James Anthony Osborne “Jim” Strachan and his twin sister Honora “Nora” were born in Antigonish, NS, on Easter Sunday, April 4, 1920, the oldest of John Osborne and Clara (McMillan) Strachan’s seven children. Early documents record the family surname as “Strahan,” but its spelling transitioned to “Strachan” after the First World War.
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| Flight Sergeant James Anthony Osborne Strachan |
The Guysborough Strachan family traces its roots to George Strahan, born in Scotland c. 1750. George served as a Sergeant with the 78th Highland Regiment during the American Revolutionary War. Following the war, he chose to remain in British North America, receiving a land grant of 87.5 acres at Manchester, Guysborough County, on June 2, 1785. Three years later, he married Elizabeth Taylor, a descendant of another pioneer Scottish family. The couple’s son, George Robert, was born in Manchester on November 22, 1788, and later married Sally Whitman, a native of Weymouth, Massachusetts.
George Sr. passed away around 1817. By that time, the Manchester settlers realized their land was ill-suited to agriculture. In response, many families abandoned their farms and moved elsewhere. George Sr.’s widow Elizabeth, her son George Robert and his wife Sally moved to Auld’s Cove—then known as Gut of Canso— where they were among the location’s first permanent residents.
George Robert and Sally’s son, John Ashberry “Berry” Strahan, was born in Auld’s Cove around 1818. On February 8, 1841, he married Margaret Marie McDonald, daughter of Duncan and Sally McDonald, in a ceremony held at Havre Boucher. The day prior to his marriage, church records indicate that Berry was baptized into the Roman Catholic faith.
Three of Berry and Marie’s children married into the family of Timothy McKeough, a Loyalist descendant, and his wife Mary Anne Wright, Little Tracadie (Linwood). Duncan, one of Berry and Marie Strahan’s sons, was born in Havre Boucher on April 24, 1848, and married Hannah Maria McKeough at Havre Boucher on February 10, 1874. Duncan and Maria settled in Port Mulgrave, where their oldest son, John Osborne, was born on November 16, 1874.
Seven more children joined the Strahan household over the subsequent years—Margaret Ann (1876 - 1928), Elizabeth Maria (1878 - 1882), Isabel Jane (1880 - 1956), Elizabeth (1883 - ?), Duncan James (1886 - 1977), Joseph Timothy (1888 - 1930), and Stephen Francis “Frank” (1890 - 1977). At the time of the 1901 census, Duncan, age 53, was employed as a “deck hand” on a local vessel. Also in the Strahan household were Duncan’s wife Maria, age 47, and their four youngest children—Lizzie M., age 17; Duncan J., age 14; Joseph T., age 12, and Stephen F., age 10.
The couple’s three oldest surviving children—John Osborne, Margaret Ann and Isabel Jane—had left home by that time. According to a family source, John Osborne was in the United States by the early 1900s, working aboard the Gloucester fishing schooners. His name does not appear in the 1901 or 1911 Nova Scotia census records. His younger brother, Duncan, later joined him and the pair operated their own schooner until the vessel was lost in a fire.
Sometime after 1911, John Osborne returned to Mulgrave, where he worked in the local fishery. On December 20, 1915, he enlisted with the 106th Battalion (Nova Scotia Rifles) at Antigonish, NS. While his attestation document does not include a birth year, it states that John was 39 years old. Genealogical documents suggest that he was likely two years older than his stated age at the time.
Headquartered in Truro, NS, the 106th Battalion trained in Nova Scotia throughout the winter of 1915-16 and departed for the United Kingdom on July 15, 1916. In the aftermath of significant Canadian casualties incurred at the Somme during the month of September 1916, many of the units encamped in England were disbanded and their members dispersed to battalions already in France..
The 106th was one of the units to suffer this fate. On September 27, 1916, John was transferred to the 26th Battalion (New Brunswick) and crossed the English Channel to France the following day. He joined his new comrades in the forward area on October 15 and served with the New Brunswickers in the sectors near Arras, France, throughout the winter of 1916 -17.
The 26th Battalion participated in the Canadian Corps’ historic April 9, 1917 attack on Vimy Ridge. During the fighting, John was “[struck] by a piece of shrapnel which entered the skin of the right side of [the] muscle of [his] upper [right] arm. [The] piece of shrapnel [is] thought to have been removed after receiving the wound.”
