Canada Day In Tryon

The Canadian flag flies proudly! (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

July 1, 2020.  Happy Canada Day! On July 1, a Canada Day ceremony to inaugurate a new flagpole and bench at the Tryon Cenotaph at the Tryon People’s Cemetery was attended by several members of the community, including Pieter and myself.  This event was coordinated by the Tryon Women’s Institute, Tryon People’s Cemetery, and Merry Pop-Ins Childcare Centre, with funding for the flagpole and bench provided by Heritage Canada.

Pieter by the Tryon Cenotaph. (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

Three names from WW1 that are listed on the portion of the Tryon Cenotaph shown in the photo above are also listed on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion.  Over the years, their stories have been told in this blog:

• John Lymon WOOD (See WWI Soldier John Lyman Wood’s Connection With Acadia University and Learning About The Two Names On The Vimy Memorial)
• Percy FARROW (FARRAR (See A Trip To Bellacourt Military Cemetery)
• James Graham FARROW (See The Mariner Whose Ship Was Torpedoed In the English Channel)

Dignitaries attending today’s event included:

• The Honourable Wayne Easter, Member of Parliament for Malpeque
• The Honourable Jamie Fox, Minister of Fisheries and Communities and MLA for District 19
• The Honourable Peter Bevan-Baker, Leader of the Official Opposition and MLA for District 17
• Reverend Doctor Karen MacLeod-Wilkie, Minister of South Shore United Church

Peter Bevan-Baker plays ‘O Canada’ as the flag is raised. (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

Tom Albrecht raises the flag on new flagpole.  (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

Of course there were Canada Day cupcakes!  Left to right: Jamie Fox, Fran Albrecht, Helen Green, Jack Sorensen.  (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

Standing by the Tryon Cenotaph, left to right: Wayne Easter, Peter Bevan-Baker, Jamie Fox. (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

Barb Clement was kind enough to send a short video made while ‘O Canada’ was played. See https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vLQOBYtgnnOET7gAdi88C-9Z4HHf3BQr/view?usp=sharing

Thank you to the organizers of this Canada Day event, and to Barb Clement for sharing the video. If you have a story to share about any of the names on the Tryon Cenotaph, please contact Pieter at dariadv@yahoo.ca or comment on the blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

The WW2 Mariner From Kinkora Whose Ship Was Torpedoed In The Caribbean

February 20, 2020. On the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion there are 3 men who lost their lives due to being on ships that were torpedoed.  Two of these stories have already been told….

In WW1, mariner James Graham FARROW (FARRAR) lost his life when the ship he was working on was torpedoed in the English Channel on March 19, 1916.  The steamer, ‘Port Dalhousie, had been ferrying needed supplies from Britain to troops in France, while using the cover of being a fishing vessel.  (See https://bordencarletonresearchproject.wordpress.com/2019/01/20/the-mariner-whose-ship-was-torpedoed-in-the-english-channel/)

In WW2, Everett Samuel FRANCIS had the misfortune of being a passenger on the ferry S.S. Caribou when it was torpedoed off the coast of Newfoundland on Wednesday, October 14, 1942.  He was on his way back to his unit in Gander, and to meet his three week old daughter Greta, after being in Ontario for weapons training. Unfortunately, he was not one of the survivors. (See https://bordencarletonresearchproject.wordpress.com/2018/03/25/the-face-of-everett-samuel-francis/)

James Emmet Hughes. (Photo credit: courtesy “Around Kinkora Area” by G.K. Farmer.  Photo colourization by Pieter Valkenburg.)

Like James Graham FARROW (FARRAR), James Emmet HUGHES was a seaman in the Canadian Merchant Navy, not in the military.  Born in Kinkora on April 7, 1911, he was the son of Emmet Hughes and Mary Ann McKenna.

