"Here are four brothers who enlisted for active service and trained in this city [London, Ontario]. They are the quartet of Hinschliffes [Hinscliffe], cousins of Mrs. Mathews [Matthews], of 286 [285] Thames street, whose husband and son, both Johns [Jack and John], are in Belgium with the 18th Battalion: From left to right they are... Continue Reading →
The Accidental Death of Lieutenant William Ormiston Brown
Warning: This post contains a graphic description of Lieutenant William Ormiston Brown's wounds and resulting death. During the First World War the statistics of accidental death or wounding resulting in death were not kept. During World War II only 7 officers serving were killed accidentally at a rate of 0.3 percent. Accidental deaths for other... Continue Reading →
Insurance for the Troops
In a previous post regarding 2nd Lieutenant L.C. Vogan the news article referenced "...he Oxford Patriotic Association, for $500 in the Imperial Life." There was a fund called the "Canadian Patriotic Fund" which assisted Canadian soldiers with benefits for those with families. The Oxford Fund was initially independent of the Canadian Patriotic Fund: CANADIAN PATRIOTIC... Continue Reading →
“This Canadian Boy Gladly Gave His Life for His Country”
Buried in plot II. A. 5. of the Barlin Communal Cemetery Extension, located in the village of Barlin, France, is 2nd Lieutenant Lindsay Clarence Vogan who was 2nd Lieutenant with the 13th Battalion of the British Middlesex Regiment. On his headstone, according to the CWGC headstone schedules a W.H. Vogan, Esq. of Manufacturers Life Insurance... Continue Reading →
Lindsay Clarence Vogan Video
Brings this 18th Battalion soldier to life. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRzdQ7hz8U4
“No matter who he was or where he came from, he was a real hero and his deeds will not be forgotten.”
Private "Thomas Jones" enlisted in London, Ontario April 13, 1915. Between that date and his death on April 11, 1916 in the action around the St. Eloi Craters he made an impression on his comrades for his devotion to duty. An article in the London Free Press 16 days after his death relates some details... Continue Reading →
War Diary of the 18th Battalion: May 1916
CONFIDENTIAL WAR DIARY OF 18th Canadian Battalion 2nd Canadian Division From 1st May to 31st May 1916 Volume 9 Place May Hour Summary of Events and Information 1 Battalion in camp. Bath and clothing Parade. CAPT C.P. Laing returned from Hospital. 1 o.r. died. Fatigue party of 350 men out during night. 2 Battalion in... Continue Reading →
The Butcher’s Bill for May 1916
Of the 652 Canadian combatants that were killed in action or died of wounds 9 sacrificed their lives. Rank Surname Forename Date of Death Reg. No. Private BOUTILIER N W 10/05/1916 488677 Private CLARK W 14/05/1916 415552 Private DUDLEY WILLIAM HOWARD 10/05/1916 404827 Private GILBERT P S 11/05/1916 53233 Private HUMPHREYS JOHN 13/05/1916 413050... Continue Reading →
18th Australian Infantry Battalion
Sometimes I get a bit too focused on my little world of the 18th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Forces that I cannot see the forests for the trees. In the past week this blog have been getting a nice upsurge in traffic, and me, being me, figured that it was all the fine writing and content... Continue Reading →
Updated Soldiers Pages: Digitized Service Record Link Added
Cook, Clarence William, 141649 Cooper, George, 53558 Corbould, Charles Edward Bernard Cullen, James Clifford
Report of Operations: St. Eloi
18th CANADIAN BATTALION REPORT OF OPERATIONS - - NIGHT 0F 9/10 APRIL UNDER 4TH BDE. ORDER Situation before operations: 'B' Company was holding aline as indicated by Lieut. Lawson (since killed), with about 50 men. Map reference ST. ELOI 0.2.D21/2.8 and 'C' Company with 1 Officer, 21 men, was spread along old 'Q' line 14... Continue Reading →
The Butcher’s Bill for April 1916
Of the 1,067 Canadian combatants who died during April 1916 29 were members of "The Fighting 18th." Links are the Library Archives Canada regimental number page. Some of those entries have service records at date of posting this blog post. Rank Surname Forename Decoration Date of Death Reg. No. Private DREW ALFRED HENRY 02/04/1916 402060... Continue Reading →
War Diary of the 18th Battalion: April 1916
CONFIDENTIAL WAR DIARY of 18th Canadian Battalion 2nd Canadian Division From 1st April to 30th April 1916 Volume 8 With appendices 1 -3 Place Date Hour Summary of Events and Information CLYTTE April 1 10:00 AM Battalion in Divisional Reserve at LA CLYTTE. B coy and 2 platoons of D coy moved to hold trenches... Continue Reading →
Updates to Blog
Implementing a basic database has been a huge help in being organized. I have been able to systematize my workflow so that I prevent errors while being able to accurately record soldiers that have been included using Soldiers Pages and those that are waiting to be included into the blog. To date I have 383... Continue Reading →
The Attack and Battle of Vimy Ridge
To my recollection, the first time I learned about Vimy Ridge was when my Mother pointed out to me a page notated by my Uncle William Dewar in Pierre Burton's book Vimy. A notation my Uncle made on a page hi-lighting a mention of the 18th Battalion in regards to Sergeant Ellis Welwood Sifton and... Continue Reading →
Battling Tanks at Iwuy: The last German use of tanks in World War 1
Iwuy is a small commune in France, South East of Vimy and North East of Cambria. On October 11, 1918 the 18th Battalion was involved in an operation where they were able to repulse 3 German tanks. This action has the significance of being possibly the last action in World War 1 were the Germans... Continue Reading →
Status Update on Blog
Having committed to being more systematic in the research and the recording of such I am almost caught up with adding all the soldiers that I have found so far. I have on record 379 of the approximately 2,200 soldiers that served with the 18th Battalion during World War 1. Of those, approximately 85% are... Continue Reading →
The Vixen and the Virgin on CBC Ideas
Listen here... Mati Hari and Edith Cavell where both iconic figures in First World War history. Last night CBC Radio 1 had an interesting documentary about these women and their place in history. Specifically the documentary dealt with the women behind the myth. Strongly recommended...
Courts Martial in the 18th Battalion
Item number Name Regimental Number Rank Unit Date 1545 Jacques, John 53695 Sergeant 18th Bn 1917 4960 Jacques, John 53695 Sergeant 18th Bn 1917 9130 Johnstone, H. 139744 Inconnu 18th Bn Aucun détail 257 Larocque, James L. 928596 Private 18th Bn 1918 3325 Laver, B. 190067 Private 18th Bn 1918 9107 Laver, B. 190067 Private... Continue Reading →
History of the 18th Battalion CEF, "The Fighting Eighteenth" 