a result of air operations. At approximately 1501 on the afternoon of the 25th instant, Ralph and members of his crew took off from this aerodrome to carry out operations over WANGEROOGE, but unfortunately failed to return.

            It is with regret that I write to you this date to convey the feelings of my entire Squadron, Ralph was popular with this Squadron, and was fast becoming one of my “ace” Gunners. Ralph had just started operational flying and this was his first trip over enemy territory.

            There is always a possibility that your son may be a prisoner of war, in which case you will either hear from him direct, or through the Air Ministry who will receive advice from the International Red Cross Society. Ralph’s effects have been carefully gathered together and forwarded to the Royal Air Force Central Depository, where they will be held until further news is received, or in any event for a period of at least six months before being forwarded to you through the Administrator of Estates, Ottawa.

            On behalf of the Officers and men of the Squadron, may I express my most sincere sympathy to you at this very anxious time.

On May 8, 1945, a little over one week after Mr. Mellon received the above letter, the declaration of VE Day ended the war in Europe.

In early May 1945, Allan received a 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 Mr. Mellon:

            It is with deep regret that I must confirm our recent telegram informing you that your son, Flight Sergeant Ralph Jackson Mellon, is reported missing on Active Service.

            Advice has been received from the Royal Canadian Air Force Casualties Officer, Overseas, that your son and the entire crew of his aircraft failed to return to their base after taking off to carry out air operations over Wangerooge Island, Germany, on April 25th, 1945.

            The term “missing” is used only to indicate that his whereabouts is not immediately known and does not necessarily mean that your son has been killed or wounded. He may have reached enemy territory and might be a Prisoner of War; and should you receive any card or letter from him please forward it at once to the Royal Canadian Air Force Casualties Officer, Air Force Headquarters, Ottawa. Enquires have been made through the International Red Cross Committee and all other appropriate sources and I wish to assure you that any further information received will be communicated to you immediately.

            Attached is a list of the members of the Royal Canadian Air Force who were in the crew of the aircraft together with the names and addresses of their next-of-kin. Your son’s name will not appear on the official casualty list for five weeks. You may, however, release to the Press or Radio the fact that he is reported missing but not disclosing the date, place or his unit.

            Permit me to extend to you my heartfelt sympathy during this period of uncertainty and I join with you and the members of your family in the hope that better news will be forthcoming in the near future.

In early November 1945, Allan received the following letter from the Air Marshal, Chief of the Air Staff:

Dear Mr. Mellon:

            I have learned with deep regret that your son, Flight Sergeant Ralph Jackson Mellon, is now for official purposes presumed to have died on Active Service Overseas on April 25th, 1945. 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 he was serving.

Ralph Mellon was later officially recorded as Previously reported missing after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas (Germany). In April 1946, widowed-father Allan Mellon received a War Service Gratuity of $304.55 for the loss of his eldest son.

In February 1947, Allan received the following letter from the Wing Commander, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa:

Dear Mr. Mellon:

            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 Sergeant R.J. Mellon. 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-year-old Ralph Mellon has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Runnymede War Memorial, Surrey, United Kingdom, Panel 282.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Rodolfo was born in Toronto, Ontario, on March 5, 1918, the only son of Augustin Ranulfo and Mary Wilhelmina (nee Dafoe) Mendizabal. Augustin, the son of Dr. Rodolfo Mendizabal and Dolores (nee Pelaez), was born on August 28, 1890, in Oruro, Bolivia. The family came to Canada in 1906. Augustin Mendizabal became a British citizen in 1915 and went on to be a graduate in Civil Engineering from the University of Toronto and a graduate from its College of Education. Mary, the daughter of Dr. William Allan Dafoe and Essa Christina (nee Van Dusen), was born on January 17, 1893, in Madoc, Hastings County, Ontario.

During World War I, Augustin served overseas for two years. He enlisted on March 16, 1915, in Toronto with the 3^rd Reserve Battery. At the time, he was 24 years old, single, and a civil engineering student. On July 10, 1915, he was overseas at Shorncliffe Camp in Kent, England, and in October 1915, he was a member of the 23^rd Battery, 6^th Howitzer Brigade, Canadian Field Artillery (CFA). He arrived in France on January 18, 1916. While he was overseas, he was hospitalized on two occasions due to influenza, and was promoted twice in the field to bombardier (August 9, 1916) and then to corporal (September 1916). On January 1, 1917, in France, as a corporal with the 5^th Brigade, CFA, he was awarded a Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM). By the end of that month, he returned to Canada. His 10-week furlough in Canada was extended into August 1917, and for two weeks in September 1917, he was at Military Hospitals Commission Command (MHCC) in Toronto. Augustin was discharged on January 6, 1918, in Toronto, declared “being physically unfit for further war service, Class II.”

On February 17, 1917, a month-and-a-half after receiving his DCM, Augustin (age 26 and a soldier) married Mary (age 24 and a teacher) in her hometown of Madoc. The young couple had two children together: Rodolfo (born March 1918), and his younger sister, Mary Isabel, born June 2, 1920, in Toronto (she later resided in Amherstburg, before returning to Toronto). Augustin completed his degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Toronto and, in 1921, his occupation was recorded as an engineer. In July 1927, he obtained his Certificate of Military Qualification, Canadian Small Arms, certifying that he was qualified as an instructor in the rifle.

At some point, the Mendizabal family moved to Sarnia. They lived at 496 London Road and later 309 ½ North Brock Street. At Sarnia Collegiate (SCITS), Augustin became a long-time language teacher and a coach in sports including rugby and basketball.

Mary Isabel lived a beautiful life and, like her father, was a well-loved school teacher. One of her friends was Susan Hinojosa, who spent many summer days visiting the Mendizabals at their cottage in Haliburton. According to Susan, Mary Isabel was a kind, generous, loved, and respected woman who took wonderful care of her parents. Not only did Mary Isabel lose her brother to the war, but she also lost her fiancé to the war.

Rodolfo attended Renfrew Public School from 1925-1929 and completed his elementary education (1929-1931) at a local school after the family moved to Sarnia. He then attended Sarnia Collegiate from 1931-1936. While at SCITS, he was heavily involved in many groups and became what one would term a “well-rounded student”.

Rodolfo was the Boys Sports editor for the yearbook and was a member of several teams including the gymnastics, wrestling, and rifle teams as well as the first aid team. He was also active in swimming, boxing, hockey, rugby, and soccer. Besides sports, he was accomplished in music and languages, the latter no doubt influenced by his father. He was part of the school band where he played the clarinet and, along with English, he also had a sound knowledge of French, German, and Spanish. Perhaps influenced by his father’s service in the Great War, Rodolfo was part of the Sarnia Collegiate Cadet Service in 1936 and won second prize at the provincial indoor pistol matches at Listowel. While part of the rifle team, he won a special gold medal for shooting accuracy and a Dominion Marksman gold ring.

After completing high school, Rodolfo attended the University of Toronto, in the Bachelor of Arts program from 1936 to 1940, where he also took courses studying chemistry and mineralogy. He was a member of the U. of T. Gymnastics team and took Canadian Officer Training Corps (C.O.T.C.) training in 1939-40. In the summer of 1938, he worked for Ontario Research Foundation in Toronto doing steel analysis and, in the summer of 1939, he worked for the Dominion Salt Company Limited in Sarnia. In mid-February 1940, Rodolfo completed his Non-Permanent Active Militia of Canada Attestation application in Toronto.

On August 23, 1940, Rodolfo Mendizabal, age 22, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in Toronto. He stood five feet four-and-a-half inches tall, had brown eyes and dark brown hair, was single, and was residing at 321 Bloor Street West, in Toronto at the time (he recorded his permanent address as 496 London Road, Sarnia). He was planning to enter his final year to obtain his B.A. Degree at the University of Toronto, but enlisted instead, requesting flying duties, with a preference to be a pilot. He planned to complete his education after the war was over.

Portions of two of the reference letters written on Rodolfo’s behalf in his application give a glimpse of his character. His uncle at the Medical Arts Building in Toronto wrote that Rodolfo has a strong patriotic urge just now to help in this war, and this desire is probably reinforced by his wish to follow his father’s example in the last war. His Physical Education Professor at U. of T. wrote that At all times under all conditions, his conduct and behaviour was in line with his training – thoroughly disciplined, dependable and responsible to any trust put upon him to discharge. His manner is quiet and unassuming, his character is exemplary, his personal habits clean and beyond reproach. Little wonder that the RCAF Recruiting Officer wrote this of Rodolfo: An excellent type – splendid education – should make a first rate single seater fighter pilot. Has had a fair amount of military training. Strong on sport.

From #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, Rodolfo received his air training at a number of British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) schools in Canada including at #3 Training Centre (TC) in Ottawa; at #1 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto; at #1 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Malton; and at #1 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) at Camp Borden, where he received his Pilots Flying Badge on April 28, 1941. Two weeks later, on May 12, 1941, Rodolfo was posted to #1 Manning Depot in Halifax, Nova Scotia. On May 29, 1941, Rodolfo embarked overseas from Halifax bound for England.

Initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre in the U.K., he was transferred to No. 59 Operational Training Unit (OTU) on July 7, 1941, where he continued his training. Soon, Rodolfo became a member of Fighter Command. On August 26, 1941, he was posted to RAF No. 136 Squadron where he learned to fly Hawker Hurricanes. In mid-November 1941, he was appointed his commission with #136 Squadron, at Kirton-on-Lindsay, Lincolnshire. There he gained experience in taking photographic mosaics and obliques; in conducting escort duty;

and in runner torpedo attacks.

From #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, Rodolfo received his air training at a number of British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) schools in Canada including at #3 Training Centre (TC) in Ottawa; at #1 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto; at #1 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Malton; and at #1 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) at Camp Borden, where he received his Pilots Flying Badge on April 28, 1941. Two weeks later, on May 12, 1941, Rodolfo was posted to #1 Manning Depot in Halifax, Nova Scotia. On May 29, 1941, Rodolfo embarked overseas from Halifax bound for England.

Initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre in the U.K., he was transferred to No. 59 Operational Training Unit (OTU) on July 7, 1941, where he continued his training. Soon, Rodolfo became a member of Fighter Command. On August 26, 1941, he was posted to RAF No. 136 Squadron where he learned to fly Hawker Hurricanes. In mid-November 1941, he was appointed his commission with #136 Squadron, at Kirton-on-Lindsay, Lincolnshire. There he gained experience in taking photographic mosaics and obliques; in conducting escort duty; and in runner torpedo attacks.

In November 1941, RAF No. 232 Squadron departed England for the Middle East. By the time they arrived in South Africa, Japan had entered the war and the squadron was diverted to Singapore in the Far East. On January 13, 1942, Mendizabal arrived at Singapore with a reinforcement convoy of RAF aircrew and 51 crated Hurricane II fighters. He became part of No. 232 Squadron (the Hurricanes had also been diverted from the Middle East to the Far East to supplement the few Buffalo fighters defending the island fortress). With the airfields near the city already too dangerous to use, the squadron embarked two days later aboard the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Indomitable bound for Malaya. Following the Japanese invasion of the Malayan peninsula on December 8, 1941, there were no airfields left in British hands by the end of January 1942, so the squadron flew off to Java.

On January 22, 1942, Mendizabal was in action flying a Hurricane against some Japanese Navy Fighters over Malaya. His aircraft was badly shot up with bullets in the engine, and there was considerable damage to the undercarriage. Both tires were punctured and he sustained a bullet flesh wound in the leg. In spite of this, he managed to land his torn-up Hurricane aircraft on damaged landing gear and was fit for flying four days later.

One week later, on January 29, his Hurricane II aircraft crashed due to landing gear technical problems, but he survived unscathed. Sometime in the early part of 1942, Rodolfo wrote a letter to his parents in Sarnia informing them that he had been transferred to a Royal Air Force squadron in Calcutta, India.

On February 2, 1942, #232 Squadron arrived in Palembang on the island of Sumatra. Following the Japanese invasion of Sumatra on February 13, a further withdrawal was required. The following day the squadron evacuated to Java and the situation regarding serviceability was so grave that No. 232 was merged with No. 242 Squadron, and its ground crews were evacuated to Ceylon. Operating alongside No. 605 Squadron, the two fighter squadrons were in action in Java from February 17-27, often operating at odds of ten-to-one or worse. It was a last ditch defence because Java would soon be in the hands of the Japanese as well.

The Japanese forces landed in Java on March 1, 1942. Days later, a stranded Mendizabel, two Australians, a New Zealander, and a Dutchman would make a daring escape from the soon-to-be “Japanese held” Java, in a makeshift Lockheed 10 aircraft. When orders for a cease-fire came through, every aircraft that could be flown out of the country had been destroyed as the Japanese advanced. Demolition parties were also ordered to blast holes in all the landing strips. This group of five Allied Force airmen were not willing to surrender—F/O Rodolfo Mendizabal (RCAF), Sgt. Stuart Munroe (RAAF), Sgt. Alan Bryant Martin (RAAF), Sgt. Douglas Jones (RNZAF), and Dutchman Frederik Pelder.

At the Pameungpeuk airfield, in a corner of one flying field, this international quintet came across an old abandoned Lockheed 212 training plane with a smashed tail, and another Lockheed that had been destroyed by a truck driving into it. The five men, pilots not mechanics, patched together the wrecks of the two damaged Lockheed 212 transport planes into a single airplane that could barely fly. For lack of a screwdriver, a coin was used to true up the replacement tail, which was tied together with rope. Forty-gallon wing fuel tanks were removed from another airplane and installed inside the fuselage with strings and bits of bamboo. A hole was made in the side of the fuselage through which a length of hose was jammed into the wing fuel tank, the idea being to feed from tanks inside the fuselage. A number of full 20-litre cans were carried into the cabin. On March 9, after the official surrender, the five airmen and their makeshift Lockheed was ready for flight.

The only clear takeoff path on the damaged airstrip ran in zig-zag fashion and was no more than the width of the landing gear. It seemed nearly impossible that the overloaded Lockheed could take off successfully. At the extreme end of the field, the engines were revved up to full power, the brakes were eased off, and the plane veered down the strip with craters whizzing by under the wings. The aircraft was bounced into the air by the lip of a crater, clearing the fence at the end of the field by inches.

Once airborne, they then flew in stages, each taking turns at piloting the twin-engine Lockheed for seven hours, first from Java, 1,200 miles to Medan in Northern Sumatra. The tired airmen spent March 10 at Medan, checking out the plane, looking for maps, and arranging for a refueling stop at Lho Nga, near Kata Rakja on the northern tip of Sumatra. The local Governor gave them codes which they were to deliver to the Admiralty in Ceylon, so that Ceylon could re-establish contact with Sumatra.

