John Goldthorp Hutchinson was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba in January, 1890. Hutchinson enlisted in September, 1914 and was part of the First Contingent to France, where he served with the 8th Battalion. He was wounded in April, 1915 at the second battle of Yprres. Hutchinson was killed on June 14, 1916. The collection currently consists of two letters to the mother of Charlie Evans whom he served with and went missing April 24, 1915.
Thomas Otto Stewart was born in Ottawa, Ontario, in December 1888. He later moved to Fort William, Ontario, where he enlisted in October 1914 with the 68th Battalion. Stewart served overseas with the 68th until he was killed June 6, 1916. The collection currently consists of one letter to his friend Harry Evans whose brother, Charlie, had been missing since April, 1915.
Nelson Zelotist Woodruff was born in Elmvale, Ontario, in October 1894 and enlisted in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, in July 1915 with the 68th Battalion. Woodruff served overseas with the 2nd Tramway Company until he was demobilized and returned to Canada in 1919. The collection currently consists of one letter.
Harold Lawrence Irwin was born in Franklin, Manitoba in March, 1894. He later moved to Vancouver, British Columbia and enlisted in Vancouver in June, 1915. Irwin served overseas in England and France until his death on July 3, 1918 while serving with the 1st Tramway Coy., Canadian Engineers. The collection currently consists of more than one hundred letters, as well as numerous photographs and postcards.
William Markle Pecover was born in Lucknow, Ontario, in October 1894 and enlisted in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with the 184th Battalion in April 1916. Pecover was wounded in 1917 and discharged in the spring of 1918 as medically unfit for further service due to his wound. The collection currently consists of more than one hundred letters from his time in the service.
Frank Honeywell Magee was born in Lowell Mass. in June 1894. Prior to the war Magee worked as a teamster in Kelowna, British Columbia, before enlisting in March 1915 in Vancouver with the 11th Canadian Mounted Rifles. He served overseas in France with the 7th Battalion until his death on January 24, 1917. The collection currently consists of three letters, a postcard, and a photograph.
James Francis Watson was born in June, 1924. He enlisted in November, 1942 in Fort William, Ontario. Watson served with the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders of Canada, R.C.I.C. until his death in France on August 4, 1944. The collection currently consists of sixteen letters, clippings, and several photographs.
External links:
Lance Corporal James Francis Watson’s service record (Serv/Reg# H195561) 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 Watson can be visited online at the Canadian Virtual War Memorial.
William Hubert Corrigan was born in Brandon, Manitoba, in July 1881. Corrigan enlisted in Regina, Saskatchewan, in May 1916 and served overseas with the 217th Battalion and the 209th Battalion, after having served the previous seven years with the 90th Winnipeg Rifles. He was demobilized and returned to Canada at the end of the war. The collection currently consists several photographs and postcards from his time overseas.
Desmond Ivan Crossley was born in 1910. Crossley joined the RCAF in 1940 and served as an instructor in the Commonwealth Air Training Program until his discharge in 1945. The collection currently consists of two letters from former students written to him, as well as numerous photographs.
Joseph Goulding Sproule was born in Toronto, Ontario, in June 1897, the younger brother of Hugh and Noble Sproule. Sproule enlisted in Toronto, Ontario, in October 1915 with the 81st Battalion and served overseas in France with the 3rd Battalion Canadian Machine Gun Corps. He was discharged at the end of the war and returned to Canada in 1919. The collection currently consists of more than twenty five letters, as well as numerous postcards and photographs.
Hugh Charles Sproule was born in Toronto in January 1898, the twin brother of Noble Sproule listed below. Sproule enlisted in September 1914 and sailed as part of the First Contingent in October 1914. He served with the 3rd Battalion until his death sometime between the 22nd and 26th of April 1915. The collection currently consists of nine letters from Hugh, official correspondence, and one postcard.
Robert Andrew Garvie was born in Owen Sound, Ontario in November 1887. Prior to the war the family moved west, and Garvie was recruited at The Pas, Manitoba in October, 1917. He served overseas with the 9th Battalion Canadian Engineeers, was wounded in September, 1918 and returned to Canada in 1919. The collection currently consist of an undated memoir and two photographs.
Harold Sidney Bowler was born in Hazlemere, England, in July 1885. Prior to the war he was living in Vancouver, British Columbia, but attested in Le Treport, France, in May 1915. Bowler served with the Canadian Army Medical Corps in France until he was invalided back to Canada in late 1917 due to illness. The collection currently consists of his paybook, postcards, and a large collection of photographs.
Harold Bruce McLagan was born in Carluke, Ontario, in September 1884. McLagan enlisted in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, in January 1916 with the 128th Battalion. He served overseas with the 9th Canadian Machine Gun Corps until his death on November 4, 1917. The collection currently consists of fourteen letters from McLagan.