The following day, John was admitted to No. 2 Stationary Hospital, Boulogne, where he remained for four days before being invalided to the United Kingdom. He spent three months as a patient in Merry Flatts War Hospital, Govan, Glasgow, Scotland. On July 21, John was transferred to the Canadian Convalescent Hospital, Bromley, Kent, England, where he remained for two months.
On September 21, John was assigned to the 13th Reserve Battalion. After returning to duty, he began to experience soreness in his leg muscles. Diagnosed with rheumatism in January 1918, he remained in the United Kingdom for the duration of the war. A second medical examination, conducted in mid-November 1918, determined that John was suffering from “myalgia” caused by “exposure to wet and cold” during his time in the trenches.
In early December 1918, John departed for Nova Scotia aboard SS Olympic. Following a final series of examinations, he was discharged from military service as “medically unfit” on January 17, 1919, and returned home to Mulgrave.
John’s younger brother, Duncan James, returned to the Halifax area following his time in the United States. On November 14, 1911, he married Nellie H. Mills, a native of Halifax, in a ceremony held there. Duncan was employed with the “Dining Car Service ICR [Intercolonial Railroad]” at the time of his marriage.
Duncan also served overseas during the First World War. On November 4, 1915, he enlisted with No. 7 Stationary Hospital (Dalhousie Unit) at Halifax, and served with the unit in France from June 1916 to March 1919, returning home the following month. Duncan passed away in New Brunswick in 1947.
On June 16, 1919, John Osborne Strachan married Clara McMillan, daughter of James and Catherine McMillan, Mulgrave. Jim and Nora, their first-born, arrived the following spring. In subsequent years, five more children joined the household—Duncan J. (1922 - 1988); Walter Alphonse (1924 - 1940); twins Mary (Sr. Mary Strachan, CND, 1926 - 2012) and John Coleman “Buddy” (1926 - 2006); and Claire Louise (1928 - ).
Throughout Jim’s early years, his younger brother Duncan was a constant companion. The siblings shared a love of sports. Jim attended school in Mulgrave from 1927 to 1938, leaving after completing Grade X. Following a year of unemployment, he was hired for “extra section work” with Canadian National Railways in 1939. Two years later, he landed a position as “car man.” During that time, Jim was “called for [compulsory] military training,” a month-long program for young men of military service age implemented under the National Resources Mobilization Act (1940).
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| Jim Strachan in civilian life |
On July 14, 1941, Jim completed an application to the Royal Canadian Air Force. In his submission, he requested “ground duties” and expressed a particular interest in developing “welder acetylene” skills. A later Employment History form also mentioned “welding work” as a possible career after his time in uniform.
Jim attested with the RCAF at Halifax on August 13, and commenced service with the rank of Aircraftman Class 2. Initially, he was assigned to the “SGD” (Security Guard) stream. A comment in his file noted that he “wanted aircrew… but did not want to wait for it.” Jim commenced training at KTS (Composite Training School) Trenton, ON, in late August, before moving on to No. 5 Bomber & Gunnery School, Dafoe, MB, on September 21. Promoted to the rank of Aircraftman Class 1 on November 13, he was briefly hospitalized for treatment of an unspecified illness at month’s end.
Jim advanced to the rank of Leading Aircraftman on February 13, 1942, and received a two-week leave before returning to duty. At some point during the following months, his military path took a different direction. On June 12, Jim reported to No. 2 Service Flying Training School, Saskatoon, SK. The following day, he applied to “re-muster” as an “Air Gunner.” Supervisors made several complimentary remarks on his application: “Satisfactory type. Keen to fly. Fairly alert…. Polite, mannerly, pleasant, neat appearance. Fit [for] full aircrew.”
On July 20, Jim received his certification as a Security Guard. That same day, he reported to No. 5 Bombing & Gunnery School, Dafoe, MB, where he logged 15.5 hours of daytime flying in a Fairey Battle aircraft while training in a Bristol turret. Described by an instructor as the “quiet, persistent type… who should do very well in aircrew,” Jim placed 18th in a class of 27 cadets.
Jim was promoted to the rank of Temporary Sergeant and awarded his Air Gunner’s badge on October 9. The following day, he commenced the standard two-week pre-embarkation leave. Jim departed for overseas on October 28 and disembarked in the United Kingdom one week later. After reporting to the RCAF Personnel Reception Center, Bournemouth, on November 6, he awaited orders to commence the final stage of training.