Early on the morning of March 11, the Lockheed left on its next hop, a 1,400-mile journey across the Bay of Bengal to Ceylon. They would alight to refuel at Lho Nga, still in friendly hands. The Dutch there helped to camouflage the aircraft during refuelling, shielding it from Japanese reconnaissance aircraft in the area. On take-off, upon clearing the trees at the end of the airstrip, two Japanese bombers were diving down on the Lockheed. The aircraft was a few seconds ahead and was gradually able to pull out of range to escape over the ocean. After an eight-hour, 1,400-mile overwater flight, the Lockheed arrived at Colombo, Ceylon. Luck was on their side one more time on their approach—they happened to fire the correct coloured flare, thus signalling the flak gunners not to fire on them. 

A May 1943 newspaper account of the escape had the headline: “Escape From Java in Patched-Up Lockheed – International Quintet Fly Training Crate 2,600 Miles.” The following is a portion of an account of their escape, as written by the New Zealander in the group, Sergeant Pilot Doug L. Jones of the New Zealand RAF (RNZAF). The account was sent to Mr. and Mrs. A.R. Mendizabal in a letter and printed in the Canadian (Sarnia) Observer on March 22, 1943, one year after the events:

Rodolfo Mendizabal and Four Flying Companions In Thrilling Air Escape

An epic story is told in a New Zealand paper of how Rodolfo Mendizabal, son of Mr. and Mrs. A.R.

Mendizabal, along with four companions, escaped from the Japs after the fall of Java. The task seemed so hopeless that none of those who knew what these young men were attempting, had any idea that they would succeed. The boys in the escapade were all sergeant-pilots, Rodolfo Mendizabal, the Canadian; Stuart Munroe and Alan Martin, Australians; Doug L. Jones, a New Zealander, and a Dutchman, whose name is unknown (was F.Pelder).  Together, they feature in the best aerial escape story of the war. After the fall of Java, with Japanese troops a few miles away, they joined together the undamaged sections of two shattered aircraft and braving the hazards of distance and Jap Zeros, flew from Java to Sumatra and then on across the Bay of Bengal to Ceylon. Their story, which can now be told, throws new light on the last days of the Netherlands, East Indies. Here is their story, as told by Sergeant Pilot D.L. Jones, NZRAF.

“Fresh from Durban, I was in the last convoy into Singapore, and was bombed 26 times by as many as 50 Jap planes. Our convoy was one of the last to leave. We were there for three days, then came out on the same ship as we went in on. There were no planes for us to fly at Singapore, so there was no use in staying there. Anyway, the Japs had already landed on the island and the evacuation was in full force. In Java we were sent to Buitenzorg, 35 miles in from Batavia. We waited there hoping to get planes to fly. It soon became obvious that we were not to get any. When the Japs began attacking the island in earnest, they issued us all with rifles and ammunition with the idea of making a stand somewhere-sort of backs-to-the-wall stunt. This idea didn’t appeal to us much, so a few of us got working on our own”.

“They were short of transport to shift the camp, so half a dozen of us went into Balavia to see if we could pick up any lorries. Batavia by this time was a deserted city. The Japs had landed troops on each side of it. All around the docks there were sunken vessels, which had either been bombed or scuttled. The Dutch had sunk a large

vessel across the harbor mouth to stop any ship getting in. We found some lorries after a while, but the trouble was

none of them would go—which was why they were left. But we each managed to repair a lorry and get back to camp. At 4 a.m. next day we were awakened, and told to get moving as the Japs were down the road. Fortunately, a few transports had come up and they were able to take the whole camp to the town of Garut, 140 miles away. We were there a week waiting for word to come through to tell us which port to go to. We did not know at the time that there wasn’t an open port in Java. (Already blockaded Java’s “escape port”, Tjilitjap on the south coast, was completely destroyed by Jap bombers on March 5, a few hours after I left in the last ship to get away from Java)”.

“At 10 p.m. on March 7 we received instructions that the town we were in was an open city, and we were to hand in our arms and await occupation. We asked the C.O. of our unit if he would let a few of us escape as best we could. He said he wouldn’t. We told him to come back in half an hour and we would hand over our arms. In that half-hour we worked like mad, loading up our cars with food and ammunition. We had a couple of machine guns, which we had picked up at a bombed-out drone, a couple of Tommy-guns and dozens of rifles. We started out, reached the coast next day, and traveled along it, keeping a look-out for boats. Near a small native village called Pamaunpouk we found a deserted aerodrome with damaged aircraft scattered over it. A Dutch pilot and four of us sergeant-pilots looked them over and found a twin-engined Lockheed 10 with its tail blown off, but its engines in running order. Searching further, we found another machine of the same type, with the nose and wings smashed, but the tail untouched”.

“We all hit on the same idea at once. With the few tools we had we started. I used a 6d for a screwdriver, and got tied up in knots with ballraces, and lockingpins and God knows what! We found that the tail part of the good machine was strained out of alignment, and we finished up tying it together with rope. We fitted a machine-gun in the turret and another in the nose, firing forward. There was plenty of petrol lying around the field in drums. We also found couple of spare wing tanks with a capacity of 40 gallons apiece, which we strapped inside the fuselage with bits of bamboo and string after plugging up some holes with cork and bits of wood. I bashed a hole in the side of the fuselage, fitted a piece of bowser-hose through, and jammed one end in the tank in the wing, with the idea of feeding petrol from the tanks into the fuselage. Next day at 9 a.m. we were ready. After figuring out the range of the plane, we found we could not quite make Australia, so we agreed to fly up the coast of Sumatra, as we had been told the top end was still in Dutch hands”. “While we were repairing the plane, word came through that the Dutch government had capitulated, and that all members of the army were to proceed to Bandoeng to be demobilized. Before going, the Dutch destroyed the airfields—and a real job they made of it. They dynamited the whole field. We found the only clear patch ran in zigzag fashion barely the width of the undercarriage and with an overloaded plane it seemed a 10 to 1 chance that we wouldn’t get off. The Dutchman had flown Lockheeds before, so he took the controls. At the extreme end of the field we revved the engines up until they were about to shake themselves to pieces, let off the brakes and away we went. We zigzagged down the field with craters whistling by under our wing-tips. I looked ahead and thought we couldn’t get off without hitting the fence at the end. I still don’t think we would have, had we not hit the lip of one of the craters, which bounced us into the air. We cleared the fence by inches, got over the beach and out to sea. We flew 800 miles up the coast of Sumatra, then turned inland in the hope of finding an airfield. Later we discovered it was Medan airport. It was cluttered up with obstructions so we guessed it was still in Dutch hands. We couldn’t see any signs of life, so we took it we had caused an air-raid alarm”.

“We lowered our wheels and began to circle the field, waggling our wings. Soldiers appeared as if by magic and began clearing away the obstructions. Cars began to come in from the city packed with civilians and in a few minutes, hundreds of people were clearing the field so we could land. The Dutch treated us like kings. Next day we returned to our plane determined to try to get to Ceylon. The governor had given us codes, which we were to deliver to the admiralty if we got there, so as to re-establish contact with Sumatra. At Kuta Raja, on the northern tip of Sumatra, we had the same trouble in landing, but eventually got down OK. The Dutch immediately grabbed our machine, pushed it under cover and threw camouflaging over it, as they said the Jap reconnaissance plane was due over in five minutes. They set their watches by this plane, and at exactly 9 a.m. over she came. She circled us twice and then made off in a devil of a hurry. We guessed we had been spotted, so we started filling up as quickly as we could. We had just about finished when a lookout reported nine Jap bombers headed our way. We filled up in double-quick time while the Dutch soldiers were pulling off the camouflage and our Dutch pilot was revving up. Right in front of us was a whopping big hill, behind which we could see the Jap bombers heading toward us. The only thing to do was to turn as soon as we were in the air. We did it! We must have missed the trees on that hill by mere inches. We turned out to sea as fast as we could go with two of the Jap bombers armed with cannons diving down on us. But we were just those few seconds too soon for them. We just managed to keep out of range, and in the end gradually

drew away from them. The old bus had a marvelous turn of speed when pushed. We owe our survival to that. We set what we thought was a course for Ceylon, but the only map we had was one of the world torn from a magazine. We had a job transferring petrol from the cabin to the wing tanks, but in the end

found that by banking the plane over, we could gravity-feed it in”.

“It was well into the afternoon when we did sight land. I was at the controls at the time and didn’t know whether it was Ceylon or India. Knowing Colombo was on the other side of the island, I headed inland and ran slap-

bank into hills and a hailstorm. Eventually we hit the coast and followed it down. Very soon we saw a large town and seaport ahead—Colombo. Then we had an uncanny bit of luck. There were a large number of warships in the harbor and on sighting us they started to challenge us with a signalling lamp. The correct thing to do when so challenged is to fire what we call ‘colors of the day’ with a Verey pistol. We had a Verey pistol on board and cartridges, but there are dozens of colors to choose from and they change the color every day. We had to shoot something off, so I picked up a two-star red, fired it and waited. We expected every gun in the harbor to open up on us, but nothing happened. We found the landing field and landed. We found out later that the colors of the day were a two-star red—just what we had fired. The trip from Java to Medan took seven hours ten minutes, and we landed with ten minutes petrol supply left. The flight from Kuta Raja took eight hours and we landed with 15 minutes supply left”.

Of the five airmen who had survived the March 1942 escape from Java with Mendizabal, only one was to survive the war. Along with Mendizabal, also killed in wartime service were Sgt. Stuart Munroe, RAAF, killed in action as member of #75 Squadron at Milne Bay, New Guinea on August 27, 1942; Sgt. Alan Bryant Martin, RAAF, killed in a training accident as member of #76 Squadron in Queensland, Australia on May 21, 1942; and Sgt. (later F/O) Douglas Loftus Jones, RNZAF, killed in action as a member of #17 Squadron on a mission to Rabaul, New Guinea on January 9,1944. Only the Dutchman, Frederik Pelder, survived the war. He went on to fly B-25’s with No. 18 (Dutch) RAAF Squadron during the war, retire as a Colonel, and was awarded the Cross of Merit (for his escape from Java). After the war Pelder entered Netherlands civil aviation.

In August 1942, Mendizabal was posted to RAF #151 Operational Training Unit (OTU). In December 1942, Rodolfo was part of a special escort. One of the highest-ranking officers of the R.C.A.F., Air Vice-Marshal Harold Edwards, was on an inspection tour of R.C.A.F. and R.A.F. establishments in India and Middle East theatres of war. It brought him to front-line fighter and bomber stations from which many Canadians were flying against the Japanese in Burma. He met airmen who called themselves, “the Canadians closest to the Japanese forces.” Vice Marshall Edwards travelled in a Hudson bomber escorted by fighters. One of the fighters was piloted by F/O Rodolfo Mendizabal, of Sarnia, a veteran of Singapore and East Indies campaigns. At the time, Mendizabal did not claim any victories over the Japanese, but said that he had seen “plenty” of them.

The Burma Campaign had begun in December 1941 when the Japanese moved through Thailand and invaded the British colony of Burma. The Japanese saw Burma as a stepping-stone to India as well as protection for their troops fighting in the Malayan peninsula and in Singapore. It would be one of the longest campaigns of the war, fought primarily by British Commonwealth and Chinese and U.S. forces against the forces of Imperial Japan and their allies. The campaign had a number of notable features that included dense jungles, mountainous terrain, lack of roads for transport, prevalent disease, and weather conditions that included severe heat and monsoon seasons. Approximately 8,000 Canadians, including Sarnians, served in the Burma Campaign. Many of them were part of RAF squadrons carrying out duties that included doing reconnaissance, protecting convoys, dropping supplies and troops, escorting operations, conducting patrol and bombing missions, and becoming part of fighter squadrons.

By the end of 1942, Rodolfo Mendizabal had become a member of RAF No. 5 Squadron “Frangas Non Flectas” (Thou mayest break but shall not bend me). The Curtiss Mohawk fighter was the squadron’s main aircraft at the time. From May 1942 to May 1943, the squadron was based in Assam, India, performing escort duties and ground attack sorties in Burma. In mid-1943, the squadron converted to Hawker Hurricanes and carried out Fighter Bomber duties. Along with carrying out attacks on enemy targets, the fighters of No. 5 Squadron provided bomber and transport escorts and flew as escorts for Blenheims making reconnaissance flights.

In his book Mohawks Over Burma, author Gerry Beauchamp described several of missions in which Rodolfo “Rudy” Mendizabal participated. He was flying a Curtiss Mohawk fighter when he was part of RAF No. 5 Squadron (while based at Agartala in Tripura, India). Following are some of those missions:

On December 25, 1942, No. 5 Squadron took part in a major sortie over Burma, flying from their base to Imphal, Ywamandaung, Yuwa, and Ye-U. The Mohawks attacked factory-like buildings, railway stations, shipping,

Army-huts and an airfield. At Kenswe, a train consisting of trucks and a locomotive with steam was attacked. F/O Mendizabal did one run down the entire length of the train and saw DeWilde strikes (incendiary bullets), while another F/O (Rashleigh) concentrated on the engine, carrying out an attack from the side. Troops were seen to dash away. At the airfield, Mendizabal fired a short burst into a large bamboo hut. Further attacks were made on shipping before the formation returned to base.

On January 19, 1943, two sections of three Mohawks from No. 5 Squadron escorted Blenheim light bombers from Feni on a bombing attack on Akyab Island. At 0915 hours, some Japanese Army Nakajima Ki-43 fighters (code-named Oscars) were seen near Narigan. Some of the Mohawks engaged the Oscars while others continued escorting the Blenheims to their target before returning to the fight. The combat turned into a series of dogfights over the northern end of the island, lasting approximately 30 minutes. F/O Mendizabal claimed two enemy aircraft damaged. Two Oscars were downed and three of the Mohawks were slightly damaged.

On March 19, 1943, the RAF used Vultee Vengeance dive bombers on an operation for the first time, and No. 5 Squadron had the honour of escorting them on this first mission. Six Vengeances and six Bisley bombers were to rendezvous over Dohazari before proceeding to their target area at Hitgive. At 1600 hours, five Mohawks (one piloted by F/O Mendizabal) would escort the Vengeance dive bombers to the target, staying with them until the action was complete. The Mohawks were then supposed to escort back the Bisley twin-engine bombers on the return trip. The Mohawk pilots could not find the Bisleys, and so returned to Dohazari, landing at 1815 hours.

The next evening, a ration of two Australian bottles of beer was given out to each of the airmen in the Officers’ Mess, to celebrate the promotion of W/O Harold Oskar Seifert, RCAF, to Pilot Officer. A piano was brought over from Wing, the men joined in singing songs and everyone had an enjoyable evening. Being the end of March, one member of No. 5 Squadron recorded that the weather was becoming increasingly unstable as the monsoon season approached. The days were still relatively fine but there were fitful winds and brilliant, almost continuous lightning at night.

