Acting Corporal John Whitney Williams—Killed in Action May 17, 1944

 John Whitney Williams was born in Halfway Cove, Guysborough County, on August 12, 1912. Whitney was the second child and oldest son of George Henry and Gertrude Cordella (Dickey) Williams. George, a native of Halfway Cove, was the son of Daniel P. and Almira Williams, while his wife Gertrude was the daughter of Cookson and Agnes Dickey, West Cook’s Cove. The couple were married at Lower Salmon River, Guysborough County, on August 17, 1910.

Acting Corporal John Whitney Williams

Whitney was raised in a busy household that grew to include five boys and six girls. He left school at age 13, having completed Grade 5. Whitney’s service file provides no details on his early employment. As the oldest boy, he may have worked in the local fishery with his father George. Whitney later worked as a lumberjack in camps around the province. On occasion, he was “cookie”—head cook—a skill he learned from his mother, who had held the same position in local lumber camps.

Prior to his military enlistment, Whitney worked for four years as a truck driver. Immediately before joining the army, he had been employed for eight months by Arthur Kennedy, Guysborough, who operated a local trucking business. A document in his service file states that he was interested in pursuing a mechanic’s trade after military service.

Whitney enlisted with the Canadian Active Service Force at Halifax, NS, on August 21, 1942. At 30 years of age, he was several years older than the typical Second World War recruit. One week later, Whitney headed to Yarmouth, NS, where he completed basic training. On October 28, he was transferred to No. 14 Infantry Training Centre, Aldershot, NS, for advanced instruction.

On March 10, 1943, Whitney departed for overseas and set foot in the United Kingdom one week later. After a two-month wait, he was assigned to No. 7 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit and placed on the West Nova Scotia Regiment’s reinforcement list the following day.

Established when the Lunenburg and Annapolis Regiments amalgamated in 1936, the West Nova Scotia Regiment mobilized on September 1, 1939, and recruited its initial personnel from the Halifax, South Shore and Annapolis Valley regions. The West Novas departed for overseas in late December 1939 and was assigned to the 1st Canadian Division’s 3rd Brigade, where it served alongside the Royal 22nd Regiment (Quebec’s “Van Doos”) and the Carleton & York Regiment (New Brunswick).

Personnel spent three and half years in the United Kingdom before heading to the Mediterranean theatre in late June 1943. The 1st Canadian Infantry Division was part of a massive Allied invasion force that invaded Sicily on July 10, 1943. After liberating the island, the Allied units crossed the Strait of Messina to the Italian mainland in early September 1943 and commenced a push northward.

As a reinforcement, Whitney did not see combat during the early months of the Allied campaign to liberate Italy. He came ashore in Sicily on the day after the invasion force and followed the infantry’s advance across the island to the Italian mainland. On October 15, Whitney was promoted to the rank of Acting Lance Corporal, an indication that he had demonstrated leadership potential.

Two weeks later, Whitney was transferred from the West Nova’s Base Depot to its 4th Reserve Battalion, another step toward front-line service. On December 14, 1943, he reverted to the rank of Private and was officially taken on strength by the West Nova Scotia Regiment. By that time, the unit was in the line near Berardi, a small village located on the outskirts of Ortona, on Italy’s Adriatic coast.

While American forces landed at Salerno, south of Naples, in early September and pushed northward along Italy’s western coastline, British and Allied units first proceeded up the centre of the Italian peninsula before veering eastward onto the plains and rolling hills of the Adriatic coastline. While Italian forces had officially surrendered in early September, German units firmly resisted the Allies’ northward advance.

At the time of Whitney’s transfer to active combat duty, Canadian units were engaged in fierce fighting near a strategic crossroads for several days. Its fighting strength reduced to 217 men “all ranks,” the West Novas nevertheless continued to serve in the front line. During the night of December 16, “a small draft of reinforcements arrived and the Regiment was further reorganized.” Whitney was likely among the new arrivals, although it is unlikely that the inexperienced soldiers were immediately sent into combat.

The following afternoon, the remaining West Novas in the front line participated in a final attempt to capture a well-defended German position, located in a gully below their objective. The attack failed to break through the enemy line. The unit remained in the trenches for several more days before being relieved.

The West Novas had suffered 44 fatalities and another 150 men wounded during a 16-day tour near Berardi. The battalion retired to nearby San Leonardo, where its soldiers spent several days resting and re-organizing while 1st and 2nd Brigade infantry units continued the assault. The Canadians finally broke through the German line and advanced to the village of Ortona, which was cleared of enemy soldiers shortly after Christmas Day.

Throughout the winter of 1943-44, the West Novas remained in the Adriatic sector north of Ortona. During that time, both sides settled into their established positions, conducting night-time patrols to probe their opponents’ defenses and occasionally capture enemy prisoners for interrogation. With the arrival of spring, the combatants prepared for the resumption of fighting.

On March 29, 1944, Whitney was promoted to the rank of Acting Corporal. Three days later, he found a few minutes to write a letter to his younger brother Russell:

“Dear Brother, you will think it funny to hear from me. I have been trying for a long time to get your address so Mary [Whitney’s younger sister] sent it to me and I thought I would drop you a few lines today, for there is not much doing. How do you like your new uniform and your job? [Russell had recently enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force in Canada.] I would like to be in your place but I would not want to see you in mine.

“You have heard tell of sunny Italy. It has not been very sunny the last four months, but the weather is a little better the last few days…. [W]hen it gets hot it is hot and you don’t see any rain for months. That will bake on the mud that we got on us the last while back. I would like to tell you of something that I saw and happened, but we will talk about that next fall when we are in deer hunting and they can’t shoot back at you.

“Did you know Johnnie O’Connor from Riverside? He is here in the same platoon with me. He is quite a lad and so is his sister. He he. I had a letter and parcel from Mary not long ago. She is well. The same as ever I suppose. I would like to see her so we could have a good laugh.

“Well, Russ as my news is getting scarce, I must bring this short letter to a close. Hoping to hear from you soon, from your brother Whitney.”

On April 21, 1944, an Indian Army unit relieved the West Novas and its soldiers set off for Riccia, near Campobasso, approximately 150 kilometers northeast of Naples, for a few days’ rest. Early the following month, the men exchanged their battle-dress for khaki denims as temperatures began to rise. The area around their camp was soon infested with mosquitoes, raising concerns over malaria. As a result, the unit relocated to Lucera, where there were fewer insects.

With the arrival of spring, Canadian forces prepared for their first campaign on the western side of the Italian peninsula. While British and Canadian forces had advanced northward through its central and eastern regions, American forces had conducted a parallel campaign along the western coast. At the time of the West Novas’ arrival in the Campobasso region, American units were pinned down on beach-heads near Anzio and Nettuo.

A second path northward to Rome, the Italian capital, lay through the Liri Valley. German forces entrenched in mountains near Cassino guarded its southern entrance. A military position atop the mountain near the town, called Monte Cassino, provided enemy forces with a view of the valley entrance below, providing a strategic advantage.

The valley entrance stretched for approximately 25 kilometers, from the Lepini Mountains on the left side to the main chain of the Apennines, where Monte Cassino was located.. The Liri River ran in a northwesterly direction through a valley between the mountains, providing a route to the Alban Hills and Rome.

In preparation for an Allied assault, German forces had established two strong lines of defence in the valley. The first, known as the Gustav Line, was located near Pignatoro, while the HItler Line, a second defensive network several kilometers to the north, was established near Pontecorvo. Polish forces on the right flank were assigned the difficult task of securing Monte Cassino, while French, British, and Indian forces concentrated on the central and left sectors.

Canadian units were not in the line for the initial attack on the night of May 12/13. While Polish forces made little headway on the western flank, British and Indian forces managed to penetrate the Gustav Line and secure the town of Pignatoro. On May 15, Canadian units were on the move northward toward the valley. 

The West Novas, now located at Bucciano, boarded motor transport and travelled through mountainous terrain, arriving in an assembly area near Pignatoro by midnight. The terrain was similar to what the battalion had faced on the Adriatic coast. The remainder of the Gustav Line consisted of slit trenches, machine gun and mortar pits, with fortified houses scattered across the landscape. Streams ran from the mountains into the valley, creating deep gullies that were difficult for tanks to cross. Thick shrubs and trees along their banks provided excellent cover for enemy positions equipped with machine guns and anti-tank weapons.

During the late evening of May 16, the West Novas entered positions in their assigned sector, relieving an Indian Division battalion. The following morning, Whitney and his comrades received an early hot breakfast. At 0630 hours, personnel assembled along the Pignatoro - Pontecorvo Road and awaited orders to advance. German artillery and mortar fire struck the area as they waited, wounding several men. At 1030 hours, the West Novas received orders to pass through their Royal 22nd Régiment comrades, who were holding the line in front of them, and continue the Allied advance into the Liri Valley.
The unit’s A and D Companies moved forward, assisted by British tanks, while B and C Companies followed in support. The men advanced at a steady pace, taking a considerable number of German prisoners. Occasionally, enemy forces entrenched in fortified houses offered resistance but were quickly over-run. German snipers in leafy trees along the edges of cultivated fields presented a more serious obstacle, but for the most part enemy resistance collapsed without much of a fight.

The majority of the West Novas’ casualties that day were the result of mortar and artillery fire on their position as the men advanced. At one point, elements of D Company became lost amidst the smoke and confusion of combat. On the unit’s flank, one platoon was ambushed and most of its men taken prisoner.

By nightfall, the West Novas were dug in among fields surrounding a farmhouse called Casa di George, located alongside a bend in the highway running from Pignatoro into the valley. Heavy enemy shelling continued until dark, at which time the unit’s rifle companies pushed forward a distance of three kilometers, establishing a base for the Carleton & York Regiment to pass through their line and continue the advance the following day.

In the aftermath of the day’s events, Acting Corporal John Whitney Williams was first listed as “missing.” Later records indicate that a total of 12 West Novas perished that day. According to the unit’s war diary entry, “most of the casualties were caused by [artillery] shelling and mortar fire.” Whitney was one of the day’s fatalities, a later entry in his service file officially stating that he was “killed in action” on May 17, 1944.

In a letter to Whitney’s father George dated June 17, 1944, Major-General H. F. G. Letson, Adjutant-General, expressed his condolences on the loss of his son. Whitney was initially buried in a temporary military cemetery. On February 6, 1945, his remains were re-interred in Cassino British Military Cemetery, Cassino, Italy.