On December 8, Jim was assigned to No. 82 Operational Training Unit. OTUs provided new personnel with the first opportunity to train in actual combat aircraft. Air crews were also assembled at this stage, allowing the men to become acquainted and learn to work as a team. Formed at RAF Ossington in June 1943, No. 82 OTU trained night bombing crews aboard Vickers Wellington aircraft.
During his time with No. 82 OTU, Jim sent several letters to people at home. A December 28, 1942, letter to a female acquaintance named “Dot” described his first Christmas overseas:
“I went to Bournemouth in the south of England. It is very nice there. Some of my pals were there so I spent Christmas with them rather than go to London[,] where I know nobody and everything is strange and I would be lost I am afraid. Anyway[,] I had a good time and had turkey for dinner. Not so bad hey.
“Canadians are very popular here[,] especially with the girls. They are very nice and friendly but are much too serious. Their [sic] in love with you before you know it, but I don’t think I’ll be saying ‘I do’ for awhile, ha!”
Winter weather in the UK was quite different from his native Nova Scotia: “…it is very damp and cold here and… at the present time has been quite cold at night with ground and puddles frozen in the morning. It reminds me of the fall of year at home.”
On January 10, 1943, Jim wrote to his parents, describing a recent visit to London:
“I spent some time at the Beaver Club[,] which is a swell place. You can get some good feeds [sic] there and they cook them like they do in Canada…. The club… is down near the Parliament buildings and is just opposite Trafalgar Square. Pop [John] I bet knows where that is. Westminster Abbey is about five minutes walk away from there. It’s a very large city and the buildings are all old and ancient[,] although there are many modern buildings. It is so big a city that it would take three days to see everything about the city. I wouldn’t want to live there.”
Jim also mentioned visits to Derby and Nottingham in the Midlands. The latter was of particular interest, as it had an “ice rink” that “much to my disappointment… [was] not open.” Throughout his correspondence, Jim frequently commented on winter sports, particularly hockey, an activity that he dearly missed. He also inquired about local sports results and was delighted when Dot sent him several collections of “hockey clippings” from local newspapers.
On April 9, 1943, Jim was promoted to the rank of Temporary Flight Sergeant. Five days earlier, he once again wrote to John and Clara, describing the early arrival of spring overseas:
“It is very nice here and everything is beginning to blossom. Even potatoes are coming up already. It would be good weather for trout fishing if I was home. Mom, that’s what I often think about as I walk along the road on fine days.”
A second letter, written on April 28, describes Jim’s memories of springtime in Mulgrave:
“Has the ice gone out yet, Mom? The lobster fishery will be soon starting and it makes me think of when I would wake up in the morning and you could hear all the motor boats in the Strait. How I used to like that sound.”
In mid-May, Jim’s crew was assigned to No. 1662 Heavy Conversion Unit (HCU), where airmen made the transition to four-engine aircraft. Established in January 1943, 1662 HCU operated out of RAF Blyton, providing training aboard four-engine Avro Lancaster and Handley Page Halifax bombers.
Jim spent one month training aboard 1662 HCU’s aircraft before his crew was assigned for duty with No. 12 Squadron on June 17. Initially formed as a Royal Flying Corps fighter squadron in February 1915, the unit re-formed as a bomber squadron at RAF Northolt, West London, on April 1 1923. Following the May 12, 1940 German invasion of France, Belgium and the Netherlands, its personnel moved to France, where they flew Fairey Battle aircraft in bombing raids against invading German forces.
The squadron returned to RAF Binbrook, Lincolnshire, in June 1940, as German forces overran the Low Countries and forced French forces to surrender. Before year’s end, personnel transitioned to Vickers Wellington bombers. After relocating to RAF Wickensby in 1942, No. 12 Squadron commenced flying four-engine Avro Lancaster aircraft.
After a one-week leave in late June 1943, Jim’s crew was attached to No. 1656 HCU, RAF Lindholme, for additional training. It was common for crews to fly combat missions at HCUs, so the young airmen may have seen action during their time aboard No. 1656’s Lancaster bombers. Unfortunately, details of the crew’s service at 1656 HCU are not available online.