On March 29, 1943, at 1520 hours, six Mohawks took off from a rough airstrip south of Chittagong, Bangladesh, codenamed Reindeer, near base camp Hove. One of the Mohawks was piloted by Rodolfo Mendizabal. The six aircraft were scrambled from Reindeer to intercept hostile aircraft approaching from the south (one of the Mohawks was airborne slightly later than the others, was unable to locate the group, so stayed airborne above the base). When in line abreast formation at 17,000 feet over Maungdaw, the five Mohawks (including Mendizabal) saw

a dozen Oscars (Japanese Ki-43 fighters) at 16,000 feet, nine to starboard and three to port. The Japanese turned

towards the Mohawks upon recognition and, in doing so, split up the five fighters. A confused melee ensued. One of

the Mohawk pilots later reported that the Japanese seemed to work in pairs, one feigning attack by waggling his

wings, another on the other beam actually carrying out the attack. Mendizabal got in several long deflection bursts at one enemy aircraft which dove away. He also carried out a head-on attack on another Oscar which passed below him. He could not see strikes on either of these aircraft because his windscreen had oiled up. All five Mohawks were able to return safely to base, some riddled with bullet holes. As Mendizabal was coming up the coast on the return flight, his engine stopped and he made a belly landing about 20 miles (32 km) north of the base. He was unhurt, and according to the Operations Record Book, he later stepped out of a lorry at the base looking as though nothing untoward had happened.

In early February 1943, Rodolfo’s parents in Sarnia received word from the Canadian government that their only son had been missing for several months in the eastern theatre of war. No other information was provided. A few weeks later, Augustus and Mary were advised by the government that the report of their missing son issued weeks earlier was incorrect. In a telegram, the Hon. C.G. Power, Minister of National Defence for Air, relayed a cablegram that he had received from Air Vice-Marshal Edwards in England in regard to Rodolfo Mendizabal. The Vice-Marshal said that Rodolfo had been an escort pilot with him while on a tour of India during December of 1942, and at the time Rodolfo was safe and well. The Vice-Marshal expressed his profound regret that there had been an official report that their son had been reported missing on air operations for several months. The Commander said that he would endeavour to obtain further information about the Sarnian’s whereabouts. He was later reported safe and had been in Burma since October 1942.

In mid-April 1943, Mendizabal was posted to the RAF base at Ramu, India, and in July 1943 was posted to Air Fighting Training Unit (AFTU) based at RAF Station Amarda Road, India. Airmen were posted to AFTU to teach them various fighter flying tactics deemed valuable in the unique air war against the Japanese.  

On August 10, 1943, Flying Officer-Pilot Rodolfo Mendizabal was aboard his Hurricane IID aircraft KW859 on a Fighter Affiliation training exercise (learning to be an Air Fighting Instructor). He was detailed with Flight Lieutenant Fogg of Amarda Road, Air Fighting Training Unit (A.F.T.U.), to carry out attacks with cine’ camera guns on a formation of Vultee Vengeances (dive bombers).

At approximately 1140 hours, the formation was at 1,000 feet when his aircraft broke away downwards for his third solo attack. When it was very near the ground, at an angle of approximately 60^o, the diving aircraft appeared to pull out slightly, but hit the ground and burst into flames immediately. The crash occurred four miles east of the Amarda Road Station at Subhanauika Bridge, India. The aircraft was badly smashed and the pieces were spread over a wide area. Rodolfo died instantly of multiple injuries in the crash.  

In the investigation that followed, it was impossible to say from the ground examination exactly what had happened. A portion of the investigators report reads as follows: It appears to have hit the ground at a high speed at the bottom of a dive, in a slightly nose down attitude, rebounding and turning over. At the same time the fuel tanks exploded, and the aircraft disintegrated. The only burnt portion is the remains of the cockpit and fuselage, this being due presumably to the reserve tank exploding. The airframe has completely disintegrated, and the engine is very severely damaged, the crankcase being smashed, reduction gear torn off, and most of the accessories and their drives being broken away. The investigation concluded that some failure of the controls was a possibility, but more likely, the pilot made an error of judgement that didn’t allow him sufficient time to pull out of the dive.

On August 10, 1943, fellow pilot F/O Harold Seifert wrote a letter home to his mother Lydia and younger sister Trudy in Winnipeg, Manitoba. (Of note, Harold had lost his brother Pilot Officer Arnold Seifert in May 1942 during a raid over Germany). Following is a portion of Harold’s August 1943 letter to his mother and sister:

I have received lots of mail in the last couple of days, with your pictures. Have you ever changed and seem to be a grown up girl, and not the little sister I left behind.

I was given some bad news just before I left for the hospital. One of our airplanes was seen to spin in and Mendizabal was the only one flying, so he must have been killed. He was quite a good friend of mine, and then you say you got a letter from his father, so it is really tragic. I just got the picture of he and I in the Free Press two days ago and I was going to show him.

Fatal accidents happened to two Canadians while RAF No. 5 Squadron was re-equipping with Hurricanes at Amarda Road. The first involved Rodolfo on August 10, 1943. The second was 22-year-old F/O Harold Seifert, who was killed while carrying out a tactical formation exercise on November 8, 1943 (three months after Mendizabal’s death). His Hurricane went into a dive at 8,000 feet and collided with the ground at a high speed and steep angle. He was buried at the scene of the crash at Kharagpur, near Bengal, 100 miles north of Calcutta, India. Harold Seifert is buried in Ranchi War Cemetery in India.

Rodolfo Mendizabal’s name appeared on the official R.C.A.F. casualty list approximately one week after the crash. No other details were included in the report and no information was available locally as his parents Augustin and Mary Mendizabal were vacationing in Haliburton. The last word the parents had received from their son indicated that he was still in the Far East, and there was some speculation as to whether he took part in the Sicilian campaign.

In late August 1943, Augustin Mendizabal of London Road in Sarnia received the following letter from the Flight Lieutenant, R.C.A.F. Casualties Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa:

Dear Mr. Mendizabal:

            It is my painful duty to confirm the telegram recently received by you which informed you that your son, Flying Officer Rodolfo Mendizabal, was killed on Active Service.

            Advice has been received from the Royal Canadian Air Force Casualties Officer, Overseas, that your son, who was the sole occupant of an aircraft, lost his life on August 10th, 1943, during flying operations at Subhanauika Bridge, four miles east of Amarda Road Station, India. His funeral took place on August 11th, 1943, at the Amarda Road Cemetery. Group Captain C. de Crespigny officiated.

            You may be assured that any further information received will be communicated to you immediately. May I take this opportunity to offer both you and Mrs. Mendizabal my deepest sympathy.

            Also in late August 1943, Augustin received the following letter from Flight Lieutenant C.S. Courtney-Clarke, Officer Commanding, No. 5 Squadron, R.A.F. India:

Dear Mr. Mendizabal,

            It is with great regret that I must write to you about the sad loss of your son. He has not only been one of my pilots, but a personal friend ever since he joined the squadron, and we have been through a lot of fighting, and also a lot of fun together.“Dizzy” and I went on leave together only last month and had a grand time sharing a house boat up in Kashmir.

            He was killed while flying a Hurricane at Amarda Road in Orissa. He was on a course there learning to be an “Air Fighting Instructor”. I have had the report on his accident and apparently he misjudged his height while recovering from a practice attack on another aircraft, and hit the ground at great speed. There is no doubt that he was killed instantly.

He was buried at Amarda Road, with full Military honours, and representatives of the squadron flew down

for the funeral. Please allow me to express on behalf of myself and all his other squadron friends the sympathy we all feel with you in your bereavement.

Rodolfo Mendizabal was later officially recorded as Killed as a result of a flying accident, overseas (India). In October 1945, Augustin received a letter from the R.C.A.F. Casualty Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Mr. Mendizabal:

            Further to my letter of August 22nd, a reply has now been received to my enquiry Overseas and although his log book and operational record books of the Squadrons, with which he carried out his operational flying, are not available the following particulars have been secured through the R.C.A.F. District Headquarters, India.

            He is recorded as having been posted to No. 59 O.T.U. on May 29th, 1941, and to No. 36 Squadron on September 4th, 1941, where he probably gained experience in taking photographic mosaics and obliques, and in escort duty and runner torpedo attacks.

            On November 18th, 1941, he was posted to No. 136 Squadron at Kirtoon-on-Lindsay and appears to have gone with that Squadron to Singapore where he disembarked on January 13th, 1942, and commenced operations with ‘B’ Flight from Seletah airfield on January 19th.

            On January 22nd, 1942, he was in action against some Jap. Navy Fighters, flying a Hurricane. His aircraft was badly shot up with bullets in the engine and there was considerable damage to the undercarriage. Both tyres were punctured and he sustained a bullet flesh wound in the leg, but in spite of this he landed his aircraft safely and was fit for flying again on January 26th, 1942.

            On January 29th, Sgt. Mendizabal crashed in landing a Hurricane. In lowering his undercarriage for landing it carried on past the normal vertical position.

On February 2nd, 1942, he sailed with No. 136 Squadron ground personnel and a few pilots from Singapore in the SS. Whangpu, arriving at Palembang in Sumatra on February 4th, and commenced operating from Palembang 1, and also assisted in the Control Room of No. 226 Fighter Group. The Japanese made a parachute attack on Palembang 1 and caused the Squadron to evacuate to Palembang 2 on February 14th, 1942, and the following day, when Sumatra was evacuated, Sergeant Mendizabal probably left P.2 by air for Java.

On February 20th, 1942, he commenced operating with the Squadron from Tjililitan near Batavia, and on February 24th was attached with the Squadron C.O. and the remainder of the serviceable pilots to No. 242 Squadron. When the Squadron arrived in Java, verbal information was received that Sgt. Mendizabal had been commissioned, but no official confirmation ever reached the Squadron.

After being with No. 136 Squadron in India from March 17th, 1942, Sgt. Mendizabal was posted to No. 151

O.T.U. on 2nd August, 1942, to No. 224 Group on October 19th, 1942, and to No. 5 Squadron on October 29th, 1942.                                                                                                                                   

Squadron Leader N. Welch, R.A.F., R.A.F. Station, New Delhi, who supplied most of the foregoing information pertaining to No. 136 Squadron, was under the impression that Sgt. Mendizabal had not escaped from Java until another N.C.O. of the Squadron informed him that the Sgt. was in India. He has no knowledge of how Sgt. Mendizabal escaped. However, four of the aircraft left behind in Java did get out to Australia, and it has been suggested that the following personnel may be able to supply information as to what happened in Java after 24th February, 1942…

If you will write to the above mentioned personnel in care of R.A.F. Records Office, Gloucester, your letters will be forwarded to them at their latest address, most promptly. I am giving oyu the names of the four above mentioned as I felt you would wish to communicate with them yourself.

In late-February 1947, Augustin, then residing on North Brock Street, received the following letter from the Wing Commander for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa:

Dear Mr. Mendizabal:

            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 R. Mendizabal. 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.

More than eight years after his son’s death, in late-November 1951, Augustin received the following letter from the Wing Commander, R.C.A.F. Casualties Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff:

Dear Mr. Mendizabal:

            It is with regret that I must again refer to the loss of your son, Flying Officer Rodolfo Mendizabal. The Imperial War Graves Commission has advised, however, that your son has been moved to the Balesore New Cemetery, hundred miles north east of Cuttack, Orissa, India, he was laid to rest in Grave 53, in the Military Plot. Your son’s grave will be reverently cared for and maintained in perpetuity by the Commission who will also erect a permanent headstone over the grave. May I take this opportunity to extend my sincere sympathy.

In March 1945, the “FO. Rodolfo Mendizabal Shooting Trophy”, named in honour of the young flier, was presented during assembly in the auditorium of Sarnia Collegiate Institute, to Pte. Angus Young, of the Army Cadet Corps. The young cadet achieved the highest shooting scores in a contest held in the collegiate rifle range, among entrants from the three Sarnia cadet corps-Army, Navy and Air. Rodolfo’s father, Augustin Mendizabal, who was a member of the Collegiate Institute teaching staff, presented the trophy, a silver statue of an athlete upon a mahogany base.

Ten years after the end of World War II, on November 11, 1955, the “new” renovated Sarnia cenotaph in Victoria Park (now Veterans Park) was re-dedicated. The renovated grey granite monument had been enlarged by the addition of two new “wings”, on which were inscribed the names of Sarnia’s fallen soldiers from World War I, World War II, along with a plaque with the Korea War fallen. The prior existing WWI bronze tablets had been removed and are now located on the outside west wall of the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 62.

The November 11th, 1955 re-dedication ceremony was preceded by a parade consisting of civic, military, and veteran units marching from city hall to Victoria Park. During a Friday morning drizzling rain, the cenotaph was unveiled by Lieutenant-Colonel J.H. Coleman, M.B.E.Ed, Commanding Officer of the Sarnia Garrison, followed by a dedication ceremony by Rev. G.G. Stone. The first wreath laid upon the cenotaph was by Captain and Mrs. Augustin R. Mendizabal on behalf of all the next of kin.

In 1957, Augustin (retired) and Mary Mendizabal, and their daughter Mary Isabel (a teacher), were residing on Princeton Road in Toronto. Augustin passed away on August 29, 1968, in Toronto, and Mary passed away on August 27, 1975, in Toronto.

Rodolfo Mendizabal, 25, is buried in Madras War Cemetery, Chennai, India, Grave: 9.B.7. On his headstone are inscribed the words, BORN IN TORONTO, CANADA, 5TH MARCH 1918. STUDENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

William Metcalfe was born in Sarnia on February 21, 1921, the only son of Karl Steadman and Julia Stuart Metcalfe. Karl and Julia were married on April 17, 1920, in Sarnia (they would divorce in 1938). William’s

grandfather was Lieutenant Colonel William Wallace McVicar, a veteran of the Great War, who lived in Sarnia. William attended public school in Petrolia, and then completed his education at Sarnia Collegiate Institute.

Besides participating in swimming and basketball at SCITS, he was a member of Central United Church and of the Central Century Club where he served as the club’s pianist on Sunday afternoons. William went on to obtain First Class Honours in his second year from the Toronto Conservatory of Music. From September 1938 to July 1939, he was a grocery store clerk and then a store manager in Byron, Ontario, where he earned 25 dollars a week.

On August 13, 1940, William Metcalfe, age 19, enlisted in the Canadian Army in Chatham, Ontario, becoming a member of the Kent Regiment. He stood five feet eight inches tall, had hazel eyes and dark brown hair, and lived with his mother, Julia, at 309 North College Street, Sarnia at the time. Julia was employed as a supervisor at the Port Huron Michigan General Hospital. William’s father, Karl, an accountant, was living at 326 Dundas Street, London, Ontario, at the time. William’s plan after the war was to enter the civil service, possibly the postal department.

