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 →
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 →
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 →
A Rousing Send Off
The First World War energized and enabled Canada to express its loyalty to the Crown and the Empire. News articles, like the one below, show the enthusiasm and support the citizenry of this new country barely 50 years old. The community of Seaforth, Ontario took considerable time and effort to acknowledge the service of the... Continue Reading →
Stuff of Legend: The Wounding of Private Dickson on Christmas Day 1915
Introduction There is no doubt that Sergeant Fred Young was an ardent supporter and chronicler of the 18th Battalion. He was very active in the 18th Battalion Association after the war, serving on its executive and being designated as its “poet laureate”. But, perhaps his enthusiasm for his Battalion allowed him to exercise some “poetic... Continue Reading →
An Enthusiastic Shrapnel Slide: Private Young writes a letter full of irony.
Private Fred Young wrote a letter on February 15, 1916 relating some of his thoughts and experiences as a member of the 18th Battalion, C.E.F. This may well have been the later Sergeant Fred Young who was to become the “poet laureate” for the 18th Battalion after the war. His poetry and efforts as a... Continue Reading →
“We sleep in huts instead of tents…”: A Letter to a Friend.
Percy Harris was an Englishman. Born at Norwich, England on May 1, 1893 he emigrated to Canada some time before his enlistment with the 18th Battalion at Clinton, Ontario on October 23, 1914. He was all of 21 years and 5 months old and he would survive the war with the rank of Sergeant. Perhaps... Continue Reading →
3 Officers. One Action. 3 Results.
Charles Herbert Kerr had family ties in the Brussel, Ontario area and lived in Clinton until he eventually moved to Welland, Ontario. He enlisted with the C.E.F. and after being posted to the 36th Battalion in England was taken on strength with the 18th Battalion on December 14, 1915. It was during a fateful operation... Continue Reading →
Cholera Belts for the 18th Battalion
On page 4 of the Wingham Times a short article relates: “Nearly all medical men in the West Indies advise wearing of thin woolen and not cotton underwear. Many persons wear “cholera belts” of flannel.” This garment was considered important enough that Sir Adam Beck's wife, Lady Beck, contributed enough of these belts to outfit... Continue Reading →
…and no battalion has a more glorious record than our good old 18th.
On April 10, 1919 two news stories about the 18th Battalion were published on page three in the Border Cities Star. One story was about the past, told of a traitor in the 18th who “surrendered” to the Germans in July 1918 while the Battalion was stationed in the Telegraph Hill area in the Arras... Continue Reading →
A Traitor in the Ranks
The war is over. Not long over but the reverberations and attitudes to people considered “others” by Canadian society appears to still be prevalent and on the minds of the general public even at wars end. At least it was important enough to make a page three story in the Border Cities Star published in... Continue Reading →
“Probably Just a Little Used Up.”
An article in the Windsor Star circa 1916 gives topical news about a number of soldiers from the local area. Lance-Corporal (later Sergeant) Leslie Butler if the 18th Battalion is figured prominently in the story and several other soldiers of the 18th are also mention. The Battle of Flers-Courcelette on September 15, 1916 and the... Continue Reading →
They were shelling while I was writing…
IN THE MIDST OF THE CONFLICT Lieut. Wm. McLean Writes of His Experiences in France. The following letter was received recently from Lieut. Wm. McLean by his father, Mr David McLean. Lieut. McLean went overseas with the 130th Battalion and has been in France in the think of the conflict for some time: France,... Continue Reading →
Children Sing Song Last Sung by Father
The transcription of the news article Children Sing Son Last Sung by Father is a wonderfully poignant illustration of the strength of community expressed in the fellowship that the Salvation Army offered the people of Toronto at the turn of the last century. The Earlscourt area of Toronto is centered on the streets of Dufferin... Continue Reading →
FOURTEEN HEROES CAME HOME TO-DAY: A Transcription of a London Free Press Article
The following transcription was sourced from the Twitter feed of London First World War ( @LdnOntWW1 ). Where possible links to the soldiers mentioned in the article have been referenced. The news article appears to be written in late 1916 given the context of the dates outlined in the article and the discharge dates of... Continue Reading →
Canadians Competed: A Fine and Very Warm Day of Sports in Hythe
In the August 31, 1915 edition of the Montreal Gazette on page 13 is a news story. Pushed back inside the paper in the Sports Section is a story. The headlines of the day decry: EXPECT SEASON TO SET BAR TO TEUTON’S SURGE: Military Observers Hope That Equinoctial Period Will Limit Forward Movement or MINES,... Continue Reading →
Soldiers of Windsor: The Windsor Star
Two news articles give some context to the experiences of soldiers from the Windsor area. The 18th Battalion had been in the line as of the latter part of September 1915 and had experience its first Christmas on the Continent. The Battalion had experienced light casualties, in regards to men killed, with 34 men who... Continue Reading →
“Gallant Gentlemen”
“GALLANT GENTLEMEN.” BISHOP’S TRIBUTE TO CANADIANS. In a speech at the annual meeting of the British Columbia and Yukon Aid Society[i] at Church House, Westminster, yesterday, the Bishop of London[ii] [The Right Reverend Arthur Winnington-Ingram] spoke of the great debt of gratitude which the country owed to the men from[iii] Canada, and said that one... Continue Reading →
“Nerves” in War-Time: A contemporary view of Shell Shock, German Propaganda and the cure to all this: Optimism
The understanding of what we would not call PTSD during the First World War was minimal and fraught with a range of mostly inappropriate connotations about a person's mental and moral upbringing. Many of this blog's posts reference shell shock and one may find this article from the Daily Telegraph recorded in the June 5,... Continue Reading →
The Bryant/Drouillard Wedding Mystery Solved
With the help of many great people the background and circumstances of The Bryant/Drouillard Wedding can be brought to bear. It only adds more to the mystery in that the circumstances of the marriage of Private Bryant, reg. no. 320 of the Canadian Expeditionary Force to Miss Elizabeth Drouillard. The initial mystery was created partially... Continue Reading →
History of the 18th Battalion CEF, "The Fighting Eighteenth" 