Hartley (left) and Charlie Williams

Russell Williams

All of Whitney’s brothers served in some capacity during the Second World War. Oscar and Hartley also enlisted with the Canadian Army and saw action overseas. Charles "Charlie" served in Halifax with the Canadian Dental Corps. Russell enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force, where he worked as a carpenter at bases located in Newfoundland. All four men safely returned home.

Special thanks to Whitney’s niece Marie (Williams) Brymer, Guysborough, NS, for providing background information on the family, a copy of Whitney’s letter to his brother Russell, and photos of Whitney, Hartley, Charlie and Russell Williams. Some information on Whitney’s pre-war employment was obtained from “Remembering Whitney Williams,” Guysborough Journal, November 9, 2005, by Diana Lynn Tibert, Milford, NS.

Private James Gordon MacDonald—Killed in Action May 17, 1944

 James Gordon MacDonald was born in Greenwood, near Thorburn, Pictou County, on June 12, 1922, the only child of Alexander “Sanders” and Vera Gladys (Jordan) MacDonald. Alexander was a native of Stellarton, NS, the son of David and Lydia Ann “Annie” (Marshall) MacDonald. Gladys was born in Goldenville, Guysborough County, the daughter of James Gordon and Ella May (Helpard) Jordan.

Private James Gordon MacDonald

 

Gladys and Alexander were married at the Presbyterian Manse, Thorburn, on January 23, 1922. At the time of his wedding, Alexander was working as a “brakeman.” The 1931 Canadian census lists “Sanders,” Gladys and their nine-year-old son James Gordon living in Thorburn. At that time, Alexander was working in the local coal mines.

Gordon attended school for nine years, leaving at age 16 to work at a variety of jobs. He was employed as a “tire adjuster” at Dominion Rubber Company for a year and a half. He also drove a truck and did “service station work” for two years. At the time of his 1942 enlistment, he had been working as a service station attendant for Mr. Harold March, Halifax, for two years. While employed, Gordon learned to drive cars and trucks, was capable of completing “minor repairs” to vehicles, and had “supervised men.”

Gordon was active in a number of sports—baseball, hockey, softball, swimming and tennis—and enjoyed hunting and fishing. He also played the violin and sang. His pastimes included reading, attending dances and shows, and playing his violin.

On November 10, 1942, Gordon enlisted with the Canadian Active Service Force. He was residing at 32 Inglis St., Halifax. It appears that his parents had parted ways some time earlier, as Gladys was living at the same address. Meanwhile, Sanders resided in Greenwood. Gordon stated that he was his mother’s “sole support,” providing her with the sum of $40.00 a month. While he initially listed his father as next of kin, he later re-assigned this role to his mother.

A Personnel Selection Record interview with Gordon, conducted shortly after his enlistment, described him in these words:

“Well-built, healthy young man, Neat, tidy appearance. Pleasant, friendly and willing. Capable, co-operative and dependable. Held responsible position with Dominion Rubber Company as air adjuster for the Maritime Provinces. Likes the army and would like to work on cars or trucks in any unit.”

The interviewer recommended an “Infantry (Motor)” placement, as this was in keeping with his work experience and interests.

On November 20, Gordon was posted to No. 60 Basic Training Centre, Yarmouth, NS, for the initial stage of military training. In late January 1943, he was transferred to No. 14 Infantry Training Centre, Aldershot, for advanced instruction. Gordon remained there until mid-May, when he departed for overseas, arriving in the United Kingdom on May 22, 1943.

Gordon was immediately assigned to No. 7 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU) and awaited orders to report to an infantry unit. After a nine-day leave in mid-June, he was assigned to the 10th Canadian Infantry Brigade’s reinforcement list on July 22, 1943. He remained in the UK for the rest of the year, spending five days in mid-December working with 12 Field Hygiene Section, Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, before returning to No. 7 CIRU.

The New Year saw several important developments in Gordon’s military career. On February 4, 1944, he was transferred to No. 3 CIRU. Shortly afterward, he changed his next of kin from his father Alexander to his mother Gladys, an indication that active military service was imminent. On February 18, Gordon was assigned to the Canadian Army’s Mediterranean Force. Shortly afterward, he departed for the region, disembarking in Italy on March 3, 1944. He was immediately placed on the Royal Canadian Regiment’s reinforcement list.

The Royal Canadian Regiment (RCR) was initially established as the Infantry School Corps on December 21, 1883, and formed the infantry portion of Canada’s permanent military force. After transitioning through several name changes, the unit was officially designated the Royal Canadian Regiment on November 1, 1901.

The RCR was called to active duty on August 6, 1914, and served overseas for the duration of the First World War. Once again mobilized after the September 10, 1939 Canadian declaration of war on Germany, the RCR departed Halifax on December 22, 1939, and arrived in the United Kingdom eight days later.

The unit briefly deployed in France from June 13 to 17, 1940, landing at Brest and advancing inland as far as Chateaubriand before the rapid collapse of French forces in the face of a massive German invasion resulted in a quick retreat to Brest and return to the UK. The RCR’s personnel spent the next three years training and fulfilling various defensive roles in England and Scotland.

On June 28, 1943, the RCR departed from Gourock, Scotland, as part of an Allied Mediterranean Force destined for Italy. The unit was part of the 1st Canadian Division’s 1st Brigade, where it served alongside two Ontario units, the Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment and the 48th Highlanders of Canada (Toronto).

On July 10, the RCR’s soldiers were among the Allied units that landed at Pachino, Sicily, as the Allied invasion of Italy commenced. In less than two months, the invading forces had liberated the island. On September 3, the RCR crossed the Strait of Messina to a beach north of Riggio as part of a Canadian invasion of the southernmost portion of the Italian mainland. Over the next eight months, the Canadians pushed northward, moving up the mountainous central region of the Italian peninsula before veering east to coastal plains along the Adriatic Sea.

Meanwhile, a large Allied force led by the United States landed south of Naples, Italy, one week after the Canadians and proceeded northward along the western coast. By year’s end, the Canadians were anchoring the eastern portions of an Allied line north of the recently liberated town of Ortona. Both sides settled into their positions for the winter months, awaiting the resumption of active combat in the spring of 1944.

In late April 1944, Canadian units in the Adriatic sectors north of Ortona were relieved and quietly made their way inland. The RCR arrived in the Oratino area, north of Campobasso, Italy, on April 22 and encamped for several days’ rest. Before month’s end, the soldiers exchanged their winter battledress for bush shorts and slacks. On April 30, the unit relocated to a location 16 kilometers north of Lucera.

Several days of training in conjunction with a British tank regiment followed. On May 4, the unit was on the move again, heading southwest through mountainous terrain to billets 16 kilometers east of Caserta. Personnel carefully camouflaged their vehicles and equipment to avoid enemy identification. As far as German commanders were concerned, the Canadians were still on the Adriatic coast.

The following day, a short journey brought the RCR to Limatola, near the upper waters of the Volturno River, about 50 kilometers inland from the city of Naples and the same distance south of Cassino, where the unit had fought months earlier. An abundance of insects raised concerns over malaria and prompted relocation to a camp on higher ground. For several days, the soldiers rehearsed river crossings in preparation for upcoming operations.

Private James Gordon MacDonald joined the RCR’s ranks during its time near Limatola. On May 8, he was officially “taken on strength” by the unit, which was busy preparing for its next combat assignment—an Allied assault on the strategically important Liri Valley, a passageway to the Italian capital of Rome.

The Liri Valley ran northwesterly for approximately 30 kilometers, stretching from the Garigliano - Bari - Rapido river system to a German defensive network known as the Gustav Line. 10 kilometers wide at its mouth, the valley gradually narrowed into a canyon in the Abruzzi Apennines. A massive promontory known as Monte Cassino rose above its eastern opening. Atop the heights sat a monastery that provided German forces with a clear view of Allied units spread out across the valley’s entrance. Any movement or concentration of forces prompted a fierce response from enemy artillery.

The Canadian Corps was in reserve at 2300 hours May 11, when a massive bombardment to the north of its location signalled the commencement of the Liri Valley offensive. British and Commonwealth units commenced their push into the valley while American forces to the west launched a similar offensive along the Italian coast.

Progress was slow during the offensive’s opening hours, British units barely managing to cross the Gari River and establish small beach-heads on its northern shores. Canadian units, under the command of the British XIII Corps, moved forward the following day and “recce” parties visited the sectors they would soon occupy, 20 kilometers southwest of Cassino.

On May 13, the RCR began its journey into the line, reaching its assigned position by 0200 hours May 14. Young Private Gordon MacDonald was among the soldiers settling into a section of the line located on the Canadian sector’s left flank. To their left was the Liri River, while Monte Cassino rose on the horizon to the north. The British 78th Division and 8th Indian Division occupied the centre of the line.

Eight kilometers to the northwest lay the beginning of a second German defensive network called the Hitler Line. It consisted of defensive positions built into mountain walls on both sides of the valley, 14 kilometers north of the village of Pignatoro. While Polish forces on the right flank failed to make significant progress in their efforts to dislodge German forces from Monte Cassino, moderate success on the left flank prompted Allied commanders to move Canadian units forward in an effort to take advantage of progress made by the 8th Indian Division.

On the afternoon of May 15, the RCR crossed the Gari River and passed through the remnants of the Gustav Line into positions behind the 6th Bengal Lancers. Its companies dug in under persistent mortar and artillery fire as Canadian units prepared to relieved Indian forces in the front line.

At 0700 hours May 16, the RCR passed through Indian reserve positions and advanced almost five kilometers in the face of light opposition. As the soldiers attempted to push forward into an area between the Liri River on their left and the village of Pignatoro on their right, they encountered strong resistance from German positions atop a low ridge.

The RCR’s A Company moved forward, attacked the enemy position and successfully captured the ridge. As its soldiers set about consolidating the location, a torrent of mortar and artillery fire struck the area, indicating that the enemy had deliberately withdrawn to set up a trap.

C Company, which had moved forward in support of their A Company comrades, was driven to the ground by the enemy bombardment. As the shelling continued, A Company’s was forced to withdraw from the ridge. A total of 12 RCR soldiers were killed and another 20 wounded during the day’s fighting.

On the morning of May 17, the RCR received orders to resume the advance. Allied forces were unaware of a dried watercourse that ran across the line of advance at an angle. While little more than a deep ditch, the natural feature was a perfect “tank trap,” preventing armoured units from supporting the advance. Beyond the obstacle, German forces had placed a minefield. Their soldiers lay in wait in small wooded areas and tall grain fields beyond the personnel mines.