Noble Sproule was born in Toronto, Ontario, in January 1895, the twin brother of Hugh Sproule listed above. Sproule enlisted in September 1914 at Valcartier, Québec, and sailed overseas with the First Contingent in October 1914. Sproule served with the 3rd Battalion until he was killed July 9, 1916. The collection currently consists of five letters, two postcards, and several miscellanous items.
Ingvald Olsen was born in Hoyholm, Helgeland, Norway, in March 1889. Prior to the war he immigrated to Canada and became a naturalized citizen. Olsen was drafted in Vancouver, British Columbia in November, 1917, served overseas with the 29th Battalion and was wounded in June 1918. He returned to Canada at the end of the war. The collection currently consists of one letter (in Norwegian with a translation) written to his brother shortly after the Armistice.
John Phillips was born in Vernon, British Columbia, in October 1894, and later moved to Lasqueti Island, British Columbia. Phillips was drafted in November 1917, undertook his medical examination in Nanaimo, British Columbia, in March, 1918, and arrived in England in May 1918. He joined the 7th Battalion in France on October 2, 1918, and was killed 10 days later on October 12, 1918. The collection currrently consists of two photographs.
Thomas Arthur Searight was born in Norwood, Ontario, in February 1894. Searight was a student at the time of his enlistment in January 1916 in Peterborough, Ontario, with the 57th Battalion. He served overseas with the 21st Battalion until his death on August 15, 1917. The collection currently consists of six letters, a clipping, and a field service card.
Norman Stanley Vandusen was born in Turnerville, Ontario, in June 1888. He enlisted in April 1916 at Chatham, Ontario, with the 186th Battalion, and served overseas with the 18th Battalion. Vandusen was wounded in 1917 and returned to Canada in 1919 with demobilization. The collection currently consists of two letters, one photograph, and his hospital equipment list while wounded.
Edgar Cecil Warren was born in Liverpool, England, in January 1888. Prior to the war he immigrated to Canada and enlisted in September 1914, part of the First Contingent that sailed in October 1914. Warren served with the 1st Divisional Supply Column until January 1917 when he was discharged to take a commission with 1st Battalion, London Regiment (Royal Fusiliers). Edgar Warren was killed May 3, 1917. The collection currently consists of twelve letters and two photographs.
Harry Rodrick Low was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba in April, 1891. Low enlisted in Winnipeg in January, 1916, and served overseas with the 9th Canadian Field Ambulance, Canadian Army Medical Corps. The collection currently consists of one letter by Low published in The Winnipeg Free Press on January 4, 1918, describing Passchendaele.
Louis Norris, MM, was born in Russia in March 1895 and immigrated to Canada prior to the war. Norris enlisted in Ottawa, Ontario, in November 1915 with the 77th Battalion. He served overseas with the 47th Battalion, was awarded the Military Medal in 1917, and returned to Canada at the end of the war. The collection currently consists of twenty letters and two clippings.
Private John Alfonso Fahey was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on December 21, 1896, to parents Joseph and Ella Fahey. Prior to his enlistment, Fahey served with the 100th Winnipeg Grenadiers and the 34th Fort Garry Horse.
He enlisted in Winnipeg with the 78th Battalion on July 4, 1915, and in September proceeded overseas from Montreal, Québec, to England, aboard the SS Corsican. Fahey was sent to France in March 1916, where he joined the 28th Battalion. Fahey was killed in action at Passchendaele, Belgium, on November 6, 1917, age twenty. Fahey’s body was never found. He is commemorated on the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial, Ypres, Belgium.
Fahey’s older brother, Lieutenant Ernest Edward Fahey, also fought in World War I. He was killed September 27, 1918, while serving with the 78th Battalion.
Content notes:
The collection has only one item, a newspaper clipping reporting on Fahey’s death.
External links:
Pte. John Alfonso Fahey’s service record (Serv/Reg# 147451) can be viewed/downloaded through Library and Archives Canada.
Burial information is available at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
A memorial page honouring Pte. Fahey can be visited online at the Canadian Virtual War Memorial.
Lieutenant Ernest Fahey’s service record (Serv/Reg# 20984) at Library and Archives Canada.
Burial information is available at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
A memorial page honouring Lt. Fahey can be visited online at the Canadian Virtual War Memorial.
[Editor’s note: Collection reviewed April 2023. Transcription updated and Collection Description expanded.]
William McMaster was born in Hastings, Ontario, in July 1886. He enlisted in Trenton, Ontario, in February 1917 with the 257th Battalion. McMaster served overseas with the battalion until he was wounded and subsequently discharged as medically unfit in late 1918. He is the brother of Howard McMaster. The collection currently consists of two letters.
