Father to Luke George Goss Jr. (880610 ) and William Henry Goss (880838).
Excerpt from IODE Books of Remembrance
Private Luke George Goss served four years with the 9th Battalion, Norfolk Rifles
Private Luke George Goss transferred from the 91st to the 186th Battalion, going overseas March 28th, 1917. After training at Bramshott Camp he proceeded to France September 8th,1917, drafted to the 18th Battalion as a stretcher bearer. He served until February 17th, 1918, when returned to England with a severe attack of trench fever and admitted to No.3 General Hospital, Newport, Monmouthshire, after convalescence at Bearwood, Wokingham, Surrey, he served as orderly at the C.C.D., 3rd Canadian Reserve Battalion, Witley, until sent to Canada for discharge December 8th, 1918, arriving at Halifax December 14th.
Private Luke George Goss received his honourable discharge January 13th, 1919, being medically unfit for further military service.
Summary of Service[i] for Private Luke George Goss, reg. no. 189837
| Date | Event | Remarks |
| August 1, 1874 | Born | Born at Brixton, London Borough of Lambeth, Greater London, England to Luke George Goss. |
| September 20, 1895 | Marries | Marries Ada Maria Page. |
| January 10, 1916 | Enlists | Enlists with the 91st Overseas Battalion at St. Thomas, Ontario. He is a gardener by trade and a widower. His next-of-kin is his daughter, Mrs. Ada Steadman of 329 Lacroix Street, Chatham, Ontario. This is the address at which he resides. He has previous military experience with the Norfolk Rifles in England and is a member of the Canadian Militia with the 24th Kent Regiment. At 42-years old he is of above average from a recruit. He stands 5’9” tall and has a chest of 37” with a 3” expansion. He has a fair complexion, blue eyes and auburn hair. He is 145 pounds and was last vaccinated in 1906. |
| February 28, 1916 | Transferred | Transferred from 91st OS Bn. To 186 OS Bn. Note that his regimental cards for these battalions is clean. No indications of behaviour or discipline issues. |
| April 1916 | Separation Allowance | Assigns $20.00 per month to Ida Stedman, the children’s’ guardian. |
| April and May 1916 | Vaccinated and Inoculated | |
| September 13, 1916 | Routine Medical Exam | |
| March 8, 1917 | Medical Board | To my recollection I have not seen a soldier that had a “routine medical exam” and a “Medical Board”. This may indicate that from previous experience with older soldiers (typically 35-years old and up) they could not stand the rigors of trench life and quickly succumbed to illness that was exacerbated by the exposure to cold and damp of the trenches. This soldier seems to have had been checked to make sure he would not be one of these cases. |
| September 27, 1916 | Submits PARTICULARS OF FAMILY OF AN OFFICER OR MAN ENLISTED IN C.E.F. | This form indicates he was transferred from the 91st OS Battalion to the 186th OS Battalion. He affirms he is not married and is a widower. He has children – 5 boys and 6 girls. These are:
Herbert Goss, 2 yrs.; Daisy Goss, 5 yrs.; Luke George Goss (Jr.), 18 yrs.; William Goss, 17 yrs.; Edward Goss, 13 yrs.; Frank Goss, 11 yrs.; Ada Steadman, 22 yrs.; Florence Grew, 20 yrs.; Sophia Goss, 14 yrs.; Violet Goss, 10 yrs.; and Grace Goss, 4 yrs.
His father is living. His mother is deceased.
His next of kin is Ada Steadman and he will be assigning pay to support his children. He has no insurance. |
| March 1917 | Assigns Pay | Assigns pay to the children’s’ guardian, Harry Collins, in the amount of $20.00 a month. This man is the Secretary Treasurer of the Canadian Patriotic Fund Branch of Chatham, Ontario. |
| March 25, 1917 | Embarked | Embarked for England at Halifax, Nova Scotia aboard the S.S. Lapland. |
| April 7, 1917 | Arrives England | Arrives via the S.S. Lapland. |
| April 7, 1917 | Taken On Strength | TOS to the 4th Reserve Battalion. |
| September 5, 1917 | Proceeded Overseas | Proceeded overseas to join the 18th Battalion. |
| September 6, 1917 | Posted | Posted from 4th Reserve Battalion to 18th Battalion. |
| September 6, 1917 | Arrives | Arrives at 2nd Canadian Infantry Depot, Etaples, France. |
| September 17, 1917 | Arrives | Arrives at the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp. |
| November 14, 1917 | Leaves | Leaves for 18th Battalion. |
| November 23, 1917 | Arrives | Arrives with the 18th Battalion. Note that 9-days between leaving the CCRC and the front is unusual. Not sure the reason. Typically, this is a 1 to 3 day trip.