On the afternoon of May 17, the RCR resumed the advance. Despite harassing enemy fire and several obstacles in their path, the soldiers captured German positions five kilometers west of Pignatoro. By nightfall, 1st Canadian Division forces had established a continuous front line along the Allied left flank. The following day, the 1st Canadian Infantry Brigade’s soldiers advanced to the outskirts at Pontecarro and established a new defensive line.

The RCR’s May 17, 1944 advance came at considerable cost. The unit suffered a total of 18 fatalities as it secured the area west of Pignatoro. Among the soldiers lost that day was Private James Gordon MacDonald, killed in action during his first tour in the front line. The following day, Gordon and his fallen RCR comrades were buried in temporary graves located at map reference MR/805132, sheet 160, Cassino, “100 yards north on side road, west side of road.”

On May 24, military officials sent a telegram to Gladys MacDonald, informing her that “F/75989 Private James Gordon MacDonald [was] officially reported killed in action 17th May 1944.” Nine days later, Canadian officials sent a letter of condolence. Gordon’s remains were re-interred in Cassino War Cemetery, Cassino, Italy, on January 3, 1945.

Gordon’s father Alexander passed away in Aberdeen Hospital, New Glasgow, on October 29, 1949. He was 47 years and six months old at the time of his death. Alexander was interred alongside his father David in Mount William Cemetery, Pictou County. Gladys (Jordan) MacDonald died in the Victoria General Hospital, Halifax, on March 31, 1965, and was laid to rest in Fairview Cemetery.

Alexander’s mother Lydia Ann “Annie” (Marshall) MaDonald outlived her son, grandson and daughter-in-law. She passed away in Aberdeen Hospital, New Glasgow, on June 14, 1968, and was laid to rest in Mount William Cemetery beside her husband and son.

Two of Gladys (Jordan) MacDonald’s cousins—sons of her uncle, John Abner Jordan—also served during the Second World War. Frank Wendell Jordan, born inSherbrooke on November 17, 1916. enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force on July 30, 1941, and served at airfields across eastern Canada. During his time in uniform, Frank advanced to the non-commissioned rank of Sergeant.

Discharged from military service on September 11, 1945, Frank returned to Sherbrooke, where he married Joan Frances Armstrong and raised a family of two daughters. He owned and operated a store in the community for more than two decades and was also postmaster for a period of time. An active member of Royal Canadian Legion Branch #56, Sherbrooke, Frank passed away on May 31, 2012.

Frank’s older brother Stanley Arthur Jordan was born in Sherbrooke on February 26, 1906, and enlisted with the Royal Canadian Engineers (RCE) in Winnipeg, MB, on June 3, 1940. Stanley spent five years overseas, serving in the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, and Germany with the RCE. Following his October 11, 1945 discharge, he returned to Churchill, Manitoba, where he owned and operated a barber shop. Stanley never marred and passed away on April 27, 1985.

Special thanks to Kelly Kaiser, Sherbrooke, NS, for contributing a picture of Private Gordon MacDonald on display in the Royal Canadian Legion, Sherbrooke, and providing information on the Jordan brothers’ military service.

Supply Petty Officer Joseph Victor Wilkins Veinotte—Perished At Sea April 29, 1944

 Joseph Victor Wilkins Veinotte was born in Ecum Secum, Guysborough County, on May 24, 1916. Nova Scotia’s Veinotte families trace their ancestry to Leopold Frederick Veinot, born on October 15, 1704, in Blamont, Principality of Montbéliard, France, near the Swiss border. The region was one of the few Protestant enclaves in France.

The son of Jean Hori Veinot and Jeanne Masson, Leopold married Jeanne Melière, who was born in Blamont on October 18, 1704. The couple raised a family of eight children—five boys and three girls—all born in Blamont. On May 16, 1752, Leopold, Jean and their children departed from Rotterdam, Netherlands, aboard the ship Betty, destined for Halifax, NS..

The Veinots’ arrival in Nova Scotia was part of a British campaign to bring Protestant settlers to the colony, to counter-balance its mainly Roman Catholic Acadian population. Notices posted throughout central Europe attracted approximately 2,700 “foreign Protestants” from agricultural communities to the largely unsettled colony. The settlers came from three main areas—the Upper Rhine area of present-day Germany; French- and German-speaking Swiss cantons; and the French-speaking principality of Montbéliard.

In the spring of 1753, males old enough to qualify as landowners gathered in St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Halifax, where they drew for lots of land in a planned settlement near Lunenburg. Leopold received lots in the Moreau, Northwest and Third Divisions, and established his residence in the second location. He passed away there in 1783 at 80 years of age.

Christopher Jacques Veinot, one of Leopold and Jeanne’s five sons, married Elizabeth Catherine Robar in Lunenburg on April 13, 1761. Christopher Jacques and Elizabeth had at least three children—a daughter Catharine Elizabeth and two sons, James Frederick and Jean George—all born in Lunenburg. In 1800, James Frederick (1768 - 1843) married Mary Catherine Boucher (1785 - 1837) in Lunenburg.

Jacob Veinot (1809 - 1834), one of James Frederick and Mary’s sons, married Elizabeth Langille (1813 - 1891) in Lunenburg on October 6, 1831. The following year, their oldest child, John Frederick “Fred,” was born in Martin’s River, located between Chester and Mahone Bay, and relocated to Ecum Secum, Guysborough County, in the 1850s.

A lumberman and millwright by occupation, Fred married Elizabeth Ann “Annie” Fleet, daughter of David Fleet and Sarah Jewers, Ecum Secum, on January 24, 1859. The couple raised a large family of 13 children—10 daughters and three sons—in their home. Fred passed away in Ecum Secum on March 8, 1895, and was laid to rest in St. Barnabas Cemetery, Ecum Secum.

David Kenneth Veinotte, the third youngest of Fred and Annie’s children, was born in 1878. Kenneth married Mary Florence Ashton, daughter of Nathaniel Ashton, “trader,” and Mary Catherine Publicover, in a Church of England ceremony held in Ecum Secum on August 28, 1907. At the time of his marriage, Kenneth listed his occupation as “farmer.” He eventually opened a general store in Ecum Secum and later opened a funeral home business in the community. During the early years of the Second World War, Kenneth was the foreman in charge of the construction of Shearwater Air Force Base, Dartmouth.

Kenneth and Florence raised a family of six children, four sons and two daughters. At the time of the 1921 Canadian census, their household included Frederick “Fred,” age 13; David Roger, age 11; Mary Catherine, age eight; Victor, age five, and Anna Louisa “Annie,” age one. Kenneth’s mother Annie, age 83, also resided in the Veinotte home. Kenneth and Florence’s youngest child, Charles Stewart, was born before year’s end.

Victor Veinotte, the third of Kenneth and Florence’s four sons, left school at age 17 after completing eight years of public education. He then worked as a clerk in the “grocery store run by [his] father” in Ecum Secum. One year after the outbreak of war overseas, Victor enlisted with the Royal Canadian Navy at Halifax on August 8, 1940. As a result of his experience in retail business, Victor was awarded the initial rank of V. A. [VIctualling Assistant] Prob. [Probationary],” a branch of the naval service responsible for the provision of food and other stores aboard its vessels.

On November 7, 1940, Victor was promoted to the full rank of Victualling Assistant (VA). Before month’s end, he was assigned to HMCS Venture, a three-masted training ship used as an accommodation vessel in Halifax Harbour. The New Year brought another significant event in Victor’s life. On January 30, 1941, he married Irma May Pace, daughter of Harold Pace, Marie Joseph, and May Baker, in a ceremony held in Trinity Church, Halifax.

Victor remained in Halifax for almost two years. On July 18, 1941, he was assigned to HMCS Stadacona, Halifax, the RCN’s main base. Four months later, he was promoted to the rank of Leading VA. During that time, Victor and Irma’s first child, a son, was born. Irma was pregnant with their second child, a daughter, when Victor was posted to HMCS Niobe, the RCN’s United Kingdom headquarters, on November 5, 1942. He travelled to the RCN base at St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, aboard HMCS Orillia, and departed for overseas aboard HMS Monkshood, a British Navy corvette.

On February 4, 1943, Victor was assigned to the crew of HMCS Athabaskan. Commissioned at Newcastle-on-Tyne on February 3, 1943, the Athabaskan was the first of three RCN ships to bear this name. A tribal-class destroyer, assigned to the British Home Fleet, the vessel suffered a number of mishaps during its brief time in service. Four months after joining the Athabaskan’s crew, Victor was promoted to the rank of Supply Petty Officer.

In late March 1943, the Athabaskan commenced active duty, patrolling the area between Iceland and the Faroe Islands in search of “blockade runners.” Heavy seas encountered during the assignment damaged the vessel’s hull, resulting in a five-week repair job in a South Shields dry dock, east of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.

Shortly after returning to duty, the Athabaskan was assigned to Operation Gearbox III. The undertaking was the third mission connected to an Allied effort to secure the Arctic island of Spitsbergen, located in the Barents Sea, north of Scandinavia. After the outbreak of war, German forces had occupied the island, which contained valuable coal deposits.

The first two operations, joint Norwegian and British efforts, established an Allied presence the island. The third mission transported reinforcements and supplies to the garrison stationed there. Several ships departed from Iceland on June 7. As the Athabaskan made its way northward from the UK to join its comrades, the ship collided with a boom defence vessel at Scape Flow, Orkney Islands, on June 18. The incident forced the destroyer to sail to Devonport, where it remained under repair for one month.

Upon returning to sea, the Athabaskan operated out of Plymouth, UK, conducting anti-submarine patrols in the Bay of Biscay, north of Spain and west of France, throughout the summer months. On August 27, the destroyer was engaged in an anti-submarine pursuit off Cape Ortegal, Spain, when a squadron of 18 Dornier Do 217 enemy aircraft attacked its Support Group.

The planes carried under their wings a new weapon deployed in combat for the first time only two days earlier—the Henschel Hs 293 glide bomb, a radio-guided weapon equipped with a small rocket engine. The aircraft launched the weapon at a distance from its targets sufficient to avoid retaliatory fire.

During the aerial attack, a glide bomb passed through the Athabaskan’s hull and detonated after exiting the vessel. While the ship was heavily damaged in the attack, it remained afloat. The British sloop HMS Egret, also targeted in the same incident, was not so fortunate. A glide bomb sunk the vessel, resulting in the loss of 198 lives. In response, Allied naval commanders immediately suspended the Bay of Biscay patrols.