After joining the Waterman Steamship Agency of Mobile, Alabama, he was a trimmer aboard the Panamanian registered S.S. Ramapo, travelling between North America and England with badly needed supplies.  A trimmer works in the engine room on a coal-fired ship, such as the steamship Ramapo, responsible for loading of coal into the ship and delivering coal to the stoker or fireman. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal_trimmer)

S.S. Ramapo under her original name of Baron Wemyss. (Photo courtesy of http://www.naviearmatori.net)

Hughes made two successful runs to England but then on a routing of London-Bermuda-Philadelphia, it was torpedoed by German U-Boat 108, captained by Klaus SCHOLTZ, 180 miles north of Bermuda. While Canadian Merchant Navy records list the event as having occurred on ‘approximately February 12, 1942’, the date it had arrived in Bermuda, German records of ships torpedoed by U-boats record the date as being February 16, 1942.

According to German records, as transcribed into English on https://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ship/1338.html, the ship had an international crew complement of 40, none of whom survived. “At 15.56 hours on 16 February 1942 the unescorted Ramapo (Master Johan Magnus Ørn Lorentzen) was hit on port side amidships by one G7e torpedo from U-108, broke in two after a boiler explosion and sank 11 minutes later about 180 miles north of Bermuda. The U-boat surfaced and questioned 34 men in lifeboats, but the survivors were never found. The master, 37 crew members and two gunners were lost.”

Map showing location of sinking of Ramapo.  (Map courtesy of http://www.uboat.net)

As you can imagine, in that time period, it was a long time before families learned that something had gone wrong.  On March 31, 1942, six weeks after the incident, The Guardian reported that the Hughes family had received a message from the steamship company, advising that it believed the ship had been sunk and all hands lost.

Source: Page 1 article in the March 31, 1942 edition of The Guardian.

Aboard the S.S. Ramapo on February 16, 1942 were the following crew members, per www.uboat.net:

Nationality	Name	Age	Position
Greek	Artavanis, Marios, Merchant Marine	29	Oiler
British	Bailey, Mills Sandilands, Merchant Marine	44	Third Engineer
British	Birch, John, Merchant Marine	50	Trimmer
Canadian	Boyd, Fred, Merchant Marine	35	Messman
Canadian	Boyer, Clarence, Merchant Marine	41	Fireman/Wiper
Canadian	Brackenbury, Walter, Merchant Marine	22	Fireman/Wiper
Canadian	Courville, Roland, Merchant Marine	18	Trimmer
Chilean	Delano, Miguel, Merchant Marine	31	Second Mate
British	Finch, Thomas, Merchant Marine	20	Messman
Dutch	Glimmerveen, Albertus, Merchant Marine	38	Chief Cook
Canadian	Green, William, Merchant Marine	29	Oiler
Norwegian	Gustavsen, Karl Gustav, Merchant Marine	50	Chief Steward
Swedish	Haggberg, Eric, Merchant Marine	22	Able Seaman
Norwegian	Hansen, Bernhard, Merchant Marine	23	Fireman/Wiper
British	Harris, William John, RN	24	Able Seaman (DEMS gunner)
Norwegian	Helmers, Thorleif Gärtner, Merchant Marine	43	Chief Mate
British	Hendry, Frederick William, Merchant Marine	52	First Engineer
Argentinian	Hernandes, P., Merchant Marine	26	Fireman/Wiper
Canadian	Hughes, James Emmet, Merchant Marine	31	Trimmer
Norwegian	Kjennerud, Jul, Merchant Marine	24	Able Seaman
Canadian	Knickle, Fred, Merchant Marine	39	Able Seaman
Norwegian	Kristensen, Toralf, Merchant Marine	21	Able Seaman
Canadian	Lalonde, Germain, Merchant Marine	20	Able Seaman
French	Lawrence, Felix, Merchant Marine	30	Messman
British	Leary, Vincent, Merchant Marine	35	Second Engineer
Norwegian	Lie, Hans Kristian Jensen, Merchant Marine	20	Able Seamn
Canadian	Lord, Ian McLean, Merchant Marine	18	Radio Operator
Norwegian	Lorentzen, Johan Magnus Ørn, Merchant Marine	35	Master
Canadian	Manoff, Paul, Merchant Marine	23	Ordinary Seaman
American	McAdoo, John Cornelius, Merchant Marine	37	Messman
Canadian	McDonald, Charlie, Merchant Marine	25	Fireman/Wiper
British	Nicholson, William, Merchant Marine	36	Boatswain (Bosun)
Norwegian	Olsen, Andreas, Merchant Marine	50	Chief Engineer
Irish	Reynolds, William, Merchant Marine	28	Fireman/Wiper
British	Sinclair, Leslie, Merchant Marine	20	Ordinary Seaman
Norwegian	Vesterhus, Nils Andreas, Merchant Marine	38	Third Mate
American	Vitalis, Vasilios, Merchant Marine	29	Cook
Canadian	Waddell, Wesley, Merchant Marine	23	Oiler
Canadian	Wilson, Edgar John, Merchant Marine	23	Ordinary Seaman
British	Winder, Harry, Royal Navy	22	Able Seaman (DEMS gunner)

