The Fate of a Cornish Miner

It is like a mist, history is. The comings and goings of the myriad of individuals who populate our world is significant to them and their kin. But, as time goes by, as family members die, and when a family’s future is not guaranteed by the issue of progeny, that person’s history dies out very... Continue Reading →

The Bricklayer from London Ontario

Each soldier in the Canadian Expeditionary Force had their own unique experience. When one watches a battalion marching during a parade there is a perception of one-mindedness and that the military ethos involves the sublimation of the individual and their unique personality and experiences. But, no matter how hard an army tries to forge individuals... Continue Reading →

Private Sherwood’s Loss

This is the first of a series of blog posts investigating the service and experiences of 18th Battalion soldiers from the Maritmes. As the 18th Battalion was a Western Ontario battalion it generally received replacements from battalions raised in the same geographic region. The author is presently visiting such graves of the men he has... Continue Reading →

He is Still Living

Private John Dobson (Military Medal ), reg. no. 651436. WARNING: Some details in this post may be disturbing to readers. In a news clipping titled Letters from the Soldiers in the Paisely Advocate dated October 16, 1918, Private Edgar Joseph McAfee writes in it, “Let me know in your next letter if Jack Dobson is... Continue Reading →

“…because life in the trenches was less irksome and monotonous and no more beastly than in places like Bouvigny Huts”

Bouvigny Huts. Bouvigny Huts. Those two words may have spelled mixed feelings with the Battalion. This would be the first time they ware billeted there but other battalions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force reported the conditions for this facility in the rear that “…life in the trenches was less irksome and monotonous and no more... Continue Reading →

Two Men. Two Scouts. One Raid.

On the night of July 26/27 men of the 18th Battalion carried out a “minor trench raid”. The weather was “Fine but dull”[i] on that day. In that raid were two men, originals with the Battalion, who both have quite different stories. Private Forrester Private Alfred Forrester, reg. no. 53648[ii] war service started out rather... Continue Reading →

Not “Killed in Action”

In the early 1970s the last members of the 18th Battalion Association, purportedly the first post-Great War battalion association formed in Canada, was winding down. The number of members had declined due to age and many of these men, now in their 80s, wanted to put together a series of memories to share amongst themselves.... Continue Reading →

Review of Presentation: Before Shell Shock: Failed Minds & Failing Men in the 19th Century British Military

Speaker: Professor Amy Smith-Milne Venue: Guelph Civic Museum This talk by Amy Smith-Milne was an excellent pre-cursor to helping someone understand the perspectives towards the men who suffered from shell shock during World War 1. The work of doctors during the Victorian era would influence the treatment of mental illness during this war. Using the... Continue Reading →

Fritz mush have got his eyes on us…

The letter below is a wonderful example of the process Canadian Expeditionary Force soldiers experienced during the Great War when they were transferred from their training bases in England to active duty with a combat unit on the Continent. Private Frank Allan Westlake had enlisted with the 161st Huron Battalion on January 10, 1916 and... Continue Reading →

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