The Athabaskan suffered four fatalities and several casualties in the August 27 incident. The vessel nevertheless pulled 35 Egret survivors from the water and managed to make its way to Devonport, UK, for repairs, despite a serious list to starboard. Before year’s end, the ship was back at sea.

In December 1943, the destroyer returned to the Orkneys and escorted convoy JW55A to the Soviet Union. The ship arrived to Plymouth in February 1944 and was assigned to the newly-formed 10th Destroyer Flotilla. The group commenced mine-laying and patrol missions off the coast of France as Allied forces began preparations for the D-Day landings.

On April 26, the Athabaskan assisted in the destruction of a German Elbing-Class torpedo boat while on patrol off the coast of Ushant, France. During the early morning hours of April 29, 1944, the Athabaskan and her sister Tribal-class destroyer Haida were providing support to a British mine-laying operation near the mouth of the Morlaix River, France, when the vessels received orders to intercept German warships near Île Bataz, at the entrance to Morlaix harbour.

There are varying accounts of the naval battle that ensued, as the encounter occurred under cover of darkness. Some members of the Athabaskan’s crew claim that the ship was first struck by shells from a German shore battery, followed by a torpedo launched from German torpedo boat T24. Another sailor claimed that a second torpedo struck the ship 15 minutes later, but naval authorities eventually concluded that a fire aboard the ship caused an explosion in its ammunition magazine.

The Haida managed to rescue 44 of the Athabaskan’s crew as the vessel slipped beneath the waters. Another 83 men were taken prisoner by three German minesweepers that searched the area after the Haida’s departure. A total of 129 crew members perished in the sinking. Among them was the Athabaskan’s Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander John Stubbs, who was killed in action after declining rescue by the Haida and swimming back toward the ship to assist surviving crew members.

While approaching daylight forced the Haida to depart the area, due to heightened risk of air and sea attack, its motor cutter remained at the site of the sinking. Manned by four crew members, the small vessel managed to rescue six Athabaskan survivors and two Haida crew members who had fallen from its scramble nets as the destroyer departed. While the German minesweepers initially pursued the motor cutter, they eventually abandoned the chase. After several breakdowns and encounters with enemy aircraft, the boat safely made it to the UK just before midnight April 29.

On May 1, 1944, Canadian naval authorities wrote to Irma, informing her that her husband, Supply Petty Officer Joseph Victor Wilkins Veinotte, was missing:

“According to the report received from overseas, your husband’s loss occurred when HMCS Athabaskan was torpedoed and sunk by enemy action on the 29th of April, 1944, in the English Channel…. While Petty Officer Veinotte is reported as ‘missing,’ there is a possibility of his survival. It is understood that a number of the crew have been taken prisoner of war by the enemy. The Red Cross have been informed and are attempting to obtain from the German Government a list of those taken. Please be assured that as soon as any information respecting your husband has been received you will be informed.”

Irma received no further word from authorities until January 12, 1945, when she was notified that her husband was now officially considered “missing, reported dead” on April 29, 1944. Two months later, Canadian authorities dispatched a War Memorial Cross to Irma at Marie Joseph and a second to Victor’s mother May Florence, who resided in nearby Ecum Secum.

Supply Petty Officer Victor Veinotte and his Athabaskan comrades are commemorated on the Halifax Memorial, erected in Point Pleasant Park, Halifax, in 1967 in memory of more than 3,000 sailors, merchant seamen and other military personnel who perished at sea during the two world wars and Korean conflict, and have no known graves.

In 2002, Jacques Ouchakoff, a French marine historian, located the shattered remains of the Athabaskan scattered over the sea bed in 90 meters of water near Île de Batz. The government of France subsequently placed the wreck under the authority of the French Heritage Code, providing legal protection for the vessel and its contents. Two years after the wreck’s discovery, the Royal Canadian Navy provided the French government with a brass plaque to be placed on the wreckage, in commemoration of its lost crew members.

Two of Irma Veinotte’s brothers enlisted for service during the Second World War. Earl Stillman Pace joined the merchant marine. Shipwrecked twice during the war, he survived both incidents. Gordon Amos Pace enlisted with the North Nova Scotia Regiment. Wounded during combat in the Netherlands, he also safely returned home.

Victor’s father David Kenneth Veinotte passed away in Armdale, Halifax, NS, on March 28, 1957, and was laid to rest in Ecum Secum. In 1948, Irma Veinotte and her two young children relocated to Windsor, ON, where Irma initially worked on a local assembly line. Determined to improve her situation, she completed several training programs and earned a position with the local taxation center.

Several years later, Revenue Canada offered Irma the opportunity to relocate to Ottawa for a year to work on a project. She moved to the national capital and spent the rest of her years there, eventually earning a managerial position with the department. Irma never re-married and passed away in Ottawa on June 10, 2019. Her ashes were “taken to Nova Scotia to be interred in the family cemetery.”

Special thanks to Victor's son Dennis Veinotte, Arnprior, ON, who provided information on the Veinotte family's story, and Dennis's son Victor, Ottawa, ON, who contributed a photograph of his grandfather and namesake.

Able Seaman Hilbert Joseph Peart—Perished at Sea April 29, 1944

Hilbert Joseph Peart was born in Canso, Guysborough County, on February 28, 1916, the youngest of Roy Walter and Elizabeth Lillian “Bessie” (Scott) Peart’s five children. Roy was the son of William Henry and Ida Alice (Hadley) Peart, Philips Harbour, while Bessie was the daughter of Joseph B. and Sarah A. Scott, Guysborough.

Able Seaman Hilbert Joseph Peart

Roy and Bessie were married in Boylston on December 30, 1908, and established residence in Cooks Cove. Their first child, Dorothy Jean, was born in Guysborough on February 14, 1910, but died in infancy. Over the next four years, four sons joined the Peart household—James Scott (DOB June 4, 1911) and William “Bill” (DOB May 2, 1912) were born in Guysborough, while Raymond Roy (DOB March 13, 1914) and Hilbert were born in Canso, where Roy worked as a “fireman” aboard one of the local fishing boats.

Raymond Roy died in Canso from a combination of bronchitis and pneumonia on November 9, 1917. Sometime before 1921, the family unit disintegrated when Bessie and Roy parted ways. At the time of the 1921 census, Bill was residing in Guysborough with his grandparents, William and Ida Peart, while Hilbert was living in Canso, the “adopted son” of Patrick and Alice Dollard (no apparent relationship). The Nova Scotia census data contains no record of James Scott or parents Roy and Bessie.

Hilbert was still living in Canso with the Dollard family at the time of the 1931 census. While he was listed as a student at the time, he left school shortly afterward and went to work in the local fishery. By the mid-1930s, Hilbert had relocated to Halifax, where he worked for National Fish Co. as a “seaman” aboard a steam trawler. His duties included “fishing, curing and packing.”

On October 17, 1939, Hilbert enlisted with the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve at Halifax. He identified his father Roy Peart, 451 Agricola St., Halifax, as his next of kin. At the time of his enlistment, he expressed an interest in working as a “railway labourer or [joining the] Coast Guard” after completing his military service.

Hilbert commenced his service aboard HMCS Viernoe, the commercial vessel on which he was employed at the time of his enlistment. The Viernoe had received an RCN commission only six days before Hilbert’s enlistment and operated out of Sydney, NS, as a “boom defense” vessel. Hlibert served aboard the Viernoe until May 31, 1940, at which time he was assigned to HMCS Stadacona Naval Base, Halifax.

In early August 1940, Hilbert returned to the Sydney area when he was assigned to HMCS Protector, the RCN’s Point Edward Naval Base. While stationed there, he met Mary Dorothy Boudreau, daughter of Alphonse and Minnie (Robinson) Boudreau, D’Escousse, Isle Madame. The couple were married at Sacred Heart Church, Sydney, on November 30, 1940.

In late March 1942, Hilbert travelled to Halifax to join the crew of HMCS Grandmère, a minesweeper assigned to the Western Local Escort Force, which provided protection for convoys. The vessel operated out of Sydney, which was convenient as Dorothy had established residence in the city. In fact, during the early years of their marriage, Dorothy gave birth to two children—a daughter Patricia Elizabeth (c. 1941) and a son Roy Alphonse (c. 1942).

After logging 315 days of Atlantic service aboard the Grandmère, Hilbert was transferred to HMCS Niobe, the RCN’s overseas headquarters at Greenock, Inverclyde, Scotland, on March 21, 1943. The location also served as a “transit camp” for RCN crewmen as they transitioned from one assignment to another. On June 19, 1943, Hilbert was posted to HMCS Athabaskan.

Crew of HMCS Athabaskan

Commissioned at Newcastle-on-Tyne on February 3, 1943, the Athabaskan was the first of three RCN ships to bear the name. A tribal-class destroyer assigned to the British Home Fleet, the vessel suffered a series of mishaps during its brief time in service.

In late March 1943, the Athabaskan commenced active duty, patrolling the area between Iceland and the Faroe Islands in search of “blockade runners.” Heavy seas encountered during the assignment damaged the vessel’s hull, resulting in a five-week repair job in a South Shields dry dock, east of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.

Shortly after returning to duty, the Athabaskan was assigned to Operation Gearbox III. The assignment was the third mission connected to Allied efforts to secure possession of the Arctic island of Spitsbergen, located in the Barents Sea, north of Scandinavia. After the outbreak of war, German forces had occupied the island, which contained valuable coal deposits.

The first two operations—joint Norwegian and British efforts—established an Allied presence on the island. The third mission transported reinforcements and supplies to the garrison stationed there. Several ships departed from Iceland on June 7. As the Athabaskan made its way northward from the UK to join the convoy, the ship collided with a boom defence vessel at Scape Flow, located in the Orkney Islands, on June 18. The incident forced the destroyer to sail to Devonport, where it spent one month undergoing repairs.

Upon returning to sea, the Athabaskan operated out of Plymouth, UK, throughout the summer months, conducting anti-submarine patrols in the Bay of Biscay, north of Spain and west of France. On August 27, the destroyer was engaged in an anti-submarine pursuit off Cape Ortegal, Spain, when a German squadron of 18 Dornier Do 217 aircraft attacked its Support Group.

The planes carried under their wings a new weapon deployed in combat for the first time only two days earlier—the Henschel Hs 293 glide bomb, a radio-guided weapon equipped with a small rocket engine. The aircraft would launch the bomb at a distance from a target sufficient to avoid retaliatory fire.