James Emmet Hughes is listed on the Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, Nova Scotia, along with other Canadian mariners whose bodies were never recovered.

Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, Nova Scotia. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)

Research continues on this and other stories.  If you have information or photos to share about James Emmet Hughes, the sinking of the Ramapo, or any of the crew members, please contact Pieter at dariadv@yahoo.ca or comment on the blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

The WW1 Names On The Cenotaph Have Stories Of Their Own

February 8, 2020. Recently, Pieter and a friend went to see the British WW1 movie ‘1917’, which is nominated for several Oscars and has a Canadian connection due to a map used in the film.  (For that story see https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/1917-canadian-contribution-1.5450608)  The story takes place in France on April 6, 1917, and is about two men tasked with delivering a message to another unit to warn of a German ambush.  The men go through several towns and villages in France’s Western Front.  Canadians may remember this period as being the lead up to the Battle of Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917.

Pieter found the movie of great interest for several reasons. It was a depiction of the horrors of war… without being overly gory.  After being through the trenches and tunnels in Vimy Ridge a few years ago, he was intrigued to see the way soldiers sat on either side of a trench while waiting to go up into battle.   But the main reason he liked the movie is that it told the story of two people.

Contrary to what we learn in history books and classes, in the end all history is the cumulative stories of individuals.  A list of names on a cenotaph, such as the one outside the Borden-Carleton Legion, is meaningless without knowing who those people were and what happened to them.  This is what started Pieter on the journey to uncover the stories behind the names on the Cenotaph.

Over the years, the stories of those from WW1 have been told in this blog.  24 are listed on the Cenotaph and half of them died in France…. Patrick Raymond ARSENAULT and John Lymon ‘Ly’ WOOD are listed on the Vimy Memorial as their bodies were never identified.    Also killed in France were Kenneth John Martin BELL, James CAIRNS, James Ambrose CAIRNS, Arthur Leigh COLLETT, Bazil CORMIER, Patrick Phillip DEEGAN (DEIGHAN), Joseph Arthur DESROCHES, Percy Earl FARROW (FARRAR), Ellis Moyse HOOPER, and Charles W. LOWTHER.  We were at the Vimy Memorial and visited each grave.

Five men died in Belgium. Two are listed on the Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres, as their bodies were never identified: Charles Benjamin Murray BUXTON and George Albert CAMPBELL.  We visited Menin Gate and the area where they died.  We also visited the graves of James Lymon CAMERON, Vincent Earl CARR, and Arthur Clinton ROBINSON.

Vincent Carr, who died during the Battle of Passchendaele on October 30, 1918, was initially buried in a trench with 4 others – two Canadian and two British soldiers.  Decades later, when they were reburied in a Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery, all three Canadians were still identifiable.  The British Army’s cardboard identity ‘tags’ had disintegrated, leaving the two British soldiers as unidentified.  Today, DNA testing can be done to help with identity, but decades ago this was impossible.

Two men died in England.  John Goodwill HOWATT was wounded in France, and died in a British hospital.  Bruce Sutherland McKAY had gotten ill during the transport from Canada to England and also died in a British hospital.

Henry Warburton STEWART survived the war, only to fall ill while in Germany as part of the occupation forces.  He’s buried in a German cemetery in Cologne, which we visited.

James Graham FARROW (FARRAR) was not a soldier, but in the Merchant Navy, transporting vital supplies between England and France, when his ship was torpedoed by a U-boat.

Three men died on Canadian soil.  Leigh Hunt CAMERON died of illness, while Harry ROBINSON died from blood poisoning.  William Galen CAMPBELL was poisoned with mustard gas on May 28, 1918, a few months before the end of the war, but was able to return home.  And yes, we’ve visited those graves as well.

