Gordon Merritt Shrum was born in Smithville, Ontario, in 1894 and enlisted in April 1916 while a student at the University of Toronto. He served overseas and returned to Canada to teach in 1919. The collection consists of two letters written to Helen Nickle of Smithville. Other correspondents to Davis include the Bill Grassie Collection, the Daniel Austin Lane Collection, the Fred Nickle Collection, and the William Grassie Collection.
Gerald Smedley Andrews was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in December 1903. He taught school from 1926 to 1930, and then joined the British Columbia Forest Service where he worked as a surveyor until World War Two. During the war he rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and he was responsible for charting the Normandy beaches in preparation for the D-Day landings. At the end of the war he returned to Canada, and served as the Surveyor General of the Province of British Columbia. Andrews was a Member of the Order of the British Empire, and was awarded the Order of British Columbia and was made a member of the Order of Canada. Andrews died in December 2005 at the age of 102. The collection currently conists of more than two hundred eighty letters, as well as telegrams and miscellaneous items.
Private Victor McDonald was born in Annandale, Prince Edward Island on October 20, 1895 to parents George and Isabel McDonald.
McDonald enlisted with the 105th Battalion in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island on December 15, 1915, having previously belonged to the 82nd “Abegweit Light Infantry” Regiment of PEI. He sailed from Halifax, Nova Scotia in July 1916 aboard the HMT Empress of Britain and served with the 26th Battalion in France. Diagnosed with Tuberculosis in late 1918, McDonald was invalided back to Canada for treatment in May of 1919. He was sent for treatment for TB at the Kentville, Nova Scotia Sanatorium, where he died on January 6, 1920.
External links:
Private Victor McDonald’s service record (Serv/Reg# 712376) can be viewed/downloaded in pdf format through Library and Archives Canada.
Burial information is available at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
A memorial page honouring McDonald can be visited online at the Canadian Virtual War Memorial.
[Editor’s note: Throughout his service record the surname is spelled both as McDonald and MacDonald. Victor’s signatures in the files uses both forms. In places the McDonald has been corrected to MacDonald. His first name Joseph is not used in his service record but does appear elsewhere.]
Walter Liddiard was born in Montreal, Quebec in May, 1894. He moved to Victoria, British Columbia and was enlisted in 1917. Liddiard served overseas as a Gunner with the No. 5 Coy, Royal Canadian Garrison Artillery. The collection currently consists of nearly forty letters, as well as several letters and postcards.
William Forder Smith was born in Bassingstoke, England, in August 1874. Prior to the war he immigrated to Armstrong, British Columbia, where he was a rancher. Smith enlisted at Vernon, British Columbia, in October 1917 and served with the 29th Battalion in France. He was killed in action on September 6, 1918. The collection consists of two personal letters, official reports and letters concerning his death, and three photographs.
Captain Alfred Herbert “Bert” John Andrews, MC, was born in Troy, District of Assiniboia, North-West Territories (present day Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan), in October 1880. Prior to his enlistment he was living in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where he worked as a barrister.
Andrews enlisted with the 34th Fort Gary Horse at Valcartier, Québec, on September 24, 1914. As part of the First Canadian Contingent, Andrews sailed for England on board the SS Lapland on October 4, 1914. He shipped to France in May 1915, where he joined the 10th Battalion. His first experience in the trenches was near Festubert, France, followed by a brief time at Hill 63, then nine months spent at Messines.
Commissioned as an officer on January 13, 1917, Andrews began serving as Lewis Gun officer in February. The following April, at Vimy, he was in charge of overseeing Lewis Gun positioning, equipment and training. He served as Adjutant beginning on October 28, 1917. While fighting in France with the 10th Battalion, Andrews was twice awarded the Military Cross, first on October 18, 1917, and again (as bar to Military Cross) on February 1, 1919. On the second occasion the London Gazette included the following description with the announcement of his award:
“For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty at Villers-les-Cagnicourt and the Canal du Nord, 2nd to 4th September, 1918. He went into the attack in command of the battalion reserve company, and later was sent forward to command one of the leading companies. He handled his command splendidly, and pushed forward to the battalion final objective at the Buissy Switch, and redistributed his men with exceptional skill. The following day he led his company forward, and, under very heavy fire, established a line along the railroad west of the Canal du Nord, from which they could command all the intervening ground. He did excellent service.”