William began his training with the Kent Regiment in Chatham (army trade school), before transferring to #1 District Depot in London. In May 1941, he trained at #12 Basic Training Centre in Chatham, taking an electrician’s course. Two months later, he continued his training at the Canadian Army Training School (CATS) in Hamilton. In September 1941, William was posted to Camp Borden with the 5th Canadian Armoured Division, as a signalman. Two months later, on November 14, 1941, he embarked overseas bound for England.

Initially appointed the rank of lance corporal, he later reverted to signalman, serving in the U.K. with the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals 5th Canadian Armoured Division.

While in the U.K., William met and fell in love with a British woman. After a six-month relationship, and after receiving written permission to marry from his Commanding Officer, on February 17, 1943, William married Helen Rosa Appleby at the Chelsea Registry Office, Middlesex, England.

Helen, born June 28, 1920, in St. Pancras, London, England, was serving with the Canadian Army in England, a private with the No. 1 Royal Canadian Corps of Signals (RCCS). William and Helen had one child together, a son, Terrence William Stuart Metcalfe, born September 12, 1943, in Lingfield, England. The young Metcalfe family lived at 207 Walton Road, East Molesey, Surrey, England.

William departed the United Kingdom bound for Italy on October 24, 1943. 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.

More than 92,700 Canadian soldiers took part in the Italian Campaign, and nearly 6,000 of them lost their lives, almost 19,500 were wounded, and over 1,000 were taken prisoner. In all, more than one in four of those who served in Italy became casualties.

William Metcalfe served in Italy with the 5th Canadian Armoured Division Signals, Royal Canadian Corps of Signals (R.C.C.S.), part of the British 8th Army in the Central Mediterranean Forces. In late 1943, not long after his arrival in Italy, he wrote a letter to his grandfather in Sarnia, Lt. Colonel William W. MacVicar. The following are portions of that letter:

I never saw so much filth and poverty anywhere. These towns are beyond all imagination. The first few days here were beautifully warm, and we thought there was something to this “Sunny Italy” business, despite the fact that the nights almost “did us in”. Don’t know when I ever ran into such bone-biting coldness. You can put on everything you own, and still shake like a model T Ford.

Then came the rains, and believe me, it has everything that England ever showed us in the way of rain beaten by a mile. We are bivouacked in a vineyard, using pup tents as a home. They aren’t too bad except that every time you touch the canvas when it is raining, the water pours through in torrents, and being so low we are always touching them, so, there being no room upward, we decided to go down, and now are sleeping some three feet below the surface of the ground in something that is a cross between a tent and a dugout. It is not bad, though, and actually it is comparatively dry and quite warm. We are thankful that conditions are no worse than they are. They definitely could be very much worse. The food is good and can be supplemented with all kinds of oranges, apples and nuts.

The one thing here worth mentioning is the music one can hear anywhere in the streets. It seems to be the only thing these people can do properly, and they do it under the least provocation. Some poor broken specimen of humanity shuffling along will suddenly burst forth in a flood of song that would put Nelson Eddy to shame, and when they get about half “vino-ed” up you should hear them.

Speaking of “vino”, it is no wonder these people got licked at every turn of the wheel if they have been drinking that brew ever since they were infants. It’s vile! About the only thing I can say for it is that it would make good ink.

After engaging in vicious fighting for 20 months in Italy, the Canadians would not participate in the final victory there. In February 1945, the 1^st Canadian Corps began to move into northern Italy to be reunited with their comrades of the 2^nd Canadian Corps (who had fought through France and Belgium) in northwest Europe.

For the first time in history, two Canadian Army corps fought together. The two Canadian Corps were tasked with the Liberation of the Netherlands, on two fronts—western Holland and northeastern Holland and northern Germany. Joyous crowds of grateful Dutch residents greeted the Canadians as heroes while they liberated towns and cities in what came to be known as the “sweetest spring.” It was never easy. The freedom fighters faced destroyed roads, bridges and dykes; experienced days of fierce clashes against a resilient, sometimes fanatical enemy; and engaged in house-to-house fighting. The victory to liberate the Dutch people came at a terrible cost—from the fall of 1944 (Battle of the Scheldt) to May 1945, more than 7,600 Canadians were killed in fighting in the Netherlands.

William served in Italy until February 26, 1945, when the Italian Campaign ended. The following day, he embarked for the Northwest Europe Theatre, first arriving in France. He continued to serve with the 5th Canadian Armoured Division Signals, R.C.C.S., as they moved through France into Belgium, and then towards Holland and Germany.

On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered, and VE Day, marking the end of the war in Europe, was celebrated on May 8, 1945. Across the world, wild celebrations broke out in the streets. Though the six-year nightmare was over, not everyone embraced the festivities, as countless families had lost loved ones, and the war with Japan was still ongoing. For the families of soldiers still in Europe, VE Day allowed them to breathe a sigh of relief, as their loved ones, at least for now, were safe and alive.

Approximately one month after VE Day, on June 4, 1945, William Metcalfe lost his life in a tragic accident in Groningen, Holland. On the night of June 3, 1945, a few fellow soldiers and he attended a Unit dance being held in the Apollo Club in Groningen. After the dance, he and his comrades left the club and returned to their quarters at about 0130 hours, June 4. At about 0200 hours, William left alone from his billet accommodation. At the 0900 hours roll call that morning, William was absent. Five days later, on the morning of June 9, 1945, his body was recovered from the Loopende Canal in Groningen.

In the investigation that followed, it was determined that at some time in the very early hours of June 4, William had been walking on the cobble-surfaced street alongside the Loopende Canal when he fell in and accidentally drowned. The canal was approximately 40 feet wide, varied in depth from 10 to 15 feet, and had no curb or railing at the edge of the street forming the canal wall.

He was buried on June 9, 1945, at 5th Canadian Armoured Division Temporary Cemetery, Groningen. His remains were later reburied in Holten Canadian Military Cemetery.

In mid-June 1945, Lt. Col. William W. McVicar in Sarnia was notified of the death of his grandson, Signalman William Stuart Metcalfe, which had occurred in Holland on June 4. Also in mid-June 1945, Julia Metcalfe on College Street received the following letter from a Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Metcalfe:

            It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your son, A50101 Signalman William Stuart Metcalfe, who died while in the Service of his Country in the Western European Theatre of War on the 4th day of June, 1945.

            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.

William Metcalfe’s death was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, in the field (Holland), cause of death accidental drowning. William left behind his parents Karl and Julia Metcalfe in Canada, and his wife of a little over two years, Helen, and their one-year-old son, Terrence, in England.

In July 1945, Karl and Julia Metcalfe began the application process with the Director of Immigration to bring their daughter-in-law Helen and their grandchild Terry to Canada. The hope was that they would come to Canada to

live either with Karl at 22 Duke Street, London, or with Julia, who was living with her parents Colonel and Mrs. McVicar at 309 North College Street, Sarnia.

In December 1945, Helen, still in England, received a War Service Gratuity of $988.68 for the loss of her husband. In February 1946, the Director of Immigration approved the settlement arrangements for Helen and Terry Metcalfe to come to Canada. They initially resided with Karl on Duke Street in London, and by June 1946, were residing on their own at 277 Steele Street, London.

William Metcalfe, 24, is buried in Holten Canadian War Cemetery, Netherlands, Grave VI.B.13. His name is also inscribed on the Petrolia cenotaph.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

David Miller was born in Sarnia on November 5, 1915, the eldest son of Douglas Martin and Iva Ellen (nee Shephard) Miller, of 394 Campbell Street, Sarnia. Douglas (born in Sombra) and Iva (born in Wilkesport) were married in Wilkesport, Ontario, on December 23, 1914. Douglas and Iva had five children together: David (born 1915); Clifford A. Stanley (born 1916); Lloyd Gordon (born 1918, died two years later); Nadine Anne (born 1920); and Claire Miller. Douglas supported his family through his job as a C.N.R. engineer.

David Miller attended several public elementary schools in Sarnia from September 1921 to September 1928, including Russell Street, George Street, and Confederation Street schools. He then attended Sarnia Collegiate from September 1928 to June 1934, where he took courses that included mechanical drafting, mathematics, typing, shorthand, and bookkeeping. David was also active in sports participated in rugby, hockey, baseball, and basketball.

David had a number of jobs before he enlisted: as a student, he was employed by W.A. Duggan, General Merchant on Campbell Street in Sarnia doing deliveries and as a clerk for almost 10 years until October 1934; then as a clerk at E. and R. Shoe Company in Sarnia from October 1934 to February 1935; later as an attendant by Harry Hayes at a service station in Detroit from March 1935 to March 1936; and then as a truck driver by J.W. Krantz in Detroit from March 1936 to June 1938.

In June 1938, David returned to Sarnia, where he operated a Supertest gasoline service station at the corner of London Road and Vidal Street. He operated the station until he joined the R.C.A.F. David’s manager at the Supertest Station wrote a reference letter to the Recruiting Officer on behalf of David, stating, While under his employ, he distinguished himself greatly by taking over the business and through his efforts he brought it up from a very low standard of efficiency to the highest rating it had ever known. The manager stated that he was very reluctant to lose him, but would, without hesitation, accept him again.

On September 15, 1939, five days after Canada declared war on Germany, David joined the Royal Canadian Air Force, originally as a tradesman. Nine months later, on June 25, 1940, David Miller, age 24, officially enlisted in the R.C.A.F. in London, Ontario. He stood five feet four-and-a-half inches tall, had brown eyes and light brown hair, was single, and lived with his parents on Campbell Street in Sarnia at the time. Keen to fly, he requested flying duties, with a preference to be a pilot.

On July 2, 1940, David took the late morning train from London and arrived at #1 Manning Pool at Exhibition Grounds, Toronto. From #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, David began his air training at #1 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto, and then continued at #2 Wireless School in Calgary. In late September 1940, while at #2 Wireless School in Calgary, he wrote the following letter to his Commanding Officer (it was a military requirement that a soldier had to obtain his Commanding Officer’s written permission in order to marry):

Dear Sir:

            It is my desire to obtain your permission to my getting married. My future wife is a Graduate Nurse from Chatham General Hospital, Chatham Ontario. Her name is Miss Marguerite Irwin. She is still working at the above mentioned hospital.

            We have been engaged for nearly two years now and have only been waiting her graduation till we marry. She is now a Graduate Nurse and her complete training is ended December 18th. Our plans have been for some time to be married on or about December 27th. However these will have to be altered now to suit the situation.

Miss Irwin is twenty-three years of age, I am twenty-five. We both come from Sarnia, Ontario. My financial position is such that we both feel we can get married at this time.

            Your earnest approval of this marriage will be deeply appreciated.

                                                                                                Yours truly, R.68104 David D. Miller

 In January 1941, David continued his air training at #4 Bombing and Gunnery School (B&GS) in Fingal, Ontario. That same month, the Irwin family doctor (Dr. Tutt, Front Street, Sarnia) wrote a letter to the Commanding Officer of #4 B&GS on behalf of Marguerite. Following is that letter:

The Officer Commanding Gunnery and Bombing School, Fingal, Ontario

            Sir: I have known Miss Marguerite Irwin and her family well for several years. They are very fine people, of spotless record so far as I, as family doctor and friend, have ever heard. Miss Irwin is a graduate nurse of an excellent training school for nurses where discipline is rigid and standards high. I unhesitatingly say she is a most desirable, moral and splendid type of person.

David Miller received his Commanding Officer’s authority to marry. On February 16, 1941, David married Jessie Marguerite Irwin, the eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Chester Irwin of 142 Clarence Street, Port Colborne. The marriage took place at St. Paul’s United Church in Sarnia. At the ceremony, Miss Wilma Irwin, sister of the bride, served as bridesmaid, and Alex Hodges served as the best man. A reception was given by the bridegroom’s parents.

On February 17, 1941, one day after getting married, David was awarded his Air Gunner’s Badge and then began a three-week leave. The newlywed couple travelled on a motor trip to Toronto and Niagara Falls for their honeymoon. On their return, Marguerite initially lived with her in-laws, Douglas and Iva Miller, at 394 Campbell Street, Sarnia. David and Marguerite later had a daughter together, Saralea Faith Miller.

In mid-March 1941, David was posted to the Embarkation Depot in Debert, Nova Scotia. On April 8, 1941, one month after getting married, he embarked overseas bound for the United Kingdom. Initially posted to #3 Personnel Reception Centre (PRC), he continued his training in the U.K., including at #1 Signals School; at #22 Operational Training Unit (OTU) in Warwickshire; and at Station Portreath in Cornwall, England. In mid-March 1942, David Miller became a member of #15 Operational Training Unit, RAF Harwell.

Two weeks later, on April 1, 1942, he departed the U.K. bound for the Middle East, where he became a member of #205 Group. By late May 1942, he was a member of RAF #148 Squadron “Trusty”, part of Bomber Command.

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 #148 Squadron went through three different incarnations during the war. From April 1939 to April

1940, it was a Group Pool Squadron based in England, training airmen in Ansons and Wellingtons. In mid-December 1940 it was reformed in Malta, once again operating Vickers Wellington, a twin-engine medium bomber. This time the squadron was an active bomber squadron. It carried out attacks on Axis bases in Italy and Libya, first from Luqa, Malta, and later from Kabrit, Egypt, supporting the 8th Army in North Africa. This second incarnation, which David Miller was a part of, ended on December 14, 1942. The third incarnation was as a special duties squadron, using a wide range of aircraft that carried out supply drops to resistance groups across the Balkans, and later carrying out pick-up missions.

As part of #148 Squadron, David took part in the North African Campaign. The campaign began in June 1940 and continued for almost three years, as Allied and Axis forces pushed each other back and forth across the desert. Battles between British Commonwealth, U.S., and French forces against Italian-German Axis and Vichy France forces took place across Libya, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. Canadians fought as part of British army units, as members of the RAF, or the Royal Canadian Air Force and with the Royal Canadian Navy.

After joining the squadron in May 1942, David completed 37 operations, all of them high-risk missions against advancing German forces. On September 28, 1942, David was part of a six-man crew aboard Wellington HD947. The aircraft was on a night operation to attack Tobruk Harbour in North Africa, but it failed to return to its base. Nothing was heard from the crew after it was reported missing, and it was assumed that the aircraft came down in the sea.

The entire crew lost their lives, and neither the aircraft or the bodies of the crew were ever recovered. Perishing with Flight Sergeant-Wireless Operator/Air Gunner David Miller were F/O S.C. Pearse, and Sgts R.H. Gresham, A.H. Threlfall, D.A. Mitchell, and R.C.M. Banbury.

            In early October 1942, Marguerite, then residing with her in-laws, Douglas and Iva Miller on Campbell Street, received the following letter from the Air Commodore, Air Officer in Charge, Air Ministry Records:

Madam,

            I am commanded by the Air Council to express to you their grave concern on learning from the Casualties Officer of the Royal Canadian Air Force that your husband, CAN.R.68104 Sergeant David Douglas MILLER has been reported missing.