We were also able to tell you parallel stories, such as that of Clifford Almon WELLS, who had many of the same experiences as John Lymon Wood, and also died in France. Another story was that of George BRUCKER, of the German Army, who was taken prisoner during the Battle of Vimy Ridge, and survived the war, never forgetting the two ‘tall’ Canadians who didn’t shoot him.  Decades later his son, now in his 80s, is still hoping to thank the families of those two unknown men.

Thanks to Pieter’s curiosity in trying to find out why one Commonwealth War Graves Commission gravestone in a cemetery in Cape Traverse was not recorded on the Cenotaph, we were able to tell you the story of Elmyr KRUGER, a soldier from Saskatchewan who died of illness while guarding German prisoners of war from a POW camp in Amherst.

We’ve told the stories of each man, and shared our visits to the various cemeteries and war memorials.  As photos and letters came in, we shared those experiences as well.

We are still missing photos of several of these soldiers, so the quest to put a face to every name and story is still ongoing.  Who are we missing?  Take a look and see if you can help:

It’s great to watch a movie about fictional characters, but let’s not forget the stories of real life people! There won’t be any Academy Awards given out, but they will be remembered. Research continues to uncover more stories.  If you have a story or photo to share about any of the names mentioned in this posting, please contact Pieter at dariadv@yahoo.ca or comment on the blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

Appeal For Relatives Of These WW1 Casualties!

August 18, 2019.  Over the past few years, Pieter has been diligently researching the 48 names on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion here on Prince Edward Island.  Along the way he’s met many family members of these men, and we’ve visited a number of the graves.  However, in some cases, either no family members have come forward, or the family members themselves have no photos and little information.

In an attempt to achieve the goal of putting a face to each name on the Cenotaph, we’re asking for your help with these WW1 casualties for whom no photo has been found as yet.

Please see the attached PDF which provides information on the person’s name, service number, place of birth, unit served in at the time of death, and date of death.  (See Appeal For Relatives of Soldiers)  As well, the names are summarized below.

Can you help with photos????

Names still without faces from WWI

• James CAIRNS, born in Kinkora
• Leigh Hunt CAMERON, born in Albany
• James Lymon CAMERON, born in Victoria
• William Galen CAMPBELL, born in Wellington
• Bazil CORMIER, born in Tignish
• Joseph Arthur DESROCHES, born in Miscouche
• James Graham FARROW, born in Argyle Shore
• Charles LOWTHER, born in North Carleton
• Arthur Clinton ROBINSON, born in Tryon
• Harry ROBINSON, born in Augustine Cove

If you have information and photos to share on any of these names listed on the Cenotaph, please contact Pieter at dariadv@yahoo.ca or comment on the blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

The Mariner Whose Ship Was Torpedoed In The English Channel

January 20, 2019….Researching the names on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion continually brings some surprises as we unlock the stories behind the names.  It’s well documented that there was a merchant navy in WW2, and there are many stories about the infamous U-boats used by the Nazis during WW2.  But, did you know that there was a merchant navy in WW1?……And did you know that there were German U-boats in WW1?…….

In researching what happened to James Graham FARROW (FARRAR), we learned that he was NOT a soldier, but served as Second Mate in WW1’s Merchant Navy aboard the SS Port Dalhousie, ferrying needed supplies from England to allied soldiers in France.

Farrow was born April 4, 1856 in Argyle Shore, the son of Henry Farrow and Mary Jane Gouldrup.  In 1897, he married Mary Jane Howatt and they had 4 children.  Mary Jane also had a son William from her first husband, John Morrell, and was the sister of Harold Keith Howatt who served in the same regiment as William Galen Campbell. Campbell is also listed on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion.  (See Christmas At The Front During WW1)

A mariner, Farrow received his Captain’s papers by 1903.  He owned a schooner named ‘Eva May’, but sold it in 1906 and moved to a homestead in Saskatchewan.  However, by 1912 the family was back on PEI, where, according to ‘Seafarers of the Atlantic Provinces, 1789-1935’, he was the owner and operator of a schooner registered on PEI, named ‘Howard L’.  (Source: Ancestry.com. Canada, Seafarers of the Atlantic Provinces, 1789-1935)