While serving overseas Andrews married Alice “Allie” Dixon on September 16, 1918. Alice accompanied him on his return to Canada, sailing together from Liverpool on April 23, 1919, abord the SS Metagama. Andrews was demobilized the following month, in May of 1919.
Content notes:
Andrews kept diaries throughout WWI, covering August 1914 to December 1918. Around 1923 or so he used these diaries to create a complete typewritten history of his time in service, beginning with his enlistment and ending with 10th Battalion’s month-long post-Armistice march across Belgium to the Rhine Bridgehead position inside occupied Germany.
The diaries are rich in descriptive and explanatory detail, covering time spent in both non-commissioned and commissioned officer ranks. Significant places/events covered are: 1st Contingent at Valcartier, SS Lapland, Salisbury Plain Camp, Festubert, Hill 63, Messines, Ypres, Blendecques O.T.S., Vimy, Hill 70, Buissy Switch, Passchendaele, Battle of Amiens, and post-Armistice Belgium and Germany.
External links:
Cpt. Andrews’s service record (Serv/Reg# 14502 and 14506) can be viewed/downloaded in pdf format through Library and Archives Canada.
The first awarding of the Military Cross to Andrews was published in The London Gazette on October 18, 1917 (#30340, p. 10712); his Bar to Military Cross was published February 1, 1919 (#31158, p. 1631).
[Editor’s note: Collection reviewed/updated April, 2023. Jpg files of Andrews’ original typewritten document have been added, as well as one additional photo. Diary transcriptions and content descriptions reviewed and amended. Collection Description updated and expanded.]
Robert Davis was born in London, England, in 1896 and enlisted with the Canadian Expeditionary Force in London in September 1915. Davis served in France and he was killed April 9, 1917, in the assault on Vimy Ridge. The collection consists of two letters and one photograph.
Arthur Donovan Corker, MM, was born in February 1894 in Victoria, British Columbia. Corker enlisted in September 1914 and was part of the First Canadian Contingent. He was serving with the 7th Battalion when he was taken prisoner during the Second Battle of Ypres on April 24, 1915. As a prisoner, Corker attempted to escape six times, was recaptured, and finally succeeded in his seventh attempt in 1918. The collection consists of one letter written shortly after he made his escape to Holland. As well, Corker did an interview in 1983 describing his escape, which is part of the University of Victoria archives. To listen to Corker, click here.
Henry Rumsey was born in Montreal in February 1897. He enlisted at Montreal in March 1916 and served overseas in France. The collection consists of one photograph of him in 1916 and one poem he wrote in France in 1917.
Private Thomas James Aston was born in Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S.A., on February 10, 1889, to parents William and Jane Aston.
Aston enlisted with the 74th Battalion in Toronto, Ontario, on July 19, 1915, and proceeded overseas from Halifax, Nova Scotia aboard the SS Empress of Britain, arriving in Liverpool, England, on April 9, 1916. After being sent to France, Aston was transferred to the 2nd Canadian Mounted Rifles, with whom he served until he returned to Canada aboard the HMS Baltic in March 1919, and was demobilized later that month in Toronto, Ontario.
External Links:
Pte. Thomas James Aston's service record (#135963) can be viewed/downloaded in pdf format through Library and Archives Canada.
Walter Fick was born on the Isle of Man in April 1884. Sometime prior to the war he immigrated to Canada and worked in Toronto, Ontario, as a conductor on the Toronto Street Railway. Fick enlisted in Toronto on May 1, 1916. He served with the 21st Battalion (Eastern Ontario Regiment). Fick died in hospital in England in 1918. The collection consists of one letter to his wife Mona, several Red Cross letters, two telegrams, and three photographs.
Arthur John Cook was born in Chelmsford, England, in 1892 and immigrated to Canada prior to the war. Cook enlisted in Edmonton, Alberta, in November 1914. He served overseas until the end of the war. The collection currently consists of his 1918 diary and one photograph.
Flying Officer Jack Morris Styles was born in Midland, Ontario, on June 7, 1924, to parents Reuel Clarence and Jessie (née Morris) Styles. Prior to the war he worked as a bank clerk with the Royal Bank in Arnprior, Ontario.
Styles joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1943, training as a navigator before heading overseas to England in April of 1944. He served with the R.C.A.F. 426 “Thunderbird” Squadron. He was killed on February 3, 1945, along with his crew when their Halifax bomber crashed while returning from a mission over Germany. Styles was buried in the Brookwood Military Cemetery, Brookwood, England.
