Percy Scanlan enlisted with the 91st Battalion at Chatham, Ontario on December 6, 1915. He was one of many eager recruits joining the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the second year of the war. Even the news of the Canadian experience at 2nd Ypres and the use of gas by the Germans did not dissuade him … Continue reading His Parents Must Have Known…
18th Battalion
Blog Resources for Vimy Ridge
Though not exhaustive there are resources related to the 18th Battalion and its experience at Vimy Ridge. War Diary of the 18th Battalion: April 1917 War Diary Summary: April 1917 April 1917 Casualties Vimy Ridge: Instructions for the Offensive The Stress of Combat: Captain Lloyd at Vimy Ridge A Letter From a Soldier Who Served … Continue reading Blog Resources for Vimy Ridge
“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 “Probably Just a Little Used Up.”
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 FOURTEEN HEROES CAME HOME TO-DAY: A Transcription of a London Free Press Article
The Spirit Shown By All Ranks Was of the Highest Order
18th Battalion War Diary November 1918 Appendix 9 Narrative of Action for November 8/9 1918 Map Ref. Sheet 45 1/40,000 The night of 8th November 1918 the Battalion was billeted in ELOUGES (T/10) in close support to the 5th [Canadian] Infantry Brigade. On the 9th at dawn the 4th [Canadian] Infantry Brigade were ordered to … Continue reading The Spirit Shown By All Ranks Was of the Highest Order
No Liberties Were Taken: Christmas 1915 for the 18th Battalion
The Christmas of the 1915 was the second Christmas that the Battalion had experienced since it formation in the Fall of 1914. Since that Christmas in London, Ontario the Battalion had moved from Canada to England in April, 1915 where it trained and the embarked to France and thence, to Belgium for its baptism … Continue reading No Liberties Were Taken: Christmas 1915 for the 18th Battalion
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 Report of Operations: St. Eloi
New and Modified Soldiers Pages as of November 27, 2014
These are the soldiers' pages created since November 27, 2014. Please take time to view them and remember them. Of particular interest will be 18th Battalion snipers Crookshanks and Siddle. First, these are the first identified snipers in the Battalion that I have found. There is an interesting resource written by, possibly, the father of … Continue reading New and Modified Soldiers Pages as of November 27, 2014
Serving His Country Twice
There are 2 inscriptions at the Zivy Crater Memorial, Thelus in the Pas de Calais region that bear witness to an interesting story. A soldier, Private George Symonds, 18th Battalion, who died on April 9, 1917 on the first day of the Vimy Battle that Canadian's memorialize every year, was not Private George Symonds at … Continue reading Serving His Country Twice
When One Soldier Leads You to Another: Lee to Stephens
One of the goals of this blog is to list every soldier mentioned in the 18th Battalion C.E.F. War Diary and, at the least, have a specific Soldier's Page with their Attestation Papers, a link to their Service Records (if digitized) and any other pertinent information found via the Internet. At first the focus was … Continue reading When One Soldier Leads You to Another: Lee to Stephens