During the aerial attack, a glide bomb passed through the Athabaskan’s hull and detonated after exiting the ship. While the vessel was heavily damaged in the attack, it remained afloat. The British sloop HMS Egret, also targeted in the same incident, was not so fortunate. A glide bomb sunk the vessel, resulting in the loss of 198 lives. In response, Allied naval commanders immediately suspended the Bay of Biscay patrols.

The Athabaskan suffered four fatalities and several casualties in the August 27 incident. The vessel nevertheless pulled 35 Egret survivors from the water and despite a serious list to starboard successfully made its way to Devonport, UK, for repairs. The ship was back at sea before year’s end.

In December 1943, the destroyer returned to the Orkneys and escorted convoy JW55A to the Soviet Union. The vessel arrived in Plymouth in February 1944 and was assigned to the newly-formed 10th Destroyer Flotilla shortly afterward. The group commenced mine-laying and patrol missions off the coast of France as Allied forces began preparations for the D-Day landings.

On April 26, the Athabaskan assisted in the destruction of a German Elbing-class torpedo boat while on patrol off the coast of Ushant, France. During the early morning hours of April 29, 1944, the Athabaskan and her sister Tribal-class destroyer Haida were providing support for a British mine-laying operation near the mouth of the Morlaix River, France, when the vessel received orders to intercept German warships near Île Bataz, at the entrance to Morlaix Harbour.

There are varying accounts of the naval battle that ensued, as the encounter occurred under cover of darkness. Some members of the Athabaskan’s crew claim that the ship was first struck by shells from a German shore battery, followed by a torpedo launched from German torpedo boat T24. Another sailor claimed that a second torpedo struck the ship 15 minutes later, but naval authorities eventually concluded that a fire aboard the ship caused an explosion in its ammunition magazine.

The Haida managed to rescue 44 of the Athabaskan’s crew as the vessel slipped beneath the waters. A total of 83 survivors were taken prisoner by three German minesweepers that searched the area after the Haida’s departure. Altogether, 129 Athabaskan crew members perished in the sinking. Among them was its Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander John Stubbs, who was killed in action after declining rescue by the Haida and swimming back toward the ship to assist surviving crew.

While approaching daylight forced the Haida to depart the area, due to heightened risk of enemy attack, its motor cutter remained in the area. Manned by four crew members, the small vessel managed to rescue six Athabaskan survivors and two Haida crew members who had fallen from its scramble nets as the destroyer departed. While the German minesweepers initially pursued the motor cutter, they eventually abandoned the chase. After several breakdowns and encounters with enemy aircraft, the boat safely made it to the UK just before midnight April 29.

In the aftermath of the Athabaskan’s sinking, naval officials were unable to account for the fate of its missing crew members. On May 1, 1944, the Secretary of the Naval Board wrote to Dorothy Peart, who was now living at 106 Connaught Avenue, Glace Bay:

“It is with deepest regret that I must confirm the telegram of the 1st of May, 1944, from the Minister of National Defence for Naval Services, informing you that your husband, Hilbert Joseph Peart, Able Seaman, Royal Canadian Naval Reserve,… is missing from HMCS Athabaskan. According to the report received from overseas, your husband’s loss occurred when HMCS Athabaskan was torpedoed and sunk by enemy action on the 29th of April, 1944, in the English Channel.

“While Able Seaman Peart is reported as ‘missing,’ there is a possibility of his survival. It is understood that a number of the crew have been taken prisoners of war by the enemy. The Red Cross have been informed and are attempting to obtain from the German Government a list of those taken. Please be assured that as soon as any further information respecting your husband has been received you will be informed.”

For four months, there was no further word on Hilbert’s fate. Finally, on January 12, 1945, a document from the Secretary of the Naval Board confirmed that Able Seaman Hilbert Joseph Peart was now officially “missing, presumed dead, date 29 April, 1944, when HMCS Athabaskan was torpedoed and sunk by enemy action in the English Channel.”

On April 14, 1946, Roy Walter Peart passed away at 451 Agricola St., Halifax, at age 58. According to his death certificate, Roy had been employed as a “fireman” with Nova Scotia Light & Power Company for 22 years prior to his death. He was laid to rest in Camp Hill Cemetery, Halifax. Three months later, Hilbert’s widow Dorothy married Maurice Jeoffrey Fougere, son of Simon and Victoria (Frasie) Fougere, New Victoria, Cape Breton, in a ceremony that took place at 217 George St., Sydney, on July 3, 1946.

Able Seaman Hilbert Joseph Peart’s name and those of his 128 Athabaskan comrades were later engraved on the Halifax Memorial, erected in Point Pleasant Park, Halifax, in 1967 to commemorate more than 3,000 sailors, merchant seamen and other military personnel who perished at sea during the two world wars and Korean conflict, and have no known graves.

In 2002, Jacques Ouchakoff, a French marine historian, located the shattered remains of the Athabaskan, scattered over the sea bed in 90 meters of water near Île de Batz. The government of France subsequently placed the wreck under the French Heritage Code, providing legal protection for the vessel and its contents. Two years after its discovery, the Royal Canadian Navy provided the French government with a brass plaque to be placed on the wreckage, in commemoration of its lost crew members.

Special thanks to Hilbert's grand-daughter Tanya Peart, Sydney, NS, who provided a photograph of her grandfather. Doris "Dee Dee" Blood, Middleton, NS, Hilbert's grand-niece, also contributed information on the Peart family.

LAC Duncan Joseph McDonald—Accidentally Killed April 19, 1944

 Duncan Joseph McDonald was born in Mulgrave, Guysborough County, on June 14, 1918, the youngest of Osborn and Catherine Ann (Ryan) McDonald’s four sons. Duncan’s grandfather, Roderick McDonald, was born at Strait of Canso around 1844, the son of Donald and Nancy McDonald. On January 6, 1867, Roderick married Margaret Strahan, daughter of Berry and Margaret Strahan, in Port Mulgrave.

LAC Duncan Joseph McDonald's headstone, St. Lawrence Cemetery, Mulgrave, NS

By 1891, the McDonald household included 45-year-old Roderick, a railroad section man, his 44-year-old wife Margaret, and five children—Duncan, age 18; Lizzie, age 17; John, age 14; “Ausbury” [later Osborn], age 10;  and Daniel, age four. Also residing in the home was Roderick’s widowed mother Nancy, age 88. A decade later, 19-year-old “Ausberry” [DOB August  31, 1881] was still living in Mulgrave with his parents and brothers Duncan, John and Dan.

On August 15, 1904, “Osberry” McDonald married Catherine “Kate” Ryan in St. Lawrence Roman Catholic Church, Mulgrave. At the time of the 1911 census, 29-year-old “Oscar” [sic—Osborn], railroad “trackman,” was listed as head of a Mulgrave household that included his wife Kate A., age 25, and three children—Stella Louise (DOB December 1904); Beatrice (DOB November 1906); and John R. (DOB January 1909).

Over the ensuing decade, six more children joined the McDonald household—Annie (c. 1911); Daniel (c. 1913); Osborn Jr. (c. 1915); Hilda (DOB April 28, 1917, died in infancy); Duncan Joseph (DOB June 14, 1918); and Hilda Mary (c. 1919). At the time of the 1921 census, Osborn and Catherine’s Mulgrave home included Beatrice, age 14; Stella, age 6; John, age 12; Annie, age 10; Daniel, age eight; Osborn Jr., age six; Duncan, age three; and Hilda, age 18 months.

Before year’s end, tragedy struck the family when 38-year-old Osborn died on July 8, 1921, following a six-month battle with acute pulmonary tuberculosis. Pregnant at the time of her husband’s passing, Kate gave birth to a daughter, Mary Elizabeth, on November 14, 1921. Sadly, her youngest child died of pneumonia on August 8, 1924.

Duncan Joseph McDonald, Osborn and Kate’s youngest son, attended Loggie School, Mulgrave, from 1924 to 1930. He then moved on to McNair High School, Mulgrave, where he completed Grades 7 to 10. Upon leaving school in 1933, he worked as a labourer for Cook Construction, Mulgrave (1933-34) and as a “checker” with Standard Paving Co. (1934-36). For the remainder of the decade, Duncan held a variety of “odd jobs” before securing a position as a “brakeman” with Canadian National Railways, Stellarton.

On December 11, 1941, Duncan applied for admission to the Royal Canadian Air Force. To enhance his chance of acceptance, he enrolled in a WETP [War Emergency Training Program] course in Saint John, NB, from January to June 1942. Following its completion, Duncan enlisted with the RCAF at Moncton, NB, on June 22, 1942, commencing service with the rank of Aircraftman Class 2 (AC2).

On July 19, Duncan was transferred to No. 5 Military District, Lachine QC, where he commenced training at No. 1 Wireless School, Montreal. Three months later, he qualified as a “Wireless Operator/Gunner, Group C,” and was promoted to the rank of Aircraftman Class 1 (AC1). On October 11, 1942—the day after his promotion—Duncan was assigned to RCAF Station, Sydney, NS.

As a major source of coal and steel, the industrial Cape Breton area played a significant role in Canada’s war effort. Its harbour also provided shelter for vessels crossing the North Atlantic as part of Allied merchant convoys. While Canadian infantry and artillery units focused on defending the harbour and numerous strategic locations in the area, the RCAF’s role extended well beyond the island.

In addition to patrolling the harbour entrance and protecting convoys entering and leaving Canadian coastal waters, the RCAF conducted coastal reconnaissance operations from two separate bases—a seaplane base for 11 Delta aircraft in North Sydney and an airfield near Reserve, east of Sydney. While land for an airport had been acquired prior to the formal declaration of war, actual construction did not commence until the second year of the conflict.

Prior to the airport’s operational debut in February 1941, RCAF personnel transitioned to the Bristol Fairchild Bolingbroke. A maritime patrol aircraft and trainer manufactured by Fairchild Canada, the design was based on the Bristol Blenheim Mk IV bomber. Nicknamed the “Bolly,” the plane was equipped with engines designed to increase its range. Its nose was extended to create more space for the bombardier and the cockpit’s upper left surface was expanded to provide greater visibility during takeoff and landing. In acknowledgment of the circumstances in which the aircraft would operate, anti-icing boots and a dinghy were standard accessories.

No. 119 (Bombing & Reconnaissance) Squadron, Hamilton, ON, the unit based in Sydney, was on call for any emergencies that occurred in nearby waters. The most common incidents involved sightings of German U-boats. On March 23, 1942, for example, the merchant vessel SS Bayou Chico made radio contact with RCAF Sydney and reported its suspicions that a German U-boat was following in its wake. The base immediately dispatched three Bolingbroke aircraft to its location.

