WWI
These collections contains any material relating to Canada from 1914 to 1918 from either the home front or the battlefront. External links in collection descriptions are either to online attestation papers at Library and Archives Canada or casualty and burial information at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Paul, Reginald John
Reginald John Paul was born on December 14, 1895 in Burin, Newfoundland. He enlisted on December 21, 1914 and served with the Royal Newfoundland Regiment. Paul served both at Gallipoli and on the Somme and was killed on the first day of the Somme, July 1, 1916. The collection consists of two letters from the chaplain to his family, and one photograph. Also available online is his complete service file.
Pearson, Vaughan
Vaughan Whitier Pearson was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1898 and was a student at The University of Toronto when he enlisted in April, 1916. He served overseas in France until the end of the war. Vaughan Pearson was the third of three sons to serve overseas, following his brothers Marmaduke and Lester, a future Prime Minister of Canada. The collection consists of six letters from Vaughan, a post card, a Christmas card, a newspaper clipping, and one photograph.
Perry, Cullen Hay
Cullen Hay Perry was born in Whitby, Ontario in 1898 and enlisted in the Queen's Own Rifles of Canada on August 12, 1914. Perry went to Europe with the First Canadian Contingent where he was wounded in the Battle of St. Julien, wounded again in 1916, and wounded a third time at the Battle of Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917.
After recovering from his wound, Perry joined the Royal Flying Corps, and his letters represent his training time in England, then on to France, and finally to Alexandria, Egypt where he was stationed. On February 3, 1918 Perry was killed in a plane crash in Alexandria, and was buried in the Chatley Cemetery in Alexandria.
The biographical information for Perry has been extracted from Chronicles of a County--Whitby Past and Present (1999) by Brian Winter, Town of Whitby Archivist. This collection consists of seven letters written by Cullen Perry home to his mother in Whitby, Ontario.
Playfoot, Albert
Albert Playfoot was born in Kent, England in June, 1894. He emigrated to Canada prior to the war and enlisted with the 70th Battalion in October, 1915 and served overseas in France with the 58th Battalion until his demobilization in 1919. The collection currently consists of two photographs and his discharge certificate.
Polson, Archibald John
Archibald (Archie) Polson was born in Gimli, Manitoba. Polson enlisted at Gimli, Manitoba in February, 1916, and was later transferred overseas with the 2nd Divisional Machine Gun Corps. Polson served in France, including the battle of Vimy Ridge. At Vimy he was wounded, resulting in the amputation of his arm. While almost fully recovered from his wound he contracted tetanus and died on September 1, 1917, and was buried in England. The online collection currently consists of twenty four letters exchanged between himself and his mother. The complete Polson collection is housed at The University of Manitoba Archives and Special Collections and the materials contained herein are used with their permission.. The Project greatly appreciates the cooperation and assistance of The University of Manitoba in making these letters available.
Poolton, Thomas
Thomas Poolton was born in Birmingham, England in May, 1888. At some time prior to the war Poolton emigrated to Canada and enlisted in Toronto, Ontario in November, 1914. He served overseas with the 20th Battalion and was wounded in 1916 as indicated by the postcards to him. The collection consists of a number of postcards to Poolton, as well as a number of miscellaneous items.
Porter, Edward
Edward Porter was born in Norfolk, England in August, 1889. Prior to the war he emigrated to Toronto, Ontario, where he enlisted in November, 1915. The collection currently consists of his paybook.
Prince Edward Island Collection
The two letters in the collection were originally published in a Charlottetown newspaper in late 1916 and the clippings were part of a scrapbook kept by one of the residents of the city during the war. Few details are known about either the individuals in the letters or the circumstances of publication. The Cudmore letter was from John Richard Cudmore, born on Prince Edward Island in May, 1898. Cudmore enlisted in March, 1916 in Summerside, Prince Edward Island. Herbert H. King enlisted and served with the Newfoundland regiment. Both soldiers appear to have survived the war. If anyone can provide any further information about these letters, please contact The Canadian Letters and Images Project.
Pye, Frank Cyril
Frank Cyril Pye was born in Essex, England in February, 1896 and later moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba. Pye enlisted in Winnipeg in December, 1915 and was serving with the Nova Scotia Regiment at the time of his death on August 11, 1918. The collection consists of twenty four letters to his sister Flo, as well as images, postcards, and miscellaneous items.