            The Wellington aircraft of which your husband was a wireless operator and air gunner failed to return to its base on the 28th September 1942 from an operational flight. This does not necessarily mean that he is killed or wounded, and if he is a prisoner of war, he should be able to communicate with you in due course. Meanwhile enquiries will be made through the International Red Cross Society and, as soon as any definite news is received, you will be at once informed.

            If any information regarding your husband is received by you from any source you are requested to be kind enough to communicate it immediately to the Secretary, Department of National Defence for Air, Ottawa, who will forward it to the Air Ministry. The Air Council desire me to express their deep sympathy with you in your great anxiety, and earnestly hope that favourable news of your husband may be forthcoming.

Also in early October 1942, Marguerite received the following letter from the Officer Commanding #148 Squadron:

 Dear Mrs. Miller,

            You will have received the news that your husband was missing from an operation on the night of 28th/29th September. He was front gunner in an aircraft that took off during the evening of the 28th to bomb the harbor at Tobruk. From that time we heard no more of the aircraft or crew. I am sorry that I am unable to give you any more information, but that is all I know.

            Your husband was a member of an excellent crew and had himself completed thirty seven operations since joining the Squadron at the end of May. He operated at high pressure throughout June, July and August while the Germans were advancing.

            You have a husband to be proud of Mrs. Miller and I sincerely hope that he will prove to be a prisoner of war.

In November 1942, Douglas and Iva Miller received the news that their eldest son David was reported missing, and that he had not returned from an operational flight in the Middle East several weeks prior. Marguerite, then in Port Colborne, also received the news that her husband was reported missing after not returning from operations in the Middle East. David Miller’s death was later officially recorded as Previously reported missing after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas.

In June 1943, Marguerite, then living at 294 Campbell Street, received a telegram from Ottawa informing her that her husband FLIGHT SERGEANT DAVID DOUGLAS MILLER IS PRESUMED TO HAVE DIED ON

SEPTEMBER 28 OF THE PREVIOUS YEAR DURING AIR OPERATIONS OVER TOBRUK IN AFRICA.

In February 1945, exactly four years after getting married, Marguerite Miller, then living with her parents in Port Colbourne, received a War Service Gratuity of $463.34 for the loss of her husband. Two years later, in late February 1947, Marguerite received the following letter from the Wing Commander, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa:

Dear Mrs. Miller:

            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, Flight Sergeant D.D. Miller. 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.

More than 10 years after the loss of her husband, in November 1952, Marguerite received a letter from the Wing Commander, R.C.A.F. Casualties Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Mrs. Miller:

            It is with reluctance that after so long an interval, I must refer to the loss of your husband, Flight Sergeant David Douglas Miller, but due to the lack of any information concerning him since he was reported missing, it must be regretfully accepted and officially recorded that he does not have a “known” grave.

            Due to the extreme hazards attending air operations there are, unhappily, many thousands of British aircrew

boys who do not have “known” graves and all will be commemorated on General Memorials that will be erected at a

number of locations by the Imperial War Graves Commission (of which Canada is a member), each Memorial representative of a theatre of operations. One of these Memorials will be erected at El Alamein, and the name of your husband will appear on that Memorial…

            I realize that this is an extremely distressing letter and that there is no manner of conveying such information to you that would not add to your heartaches. I am fully aware that nothing I may say will lessen your great sorrow, but I would like to express to you and the members of your family my deepest sympathy.

David Miller left behind his parents Douglas and Iva, his brother and two sisters, all residing in Sarnia, and his wife Marguerite and their daughter Saralea Miller, who was not yet two years old. Years later, Marguerite Miller re-married, becoming Mrs. Jessie Marguerite Hodgkins, living at 627 Maple Avenue, Sarnia.

David Miller’s Citations include Etoile de 1939-1945, Africa Star, Defence Medal, War Medal 1939-1945, Canadian Volunteer Service Medal & Clasp, Operational Wings posthumously awarded on February 28, 1947.

Flight Sergeant David Miller, 26, has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Alamein Memorial, Egypt, Column 264.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Thomas Mills was born in Sarnia on July 9, 1921, the eldest son of Gordon and Gretchen Kathleen Mills. Gordon and Gretchen were married on September 9, 1919 in Sarnia, and they had two children together: Thomas and Robert Arthur. The Mills family lived at 104 Norman Street in Sarnia, and Gordon supported his family working on the staff of Marketing Accounting Department at the Sarnia Imperial Refinery. Thomas’ grandmother, Sarah Vansickle, and aunt, Frances Kettle, both resided at 224 Cameron Street.

Thomas attended Sarnia Collegiate for two years, leaving school in 1939 after grade 10 at the age of 18. His athletic pursuits included swimming, bicycling, and baseball. After completing grade 10, he worked for 20 months at Mueller Brass Limited in Sarnia as a milling machine operator. He then worked as a machinist (apprentice) at Imperial Oil Limited Refinery in Sarnia for ten months—six months in the machine shop and four months in the drum plant.

On July 6, 1940, Thomas married Gladys Annabell Wells in Sarnia. Thomas and Gladys Mills had one child together, a son, Thomas Gordon Mills Jr. After less than three years of marriage, and before Thomas enlisted, Gladys and he separated by mutual agreement. Gladys and son Thomas Jr. moved in with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. E. Wells, at 128 Penrose Street.

On January 19, 1943, Thomas Mills, age 21, enlisted in the Canadian Army in London, Ontario. He stood five feet eight-and-three-quarter inches tall, had brown eyes and dark brown hair, and was living at home with his parents on Norman Street at the time. He gave no specific reason for joining the army, but did say he was, “excited to get a few whacks at ‘Gerry’”. He expressed a preference to be a driver. After the war he planned to return to Sarnia to work as a machinist at Imperial Oil.

From #1 District Depot in London, Thomas received his army training at #13 Basic Training Center (BTC) in Listowel (where he qualified as a Class III driver); and his advanced training at A-29 Canadian Infantry Training Centre (CITC) at Camp Ipperwash. On July 18, 1943, six months after enlisting, Private Thomas Mills embarked overseas bound for the United Kingdom. 

Arriving in the U.K. in late July 1943, Thomas continued his training as a member of the #3 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU). In mid-October 1943, Thomas was transferred to the Perth Regiment, Royal Canadian Infantry Corps (RCIC). On October 26, 1943, Private Thomas Mills and the Perth Regiment departed from the U.K. and arrived in Italy on November 8.

The Italian Campaign, the first sustained Canadian Army operation of the War, began with the invasion of Sicily on July 10, 1943. The fierce fighting on the mountainous 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 campaign came at a cost of more than 26,000 Canadian casualties including nearly 6,000 Canadians killed.

Thomas Mills served with the Perth Regiment, as part of the 11^th Infantry Brigade, 5^th Canadian Armoured Division, as they advanced northward through Italy. Battle Honours of the Perth Regiment in Italy while Thomas Mills was serving with them include Liri Valley, Melfa Crossing, Ceprano, Gothic Line (where they were the first regiment of the English Army to crack the Gothic Line), Montecchio, Point 204, and Coriano.

Gordon and Gretchen Mills in Sarnia received letters from Thomas. Two of the later ones to his parents were dated September 9 and 15, 1944. In the second letter, Thomas stated that he was out of the lines at the time but that he expected to return to them soon. 

On October 1, 1944, almost 11 months after arriving in Italy, Private Thomas Mills was killed in action while fighting near Rimini. Thomas’ remains were buried at a location recorded on the Army Field Service Card as “11 CIB Cem. Cesena sh 100A MR 742023 RB Grave 3, Italy.”

On October 14, 1944, his ex-wife Gladys Mills on Penrose Street received the following telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa: MINISTER OF NATIONAL DEFENCE DEEPLY REGRETS TO INFORM YOU THAT A105836 PRIVATE THOMAS GORDON MILLS HAS BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED KILLED IN ACTION FIRST SEPTEMBER 1944 STOP IF ANY FURTHER INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE IT WILL BE FORWARDED AS SOON AS RECEIVED.No other details of his death were given.

Since Gordon and Gretchen had received letters written by their son on September 9 and 15, 1944, they believed that there was an error in the transmission, and that his death should have read October 1. Three days later, Gladys Mills and Thomas’ parents received the following telegram from the Director of Records in Ottawa: TELEGRAM 2532 DATED FOURTEENTH OCTOBER 1944 SHOULD HAVE READ AS FOLLOWS STOP MINISTER OF NATIONAL DEFENCE DEEPLY REGRETS TO INFORM YOU THAT A105836 PRIVATE THOMAS GORDON MILLS HAS BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED KILLED IN ACTION ON A DATE NOT YET CONFIRMED STOP LETTER FOLLOWS.

In late October 1944, Gretchen received the following letter from the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Mills:

            With further reference to my telegram of the 17th instant concerning the regretted death of A.105836 Private Thomas Gordon Mills, I wish to inform you that information received from Overseas advises that Private Mills was killed in action on the 1st September, 1944.

            However, as the casualty return received from the Unit was dated 5th October, it is considered that there was an error in the date as shown on the casualty return. The Overseas Authorities are presently investigating the correct date of your son’s death and I wish to assure you that you will be immediately advised on receipt of further official information from Overseas Authorities.

In mid-November 1944, Gladys received the following letter from the Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Mills:

            It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your husband, A105836 Private Thomas Gordon Mills, who gave his life in the Service of his Country in the Mediterranean Theatre of War on the 1st day of October, 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.

Thomas Mills’ death was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (Italy).

In late October 1945, a stained-glass window in memory of Pte. Thomas Gordon Mills was unveiled and dedicated at a morning service in Canon Davis Memorial Church. In December 1945, the Children’s Aid Society in Sarnia received a War Service Gratuity of $307.29 for Thomas Gordon Mills Jr., for the loss of his father.

In late April 1947, the Director of Records, for Adjutant-General, sent Gretchen Mills a photograph of the grave and marker over the burial place of her eldest son.

Thomas Gordon Mills, 23, is buried in Cesena War Cemetery, Italy, Grave III, G, 8. On his headstone are inscribed the words, BE THOU FAITHFUL UNTO DEATH, AND I WILL GIVE THEE A CROWN OF LIFE.

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

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Everett Misener was born in Sarnia on December 30, 1921, the youngest son of Robert Scott (born in Brucefield, Huron, Ontario) and Olive Elizabeth (nee Glass, born in Sarnia) Misener. The Misener family lived at 286 North Vidal Street, Sarnia. Robert Misener was a captain and president of Colonial Steamships Limited, Port Colborne, Ontario (in Everett’s Service File, several documents record Captain Robert Misener of Sarnia Steamships Limited, Port Colborne).

Robert and Olive had six children together: William Austin Miles (born 1903, but died at 6 months old); Ralph Scott (born 1908, would serve in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police reserve in Winnipeg); John Erwin (born 1905, enlisted in the navy in the fall of 1940, became a sub-lieutenant in the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve, and served at an Eastern Canadian port, in the North Atlantic, the North Sea, the English Channel, and the Irish Sea); Inez Mildred Elizabeth (born 1905); Dorothy Olive (born 1915) and Everett Paul (born 1921). Years later, both of Everett’s sisters married and became Mrs. J.B. Pierson of Montreal and Mrs. J.A. France of Sarnia.

Everett Misener attended London Road Public School from 1927 to 1934 and then Sarnia Collegiate from 1934 to 1939. He was very active in basketball and football and also participated in track, rugby, and softball. He was a congregant of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church where he became a member of the Young Men’s Ushers Club. After completing high school, Everett continued his education at Ridley College, St. Catharines, Ontario, from February 1940 until June 1941. At Ridley College, he worked on his Junior Matriculation and was also a member of the Air Cadet Corps there, which was affiliated with the 119th Bombing Squadron, Hamilton.

In a reference letter written by the Ridley College Assistant to the Headmaster on behalf of Everett’s RCAF application, the Assistant wrote that Everett has a pleasing personality, and is exceptionally well-liked by his fellow students. He is of sound moral character, and has a high sense of honour and loyalty. I have no hesitation in recommending him to you most highly in every way. I feel sure that he would be an asset to any branch of the Service.

On September 1, 1941, Everett Misener, age 19, interrupted his studies at Ridley to enlist in the Royal Canadian Air Force in Hamilton, Ontario. He stood six feet one inch tall, had blue eyes and blonde hair, was single, and recorded his address as 286 Vidal Street, Sarnia (at home with his parents). Everett recorded that he had worked for approximately eight months in 1941 as a steel handler with Port Arthur Shipbuilding Company Limited. He expressed his desire to be a pilot, and the RCAF Medical Board declared Everett to be Above average intellect, physically fit, an above average recruit, should make an excellent pilot. The Recruiting Officer assessed Everett as a Good average young Canadian – keen to fly and serve overseas and should do well in training.

From #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, Everett received his air training at #1 Bombing and Gunnery School (B&GS) in Jarvis; then at #1 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto; later at #7 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Windsor; and finally at #2 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) at Uplands (Ottawa).                                                          

Just prior to his graduation at Uplands, Everett was able to take a few days away to be the best man at the wedding of his brother, John. On August 15th, 1942, John Erwin Misener of the RCNVR, married Catherine Patricia Marie Taylor of Sarnia. The wedding took place in the chapel of HMCS King’s College in Halifax, where John had graduated as a sub-lieutenant that morning. Three years later, in mid-August of 1945, only days after VJ-Day, Lieutenant John Misener was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his part in the sinking of a German submarine in early March of 1945.

Everett Misener graduated from SFTS Uplands a few days after his brother’s wedding and was awarded his Pilot’s Flying Badge on August 28, 1942. The SFTS Commanding Officer wrote that Everett was Slow at first but caught on and progressed rapidly to above average on inst. Has considerable natural ability once he gets going… Has been above average during course. Link Trainer progress and ability excellent and High character and leadership qualities… Courteous, clean-cut, popular, plenty of initiative, mature, neat, intelligent and hard worker. The Chief Instructor recommended Everett for Fighter Squadron.  

On September 27, 1942, Everett began an instructor’s course at RCAF #3 Flying Instructor School (FIS), in Arnprior, Ontario. As part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP), provisions were made for three separate flying instructor schools in Canada—No. 1 at Trenton, Ontario for twin-engine aircraft; No. 2 at Vulcan, Alberta (later Pearce) for Harvard instructors; and No. 3 at Arnprior, for instructors at elementary flying schools. #3 FIS at Arnprior operated from August 1942 to January 1944.

Approximately two weeks after beginning his instructor’s training, Everett Misener lost his life in a flying accident. Prior to the accident, he had over 102 hours of dual flying and 170 hours of solo flying hours.

On October 11, 1942, Sergeant-Pilot Everett Misener was on a solo cross-country training flight aboard his Cornell Fairchild aircraft #10505, from Arnprior to Kingston, Ontario. At approximately 1100 hours, while endeavouring to make a forced landing on a three-lane highway, his Cornell aircraft crashed seven miles north-west of Watertown, New York. Everett incurred multiple injuries in the plane crash and died instantly; his body was found in the wreckage. The circumstances of casualty were officially listed as Low Flying. Possibility of vision being obscured temporarily by the sun in his eyes. Aircraft struck high tension wires and crashed into tree.

A few days later, Everett’s funeral with military honours was held in Sarnia. Following a service at the Misener home for family and friends, a public service was held in St. Andrew’s Presbyterian church that was largely attended. The Rev. J.M. Macgillivray of St. Andrew’s, assisted by Flight-Lieutenant O. Nimmo, oversaw the church service. In part of Rev. Macgillvray’s eulogy he said This sad bereavement has brought the horrors of war closer to us. Today we mourn the loss of another one of our fine young men who has given his life for the cause. Paul represented the finest type of Canadian manhood. He was clean, strong, vigorous and every inch a man. He had the stuff that makes good airmen and he was beloved by all who knew him. It is hard to think that a young life has been snuffed out. He gave all he had – his years of success to come – for the things most precious to him. His sacrifice is

nonetheless real because he did not fight the foe overseas. He gave his life for his country, his family, for you and for

me. As the funeral party made its way to the Sarnia (Lakeview) Cemetery, it was accompanied by a R.C.A.F. band and an escort from the air base at St. Thomas. At the cemetery, a firing party fired a volley and the “Last Post” was sounded.

In mid-November 1942, still mourning the recent loss of their youngest son, the Misener family had to deal with a painful error made by the Department of National War Services. On November 18, 1942, a letter was received at the Misener home from the National War Services with a notification that Everett Paul Misener was to report for medical examination prior to his call to service in the military. There had been reports that there were similar cases of this kind of tragic error not only in the Sarnia-Lambton district but across the country. Captain Robert Scott Misener took the matter up with the authorities so that steps would be taken to prevent further hurt to members of such families.

Following is the letter that Captain Robert S. Misener sent to the Department of National War Services, in

London, Ontario, and to the Minister of the Department of National War Services in Ottawa:

Dear Sir,

Your notice of call No. A-73816 for my son Everett Paul Misener was received at my home on November 18, 1942.

On October 11 of this year, my family and I experienced one of the greatest sorrows a family could suffer. We lost our youngest son on active service with the R.C.A.F. This boy had voluntarily offered his services to his country in July, 1941, in order that he too might share in the struggle of all free men against oppressive tyranny. He

worked hard so that his family, his country and all free peoples might the sooner see peace and happiness emerge out of today’s chaos. His ambition was realized on August 26, 1942, when he received his wings. Now he, too, could join those thousands of other brave young Canadians who hammered at the foe in every corner of the globe. Such was what he wanted, but destiny intervened and his young life was cruelly cut off before the realization of his fondest hopes for us all.

The late Sgt. Pilot Everett Paul Misener, whose military call was received last week, needed no call to arms. He knew his duty; he gave his life for his country.

Such was the man whose memory you have insulted, though perhaps unintentionally, with a call to service. As his father, my wrath transcends my sorrow. I denounce with all my strength the gross carelessness and utter incompetency of the clerks in the department you represent. I blame no less the superior officers and executive chiefs of the department for their negligence and inefficiency in permitting such errors to be made by members of their staff. Worse, if they know that such conditions exist, I condemn them for their unforgivable lack of consideration for their fellow men by not ensuring against a repetition of such occurrences.

So that their feelings may be spared at least this additional wound, I feel that I speak on behalf of all parents, and others concerned, in the same position as I am, in saying that such careless and inefficient methods should be dealt with immediately.

In August 1945, Captain Robert Scott and Olive Misener received a War Service Gratuity of $97.50 for the loss of their son Everett. A little over five months later, another Sarnian, Pilot Officer Edwin Robert Myles, would lose his life in a training accident at the same school (he is included in this Project).

Everett Misener, 20, is buried in Sarnia (Lakeview) Cemetery, Sarnia, Ontario, Section E. Lot 121.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Charles Monteith was born in Delaware Township, Ontario, on June 27, 1915, the eldest son of Bert (born in Delaware Twp., Ontario) and Gertrude May (nee Finch) Monteith. Bert and Gertrude were married in Lambeth on September 14, 1910, and lived in Petrolia. Bert Monteith supported his family by working as a truck driver. Charles had four brothers and one sister who, at the time of his death, were Lorne Nelson (born 1923) and Walter Cecil (born 1928) who were both residing in Petrolia; Morley (born 1917, who had been overseas with the Governor-General’s Foot Guards for three years and was in Germany at the time); Melvin Bertram (born June 1914, but had died a month later); and his only sister, Leatta Viola (born 1912, who later became Mrs. Alfred Hall, residing in Petrolia).

Charles attended Petrolia High School for only grade nine before leaving at the age of 13 in 1928. After, he took a night course in welding in Sarnia. Charles had little interest in sports but enjoyed motor mechanics. He had a number of jobs before enlisting including: six years as a rural mail carrier; six years as a motor mechanic (part at Lambton Motors); one year at Polymer, Sarnia, doing maintenance on diesel engines; and four months at Dow Chemical of Canada Limited in Sarnia in mechanics maintenance. And he always found time for his hobby of working late hours on two or three engines in his workshop.

On April 24, 1937, Charles married Edythe Helen Ferguson, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. D.L. Ferguson, at the Wyoming Parsonage. Miss Leta Monteith served as bridesmaid and Alfred Hall served as the best man. Following the wedding ceremony, a wedding dinner was served at the home of the bride’s sister, Mrs. J.M. Gillatly. After the ceremony, Charles and Edythe Monteith left for a wedding trip to Detroit. On their return, they resided in Thamesville. Charles and Edyth had three children together: Edna Rosalee (born Dec. 23, 1937); Robert Clarence (born April 3, 1941); and Reginald Duncan (born Nov. 27, 1942).

On November 23, 1943, Charles Monteith, age 28, enlisted in the Canadian Army in London, Ontario. He stood five feet seven inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, and was living at 442 George Street at the time with his wife and three children. After the war he planned to return to his work as a motor mechanic.

From #1 District Depot in London, Charles began his army training at #23 Canadian Armoured Corps Basic Training Centre (CACBTC) in Newmarket, Ontario. In mid-February 1944, he moved to Camp Borden where he received further training at #1 Canadian Armoured Corps Training Regiment (CACTR); and then continued at Technical & Schools Wing (T&S Wing), Canadian Armoured Corps Training Establishment; and later at Canadian Armoured Corps Trained Soldiers Regiment (CACTSR). Rising in rank to lance corporal at CACTSR, he earned qualifications as a Class III Driver and Driver Mechanic Group “C” (tank).

In March 1945, almost 16 months after enlisting, Charles Monteith reverted to the rank of trooper, and on March 19, 1945, he sailed overseas bound for the United Kingdom. Overseas, he continued his training as a member of #2 Canadian Armoured Corps Reinforcement Unit (CACRU). As a member of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps (RCAC), he sent several letters home to his family, the last one on April 5, 1945.

Less than three weeks after arriving overseas, on April 9, 1945, Charles was admitted to No. 17 Canadian General Hospital in Wokingham, England. On the morning of April 9, Charles was getting ready for morning parade among his comrades when they saw him fall. Unconscious and with laboured breathing, he was brought to the hospital right away. He was diagnosed with a brain haemorrhage and over the next six days his condition gradually deteriorated. In the early morning hours of April 14, 1945, Charles, 29, fell into a coma, and lost his life as a result of the brain haemorrhage at No. 17 Canadian General Hospital. The cause of his death was recorded as “subarachnoid haemorrhage – unknown cause”.

Charles Monteith was buried on April 17, 1945 in Brookwood Military Cemetery.

On April 10, 1945, Edythe on George Street received the following telegram from the Director of Records: SINCERELY REGRET INFORM YOU A108948 TROOPER CHARLES CLARENCE MONTEITH HAS BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED SERIOUSLY ILL NINTH APRIL 1945 DIAGNOSIS BRAIN HAEMORRHAGE STOP WHEN FURTHER INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE IT WILL BE FORWARDED AS SOON AS RECEIVED STOP WHEN ADDRESSING MAIL ADD WORDS IN HOSPITAL IN BOLD LETTERS OVER NAME OF ADDRESSEE FOR QUICK DELIVERY.

On April 13, 1945, Edythe received the following telegram from the Director of Records: SINCERELY REGRET INFORM YOU A108948 TROOPER CHARLES CLARENCE MONTEITH HAS NOW BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED DANGEROUSLY ILL ELEVENTH APRIL 1945 STOP WHEN FURTHER INFORMATION BECOMES AVAILABLE IT WILL BE FORWARDED AS SOON AS RECEIVED. 

Four days later, the Director of Records sent Edythe this telegram: REGRET DEEPLY A108948 TROOPER CHARLES CLARENCE MONTEITH HAS NOW BEEN OFFICIALLY REPORTED TO HAVE DIED FOURTEENTH APRIL 1945 STOP YOU SHOULD RECEIVE FURTHER DETAILS BY MAIL DIRECT FROM THIS UNIT.

In late April 1945, Edythe received this letter from the Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Mrs. Monteith:

            It was with deep regret that I learned of the death of your husband, A108948 Trooper Charles Clarence Monteith, who died while in the Service of his Country in the United Kingdom on the 14th day of April, 1945.

            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.

Charles Monteith’s death was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, died as result of brain haemorrhage, England. Less than one month after Charles’ death, VE Day was declared, ending the war in Europe. Charles left behind his mother and father, three brothers and a sister, his wife Edythe and their three children: Edna (age 7), Robert (age 4) and Reginald (age 2).

In September 1945, Edythe received a War Service Gratuity of $125.41 for the loss of her husband.

In September 1946, the Colonel, Director of Records, for Adjutant-General, sent Edythe a photograph of the grave and marker over the burial place of her late husband in Surrey, England.

Charles Monteith, 29, is buried in Brookwood Military Cemetery, Surrey, United Kingdom, Grave 51.C.1. On his headstone are inscribed the following words: LOVING AND KIND FAITHFUL AND TRUE BEAUTIFUL MEMORIES WE HAVE OF YOU. FAMILY.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Howard “Paul” Morris was born in Sarnia on September 19, 1921, the only son of Lloyd David and Marie

Adams (nee Hickimbotham) Morris. Lloyd Morris, born June 14, 1900, in Huron, Ontario, was the son of John and Wilhelmine (nee Adams) Morris, and was 20 years old and working as a labourer when he married 18-year-old Marie Hickimbotham on September 8, 1920, in Sarnia. Marie had been born on July 1, 1902, in Sarnia, the daughter of George and Elizabeth (nee McArthur) Hickinbotham. Lloyd and Marie Morris were blessed with two children: Paul, and a younger daughter, V. Georgina, known as Georgine to her family. Lloyd supported his family by working in the Pumping Department at Sarnia Imperial Oil Refinery, and the family lived at 568 North Christina Street.

From an early age, Paul had a variety of interests that kept him busy. He received his early education at London Road Public School from 1928 to 1934 and then attended Sarnia Collegiate for six years from 1934 to 1940. He was active in tennis, swimming, baseball, golf, hockey, and badminton, and his hobby was building model planes. Paul was also very interested in hunting and camping and had belonged to a local Boy Scout Troop.

He was a member of Central United Church and the Central Century Club. Paul was very interested in church affairs and, besides ushering on Sundays, he was chosen one year as the Junior Member of the Board of Stewards. For several years, Paul played in Robinson’s and Pressey’s Boys’ Bands and, in the course of his musical career, had been awarded several medals.

The Morris family became good friends with William and Reta Banks of Bright Street, and their two children: Ernie and Joan, who was nine years younger than Ernie. Ernie was a year younger than Paul and, with the boys playing in the same bands, they forged a strong friendship. They both attended SCITS and about the time that Paul enlisted in the RCAF, Ernie enlisted with the Canadian Army where he became a member of the 19^th Field Regiment of the Royal Canadian Artillery.

After graduating high school in 1940, Paul was employed in 1941 at F.W. Woolworths as a stock room manager. He was then employed for six months at Sarnia Imperial Oil Limited Refinery where he worked on asbestos insulation and brick masonry.

On July 19, 1941, two months shy of his 20th birthday, Paul enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in London. He stood six feet one inch tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, was single, and was residing at home with his parents on Christina Street at the time. He listed his mother, Marie, as his next of kin, and he requested flying duties, with a preference to be either a pilot or an observer.

From the Recruiting Centre in London and #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, Paul received his air training at #4 Bombing and Gunnery School (B&GS) at Fingal; at #6 Initial Training School (ITS) in Toronto; at #12 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in Goderich; at #1 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) at Camp Borden; and Composite Training School (KTS) in Trenton. He then attended #4 Air Observer School (AOS) in London and finished third in his class. Paul was awarded his Air Observers Badge on September 25, 1942.

In late September-early October 1942, Paul spent a 14-day leave in Sarnia with his family and friends. Years later, his cousin, Theresa Graham, recalled that Paul “was a genuinely nice person, with such an agreeable, friendly manner.” Paul Morris bade his family and friends goodbye and then embarked overseas from #1 Y Depot in Halifax for the United Kingdom on October 10, 1942.

In late October 1942, Paul cabled his parents in Sarnia to inform them that he had arrived overseas safely. From #3 Personnel Reception Centre, he continued his training in the U.K. at #6 Air Observer School (AOS). A few months after arriving at his base in England, Paul wrote this letter, dated February 15, 1943, to Joan Banks (the younger sister of his best friend Ernie).

Dear Joan:

            Thanks a lot for your Valentines card. I received it the other day.

            Lately I have been a very busy fellow. As you probably know from Ernie that I’m taking an assault and battle course. In case our airdromes are attacked we will be able to defend them.

I saw my first German plane the other night. One of our night fighters attacked it and shot it down in flames. It burned in the air for a few minutes before crashing. As it hit the ground the gas tanks exploded and the plane disintegrated.

How are you getting along at school? Fine I hope. Are you being a good girl and not causing your mom a lot of trouble? If I hear any bad reports you had better watch out when I get home. Ernie is to tell me if anything happens.

Well Joan I must close for now. Lots of work to do. Give my love to your Dad, Mom and Grandmother. Drop me a line. Bye for now.

                                                            Yours sincerely, Paul     XXXXXX

In March 1943, Paul became a member of #22 Operational Training Unit (O.T.U.), training in Wellington bombers. On May 20, 1943, he became a member of RCAF #426 Thunderbird Squadron “On Wings of Fire”, part of Bomber Command.

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 to deliver 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.

Paul Morris was the navigator for the Commanding Officer of #426 Squadron, Wing Commander L. Crooks, until the Commanding Officer was killed in action on August 17, 1943. As a navigator, Paul was responsible for plotting his aircraft’s precise course to her target and back, a task made more difficult in the dark, often in inclement weather, and while under enemy attack from anti-aircraft flak and night-fighters. Paul excelled in his role and his superior officers assessed him as “capable and efficient.” In June of 1943, Lloyd and Marie Morris in Sarnia received news that their son, Paul, had been promoted from pilot officer to flying officer on March 25, 1943.

No. 426 Squadron took part in many daring raids over enemy territory, including raids on Berlin, Leipzig, and Frankfurt. One of those raids was on December 16, 1943—a night raid over Berlin, Germany, where 483 Lancasters took part in the operation.

Paul Morris and the crew of Lancaster II aircraft DS779 (markings OQ-Q) took off from Linton-on-Ouse and were able to successfully strike their target over Berlin, despite the poor weather, and then to make their way home; however, at approximately 23.25 hours on December 16 (7 hours after take-off), as the pilot descended in the darkness through heavy cloud on his approach to base, a fatal miscalculation led the aircraft to crash at Hunsingore near Marston, Moor, Yorkshire, England. The aircraft hit the ground, fire broke out, and ran for several hundred yards. As she did, all the propellers snapped off as did the oil cooler, part of one rudder, and other parts of the airframe. The pilot was able to lift the aircraft into the air again, clearing some trees and high-tension wires, before she crashed around a mile farther on.

Five airmen were killed in the crash and two were injured and survived. Perishing with RCAF Navigator-F/O Howard Paul Morris were F/Sgt-Pilot Reginald Donald Stewart; Sgts. John Greenwell, and Leslie Sale (both RAF); and F/O William Hamilton (RAF). Injured and surviving were Sgt. D.S. Jamieson (RCAF), and Sgt. Duncan Ernest Stewart (RAF).

Thirty bombers were lost in the raid including 25 Lancasters. A number of them were lost on their return to England due to very poor weather across almost all airfields.

Several days after the crash, Lloyd and Marie Morris received a telegram from the R.C.A.F. Casualty Officer in Ottawa informing them that their son FLYING OFFICER HOWARD PAUL MORRIS WAS KILLED ON DECEMBER 16 WHILE ON ACTIVE SERVICE OVERSEAS.No details of the air operation in which Paul was killed were given, but it was intimated that a letter would soon follow.

Paul Morris’ remains were buried with Full-Service Honours on December 22, 1943 at Harrogate Cemetery, England.

Following is a portion of the “Report on Flying Accident or Forced Landing Not Attributable to Enemy Action” completed shortly after the crash:

This aircraft was returning to base on completion of an operation. Pilot had been in touch with Flying Control who had informed him that the cloud base at the time was 800 feet. This message was received according to the mid-upper gunner and the pilot then began his descent through cloud using “GEE”. The mid-upper gunner states that the pilot kept coming down hoping to break at any moment but happened to be just a few miles south west of the aerodrome where the cloud was right on the ground. The aircraft hit the ground and ran for several hundred yards breaking off all propellors, oil cooler, part of one ruder and other parts of the airframe. Finally the pilot lifted the aircraft into the air again cleared some trees and high tension wires and crashed about a mile farther on.

This is the case of a fairly inexperienced pilot attempting to break very low cloud and allowing himself to come right down to ground level before doing something about it. If the QFE had been set incorrectly on the altimeter the pilot probably thought he was higher than he actually was. The ground around the scene of the accident is low.

In late December 1943, Marie received a letter from the Wing Commander of RCAF No. 426 Squadron. Following is a portion of that letter:

Dear Mrs. Morris:

            You will have received a telegram informing you that your son, Flying Officer Howard Paul Morris, was killed on active service, some time before this letter reaches you. I know that you will want to know the circumstances of his death and I am extremely sorry that I have been unable to write sooner to give you such details as are available.

            Your son was the Navigator of an aircraft detailed to attack Berlin on the night of the 16th December 1943. He and his crew had successfully carried out their mission and had reported on R.T. when approaching Base. Unfortunately, however, the weather had closed in on Base at the time of their return and the aircraft crashed whilst endeavouring to break cloud to come in for a landing. Your son and four other crew mates were killed instantaneously, the other two members being very seriously injured.

            Your son was buried with full Service honours and interment took place at Stonefall Cemetery, Harrogate, Yorks. Owing to the time taken to communicate under present conditions, it was not possible to ascertain your wishes regarding the funeral, in the time available. I hope you will understand the necessity for this action and I sincerely trust that the arrangements made were what you would have desired. You will wish to know that all War Graves are taken care of by the Imperial War Graves Commission who will erect a temporary wooden cross pending the provision of a permanent memorial. I have to advise also that the question of re-interment, if this is desired, could only be considered at the conclusion of hostilities.

The personal effects of your son, Howard, have been gathered together and forwarded to the Royal Air Force Central Depository, from where they will be sent to the Administrator of Estates, Ottawa, Ontario, who will be writing to you in this regard in due course.

The news of Howard’s death came as a severe blow to the members of this Squadron. He was a very capable and efficient Navigator, having completed several operational sorties over enemy territory. The quiet and efficient manner with which he carried out his duties as a Navigator earned him the respect of his entire crew. He died in the performance of his duty and this Squadron will miss him. We join with you in sorrow at his passing, and I wish to extend to you the deep felt sympathy of the officers and men of this Squadron in your bereavement.

            There may be something I have not mentioned here which you may wish to know. If so, please do not hesitate to write to me, Mrs. Morris, as I am only too anxious to give you any information which may help you to bear the sad loss you have sustained.

Paul Morris was later officially recorded as Killed after air operations at Hunsingore near Marston Moor, Yorkshire, England on returning from a bombing raid over Berlin, Germany. In July 1945, Lloyd and Marie

received a War Service Gratuity of $449.18 for the loss of their only son. His death devastated them and to find closure and to ease their grief, they later visited his grave in England. Lloyd and Marie carried Paul’s memory with them for the rest of their lives.

Howard Paul Morris, 22, is buried at Harrogate (Stonefall) Cemetery, Yorkshire, United Kingdom, Section C, Row G, Grave 6.

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.

After the war ended, Ernie Banks returned to Sarnia, got married, started a family, and worked as an engineer for Dow Chemical; but he never forgot his close friend Paul Morris. In 1975, to celebrate their 25^th wedding anniversary, Ernie and his wife, Marjorie, visited England. Marjorie knew that Ernie and Paul had been best friends and, although she had never met Paul personally, her husband spoke fondly of Paul—not at great length though because Ernie was, by nature, a very private person.

They stayed in a hotel near Harrogate Cemetery and in the morning, they were to visit the cemetery, “Ernie told me that he wanted to be by himself when he found Paul’s grave,” Marjorie said. “So, he asked me to stay back at the hotel and not to accompany him.” She completely understood.

Marjorie also knew Paul’s parents and felt that “Marie never got over the loss of Paul.” They spent the rest of their days in Sarnia until Marie succumbed to cancer in October 1972 and Lloyd passed away in January 1999. They are both buried in Lakeview Cemetery. Their daughter, Georgine, passed away in Ajax, Ontario in 2019. 

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Edwin (Jr.) Myles was born in Sarnia on August 31, 1920, the only son of Edwin (Sr.) William and Emily Edith (nee Scammel) Myles. Edwin Sr. (born in Dorsetshire, Cranbourne, Surrey, England) and Emily (born in Egham, England) were married on April 2, 1919 in Egham, England. At some point they immigrated to Canada. Edwin and Emily had two children together: Edwin Jr. first, and then daughter Edith Kathleen.

When Edwin Jr. was eight years old, his mother, Edit, and he visited England together. They returned to Sarnia on September 10, 1928, aboard the passenger ship Ausonia. The Myles family initially lived at 213 Tecumseh Street and later moved to 103 Rose Street. This was convenient for Edwin Sr. as he worked as a car inspector at Imperial Oil.  

Edwin Jr. attended Devine Street Public School in Sarnia from 1926 to 1932 and then Sarnia Collegiate Institute from 1932 to 1936. He completed school at the age of 17 and was very active during his years at Sarnia Collegiate. While attending high school, he was a member of the Signal Corps, Non-Permanent Army Militia (NPAM) for six months and was captain for a time. Edwin also participated in baseball, basketball, handball, and bowling, and his hobbies were woodworking and photography.

He was also busy away from school. Edwin was a member of St. John’s Anglican Church and an active worker in the local Boy Scout Association for many years. He was Scoutmaster of the 2nd Kinsman Troop for a time. In recognition of his efforts, he was made a King Scout in 1937, an honour that permitted his name to be entered into a souvenir book of permanent record at Dominion Headquarters of the Boy Scout Association.

After completing high school, Edwin was unemployed for about a year, but his life changed in the next few years. First, he was hired in 1937 by Fred Galbraith to work at his Dodge and DeSoto dealership on Davis Street, a job he had until he enlisted, doing body and mechanical work. To bolster his credentials, Edwin took a mechanics night course at Sarnia Collegiate in 1940.

Secondly, Edwin said goodbye to his days of bachelorhood when he was 20. On June 20, 1941, he married Marjorie Lorraine Drinkwater, the only daughter of Mr. and Mrs. E.W. Drinkwater, at St. John’s Anglican Church in Sarnia. At the wedding ceremony, Miss Millicent Miller served as bridesmaid and the flower girl was Miss Edith Myles, the sister of the groom. Serving as best man was Bill Drinkwater, a brother of the bride. A reception was held at the YMCA for 46 guests and, following that, the newlywed couple left on a motor trip to northern points. On their return, Edwin and Marjorie Myles lived with his parents at 103 Rose Street. Marjorie later lived at 223 Devine Street in Sarnia.

On January 26, 1942, only seven months after getting married, Edwin Myles, age 21, joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in London, Ontario. He stood five feet nine-and-a-half inches tall, and had brown eyes and dark brown hair. Marjorie and he were living at 103 Rose Street at the time. He requested flying duties, with a preference to be either a pilot or observer. His post-war plan was to become a licensed engine mechanic. The Recruiting Officer recorded that Edwin was Eager for Air Crew, energetic, sociable, natural, self-possessed, modest, clear headed, has leadership training. Resolute and straight forward.

From #9 Recruiting Centre in London and then #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, Edwin received his air training at the #1 Initial Training School (ITS) at the former Eglinton Hunt Club in Toronto; at #9 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) in St. Catharines; and then at #16 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) at Hagersville. The Instructor and Commanding Officer commented that Edwin was A keen, alert, serious type of airman, dependable, with fine deportment and leadership qualities; A keen student of exceptional academic ability, good average flying ability… should go far with more experience in flying; and Should make a satisfactory twin engine instructor as seems anxious to carry on this work.

Edwin Myles was awarded his Pilot’s Flying Badge at Hagersville on March 5, 1943. At the ceremony, he

was presented with an R.C.A.F. identification bracelet for graduating from the St. Catharines E.F.T.S. with the highest marks on ground school work.

After graduation, he returned to Sarnia on a 14-day leave to visit his parents Edwin and Emily, and his wife Marjorie. Returning to duty on March 19, 1943, Edwin went to Arnprior, Ontario, to take an instructor’s course, as a member of RCAF #3 Flying Instructor School (FIS), with the rank of pilot officer.

As part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, provisions were made for three separate flying instructor schools in Canada—No. 1 at Trenton, Ontario for twin-engine aircraft; No. 2 at Vulcan, Alberta (later Pearce) for Harvard instructors; and No. 3 at Arnprior, for instructors at elementary flying schools. #3 FIS at Arnprior operated from August 1942 to January 1944.         

Approximately two weeks after arriving at Arnprior, Edwin was killed in a training accident.

On April 3, 1943, P/O Edwin Myles and another officer, Pilot Officer R.W. Moeller, were flying in a Cornell aircraft FH740. Up to this point, Edwin had 115 hours of dual flying time and over 104 hours of solo flying. The two airmen were engaged in a routine mutual instruction instrument cross-country training flight, with Edwin in the front cockpit acting as Pilot-Student Instructor. At approximately 0930 hours, the aircraft crash landed into the ground in dense swamp bush-land, four miles North West of Cormack near Eganville (about 95 miles west of Ottawa).

Edwin was killed instantly. He suffered a compound fracture of the skull with multiple fractures of bones in both legs. The other airman, Pilot Officer R.W. Moeller, was uninjured although the plane was completely destroyed.

Approximately five months earlier, another Sarnian, Sergeant-Pilot Everett Misener, had lost his life in a training accident at the same school (he is included in this Project). 

Just one day after the crash, Edwin’s parents and his wife, Marjorie, who were all living on Rose Street, received news from R.C.A.F. Headquarters in Ottawa that Edwin was instantly killed in an R.C.A.F. training plane crash near Ottawa. The name of the other occupant of the plane was withheld by air force authorities at the time.

Edwin’s remains arrived in Sarnia two days later. On that same day, Marjorie, now residing at 223 Devine Street, received the following letter from the Air Marshal, Chief of the Air Staff:

Dear Mrs. Myles:

            I have learned with deep regret of the death of your husband, Pilot Officer Edwin Robert Myles, on Active Service on April 3rd and I wish to offer you my sincere and heartfelt sympathy.

            It is so unfortunate 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.

A military funeral was held in Sarnia for Pilot Officer Edwin Myles under R.C.A.F. auspices. The funeral was held at the Robb Funeral Home, with a service conducted by Rev. J.A.E. Blackwell, rector of St. John’s Anglican Church. From the funeral home, the cortege proceeded to St. John’s Church where a public service was held. A party of R.C.A.F. officers and men from the Technical Training School at St. Thomas attended the funeral. Honorary pallbearers included five fellow Flying Officers, and active pallbearers included six fellow Flight Sergeants. Accompanying the funeral party to internment at Lakeview cemetery was the R.C.A.F. band.

At the graveside, a firing party fired a volley while the band played “Abide With Me” and “The Last Post”

was sounded. Rev. Blackwell paid this spoken tribute to Edwin: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith, we are met here once again to pay a last respect to one whom Almighty God has been fit to take…” He then said, “Is there any text more fitting to describe Pilot Officer Myles’ life than the words which I have chosen; his faith which he kept to the end, cultivated and developed among you who knew him so well; his devotion to any task assumed; his steadfastness in his purpose and dependability in any task must serve as an inspiration to strengthen us to follow his example. Intermingled with the natural sorrow of our hearts will be the pride and joy in the memory of one who fought a good fight and kept the faith as a son, a husband or a companion.”

Pilot Officer-Pilot Edwin Myles was later officially recorded as Killed as the result of a flying accident (about four miles north west Cormac near Eganville Ontario) (Mutual instruction instrument flying cross country).

Edwin Myles, 22, is buried at Sarnia (Lakeview) Cemetery, Sarnia, Ontario, Canada, Section E. Lot 122. On his headstone are inscribed the words THERE IS COMFORT IN THE THOUGHT THAT A LOVING GOD KNOWS BEST.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

Charles “Art” Nash was born in Sarnia on November 21, 1918, the only son of Albert Clarence (born in Grimsby, Ontario) and Lillian Kate (nee Kerry, born in Otford, Kent, England) Nash. Albert and Lillian were married in Sarnia in May 1915. Albert and Lillian were blessed with five children together: son Art, and daughters Lilian Alberta (Allison), Winnifred Gertrude (Carol), Alice Irene (Stamos), and Marian Evelyn Nash. The Nash family lived at 194 Elgin Street, and Albert supported his family employed as a landscape gardener for the City of Sarnia.

Art attended public schools in Sarnia from 1924 to 1932 and then Sarnia Collegiate from September

1932 to May 1935. At Sarnia Collegiate, he pursued a number of interests. Besides taking courses in electricity, woodworking, math, history, science, English, and literature composition, Art was active in hockey, rugby, football, and gymnastics, and his hobby was sailing. Outside school, Art kept himself busy. He was a member of St. George’s Anglican Church and he worked at a number of jobs prior to enlisting: making and applying brick siding at Insulated Building Materials in Sarnia from 1935 to 1937; doing electrical work at Imperial Electric in Sarnia for several winter months; and applying brick siding at Ontario Roofing from 1937 to 1940.

His sisters recalled that Art was an amicable, fun-loving person and that he gave them rides on his motorcycle—they’d sit in the sidecar as he sped up and down Sarnia’s streets.

In 1940, Art worked as an applicator and salesman with Western Roofing in North Bay, a job he held until he enlisted. He had also worked for six months with S. Rigby Taxi and Transfer in North Bay as a driver.

On June 23, 1941, Art Nash, age 22, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in North Bay, Ontario. He stood five feet eight-and-a-half inches tall, had blue eyes and brown hair, was single, and was residing at 91 Worthington Road, North Bay at the time. He requested flying duties as opposed to ground duties. His plan for after the war was to work in the field of electrical engineering.

From the Recruiting Centre in North Bay and then #1 Manning Depot in Toronto, Art received his air training at #1 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) at Camp Borden; at #1 Wireless School (WS) in Montreal; at Composite Training School (KTS) in Trenton; and then at #6 Bombing and Gunnery School (B&GS) in Mountain View, Ontario. At #6 B&GS, he finished third in his class of 35, and was awarded his Air Gunners Badge on May 11, 1942, with the rank of sergeant-air gunner.

He then enjoyed a 14-day leave at his home in Sarnia before going overseas. After returning to duty, Art was posted to #1 Y Depot in Halifax and the RAF Trainees Pool. On July 5, 1942, Art embarked overseas bound for the United Kingdom. His parents in Sarnia received a cable from Art later that month, telling them of his safe arrival at an English port.

Disembarking in the U.K. on July 18, 1943, from #3 Personnel Reception Centre, Art continued his training at #7 Air Gunnery School (AGS) at Stormy Down, Wales, and then at #14 Operational Training Unit (OTU) Cottesmore, in Rutland, England. In early February 1943, he was transferred to #1660 Conversion Unit at RAF Swinderby. On April 3, 1943, Art Nash became a member of RAF #83 Squadron “Strike to Defend”, part of Bomber Command, with the rank of Warrant Officer Class II-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.

RAF No. 83 Squadron, part of No. 5 Group, spent the first half of the war operating as a night bomber squadron, based at RAF Scampton, equipped with Handley Page Hampden twin-engine medium bombers. In late December 1941, the squadron began to convert to Avro Manchester bombers, also a twin-engine medium bomber.

Flaws in the aircraft soon became apparent (underpowered and unreliable engines), and after only five months, in May 1942, the Manchesters were replaced by Avro Lancasters, which the squadron kept for the rest of the war. In August 1942, there were two big changes for the squadron—its base was transferred to RAF Wyton; and it became part of the Pathfinder Force.

The Pathfinder Force was made up of experienced, hand-picked crews from bomber squadrons with elite navigational abilities. These aerial rangers, equipped with the latest target-finding technologies, were the spearhead of the bomber stream, arriving first over the target. Their job was to illuminate the target area with flares and to drop brilliantly coloured red, green and yellow target indicators (TIs) on the aiming point for the follow-up force.

Approximately two months after joining RAF #83 Pathfinder Force, Arthur Nash lost his life during an operation against the enemy.

On the night of June 11/12, 1943, Art Nash was a crew member aboard Lancaster Mk. I R5686 aircraft (markings OL-G) that took off from Wyton on an operation targeting Munster, Germany. The aircraft failed to return from the operation and nothing was heard from the crew. It was assumed that they lost their lives at sea. The aircraft apparently crashed into the sea off the coast of Holland.

Perishing with Warrant Officer II-Air Gunner Charles Arthur Nash were F/O Christian Godfrey Miller (RCAF); F/O Daniel Owen Thomas (RAF); F/L Cornelius Vincent Joseph Geary (RAF); Sgt. Norman Greenwood (RAF); Pilot James Eric Swift (RAF); and Sgt. James Joseph Anderton (RAF). The bodies of the crew were never recovered; however, the bodies of J.E. Swift and J.J. Anderton washed ashore days later. The remains were recovered by the Germans and buried in Holland.

Not long after the aircraft’s disappearance, Albert and Lillian in Sarnia received a telegram from Ottawa informing them that their son SERGEANT CHARLES ARTHUR NASH WAS REPORTED MISSING AFTER AIR OPERATIONS OVERSEAS JUNE 12.

Sadly, just days earlier, Albert and Lillian had received a letter from Art.

Several days before Christmas in 1943, Albert and Lillian received the following letter at his Elgin Street home from the Squadron Leader, R.C.A.F. Casualties Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa:

Dear Mr. Nash:

            It is with deep regret that, in view of the lapse of time and absence of any further information concerning your son, Sergeant Charles Arthur Nash, since he was reported missing, the Air Ministry Overseas now proposes to

take action to presume his death for official purposes.

            Will you please confirm by letter that you have not received any further evidence or news concerning him. The presumption of death will proceed after hearing from you, and on completion you will receive official notification by registered letter.

            May I extend to you and the members of your family my sincere sympathy in this time of great anxiety.

Albert and Lillian were devastated and rarely mentioned their only son. Albert passed away in May 1945, less than two years after Art was lost. His daughter, Alice, always maintained that her father had died from a broken heart.

In October 1945, widowed Lillian Nash received a War Service Gratuity of $333.10 for the loss of her only son.

Nine years after Art’s death, in June 1952, Lillian received the following letter from the Wing Commander, R.C.A.F. Casualties Officer, for Chief of the Air Staff in Ottawa:

Dear Mr. Nash:

            It is with reluctance that after so long an interval, I must refer to the loss of your son, Warrant Officer Class 2 Charles Arthur Nash, but due to the lack of any information concerning him since he was reported missing, it must be regretfully accepted and officially recorded that he does not have a “known” grave.

            Due to the extreme hazards attending air operations there are, unhappily, many thousands of British aircrew boys who do not have “known” graves and all will be Commemorated on General Memorials that will be erected at a number of locations by the Imperial War Graves Commission (of which Canada is a member), each Memorial representative of a theatre of operations. One of these Memorials will be erected at Runnymede, England, and the name of your son will appear on that Memorial.

            I realize that this is an extremely distressing letter and that there is no manner of conveying such information to you that would not add to your heartaches. I am fully aware that nothing I may say will lessen your great sorrow, but I would like to express to you and the members of your family my deepest sympathy.

Art Nash, 24, was later officially recorded as Previously reported missing after air operations, now for official purposes, presumed dead, overseas.

Until she passed away in 1979, Lillian vividly remembered the day the family saw a young cyclist ride up to their home holding a telegram. Albert refused to answer the door, but Lillian did, even though she was sure the telegram contained the grim news of her son’s death. For over three decades, if a family member ever asked her about Art, she became teary-eyed and said only, “He never came home.”

Charles Arthur Nash has no known grave. His name is inscribed on the Runnymede War Memorial, Surrey, United Kingdom, Panel 180. On the Sarnia cenotaph, his name is inscribed as G.A. Nash.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo

John Northcott was born in Sarnia on April 17, 1921, the eldest child of John Sr. (Jack) George Blackstock Northcott and Iva Luxton (nee Willis) Northcott. John Sr. (born May 17, 1902 in Toronto) and Iva Northcott (born December 25, 1898 in Sarnia) were married on November 28, 1918 in Sarnia. [Note: On their Marriage Certificate, John’s age is recorded as 21].

Iva was the daughter of Henry and Minnie Jane Willis. When John Sr. married Iva, he was employed as a conductor. In 1921, John Sr. was a fireman, supporting Iva and their newborn son, John Jr., at their home at 262 Brock Street. At some time later, John Sr. was employed as a chauffeur with a motorbus company in Detroit.

The Northcott family grew and John Jr. (born 1921) soon had four siblings: two brothers—William David (born 1923) and Lyle Edward (born 1924); and two sisters, Francis Mae (born 1923) and Margaret Annie (born 1922). Sadly, John Sr. and Iva also lost two children at a young age: Cecil Jack (May 1, 1920) and June Marie (January 13, 1929).

Tragedy struck the Northcott family when John Jr. was not quite eight years old. On March 21, 1929, John Sr., died from injuries sustained in an auto collision in Highland, Michigan. John Sr., age 26, is buried with his parents, John Northcott and Margaret Ann Blackstock, in Toronto. Iva later remarried, to James Llewellyn Burley (born 1902), and they lived in Stokes Bay, Ontario. John Jr.’s step-father, James, also served in the war as a sapper in the Canadian Army.

Existing records show little information about John Jr.’s life before he enlisted. At the age of 13, he left school after completing grade eight. Prior to enlisting, he took a six-month business course and was employed for two years by his stepfather as a truck driver. John served in the Non-Permanent Active Militia, with the 11th Field Company, Royal Canadian Engineers, from April 22, 1937 to October 13, 1938.

On September 15, 1939, five days after Canada declared war on Germany, John Northcott, age 18, enlisted in the Canadian Army in Sarnia. 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.

John stood five feet eleven-and-one-quarter inches tall, had blue eyes and light brown hair, and was living in Stokes Bay, Bruce County, Ontario, at the time, employed as a truck driver. He planned to enter the civil service after the war, possibly as a policeman. From #1 District Depot in London, John received his army training at Royal Canadian Engineers Training Centre (RCETC) at Camp Petawawa, as a member of the 11th Field Company with the rank of Sapper.

On April 4, 1940, John obtained permission from the military to marry. Four days later, on April 8th, seven months after enlisting, he married Johanna Gweneth Pearl Burley (born January 17, 1922), in Wiarton, Ontario. His new wife, Johanna, also resided in Stokes Bay, the same community as John’s mother, brothers and sisters. On August 23, 1940, four months after getting married, John embarked overseas from Halifax, Nova Scotia, bound for the United Kingdom.

On May 15, 1941, thirteen months after getting married, Johanna Northcott gave birth to the couple’s son, John Leroy Northcott, in Wiarton, Ontario. His proud father was in England when his son was born.

Disembarking on September 5, 1940, in Greenock, Great Britain, John Northcott, a sapper, continued his army training that included receiving qualifications as a driver and completing a wireless course. John would only serve in the U.K., for more than 2 ½ years, as a member of the 11th Field Company, Royal Canadian Engineers, including duty as a truck driver.

On the night of Sunday, May 2, 1943, during a weekend leave in London, John died in a tragic accident. He had been with two other sappers from the 11th Field Company during the day and evening on Saturday, May 1^st, enjoying the city. At some point in the evening, John became separated from his buddies.

At approximately 12:15 a.m. on the Sunday, John was struck by an electric tube train at Cockfosters Railway Station, Southgate, Middlesex County. It was the last train of the night, and after stopping at its usual stopping point, the driver reported that as he was approaching the platform, he had felt a bump, and thought that he had run over something. It was very dark at the time (the city was regularly blacked out due to the threat of enemy bombers), and with no platform lights on, visibility was practically nil.

Upon investigation, rail personnel discovered the body of a soldier lying under the third car of the train. After police and a doctor arrived at the scene, the current was taken off; the soldier was examined and pronounced dead; his body removed from the track, placed on a stretcher and taken to Enfield Mortuary.

John Northcott had died at the scene as a result of his injuries that included severe head injuries, severed esophagus and trachea, fractured ribs and cervical spine, an almost severed right foot, and abrasions from being dragged.

John Northcott was buried on May 7, 1943 at Brookwood Cemetery in Woking, Surrey. A temporary wooden cross bearing his name and regimental particulars was erected over the grave.

In the inquest that followed, military investigators determined that his death was completely accidental, and not the result of any improper conduct by the deceased.

In mid-May 1943, Johanna, along with their two-year-old son John, were still living in Stokes Bay, when they received the following letter from the Major-General, Adjutant-General:

Dear Madam:

            I deeply regret to inform you that your husband, A.20182 Sapper John Henry Northcott, gave his life in the Service of his Country in the United Kingdom on the 2nd day of May, 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.

Iva (Northcott) Burley would learn the news of her son’s death not from official sources, but from her daughter-in-law, Johanna. John Northcott’s death was later officially recorded as Overseas casualty, accident, due to being run over by a train, cause of death a fractured cervical spine, England.

His widow, Johanna, mother of one, was awarded a pension of $75 per month from the Canadian Military. In August 1945, Johanna, then residing in Sudbury, received a War Service Gratuity of $733.34 for the loss of her husband. Johanna also received the Silver Cross medal for her loss. The card accompanying the medal read This Memorial Cross is forwarded to you by the Minister of National Defence, on behalf of the Government of Canada, in memory of one who died in the service of his Country.

In June 1946, the Colonel, Director of Records in Ottawa, sent Iva Burley in Stokes Bay a photograph of the grave and marker over the burial place in England of her son John. Johanna Northcott later remarried (to Clifford Neil Patterson), becoming Johanna Patterson and residing in Virginiatown, Ontario. Johanna passed away in April 1988 and is buried in Kirkland Lake Cemetery. Iva (Northcott) Burley passed away at age 95 on January 24, 1994, and is buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in London, Ontario.

Twenty-two-year-old John Northcott is buried in Brookwood Military Cemetery, Surrey, United Kingdom, Grave 34.I.10.

Source: The Sarnia War Remembrance Project by Tom Slater

Editors: Tom St. Amand and Lou Giancarlo