Upon reaching the vessel, the aircraft spotted German U-boat 754 and dropped two depth charges as the submarine executed a rapid dive. While no debris was spotted, there was no sign of the enemy vessel as the aircraft escorted the SS Bayou Chico for an hour. Unbeknownst to the pilots. the U-boat escaped without damage and safely travelled to its base in France. U-754 later returned to the east coast only to be targeted and sunk off the coast of Yarmouth, NS.

Anti-submarine warfare remained RCAF Sydney’s primary focus during the early and middle war years. While there were numerous sightings along Canada’s Atlantic coast, there were only approximately a dozen confirmed sinkings. The statistics, however, do not reveal the effectiveness of the patrols. German U-boat logs accessed following the war clearly describe their captains’ considerable fear of operating in or near the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The RCAF strategy forced U-boats to remain submerged while passing through the area or avoid the convoy corridors altogether, thus significantly reducing Allied losses.

After 16 months’ service in the Sydney area, Duncan was transferred to 121 Composite Squadron, Dartmouth, NS, on February 15, 1944. The squadron operated out of an airfield located in Eastern Passage. Established by the United States Navy as an anti-submarine patrol base in August 1918, the facility was transferred to the Canadian government after the First World War. In October 1923, the location officially became RCAF Station Dartmouth.

During the inter-war years, the station’s aircraft conducted photographic surveys of the Maritimes. In November 1934, the facility became the headquarters of No. 5 (Flying Boat) Squadron, which conducted patrols along Canada’s eastern coastline. Three years later, Dartmouth was one of four locations selected for construction of a land aerodrome. On April 1, 1938, the facility once again became RCAF Station Dartmouth, hosting No. 5 Squadron and No. 4 Repair Depot.

During the Second World War, RCAF Station Dartmouth was the base for bomber reconnaissance aircraft that played a crucial role during the Battle of the Atlantic. It was also home to 121 (Composite) Squadron, RCAF. Formed on January 10, 1942, the unit conducted communication and rescue operations along the Atlantic coast. Its aircraft also participated in “target towing” exercises in co-operation with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN).
 
Target towing involved an aircraft “towing” an unmanned drone or large “fabric drogue”—an open-ended conical or funnel-shaped cloth structure—attached to a lengthy metal cable. The drogue was stored aboard the plane prior to take-off. Once the aircraft was over the training area, a crew member used a winch powered by a small wind turbine located on the outside of the aircraft to release it. A clutch mechanism allowed the operator to “engage” the winch and deploy the target at a distance of several thousand meters behind the plane. Once the exercise was completed, the drogue was usually jettisoned at a location convenient for retrieval and the cable retracted into the plane.

The exercise involved a considerable amount of risk. Inexperienced gunners—aerial and naval—fired live ammunition at the target during training, creating the possibility of an errant shell striking the aircraft. The drogue also created considerable drag. If a twin-engine aircraft like the Bolingbroke experienced failure in one engine, the drag could be sufficient to reduce airspeed below its “stall speed”—the minimum forward thrust required for an aircraft’s wings to produce lift and remain airborne.

Duncan’s initial duties at RCAF Dartmouth were somewhat mundane. On March 16, he was posted to the “Devil’s Battery Observation Post,” located at Hartlen Point, Eastern Passage. Erected on Halifax Harbour’s easternmost point, the battery’s personnel kept a watchful eye on the harbour entrance. One week later, Duncan was assigned to the Chebucto Head Battery, located at the easternmost point of Halifax harbour’s southern shoreline. On March 27, he returned to duty at the Eastern Passage aerodrome, having completed brief assignments at both batteries.

At 1200 hours April 19, 1944, Bolingbroke 9180 departed from RCAF Base Dartmouth on a target-towing exercise over Cow Bay, a short distance east of the harbour entrance. Three RCAF airmen were aboard the aircraft—Pilot Officer Harold Alwin Swinden, Toronto, ON, pilot; LAC Duncan Joseph McDonald, Mulgrave, NS, wireless operator; and LAC Joseph Émile Gautreau, Shediac, NB, “general duties.”

After completing the exercise, the crew was returning to base when the “aircraft [was] seen to plunge into the sea” around 1300 hours (1:00 pm). According to a news item published in the Halifax Herald the following day, local residents reported seeing the plane struck the water near Egg Island, southwest of Lawrencetown Beach, around 1:30 pm. One witness stated that “an explosion occurred on the plane while it was still in the air.”

A note in Duncan’s service file reported that he was “missing believed killed 19 April 44 as a result of a flying accident (target towing Navy shoot).” A second news item in the Halifax Herald reported that the bodies of P/O Swinden and LAC Gautreau were “brought to the surface” of Cow Bay on May 13. The wording suggests that the plane’s wreckage had been located and that Navy divers had removed the two deceased crewmen from the sunken aircraft.

The whereabouts of the third “missing” RCAF airman remained a mystery until June 23, when a “body washed up” along the Cow Bay shoreline. Using identification discs and a card in a wallet, RCAF officials identified the body as LAC Duncan Joseph McDonald. Duncan’s remains were transported to Mulgrave, where he was laid to rest in St. Lawrence Parish Cemetery.

At the time of his death, Duncan was survived by seven siblings—brothers John R., Daniel and Osborn, Mulgrave; sisters Mrs. Leo [Stella Louise] Mc Kinnon and Beatrice McDonald, Mulgrave; Mrs. Miles R. [Annie] Ryan, Stellarton; and Mrs. William H. [Hilda Mary] McNeil, Antigonish. Duncan’s mother Catherine passed away in Halifax, NS, in April 1979.

Information on RCAF Station, Sydney, NS, obtained from Paul Ozorak’s self-published book, Abandoned Military Installations of Canada, Volume 3: Atlantic (2001). Special thanks to Major (Retired) Gerry Madigan, Stewiacke, NS, for his assistance in locating background information for Duncan’s story. Gerry has researched long-forgotten aspects of Nova Scotia’s Second World War coastal defences and authored a number of interesting stories that are available online at his Nova Scotia Military History blog.

Gunner Clyde Elmer Myers—Died of Sickness March 17, 1944

 Clyde Elmer Myers was born in Glace Bay, NS, on April 3, 1925, the oldest child of Delbert Spurgeon and Gladys Maud (Horton) Myers. Delbert was born in Half Island Cove in February 1881, the fourth of William George and Hannah (Horton) Myers’ six children.

Gunner Clyde Myers' Headstone, Evergreen Cemetery, Guysborough, NS

Two of Delbert’s older siblings departed for the United States. Emma Blanche (DOB December 25, 1874), William and Hannah Myers’ oldest child, married Herbert Roscoe Closson in West Beverly, Massachusetts, on December 14, 1899. The couple had one son, Roscoe Edgar. Blanche spent the rest of her years in the United States, passing away in North Carolina in 1962. Her brother, Howard Charles Myers (DOB May 15, 1879), arrived in Massachusetts in 1902. Howard married and settled in Beverly, where he raised a family of three sons. He passed away there in 1961.

The other four Myers children remained in Half Island Cove. Delbert’s oldest brother, James William, fished with his father from a young age. James never married, passing away in his home community on December 6, 1950, at age 74. Delbert’s two youngest siblings both died in middle age. Albert Isaac, also a bachelor and fisherman, passed away on June 27, 1924, at 41 years of age. Mae Ida, the youngest of the Myers children, also remained single. She died in the Red Cross Hospital, Guysborough, on November 1, 1940, at age 53.

On January 29, 1919, Delbert Myers married Gladys Maud Horton, daughter of of Moses C. and Carrie (Nickerson) Horton, in a ceremony held in Roachvale, Guysborough County. At the time of the 1921 census, the couple were living in the Cole Harbour census district, where Delbert worked as a fisherman. Their first child, Dolena Hortense, was born in Queensport on February 5, 1922.

While his attestation papers state that the couple’s only son, Clyde Elmer, was born in Glace Bay, the exact circumstances of his birth are unclear as Delbert and Gladys resided in Queensport for most of their lives. A second daughter, Joyce Muriel, was born there on August 5, 1927. Tragically, Dolena died of complications from chronic nephritis [kidney disease] on September 14, 1929. She was seven and a half years old at the time of her passing.

Clyde left school at age 16 having completed Grade 8, and went to work in the fishery with his father. Events overseas, however, soon impacted his life. Under the terms of the National Resources Mobilization Act (1940), all Canadian men and women 16 years of age and older were required to register with the Canadian government. This provided officials with a comprehensive list of all men of military age. In October 1940, the government “called up” the first group of unmarried individuals ages 21 to 24 for a 30-day training course.

The following year, the training period was expanded to four months, after which trainees could be assigned to military duty in Canada. While a 1942 national plebiscite approved the adoption of compulsory overseas service, the practice did not commence until late 1944, when a serious shortage of infantry reinforcements forced the government to to so.

Young men under the age of 21 years were permitted to voluntarily enlist for training and service in Canada. On January 26, 1944, Clyde Myers enlisted with the Canadian Army at Halifax, NS, He stood six feet and weighed 140 pounds at the time. An assessment in his service file describes Clyde as having “a neat clean pleasing appearance and notes that “he does quite a lot of reading. This recruit has high average ability and should become an efficient soldier…. Will be 19 years of age on April 3, 1944.” The assessor recommended assignment to the Royal Canadian Artillery, where Clyde commenced service with the rank of Gunner.

On February 10, Clyde was assigned to No. 61 Canadian Army (Basic) Training Center, New Glasgow. Nine days later, he “presented himself at the Medical Inspection Room complaining of [a] rather severe sore throat and generalized aches and pains.” Clyde was immediately admitted to New Glasgow Military Hospital, where an initial examination recorded a body temperature of 102.5 degrees Fahrenheit (39.2 degrees Celsius).

Clyde’s chest was clear at the time of admission, resulting in a preliminary diagnosis of influenza, an ailment that was widespread in camp at the time. He was examined daily and no signs of chest complications were observed. On February 29—Clyde’s tenth day in hospital—“a blotchy erythematous rash, coarse in type, appeared on [his] thorax [area of the body between the neck and abdomen], back and limbs.” He was immediately diagnosed with measles and placed in the hospital’s isolation ward.