Ralph, Henry
Henry Ralph was born in Dover, England in November, 1885 and emigrated to Toronto, Ontario sometime prior to the war. Ralph enlistd in September, 1914 and served overseas with the 48th Highlanders. During the war he was taken prisoner and returned to Canada after the war. The collection consists of an extended letter written in 1918 describing his experiences as a prisoner, as well as one photograph.
Ramsay, Samuel Hugh
Samuel Hugh Ramsay was born in Aylmer, Quebec in June, 1894. Ramsay enlisted in November, 1915 with the Canadian Grenadier Guards Overseas Battalion and served overseas in France and Belgium. The collection consists of two letters, a field card, and one photograph.
Redman, George Henry
George Henry Redman was born in Norfolk, England in September, 1892. He enlisted in Pincher Creek, Alberta in February, 1915. Redman served overseas with the Fort Garry Horse until his death in April, 1918. The collection consists of more than thirty letters from Redman to members of his family, as well as photographs, postcards, and telegrams.
Reid, Daniel Spencer
Daniel Spencer Reid was born in Middle Musquodobit, Nova Scotia in October, 1896. Reid enlisted in October 1915. He served overseas with the 85th Overseas Battalion, the Nova Scotia Highlanders. Reid was killed at Passchendaele, October 30, 1917. The collection consists of more than thirty letters and one postcard.
Reid, Donald Calderwood
Donald Calderwood Reid was born in Middle Musquodobit, Nova Scotia in January, 1895. Reid enlisted in May, 1916 and served overseas with the 85th Overseas Battalion, the Nova Scotia Highlanders. He was killed September 25, 1918.
Reid, Wallace Aubrey
Wallace Aubrey Reid was born in Peterborough, Ontario in 1891 and moved to Vermillion, Alberta with his family in 1911. Reid enlisted in Edmonton, Alberta in September, 1915 and served overseas in France. The collection consists of one letter written to his mother in 1916, which was subsequently reprinted in The Peterborough Review in February, 1917, as well as one photograph.
Richards, Norman Sydney
Norman Sydney Richards was born in Bristol in 1897 and emigrated to Salmon Arm, British Columbia, in 1914. He returned to England to enlist and went to France in 1917, where he was severely wounded and remained in England. recovering until 1919. In 1919 he married a woman who had worked as a V.A.D. in the hospital and together they returned to Salmon Arm in 1919. Richards died in 1986 at the age of 89. The collection consists of miscellaneous documents relating to his life and service.
Richards, Ralph
Ralph Richards was born in Cardiff, Wales in 1889. He emigrated to Canada sometime before the First World War, and enlisted with the Canadian Expeditionary Force in Sydney, Nova Scotia in September, 1915. The collection consists of one photograph and one long memoir, writtten sometime during World War II, which recounts his experience during World War I as a prisoner of war.
Richardson, Charles Douglas
Charles Douglas Richardson was born in Grenfell, Saskatchewan in December 1891 and graduated from the Manitoba Agricultural College in 1915. Richardson enlisted at Regina, Saskatchewan in October 1915 and reached the front in the spring of 1916. While serving with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, he was severely wounded in the Ypres sector in June 1916, returning to the trenches in December. Richardson took part in the assault on Vimy Ridge and died on April 9th or 10th, 1917. The collection consists of more than sixty letters written by Richardson to his family.
Ridgeway, George
George Ridgeway was born in Cheshire, England in April, 1887. He emigrated to Canada around 1912 and moved to Saskatchewan to farm. Ridgeway enlisted in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan in January, 1916 with the 128th Battalion, and served overseas in France and Belgium with the 49th Battalion. Wounded in 1917 he was invalided back to the military hospital in Moose Jaw, and discharged in 1919. After his discharge he returned to England. The collection currently consists of fifteen images.
Ritchie, Charles Frederick
Charles Frederick Ritchie was born in Trois Riviere, Quebec in October, 1888. Ritchie enlisted in Montreal in October, 1914 and served overseas until his return to Canada with the 24th Battalion, Victoria Rifles of Canada, in 1919. Ritchie returned to Canada with the rank of Lt. Col., as well as being awarded the DSO and an MC. The collection consists primarily of photographs, including photos of Canadian participation in a victory parade in London, England.