The Battalion is at Villers Au Bois at Villers Camp. The Battalion arrived there by truck on November 17 and trained until it moved toward the line on November 28. Private Goss would have had his first taste of the war on November 29 when the Battalion relieved the 21st Battalion at “Vancouver Road” in the Vimy Sector. |
| February 27, 1918 | Admitted | Admitted No. 6 Canadian Field Ambulance for pyrexia of unknown origin. Typically, a flu.
Private Goss served at the front until this day. On this day the Battalion was moving into the line after training that commenced when it was relieved from the line on February 19. |
| March 4, 1918 | Transferred | Transferred to No. 6 Casualty Clearing Station in preparation for being transported to England. |
| March 5, 1918 | Transferred | Transferred to No. 4 General Hospital, Etaples. PUO slight. |
| March 21, 1918 | Invalided Sick | Invalided sick and transferred to Western Ontario Regimental Depot. Transferred via the A.T. Newhaven to England. |
| March 22, 1918 | Admitted | Admitted 3rd Western General Hospital for myalgia and debility. |
| April 2, 1918 | Transferred | Transferred from 3rd Western General to Canadian Convalescent Hospital, Bearwood for Trench Fever. |
| April 16, 1918 | On Command | On Command with the 2nd Canadian Convalescent Depot, Bramshott. |
| May 31, 1918 | Ceases to be On Command | From 2nd CCD and is at Witley. |
| June 1, 1918 | On Command | On Command with the 3rd Reserve Battalion, Witley. Attached to the Central Ontario Regimental Depot. |
| November 19, 1918 | Illegible | Believe he his released from 3rd Reserve Battalion in preparation for going home. |
| December 1, 1918 | Payments Stopped | Payments to Harry Collins stopped. |
| December 7, 1918 | Stuck Off Strength | SOS to CEF in Canada. Sailed to Canada. TOS with No. 1 District Depot, London, Ontario. |
| January 7, 1919 | Medical Board | Eyesight defective. Noticed after trench fever. Started to read more. Believes aggravated by service. Board determines condition existed before enlistment as there was no assessment of his eyesight so it must have existed before he joined the army partly due to his age, myalgia, and chronic bronchitis. Board not able to agree on cause of eyesight issues. |
| January 13, 1919 | Discharged | Discharged Medically Unfit. Post Discharge Pay Account opened for Private Goss living at 60 King Street, East, Chatham, Ontario. Note that this appears to be the active address for this man as of June 23, 1922. |
| February 1, 1919 | Entitled | Entitled to wear 2 blue chevrons denoting years of service. |
| March 23, 1919 | Marries | Married at Chatham, Ontario to Elizabeth Mary Cook. |
| March 24, 1919 | Emigrates | Emigrates to the United States entering at Detroit, Michigan. |
| April 28, 1930 | Resides | Census this date shows him resident Addison, Michigan. |
| May 10, 1931 | Death | Dies as San Leandro, Alameda County, California at the age of 56. Buried at Plot 58, grave 324 at the Mountain View Cemetery, Oakland, California. |
[i] The Summary of Service for this soldier is meant as just that, a summary of his service. It is not intended to be an exhaustive biographical relation of his life or his war service. Some information may be deliberately suppressed by the author out of sensitivity to the soldier. Readers are encouraged to reference the actual service records available at the Library and Archives Canada in PDF format if they wish to learn more about this soldier. Such additional information (i.e. hyperlinks etc.) are for informational purpose only and no claim to verification or accuracy is made by the author of this summary.
War Diary of the 18th Battalion CEF 