In a February 19, 1916 letter to his son Welton, who was living in Portland, Maine with his mother and siblings, Farrow explains that that he gave up the schooner and on December 27, 1915 he accepted a position as second mate aboard a steamer, and was currently sailing between France and England.  “I am here in France.  I had charge of a schooner and when I laid her up in Pictou, I got a job in this steamer as second mate. It is a good job with a little more wages than on the schooner.  I got $50 a month on the schooner and $55 a month here.”  (Source: www.islandregister.com/letters/james farrow 1916.html)

Farrow explained that the steamer intended to return to Canada in July, but had decided to stay in Europe.  If he wanted to return to Canada, his way would be paid back after 6 months, but as he was paid promptly each month, he thought he would stay with the steamer.

Unfortunately, by the time that Welton Farrow received that letter, his father was dead.  On March 19, 1916, U-Boat 10 torpedoed the steamer Port Dalhousie, the ship he was on, and it sank in the English Channel.

From the New York Times, page 2, column 6:

“U-BOAT ATTACKS FISHERMEN”

“Sinks two trawlers off Northeast Coast of England. London July 13 – Following the attack by a German submarine on the British port of Seaham Harbor on Tuesday night, a submarine raid on fishing near the English coast was reported by Lloyd’s today.   A German submarine attacked a British fishing fleet off the northeastern coast and sank the trawlers Florence and Dalhousie and several smaller vessels.” (Source: www.islandregister.com/letters/james farrow 1916.html )

Fake news isn’t a new phenomenon!  The story about Port Dalhousie being a fishing boat, as reported in a New York Times article, was a cover the boat used. When it sank, the cargo manifest said it was transporting steel billets.  Farrow and 18 other crew members perished, their bodies lost to the sea.

Farrow’s wife, Mary Jane, stayed in Maine.  In 1930 she moved to Waterville, where she lived until her death on May 15, 1956, when she was buried in the Tryon Peoples’ Cemetery in Tryon.

Service and duty were legacies of Farrow as his sons Ralph, Harold, and Welton also served in WW1.  Ralph and Harold enlisted in the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Force in July 1917.  Welton served in the US Army.  Ralph’s son joined the US Air Force and served in WW2, but after the war he met an untimely death when his plane crashed in Florida during an exercise.  He’s buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

With no body to bury, James Farrow is remembered on the memorial stone at the Tryon People’s Cemetery in Tryon and on the Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax.

Photo: Memorial stone at Tryon Peoples Cemetery in Tryon, PEI. Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg

Photos: Halifax Memorial at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. Photo credits: Pieter Valkenburg

Besides Farrow, two additional names from this Cenotaph Research Project are listed on the Halifax Memorial:

• Elmer Allistair MABEY (See: The WWII Sailor Who Died In An Accidental Explosion and Fire)
• James Emmett HUGHES, whose ship was torpedoed in the Caribbean during WW2.  Like Farrow, he was not in the military, but in the merchant navy.

Although we know a lot about James Farrow’s life, we do NOT have a photo of him.  If anyone has photos or information to share, please let us know. You can send an email to dariadv@yahoo.ca or comment on this blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

Desecration of Halifax Memorial

October 10, 2018.  In the quest to honour the names of those listed on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Memorial, the memorial trail journey has taken us to Europe and several cemeteries and memorials here in Canada.  One of those journeys was to the Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax, which honours those who lost their lives at sea in wartime and have no known grave.

Halifax Memorial at Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)

Inscription on Halifax Memorial in Point Pleasant Park in Halifax. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)

Three names from the Cenotaph Research Project are listed on this monument:

• Elmer Allistair MABEY, whose story was told in an earlier posting. (See: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2018/06/27/the-wwii-sailor-who-died-in-an-accidental-explosion-and-fire/)
• James Graham FARROW, whose ship was torpedoed by a U-boat in the English Channel during WWI.  Farrow was not in the military, but in the merchant ‘navy’, delivering crucial supplies from England to troops in France.
• James Emmett HUGHES, whose ship was torpedoed in the Caribbean during WWII.  Like Farrow, he was not in the military, but in the merchant ‘navy’.