Medical personnel concluded that “symptoms of the principle respiratory infection previous to the rash were… a forerunner of the dermatological lesion [rash] or possibly even occur[ed] in the incubation period. “Clyde’s case of measles was “of rather greater severity than the usual cases seen at the time.”

On March 3, staff conducted a medical examination of Clyde’s chest, “which had previously been clear [but now] showed definite coarse moist rales [small clicking, bubbling or rattling sounds] at [the] right base [of the right lung]…. The impression of possible bronchial pneumonia was entertained at the time.” Two days later, doctors detected a “definite dullness in [the] right base and right axilla up to the arch of the sixth rib posteriorly.” Breathing sounds were suppressed up to the arch of Clyde’s eighth rib, where “moist rales were audible.”

The new symptoms confirmed a diagnosis of pneumonia of the right lung. Medications were immediately prescribed and Clyde’s condition improved noticeably over the next few days. On March 15, however, staff noticed “a fine erythematous rash [a skin condition caused by a viral infection]… on the chest.” Assuming that it was a reaction to one of Clyde’s medications, doctors immediately discontinued its use. The following day, the rash showed signs of clearing and Clyde’s condition appeared to improve.

On March 17, “the patient was seen on daily rounds [and] seemed to be moderately well.” A chest examination detected “some resonance at right base and right axilla with medium and coarse moist rales, giving the impression of resolving pneumonia. At that time no anxiety was felt about his condition.”

About 2:00 pm that afternoon, the attending physician happened to be in Clyde’s ward and “suddenly noticed a distinct change in his condition.” He was gasping for breath and his skin was “almost a grey pallor.” His respiratory rate had never risen above 30 since admission, but was now elevated to between 40 and 60 breaths per minute. The physician “immediately recognized [that] the acute respiratory distress required oxygen therapy and he was immediately transferred to Aberdeen Hospital, New Glasgow, by ambulance.”

Military authorities promptly sent a telegram to Delbert and Gladys, informing them that Clyde was seriously ill. After his admission to the Aberdeen Hospital, the attending registered nurse, Ms. Mabelle Grant, placed a phone call to Queensport, in an effort to contact his parents. As the Myers did not have a phone, she left a message with a neighbour, stating that Clyde had been placed on the “Danger List.”

An x-ray taken at admission showed “pneumothorax [an abnormal collection of air in the space between the thin layer of tissue covering the lungs and the chest cavity] of the right thoracic cavity with collapse of the right lung.” Medical personnel immediately administered oxygen therapy “and other stimulant measures,” but “the course was gradually downhill and the patient expired four or five hours after admission.”

Clyde was officially pronounced dead at 9:40 pm March 17, 1944. While no autopsy was conducted, the attending physician concluded that “the collapse of the right lung following the pneumothorax was sudden in character, inasmuch as the respiratory rate was never elevated beyond 30 during his stay in the New Glasgow Military Hospital. The pneumothorax was probably a result of softening of the right visceral pleura [membrane covering the lungs] by the pneumonic process and consequent perforation.”

Gunner Clyde Elmer Myers was laid to rest in Evergreen Cemetery, Guysborough. A Court of Inquiry, held on June 7, 1944, concluded that he had received appropriate medical care from staff in both hospitals and that nothing further could have been done to save his life. As Clyde’s death occurred while he was in uniform, military authorities approved the provision of a standard Commonwealth War Graves Commission headstone for his grave.

While Clyde’s passing approximately two weeks before his nineteenth birthday was no doubt a shock to his parents, the circumstances of two other deaths in the Myers family suggest a vulnerability to respiratory illness. His brother Albert Lewis’s 1924 passing was the result of “double pneumonia,” while his sister Mae Ida’s 1940 death was due to “lobar pneumonia.”

Clyde’s death was not the last tragedy for the Myers family. On December 18, 1947, his young sister Joyce died at St. Martha’s Hospital, Antigonish, at age 20. Her death certificate identified “cardio-vascular renal [kidney] disease” as the cause, with advanced secondary anemia [failure of the bone marrow to produce sufficient blood cells] as a contributing factor.

Myers Siblings' Headstone, Evergreen Cemetery, Guysborough, NS

Gladys Maud Myers passed away at age 69 in Queensport on March 28, 1966, after suffering a heart attack. Her husband Delbert died at home on June 4, 1971, at age 90, the result of a “cerebral thrombosis” (blood clot in the brain). Both were laid to rest in Evergreen Cemetery, Guysborough.

Staff Sergeant Frederick Leo "Fred" Hubbard—Died of Wounds March 11, 1944

 Frederick Leo “Fred” Hubbard was born in Canso, Guysborough County, on March 25, 1919. Fred’s father, Daniel Clifton Hubbard, was a native of Charlesville, Shelburne County, the son of Thomas Martin and Lydia (Nickerson) Hubbard. His mother, Cora Anna Hurst, was born in Canso on January 8, 1882, the daughter of Evan MacPherson “Mack” and Maria Grace (Feltmate) Hurst.

Staff Sergeant Frederick Leo Hubbard

Both sides of Cora Hurst’s family trace their roots to Loyalist soldiers who settled in Guysborough County in the aftermath of the American Revolutionary War (1776 - 1783). Frederick Feltmate, Maria’s great-great-grandfather, was born in Dutch Fork, Newberry, South Carolina, in 1765. During the American Revolution, Frederick enlisted with the South Carolina Regiment, known as the ‘Royalists.” When the Regiment was disbanded in the spring of 1783, Frederick left St. Augustine, Florida, for Nova Scotia with a group of Royalist soldiers.

On December 24, 1783, approximately 900 men who had served with three Loyalist regiments arrived in Country Harbour, Guysborough County, aboard the vessel Nymph. Frederick Feltmate and some of his South Carolina comrades were part of the group. The new arrivals lacked proper shelter and supplies, and endured a harsh first winter that supposedly claimed 300 lives. The following summer, the men were offered land grants and set about establishing new homes in the virgin wilderness.

Frederick received 100 acres of land in the County Harbour area, part of the “Major Wright” grant. He subsequently married and raised a family that included a son, John Frederick Feltmate, born in Country Harbour on December 25, 1791. John married Elizabeth Lydia Deickhoff (1793 - 1869) and settled in Whitehead, where he passed away on October 17, 1873.

John and Elizabeth’s son, Samuel Isaiah Feltmate, was born in Queensport on June 2, 1825, and married Mary Elizabeth Uloth (1833 - 1862). He passed away in Canso on December 15, 1914. Samuel and Mary’s daughter, Maria Grace Feltmate, was born in Whitehead on August 9, 1859.

Fred’s grandfather Mack traced his family roots to Samuel Hurst, born in Middlesborough, Yorkshire, England, on January 17, 1725. On an unknown date, Samuel immigrated to the 13 Colonies. Among his children was a son Samuel Alexander, born in Massachusetts in 1753.

Samuel Alexander served with the 60th (Royal American) Regiment of Foot during the American Revolutionary War. In June 1783, the 60th’s Regiment’s 3rd and 4th Battalions were disbanded. Three months later, a group of the unit’s former soldiers and their families arrived in Halifax, NS. In July 1784, 76 of the 60th Regiment’s former soldiers departed for Chedabucto Bay, Guysborough County, accompanied by 34 women, 19 children and four servants.

Among the settlers were Private Samuel Alexander Hurst, his wife Elizabeth, two daughters Elizabeth and Sarah, and a son, John William (1781 - 1857). Samuel received a land grant of 300 acres in the Crow Harbour [Queensport] area. He died in Guysborough around 1838.

John William Hurst married Esther Mary Bedford in Guysborough on May 22, 1804. The couple raised a family of 10 children in Half Island Cove. One of John and Esther’s sons, Samuel William, was born on September 14, 1823, and married Diana Smith (1818 - 1901). Evan MacPherson “Mack” Hurst (1854 - 1883), was their eldest child.

On October 15, 1881, Mack Hurst married Maria Grace Feltmate in a ceremony that took place in Cape Canso. The marriage was short-lived, as Mack died in 1883, possibly the result of an accident at sea. Prior to Mack’s death, Maria gave birth to a daughter, Cora Anna, on January 8, 1882. A second child, Mary Elizabeth (1883 - 1957), was born after her father’s passing.

Widowed with two young children, Maria married John Berrigan, son of James and Ann Berrigan, Canso, on November 18, 1885. Over the ensuing years, the couple raised a family of nine children. At the time of the 1891 census, Cora and her sister Mary were residing in Canso with their paternal grandparents, Samuel and Diana Hurst. A decade later, Cora was living in her step-father John Berrigan’s Canso home with her mother Maria. Also in the household were nine Berrigan children—five girls and four boys, ranging in age from five months to 15 years.

On December 23, 1908, 27-year-old Cora Hurst married 33-year-old Daniel Clifton Hubbard in a Methodist ceremony that took place in Canso. The following year, the first of the couple’s children—a daughter, Sadie Florence—was born. As the years passed, eight more children joined the Hubbard family—a second daughter and seven sons.

Frederick Leo “Fred” Hubbard, Clifton and Cora’s sixth child and fourth son, was born in Canso on March 25, 1919. While Fred and his siblings spent their formative years in the community, their father Clifton pursued a livelihood at sea. In the 1880s, he had worked aboard a fishing boat out of Gloucester, Massachusetts and later worked out of the Boston fish pier.

Clifton eventually returned to Nova Scotia and worked out of the Canso area, where he met Cora. At various times, it appears that his livelihood took him back to the United States. At the time of the 1930 US census, for instance, he was residing with a brother-in-law in Winthrop, MA, his occupation listed as “fisherman.”

As the decade passed, several of Fred’s older siblings left Nova Scotia for Massachusetts. William Elias “Bill” was the first, arriving there in the mid-1930s. George Irving followed him in 1938. Fred made the trip to Boston aboard SS Yarmouth in mid-October 1939, and was living in a Roxbury, MA, rooming house at the time of the 1940 US census. Brothers Mack, John and Gordon arrived in the early 1940s.

After moving to Boston, Fred found work as a “storeroom man” in a hotel, quite possibly the “Mariners’ House” operated by his older brother Irving. Fred also enrolled in a local seminary, with plans to become a Methodist minister. Like many young men of his generation, however, the outbreak of the Second World War in Europe soon disrupted his plans.

On October 16, 1940, Fred registered for the US military draft. At the time, he was employed by the Boston Port & Seaman’s Aid Society, 11 North Square. Fred listed his mother Cora, 37 Chambers St., Boston, as his next of kin. He had completed four years of high school, and claimed to be a citizen of the United States, although no official document can be located to verify this assertion.