External links:
Flying Officer Jack Morris Styles’ service record (Serv/Reg# J42042) is not available at this time.
Burial information is available at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
A memorial page honouring Styles can be visited online at the Canadian Virtual War Memorial.
[Editor’s note: Collection reviewed/updated August 2022. Letter transcription errors have been corrected and layout/formatting updated as needed. Additional biographical information has been added to the Collection Description.]
Victor Arthur Green, DCM, was born in Kent, England, in January 1895. Green immigrated to Canada prior to the war and enlisted in Victoria, British Columbia, in November 1914 with the 88th Fusiliers. He was wounded three times, including at Vimy Ridge, and was awarded the DCM. The collection currently consists of sections of his pay book, telegrams, a newspaper clipping, several photographs, and an undated memoir of his service experiences.
Herbert "Bert" Hill White was born July 30, 1880, in Grey County, Ontario. Sometime after his father's death in 1895 Bert moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, where his brother and mother then resided. He returned to Canada in 1916 and enlisted in October 1916 as part of the Canadian Railway Battalion. White served overseas as a member of the Canadian Railway Battalion until his return to Canada in 1919. This collection consists of his diary from 1916 to 1919, and one photograph. He died in Ottawa in 1943.
Arthur Bryan Morlidge was from Lloydminster, Saskatchewan. He served with the 419 Squadron as a Flying Officer until he was shot down and killed in October, 1942. He is buried in the Netherlands. The collection currently consist of personal correspondence, official correspondence concerning his death, and some photographs.
External links:
Flying Officer Arthur Bryan Morlidge’s service record (Serv/Reg# J9762) can be viewed/downloaded in pdf format through Library and Archives Canada.
Burial information is available at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
A memorial page honouring Morlidge can be visited online at the Canadian Virtual War Memorial.
South African (Boer) War Collection
David Morrison Stewart was born in Manitoba in 1881, the youngest of eight children. In 1900 Stewart joined The Lord Strathcona Horse in Winnipeg with whom he served in South Africa. Stewart returned to Manitoba and went to war again in 1915 with the 107th Battalion where he saw service in France. David Stewart Morrison died in 1929. The collection consists of his diary entries from April 1900 to October 1900.
Robert Hainsworth was born in England, in June 1885. Prior to the war he immigrated to western Canada, where he enlisted in Red Deer, Alberta, in January 1915. The collection consists on one letter written by Hainsworth in 1916, and one photograph.
Click link here to go to the WWI collection of Steel, George and Terrence.
Andrew John "Jack" Napier was born in Scotland in 1884. He later immigrated to Canada and enlisted in Winnipeg on September 1, 1915. He was discharged in 1919. The collection consists of one letter, his discharge certificate, and several photographs.
Arthur Calvin Smith was born in Dunnville, Ontario, in April 1897. Smith enlisted in February 1916 in Dunnville, Ontario, with the 114th Battalion, Brock's Rangers. While overseas he was transferred to the 19th Battalion. He was wounded in the Battle of Lens August 16, 1917, and died the same day. The collection currently consists of more than forty letters, photographs, postcards, and other miscellaneous items.
Herbert D'Alton Bolster was born in Lancaster, Ontario, and later moved to Saskatchewan where he worked as a teacher and later as a railway mail clerk. He enlisted in September 1914, served overseas until he was discharged in 1918, and then returned to Moose Jaw in 1919. The collection consists of one letter and one photograph.
Wayne Arnold enlisted in December 1942 in Calgary, Alberta. Arnold arrived in England in October 1943, participated in the D-Day landing in June 1944, and then returned to Canada at the end of the war. The collection consists of a memoir written by Arnold following his return to Canada. Arnold died in October 2004.
David Bracegirdle Jones was born in Wales in 1896 and immigrated to Canada prior to World War I. Jones enlisted with the 6th Bn. 1st Canadian Contingent in September 1914 and served overseas with it until he transferred to the Royal Flying Corp. He served as a Second Lieutenant with the 84th Sqdn. of the R.F.C. until his death in 1918. The collection consists of one letter and one photograph.
Alexander Matheson was born on Prince Edward Island in 1890 and later moved to British Columbia where he worked as a logger. He joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force in January 1918. Matheson served in France and was killed October 10, 1918. The collection consists of seven letters written by Matheson.