Three names from one monument from Prince Edward Island….  You can imagine our dismay….and disgust…. to read this morning that the monument was defaced.  (See https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/halifax-war-memorial-defaced-1.4854588)

This was a disrespectful act towards those who served their country in time of war, and who do not even have a grave that families can visit.  This memorial is a substitute for their grave, just as is the Vimy Memorial in France and the Menin Gate Memorial in Belgium, among many others.

It is especially sad that this desecration has happened as we near the 100^th anniversary of the end of WWI.

UPCOMING PRESENTATION: Pieter will speak about the Cenotaph Research Project at South Shore United Church in Tryon, 7 pm on Friday, November 2, 2018.  This event is co-hosted by South Shore United Church and Tryon & Area Historical Society.  Note: this venue is equipped with a hearing loop for the benefit of those with hearing loss.  You are invited to bring photos and information on the men listed on the Cenotaph, or on any Canadian soldier buried in The Netherlands.  Email memorialtrail@gmail.com for more information.

© Daria Valkenburg

….Want to follow our research?….

If you are reading this posting, but aren’t following our research, you are welcome to do so.  Our blog address: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/

4 countries, 6 weeks, 7,000 km – an unforgettable war memorial journey in Europe…. Daria’s book ‘No Soldier Buried Overseas Should Ever Be Forgotten‘ is available in print and e-book formats.  Net proceeds of book sales help support research costs and the cost of maintaining this blog. For more information see https://nosoldierforgotten.com/ 

You are also invited to subscribe to our YouTube Channel: On The War Memorial Trail With Pieter Valkenburg: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ591TyjSheOR-Cb_Gs_5Kw. 

Never miss a posting!  Subscribe below to have each new story from the war memorial trail delivered to your inbox.

Upcoming Presentation in Crapaud

July 9, 2018.  Everyone is invited to attend the upcoming presentation about the Cenotaph Research Project at St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church in Crapaud on Thursday, July 12, 2018.  Below, please see poster and a list of photos of soldiers we are still looking for.  Can you help???

Names still without faces from WWI

• James CAIRNS, born in Kinkora
• Leigh Hunt CAMERON, born in Albany
• James Lymon CAMERON, born in Victoria
• William Galen CAMPBELL, born in Wellington
• Bazil CORMIER, born in Tignish
• Joseph Arthur DESROCHES, born in Miscouche
• James Graham FARROW, born in Argyle Shore
• Charles LOWTHER, born in North Carleton
• Arthur Clinton ROBINSON, born in Tryon
• Harry ROBINSON, born in Augustine Cove

Names still without faces from WWII

• Leonard Stephen AVERY, born in Bedeque
• John Daniel FERGUSON, born in Borden
• Ernest Ramey GALLANT, born in Borden
• Singleton Charles JEFFERY, born in Bayfield, New Brunswick

The Cenotaph also lists an F. ARSENAULT.  No information at all has been found for someone of this name from this area.

As a separate project, Pieter is helping researchers in The Netherlands who are looking for photos and information on Canadian soldiers buried in The Netherlands.  If you have a relative with a grave in The Netherlands and would like to participate, you can email your photos and info to Pieter at memorialtrail@gmail.com and he will forward the information on your behalf.  Or you can drop off your photos on Thursday and after being scanned they will be returned to you.

© Daria Valkenburg

…Want to follow our research?….

If you are reading this posting, but aren’t following our research, you are welcome to do so.  Our blog address: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/

4 countries, 6 weeks, 7,000 km – an unforgettable war memorial journey in Europe…. Daria’s book ‘No Soldier Buried Overseas Should Ever Be Forgotten‘ is available in print and e-book formats.  Net proceeds of book sales help support research costs and the cost of maintaining this blog. For more information see https://nosoldierforgotten.com/ 

You are also invited to subscribe to our YouTube Channel: On The War Memorial Trail With Pieter Valkenburg: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJ591TyjSheOR-Cb_Gs_5Kw. 

Never miss a posting!  Subscribe below to have each new story from the war memorial trail delivered to your inbox.

Another Photo For WWII Soldier George Preston Smith

March 21, 2018.  In two previous blog entries the story of George Preston Smith was shared. SMITH, of Kinkora, was with the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment, and lost his life in a freak accident in Belgium during WWII when his gun went off while he was trying to pull it out from under a pile of coats stashed in the back of a military truck.  (See On the War Memorial Trail ….. At The Canadian War Cemetery in Groesbeek and On the War Memorial Trail ….. PEI Soldiers Buried In The Canadian War Cemetery in Groesbeek)

After reading an article mentioning Smith, “On the War Memorial Trail ….. PEI Soldiers Buried In The Canadian War Cemetery in Groesbeek”, published in the County Line Courier, one reader, who asked to remain anonymous, shared a photo of George Preston Smith with Alice van Bekkum of the Faces To Graves Foundation in The Netherlands and also with Pieter as part of the Cenotaph Research Project.

George Preston Smith (Photo courtesy of Smith’s family)

This generous gesture is giving this soldier an additional layer to his personality, as can be seen from this undated photo.  If you have a story about George Preston Smith or more photos, please let us know.

Smith is buried at Canadian War Cemetery in Groesbeek.  If you have photos or information on any other WWII soldiers who are buried in The Netherlands, please help the researchers at the Faces to Graves project by sharing that information. Photos and stories can be sent either through their website at http://facestograves.nl/index.html or by email to info@facestograves.nl.  Alternatively, you can contact us at memorialtrail@gmail.com and we’ll forward on your behalf.

In looking at missing faces for the Borden-Carleton Cenotaph Research Project, which this blog documents, we are still seeking photos for the following:

Names still without faces from WWI

• James CAIRNS, born in Kinkora
• Leigh Hunt CAMERON, born in Albany
• James Lymon CAMERON, born in Victoria
• William Galen CAMPBELL, born in Wellington
• Bazil CORMIER, born in Tignish
• Joseph Arthur DESROCHES, born in Miscouche
• James Graham FARROW, birthplace unknown
• Charles LOWTHER, born in North Carleton
• Arthur Clinton ROBINSON, born in Tryon
• Harry ROBINSON, born in Augustine Cove

 Names still without faces from WWII

• Leonard Stephen AVERY, born in Bedeque
• John Daniel FERGUSON, born in Borden
• Singleton Charles JEFFREY, born in Bayfield, New Brunswick

Please check your old photo albums and see if you might not have one of these men in them!  Our goal is to find a photo for them all!  Please share your comments and stories by emailing us at memorialtrail@gmail.com or by commenting on this blog.

UPDATE:  This project was completed in October 2019!

UPCOMING PRESENTATION: Pieter has been invited to speak about the Cenotaph Research Project at Central Trinity United Church in Breadalbane at 7 pm on Sunday, March 25, 2018.  Photos and information about soldiers welcome.  Members of the Tryon & Area Historical Association will be present to accept donations to the “Muttart Memorial Fund”.

© Daria Valkenburg

….Want to follow our research?….

If you are reading this posting, but aren’t following our research, you are welcome to do so.  Our blog address: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/

4 countries, 6 weeks, 7,000 km – an unforgettable war memorial journey in Europe…. Daria’s book ‘No Soldier Buried Overseas Should Ever Be Forgotten‘ is available in print and e-book formats.  Net proceeds of book sales help support research costs and the cost of maintaining this blog. For more information see https://nosoldierforgotten.com/ 

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The WWI Names On The Cenotaph

July 28, 2017.  With a plan to have a book and photo memorial ready for the 100^th anniversary of the end of WWI, Pieter wanted to publicize the names of the WW1 war dead.  While we had quite a bit of luck with the names from WWII on the Cenotaph, we weren’t so lucky with the WW1 names.

In some cases, family couldn’t be found.  Sometimes we found family only to be told they either never heard of the person.  Most of the time, the family was aware of the person, but no photo survived, let alone other documents such as letters or postcards.

So here is what we know so far….