Fred’s civilian life ended on March 6, 1941, when he enlisted with the United States Army in Boston. Single with no dependents, he commenced service as a Private but was destined to advance to the rank of Staff Sergeant over the next three years. Fred was assigned to the 182nd Infantry Regiment, a Massachusetts unit with deep historical roots. An active Massachusetts National Guard unit, the 182nd commenced active federal service on January 16, 1941, and departed for Charlestown shortly afterward.

While the United States was officially neutral in the war that had broken out in Europe, its government supported Great Britain by providing munitions on a “cash and carry” basis. The country also implemented a military draft and significantly increased its defence spending as President Franklin D. Roosevelt prepared for possible entry into the war.

Roosevelt’s plans were a response not only to events in Europe, where Germany had forcefully occupied large parts of the continent. A similar phenomenon took place in the Pacific region, where the United States had numerous territorial interests. The country acquired the Philippines from Spain in 1898 and also controlled Midway (1867), the Hawaiian Islands (1898), Wake (1899), Samoa (1899) and the Line Islands (1912).

Throughout the 1930s, Japan sought to expand its sphere of influence in the Pacific region. Initially, it focused on Manchuria but soon expanded its interest to Chinese territory. The result was a full-scale warfare between the two countries that commenced in July 1937. Before year’s end, Japan captured Shanghai and Nanjing, and continued its advance into Chinese territory throughout the rest of the decade. By 1941, the two sides had reached a stalemate. Japan having occupied much of northern, central and coastal China, while the Nationalist government under Chiang Kai-Shek controlled the Chinese interior.

After the outbreak of the Second World War in Europe and France’s surrender to German forces, Japan seized control of French Indochina in September 1940. The acquisition severed China’s land connection with the outside world. Later that same month, Japan entered a formal military alliance with Italy and Germany. While the move was politically significant, there was little military coordination between Germany and Japan until the late stages of the war.

Japan’s expansionist plans inevitably resulted in tensions with Western countries already active in the Pacific region. It was particularly interested in the Dutch East Indies, Indochina, Malaya and the Philippines, as these locations contained significant oil and mineral reserves, resources vital to the success of Japan’s imperialist goals. When the governments of Australia, the United States, and Britain joined the Netherlands government in exile in imposing a ban on the sale of oil, iron ore and steel to Japan, the stage was set for an inevitable conflict.

Totally dependent on imports for these vital resources, Japan faced the prospect of economic collapse and a humiliating withdrawal from its recent conquests If it could not secure a dependable source. As a result, in mid-1941, Japanese military authorities commenced planning for war with the Western powers. Recognizing that the battle would be largely fought at sea, the country launched a rapid expansion of its naval resources.

Japan’s major objective during the initial phase of the impending conflict was the seizure of the Dutch West Indies and Malaya, areas that could provide many of the resources denied by the Western embargo. Military strategists also identified the capture of the Philippines, Wake and Guam as key to a Japanese victory. The plan called for a limited war, during which Japan would seize its key objectives and then establish a defensive perimeter to repel Allied counterattacks. Once these initial stages were complete, the Japanese were convinced that they could achieve a negotiated peace.

The key to a Japanese victory required neutralizing the United States Pacific Fleet based at Pearl Harbour, Hawaii. Such a move would provide Japan with the time required to establish its defensive perimeter in two phases. First, the Japanese planned to occupy major Pacific objectives—the Philippines, British Malaya, Borneo, Burma, Rabaul [a strategic city in Papua New Guinea] and the Dutch West Indies.

The second phase required a second expansion, during which Japan planned to seize control of eastern New Guinea, New Britain, Fiji, Samoa and other strategic locations near Australia. Finally, the country planned to secure Midway and the Aleutian Islands in the North Pacific—territories under American control—creating a defensive barrier well beyond its occupied territories.

The success of the entire plan depended not only on an effective attack on American naval forces in Pearl Harbour. The Japanese High Command also believed that a negotiated peace could be achieved after its plan was successfully implemented. After all, this had been the case in its previous wars against China (1894-95) and Russia (1904-05). As events unfolded, however, neither assumption became reality and the Japanese found themselves embroiled in a long-term conflict with the United States and its Western allies.

In the early hours of December 7, 1941, Japan launched a surprise air strike on the United States naval base in Pearl Harbour, Hawaii. Simultaneously, Japanese forces carried out similar attacks on American and British territories across the Pacific region—the Philippines, Guam, Wake Island, Malaya, Singapore and Hong Kong. Wile the Pearl Harbour attack crippled the US Pacific Fleet, it failed to deliver a fatal blow. Nor did the American government seek to negotiate with Japan in its aftermath. Instead, the wave of outrage that spread across the country brought the United States into the war the day after the Pearl Harbour attack.

Despite America’s entry into the war, the Japanese aggressively continued its expansionist plans. During the first six months of 1942, its forces secured Hong Kong, British Burma, the Dutch East Indies, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Singapore, the Philippines, Bali and Timor. While the Japanese set about securing the territories they now controlled, Allied forces slowly organized their forces and prepared to respond.

The focus soon shifted to a key naval battle as the Japanese sought to secure supremacy in the Pacific. The first target was the strategically important, American-held island of Midway, northwest of Hawaii. In this instance, however, American forces had successfully intercepted Japanese communications and learned of the planned attack several weeks beforehand.

As the Japanese transport group made its way toward the island, American naval and aerial forces launched an attack on the convoy on June 3 when it was 1,110 kilometres west of Midway. Japanese forces suffered significant losses and were unable to deliver a decisive blow to American forces at sea or on the island. Within 48 hours, Japanese military commanders abandoned the Midway operation.

In the long term, the failure of the Midway attack was a crucial blow to Japan’s plans. However, its advances continued in the South Pacific as it secured most of New Guinea and the Solomon Islands by mid-summer 1942. By that time, however, American forces had already established a significant presence in the area and were about to present their first direct challenge to Japanese expansion.

In the aftermath of the the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour, Fred Hubbard’s 182nd Infantry Regiment departed for Melbourne, Australia, on January 14, 1942, as part of US Task Force 6814. On March 6, the 182nd’s personnel broke camp and made their way to Melbourne’s docks, where they boarded ships for an unknown destination. Six days later, the Task Force landed in New Caledonia, a French colony 1,200 kilometres east of Brisbane, Australia. The island had been selected as a base for the United States South Pacific Fleet. Approximately 50,000 troops gathered there as American forces prepared for an offensive against Japanese-occupied territory north of Australia.

On May 27, 1942, Task Force 6814 was redesigned the “Americal Division”—a combination of the words “American” and “Caledonia”—and prepared for combat in the Japanese-occupied islands north of Australia.
The first step in the campaign occurred in early August 1942, when US Marines landed on the Solomon islands of Guadalcanal and Tulagi, and launched the first American counterattack on Japanese forces in the Pacific theatre. While Japan responded with furious counter-attacks on its beach-heads, the US managed to establish a foothold on Guadalcanal.

Over the next several months, elements of the Americal Division made their way to Guadalcanal. The 182nd Regiment arrived on the island on November 12, 1942. The inexperienced soldiers now found themselves under regular Japanese aerial bombardment as the two sides jockeyed for control of the strategic island. US military hospital records indicate that Fred received treatment for a “penetrating” wound to his left arm caused by an artillery shell fragment shortly after arriving on the island. He was discharged to duty before year’s end.

It is not clear if Frank rejoined the 182nd in time for its first major assignment. In late December 1942, the unit participated in an assault on Japanese defensive positions atop the “Sea Horse” ridge, one of the island’s prominent geographical features. The persistent American effort to secure Guadalcanal eventually forced Japan to abandon the island in February 1943.

After helping secure Allied possession of Guadalcanal, the 182nd’s Americal Division was travelled to the Fiji Islands for training and defensive duties in early March 1943. Personnel established camp on the island of Viti Levu, where they remained for most of the year. In late December, the Division commenced a move to Bougainville Island.

Located at the northern tip of the Solomon archipelago, Bougainville was largely under the control of Japanese forces when the Americal Division arrived on the island. The 3rd Marine Division had established a beachhead at Cape Torokina, located in the centre of the island’s western coastline, in November 1943. The following month, the Americal’s units relieved the exhausted Marines and undertook the task of holding and expanding the right flank of the beach-head’s perimeter.

While Torokina was located on a coastal plain that extended along the island’s western coastline, a central mountain range containing several active, dormant and inactive volcanoes dominated much of the island’s topography. A dense tropical jungle covered the entire area. As a result, achieving Allied control over Bougainville was a slow and difficult process.

Recognizing Bougainville’s strategic location east of Papua New Guinea, Japanese forces were determined to eliminate any American presence on the island. Throughout the early months of 1944, military staff developed a plan and assembled the required resources for a major counter-attack. What became known as the “Battle of the Perimeter” commenced on March 9, 1944.

The Americal Division guarded the perimeter to the east of the beach-head, while the US 37th Infantry Division protected its western border. In the Americal sector, the 182nd Regiment occupied a central position between the 164th and 132nd Regiments. While Japanese forces initially seized control of Cannon Hill and Hill 700 to the north of the beach-head, 37th Division soldiers recaptured both locations on March 12, with the assistance of a bombardment from supporting US Navy destroyers.

Later that same day, Japanese forces launched a second Japanese attack in the 37th’s sector. Fighting continued into March 13 before Japanese forces were once again driven back. Two more attempts were made to penetrate the American perimeter on March 15 and 17, but both were successfully repelled. A final attack on the night of March 23/24 made some progress but was once again pushed back.

The final phase of the battle occurred on March 27, when the Americal Division’s soldiers pushed Japanese forces off Hill 260 in their sector. Having sustained heavy losses during the attacks, the Japanese withdrew the majority of their forces into the deep interior northern and southern ends of the island. Australian intelligence officials later estimated their losses in the fighting at 5,400 killed and 7,100 wounded. The fighting was the last Japanese ground offensive in the South Pacific region.

According to family sources, Staff Sergeant Frederick Leo Hubbard was protecting a young local boy caught in crossfire during the initial stage of the Battle of the Perimeter when he was wounded by enemy fire. Evacuated to military hospital, he died of wounds on March 11, 1944, the third day of fighting. A Purple Heart and Bronze Medal recipient, Fred was laid to rest in Fort William McKinley Cemetery, Manila, Philippines, after the war’s conclusion.

By the time of Fred’s death, his parents had returned to Clifton’s home community of Charlesville, Shelburne County. