Confidential War Diary of 18th CANADIAN BATTALION- 2nd CANADIAN DIVISION From 1st January to 31st of January, 1918 Volume 29 With appendices 1 - 5 Place Date Hour Summary of Events and Information Febvin-Palfart 1 9 am to 10:30 Company parades and inspections. Physical Training until 10:30 when battalion was dismissed for the day. Being... Continue Reading →
Christmas 1917 for the C.E.F.
The month of December was kind to the 18th. Very few wounded and no deaths due to action or wounds. As is tradition for Canadian Army units, the Officers of the Battalion served the N.C.O.s and other ranks Christmas dinner. Regrettably the War Diary does not expand on the event as it descrives Christmas Day... Continue Reading →
His Character is “Very Good”
There were more than 7,052 men of the C.E.F. and Royal Newfoundland Regiment with the surname SMITH. This is the story of one of them. Percy Smith was a farmer who worked at the Havelock Farm in the Woodstock, Ontario area. He joined 168th Battalion in May 1917 and by September 1917 he was assigned... Continue Reading →
Letters from Vincent
Michael Ritchie is the Great Grand Son of Lieutenant Vincent McCarter Eastwood, MC. He has devoted a significant time and effort transcribing the letters of his family relation at a web site called "Letters from Vincent". This is an important resource as it offers the reader the opportunity to see what aspects of military service... Continue Reading →
“Knapsack his pillow…”: The Grief of Mrs. McMullin
Private Leonard Calvin McMullin was killed May 25, 1918 by a “fishtail” bomb. Yet, the 18th Battalion War Diary makes no mention of this event and it is lost into obscurity. The War Diary Entry for that day: “Working parties again furnished by Bn. for works during the night on trenches. Our party of 1... Continue Reading →
A Thousand Dollars
On June 6, 1955 in Syracuse, New York, Mrs. Rose B. Scott became a widow. Almost a year passed and on May 8, 1956 she sent an inquiry through the mail to the “Department of Records, National Defence” in Ottawa, Canada regarding her husband’s military service with the Canadian Expeditionary Force. Her husband, Dennis Scott,... Continue Reading →
Battle Patrol Report December 1917
December 1917 found the 18th Battalion in the Acheville Sector. The general level of activity for the Battalion was a marked change from the hell of Passchendaele and the war diary gives the impression that both the Canadian and German units in this sector had hunkered down for December and were not overly interested in... Continue Reading →
War Diary of the 18th Battalion: December 1917
CONFIDENTIAL WAR DIARY -OF- 18th CANADIAN BATTALION – 2nd CANADIAN DIVISION From 1st December to 31th December 1917 Volume 28 With appendicix "A" Place Date Hour Summary of Events and Information Vancouver Road T28.a.5.2 1 Battalion in support area at Vancouver Rd. Situation quiet, nothing unusual occurred. Major J.R. Richardson rejoined Battalion from England. 5... Continue Reading →
Her Cup of Sorrow Was Well Filled
Private Frank Edward Wrightsell sits in an ornate chair. He looks at the camera and it appears his body is tight and tense. Perhaps he is trying to portray stern confidence that a soldier newly minted from his enlistment with the 186th Battalion would have. He enlisted on March 9, 1916 at Chatham, Ontario. He... Continue Reading →
Delinquent in Düren: The Tragedy of Private Sherman
Undated photograph. One of these men is Private Dauphin. Is the other Private Sherman? Source: Gathering Our Heroes "It was cold and dark. The two Canadian Privates from Chatham, Ontario stood on the rail platform momentarily and lit their cigarettes. Drawing deeply from the cigarettes the blew the smoke out and turned to walk up... Continue Reading →
Her “Boy Scout”
The smile seems more intimate than a smile a young officer would give a stranger. It is a smile of familiarity and pride as the Officer marches past. The young boys stand with apparent casual regard for the men of the 99th Overseas Battalion marching past. The Sergeant to the officer’s left looks askance with... Continue Reading →
War Diary of the 18th Battalion: November 1917
Confidential War Diary OF 18th CANADIAN BATTALION - 2ND CANADIAN DIVISION FROM 1ST November to 30th November 1917 Volume 27 With Appendicies 1 - 2 Place Date Hour Summary of Events and Information CAESTRE 1 Battalion in Reserve Camp. Coy parades, inspection of arms and equipment. Extra water bottle (1 per man) issued. 2 o.r.... Continue Reading →
The Best Rest in Many Moons: A Letter by Major Sale
Major Sale was an active and influential member of the Goderich, Ontario community as a dentist. He was active in the Canadian Militia with the 33rd Regiment and joined the 18th Battalion as a captain shortly after its inception in October 1914. He served his Battalion diligently and was earned a promotion to major in... Continue Reading →
His Parents Must Have Known…
Percy Scanlan enlisted with the 91st Battalion at Chatham, Ontario on December 6, 1915. He was one of many eager recruits joining the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the second year of the war. Even the news of the Canadian experience at 2nd Ypres and the use of gas by the Germans did not dissuade him... Continue Reading →
A Swim Binds Three 18th Battalion Soldiers in Time
This is a follow up post from a prior post entitled A Swim Binds Two Soldiers in Time in which the experiences of two members of the Battalion is examined. Further research has illuminated that there were three men of the 18th Battalion involved in this incident and this article is a response to the... Continue Reading →
January 1918 Casualties
January 1918 found the Battalion at Febvin Palfart with assignments in the front line in the Avion sector. It was a relatively quiet tour with no apparent casualties or deaths in the Battalion. Only two men of the 18th died this month. In the case of Private Brocklebank, he was to suffer wounds to his... Continue Reading →
Laurier Military Speaker Series: Colonel (Ret’d) Patrick M. Dennis, OMM, CD
Patrick will be speaking about his recent research and subsequent book "Reluctant Warriors: Canadian Conscripts and the Great WarReluctant Warriors: Canadian Conscripts and the Great War". The LCMSDS site describes his presentation as: “What stubborn-hearted virtues they disguised!” Canadian Conscripts at War – 1918 (talk to be followed by a book signing) In this the... Continue Reading →
The Men of the Menin Gate
Date of First Casualty: January 30, 1916. Privates Emerald Broadwell (reg. no. 53892) and Albert James Reeves (reg. no. 53847). They would both perish under unusual circumstances: "Previously reported missing, now for official purposes presumed to have died. About 9 a.m. on January 30th, 1916, he and a comrade [Private Broadwell] left their trench under... Continue Reading →
The Greatest Devotion to Duty: Casualties at Passchendaele
The 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade (4th C.I.B.) was engaged at Passchendaele in November 1917. Compared with some other Canadian Brigades and Battalions it was not as heavily engaged but the costs to the Brigade was high. The 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade suffered a total of 1,268 casualties (killed in action and wounded) with 73 men... Continue Reading →
War Diary of the 18th Battalion: October 1917
CONFIDENTIAL WAR DIARY of 18th CANADIAN BATTALION - 2nd CANADIAN DIVISION From 1st October to 31st October 1917 Volume 26 With appendix A Place Date Hour Summary of Events and Information VILLERS-AU-BOIS 1 Battalion in billets at VILLERS CAMP. Company parades and inspection of rifles & equipment. 2 ors admitted to hospital. Mapes... Continue Reading →
History of the 18th Battalion CEF, "The Fighting Eighteenth" 