During his time at Lindholme, Jim and his mates received one week’s leave at the end of each summer month. As the only Canadian on a crew with six Royal Air Force recruits, Jim couldn’t visit family during these breaks. In response, one of his mates, William G. “Bill” Adamson, took Jim to his parents’ home at Hazlerigg, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
In an August 18 letter home, Jim asked his parents to pick up a Royal Canadian Air Force crest for Bill, who “would like to have one.” He also mentions Bill’s parents, who “have been so good to me that I would like to give them something in return.” Bill suggested a pipe for Mr. Adamson, “as he smokes a lot,” and stockings for his wife, as “she tells me they have a hard time getting them.” Unbeknownst to Jim and his parents, the relationship that he established with the Adamsons later became an important channel of information for John and Clara.
During the month of August 1943, Jim flew several missions as rear gunner with No. 12 Squadron crews. On the night of August 2/3, he departed on a bombing mission to Hamburg, Germany. “Static conditions and icing” forced the crew to jettison their bombs “to regain control as A/C [aircraft] got into a dive.” The Lancaster, piloted by Flight Sergeant H. A. Adams, managed to safely return to base.
One week later, Jim departed on a mission to Mannheim, Germany, with another crew. The pilot, Flight Sergeant F. S. Smitheringale, described the assignment as “an uneventful trip and a good attack.” On the night of August 15/16, Jim was once again in the rear gunner’s seat as the Smitheringale crew completed a bombing mission to Milan, Italy.
After a week’s leave in late August, Jim returned to duty on September 3. Two days previously, his crew’s pilot, Flight Sergeant R. A. Collins, reported for duty with No. 22 Squadron. Partly due to weather conditions, the squadron did not fly any missions until September 21. During that time, its personnel participated in a variety of training activities. While the Squadron’s “Summary of Operations” record indicates that the unit completed five bombing raids before month’s end, none included Collins in the list of participating pilots.
The names of Jim’s crew—pilot Sgt. Ronald Alfred Collins, navigator Sgt. William G. “Bill” Adamson, wireless operator Sgt. Peter Maurice Adams, bomb aimer Sgt. D. J. Bemrose, flight engineer Sgt. Samuel Black Watson, mid/upper gunner Sgt. Ernest Mallin, and rear gunner James Anthony Strachan—first appear in No. 12 Squadron’s operations log on the night of October 1/2, 1943. At 18:33 hours, the crew departed for Hagen, Germany, aboard a Lancaster aircraft, as part of a 16-plane bombing mission.
In a brief report following the mission, Sgt. Collins described “a nice glow under the cloud and a big… blue flash at 21:04 hours. Cloud obscured [the] target[,] making observation impossible.” All aircraft returned safely to base, Jim’s aircraft landing at 00:44 hours October 2. Collins’ brief remarks make no reference to what was actually a harrowing experience for the young crew.
In a letter to his brother Duncan, dated October 6, 1943, Jim described his recent flying experience:
“I have been busy this last week…. Bomber Command has been very busy operating and in the last week I have operated four times. And tonight I was on opps [sic - operations] again but it was scrubbed about six o’clock this evening much to everyone’s delight.
“I went to the Ruhr twice[,] going to Bochum and Hagen besides going to Kassel [and] Frankfurt. We had a shaky time at Hagen in the Ruhr. As you know[,] the Ruhr is the hottest place in Germany. Well[,] at Hagen we got a taste of their flak. We got shot up by flak making holes in the wing of the kite (plane) and hitting the mid-upper turret[,] going through the Persplex [transparent, thermoplastic polymer similar to plexiglas] and smashing one of the guns.
“A close shave for us. I never saw so much flak in my life. It was coming up everywhere for miles and… the only way out was [to] fly through the stuff. There was a lot of cloud below us and that kept the search lights from getting at us. And there was [sic] hundreds of them. But the cloud didn’t keep the flak from coming up at us. The other trips were quite good and we didn’t have any trouble. Saw a few poor fellows getting shot down in flames over the target but you see that on every target.”
Jim also provided Duncan with a brief overview of the crew’s strenuous schedule:
“These trips are all about six hours and after one of these one is about all done in. We get back late and it’s two or three in the morning before getting to bed and we sleep until noon the next day. When we are operating[,] we don’t get much time to write.”
The correspondence with Duncan conveys a real sense of the dangers that Jim and his mates faced on every mission. Perhaps there was a sense of anticipation on Jim’s part as to what was about to transpire in the skies over Germany.
