On January 24, 1916 a man from Hastings, Ontario enlisted with the 93rd Battalion, so beginning his military career. We have one postcard and three letters from his overseas service, and they give us the opportunity to look a bit deeper into the war experience of Private John Edward Parker (reg. no. 195573).[i] Private Parker... Continue Reading →
18th Battalion Association Event Circa 1940
A recent contribution to the 18th Battalion Facebook Group brought a candid photograph of two members of the 18th Battalion to life. The photograph is from an event circa 1940 and it is evident that it, most likely, an event related to the 18th Battalion association. The two men prominent in the photograph are Sergeant... Continue Reading →
First Galt Daily Reporter Employee to Be Wounded
An article in the December 21, 1915 edition of the Galt Daily Reported relates the first casualty from former Galt Reporter employees serving in the war, Private John Hollins, had been wounded during service with the 18th Battalion. Private Hollins enlisted on November 4, 1914, at Galt with the 18th Battalion and gave his trade... Continue Reading →
Poetry and Regret
Some time after the Armistice in 1918 and July 1921 a former private of the 18th Battalion wrote a poem and published it in pamphlet form. It is now an obscure document and would be lost to history save for the work of Canadiana Online. Hidden, waiting to be found was the pamphlet with its... Continue Reading →
“We Kingsville boys…”
A letter published in the November 4, 1915, edition of the Kingsville Reporter relates some of the experiences of Private "Harry" Sirverns, late of Kingsville, Ontario. The letter covers the early experiences of the 18th Battalion as it goes into the line and furnishes another lens from a foot soldier of the war from his... Continue Reading →
“Scouts should be picked men…”
On August 4, 1915, the London Advertiser published a picture on page 3. In this picture was the image of seventeen young men who were scouts for the 18th Battalion. The photograph appears to be taken in England as the Battalion was in training at West Sandling, near Hythe, Kent. In this picturesque and bucolic... Continue Reading →
Eager to Get Over There: Private Drinkwater’s Desire
The seems to be no lack of enthusiasm for the Galtonians that joined the 18th Battalion to get into the fight. Even with the advent of static trench warfare due to the mechanization of combat from the use of rapid-fire weapons and massed artillery ending in casualties that had amounted to 9,182 Canadian casualties since... Continue Reading →
“UNUSUAL VIEWS OF SHORNECLIFFE”: Familiar sights to the men of the 18th
A faded article in a local paper from over 100-years ago. The fades images do not offer much in the way of information as they lack detail and definition. The text offers some information about the images, but the locale is not known to many of the residents of Galt, and yet, there would be... Continue Reading →
“The boys promise to be home for Christmas in 1916.”: A letter from December 1915
On December 21, 1915, the Galt Daily Reporter reported that the 18th Battalion was in the front line based on letters dated November 30, 1915, from the “boys of the 18th Battalion”. The letter gives some perspective of the attitudes of the soldiers of this unit, thought, sadly, none of the “boys” who wrote the... Continue Reading →
“Hale and Hearty”: Lucknow Ontario Veterans Return Home
100 years ago the Wingham Advance published an article about returning soldiers. In May 1919 just over a dozen veterans of the First World War from the Canadian and American Forces returned home. The articles that nearly all of them had been wounded but that they "...have recovered and are looking hale and hearty now."... Continue Reading →
A “most cherished souvenir”: A Request for a Memorial (Silver) Cross
On May 4, 1950, a letter was written to the Department of Veterans Affairs the illuminates the pride of service of a soldier of the 18th Battalion. This letter brings into relief the role of memory and how it shaped a family in bereavement as they wished to have tangible recognition of a loved one’s... Continue Reading →
“After a long period free from local casualties…”: The Wounding of Private Hollins
An article in the December 21, 1915 edition of the Galt Daily Reported relates the first casualty from Galt in the war, Private John Hollins, had been wounded during service with the 18th Battalion.[i] PTE. J. HOLLINS HAS BEEN WOUNDED FORMER EMPLOYEE OF THE REPORTED ADMITTED TO HOSPITAL AT BOULOGNE After a long period free... Continue Reading →
Report on Minor Enterprise by 18th Cdn Battalion night of July 26/27th on German Front Line, at PICCADILLY FARM
Report on Minor Enterprise by 18th Cdn Battalion night of July 26/27th on German Front Line, at PICCADILLY FARM.[i] At 10.30 p.m. Party of 15 bombers and 10 scouts under Lieut. Allen (Scout Officer) and Lieut. McLinton [McClinton] (Bomb Officer) left our trenches and proceeded to a point halfway across “NO MANS LAND”. The party... Continue Reading →
According to the Halifax Herald: The S.S. Grampian
On April 13, 1915 the 10,187[i] gross tonne Canadian Pacific Railway Line S.S. Grampian arrived in England. The Halifax Herald reported that the liner had “taken precautions” when departing Liverpool against German submarines. She brought 15 first class, 85 second class, and 150 third class passengers as well as 4,000 bags and passengers of English... Continue Reading →
Witness to the Action at St. Eloi
The Battle at St. Eloi Craters was not well documented by the 18th Battalion’s War Diary. The Diary skips over its involvement in the briefest of detail, and even the appendices offer little detailed insight into the action. This was an important action for the Battalion and the other members battalions of the 2nd Division... Continue Reading →
Geddes of Galt Survives the Sinking of the Anglia: “…a mined hospital ship beats everything else.”
A soldiers' expectation when they were taken out of the line due to wounds or illness was to begin a journey that led to treatment. The BEF and CEF had a proscribed process that was designed to evaluate the condition of a soldier and make a determination as to the type and method of treatment,... Continue Reading →
“The day is beautiful and everything is quiet as night.”
Introduction One of the challenges of understanding the service and experiences of the men of the 18th Battalion is that experience, removed in time and distance, is sanitized by the War Diaries. The 18th Battalion war diaries are often bereft of detail and often only deal with the bare minimum of the military events that... Continue Reading →
“…a fine job for the beginner.”: Corporal Chatten Writes
Corporal Clement William Chatten was all of 21-years-old when he enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force at Galt, Ontario on October 27, 1914. Though he enlisted as a private soldier, on May 2, 1915, barely a month after his unit, the 18th Battalion, arrived overseas, he was promoted corporal. This letter was written in early... Continue Reading →
“WAS GOING TO TELL ABOUT THE TRENCHES”
Private Reginald Sachs was an 18th Battalion "Original" having enlisted in Galt, Ontario on October 23, 1914. This letter was printed October 29, 1915 and would describe the end of September or early October 1915 when the Battalion first entered the trenches in active duty after its training as part of the 2nd Canadian Contigent... Continue Reading →
History of the 18th Battalion CEF, "The Fighting Eighteenth" 