• Patrick Raymond ARSENAULT, born October 14, 1896 in Bedeque to Joseph Arsenault and Isabella, nee Richard. No photo.
• Kenneth John Martin BELL, born March 28, 1896 in Cape Traverse to William Bell and Lucy, nee Rogerson. No photo.
• Charles Benjamin BUXTON, born December 8, 1893 in Cape Traverse to George Edward Buxton and Mary Jane (May), nee Webster. No photo.
• James Ambrose CAIRNS, born March 16, 1895 in Emerald to Terrence Cairns and Elisabeth, nee Hughes. No photo.
• James CAIRNS, born February 22, 1897 in Kinkora to Thomas Cairns and Mary Jane, nee McDonald. No photo.
• James Lymon CAMERON, born December 30, 1892 in Victoria to Edward H. Cameron and Susan, nee Harrington. No photo.
• Leigh Hunt CAMERON, born May 6, 1898 in Albany to Alexander Walter Cameron and Phoebe Ann, nee Murray. No photo.
• George Albert CAMPBELL, born July 8, 1895 in Wellington to John George Campbell and Grace Emma, nee Barlow.

Photo: George Albert Campbell.  (Photo courtesy of Gerald Tingley collection)

• William Galen CAMPBELL, born June 16, 1897 in Wellington to John George Campbell and Grace Emma, nee Barlow. He married Ida May McNally in 1919.  No photo.
• Vincent CARR, born May 3, 1894 in North Tryon to Robert Carr and Catherine. He married Bessie Carr of Summerside.

Photo: Vincent Carr in 1915, in the uniform of the 55^th Battalion.  (Photo courtesy of Delbert Carr collection)

• Arthur Leigh COLLETT, born December 8, 1888 in Victoria to Ella May Simmons, and was adopted by William Henry Collett and Alice M., nee Moore.Photo: Arthur Leigh Collett.  (Photo courtesy of Paul and Heather Moore collection)
• Bazil CORMIER, born January 8, 1897 in Tignish to Joseph Cormier and Marie, nee Arsenault. No photo.
• Patrick Philip DEEGAN, born November 25, 1894 in Cape Traverse to Alexander Deegan and Margaret Ann, nee Tierney. No photo.
• Joseph Arthur DESROCHES, born August 8, 1891 in Miscouche to Zephirim Desroches and Priscilla, nee Gaudet. He married Mary Ann Wedge in 1910 and had 3 children: Elizabeth Eileen, Joseph Alfred, Lucy Priscilla, and Charles Arthur. No photo.
• James Graham FARROW, born April 4, 1856 to Henry Farrow and Jan Gouldrup, birthplace unknown. No photo.
• Percy Earl FARROW (FARRAR), born July 30, 1895 in North Tryon to William Farrar and Margaret Jane, nee McKinnon.
• Photo: Percy Farrar.  (Photo courtesy of South Shore United Church collection)
• Ellis Moyse HOOPER, born October 20, 1895 in Central Bedeque to Charles Frederick Allison Hooper and Bessie Marie, nee Moyse.

Photo: Ellis Moyse Hooper.  (Photo courtesy of Lana Churchill collection)

• John Goodwill HOWATT, born May 8, 1894 in Cape Traverse to Edward George Howatt and Emma May, nee Wood. No photo.
• Charles W. LOWTHER, born September 27, 1896 in North Carleton to Henry George Lowther and Bessie Cottrell, nee Wright. No photo.
• Bruce Sutherland MCKAY, born April 15, 1897 in Albany to David McKay and Elmira (Almira), nee Harvey. No photo.
• Arthur Clinton ROBINSON, born July 20, 1896 in Tryon to Albert James Robinson and Flora P., nee Scruton. His step-mother was Mary Mooney. No photo.
• Harry ROBINSON, born July 9, 1881 in Augustine Cove to Thomas Robinson and Sarah, nee Campbell. He married Clara J. Wadman in 1905 and had a daughter Merilla. No photo.
• Henry Warburton STEWART, born April 15, 1884 in Strathgartney to Robert Bruce Stewart and Ann, nee Warburton. No photo.
• John Lymon WOOD, born July 8, 1897 in North Tryon to George William Wood and Martha, nee Heatly.

Photo: John Lyman Wood shortly after enlistment in October 1915. (Photo courtesy of Gene Rogerson collection)

We hope you enjoy this third article that ran in July 2017, “Are You Related To These WWI Soldiers?” in the County Line Courier.    CLC July 5 2017 p4 Are you related to WW1 soldiers

If you have photos or documents you’d like to share, please email them to dariadv@yahoo.ca.  Comments or stories?  You can share them by email or by commenting on this blog.

© Daria Valkenburg