On the night of October 7/8, Jim’s crew logged its second mission of the month, participating in a 19-aircraft raid on Stuttgart, Germany. The Lancaster bomber departed at 20:40 hours and reached its target at 00:15 hours. Sgt. Collins described “[scattered] fires… in two main concentrations. Route good but attack appeared scattered.” The crew landed safely at 04:04 hours October 8. Once again, all squadron aircraft safely returned to base.
The following night—October 8/9, 1943—Jim’s crew was back in the air on the way to Hanover, Germany, as part of a 16-plane mission. On this occasion, two bombers failed to return to the squadron’s base, while a third was badly damaged by flak and suffered the loss of one of its gunners.
Sgt. Collins’ aircraft was one of the two missing aircraft. For several months, there was no word as to Jim’s fate. On April 25, 1944, RCAF officials informed his father John that Air Gunner James Anthony Osborne Strachan, “previously reported missing 9 - Oct - 43 after air operations… (over Hanover, Germany) and subsequently ‘missing believed killed,’ [was] now ‘presumed dead’ 9 - Oct - 43 for official purposes.”
After the end of hostilities in Europe in early May 1945, the fate of missing RAF air crews became a major priority. In some cases, crew members had managed to exit the aircraft, only to be captured by German forces. That was the fate of Sgt. Peter Bemrose, one of Jim’s crew mates. Released from a prisoner of war camp shortly after Germany’s surrender, Sgt. Bemrose wrote to James and Henrietta Adamson, Bill’s parents, describing the events that unfolded in the skies over Hanover, Germany.
On May 25, 1945, Henrietta Adamson wrote to Clara, conveying her feelings before sharing the information she had received from Sgt. Bemrose:
“My thoughts have been with you all, since the finish of the Germans. I thank God for the victory, but it is with mixed feelings. I felt very sad indeed. If our dear boys had only been spared, to rejoice too, it would have put a great joy into our hearts. It was a great shock to me yesterday when I received a letter from Peter Bemrose, and he said our boys hadn’t a chance….
“Bemrose in his letter said, ‘The story of our last operation is short and simple. We went all the way, to Hanover, without incident, bombed successfully at 20,000 feet, and climbed off the target. We had run the short south-westerly leg and set course for base at 22,000 feet, when the aircraft was hit by cannon shells [from a German aircraft]. After diving sharply, the pilot pulled her out, but we were hit again and the starboard [engine] caught fire. After I left the aircraft[,] I saw the aircraft descend in flames, and burn on the ground, and when I landed it couldn’t have been more than 200 yards away. The boys didn’t have a chance.
“ ‘When Ron said, ‘You’d better get out boys,’ the kite [aircraft] was nose down, and the wind was beginning to scream, so I knew we were in a pretty steep dive. I had my chute pack on and my hand on the emergency exit catch, and even then the terrific dive seemed to freeze me when I tried to abandon. What it was like in a less favourable position I hate to imagine, but it is possible some of the boys were spared those last moments of anguish.’
“…Well dear I hope that God will give us all the strength, to bear our Cross, as it feels very heavy now.”
Following the cessation of hostilities, the RAF dispatched numerous investigation teams to the continent, in search of its missing airmen. On March 4 1946, John received a letter from a Royal Canadian Air Force Casualty Officer, providing him with an update on the search for Jim:
“A report has now been received from a Graves Registration Unit on the Continent, which gives information contained in captured German documents concerning the place of burial of yours, Flight Sergeant James Anthony Osborne Strachan.
“According to this report, your son is buried in grave no. K. G. F. A.14, along with Sergeant [Ernest] Mallin, a Royal Air Force member of your son’s crew, in the Military Cemetery at Hamelin, Germany…. Already eminent architects are at work, planning the construction of beautiful cemeteries, and each individual grave will be supported and sustained by the nations of the Empire.”
On August 8, 1947, Flight Sergeant James Anthony Osborne Strachan’s remains and those of his crew mates were re-interred in Limmer British Cemetery, Hanover, Germany.
Special thanks to Rhonda Strachan, Mulgrave, and Wendy Callahan, Halifax, for contributing photos of their uncle Jim Strachan. Wendy also provided copies of Jim's letters home. Thanks as well to Dan Fougere, Havre Boucher, for providing valuable genealogical information on the Strachan family.
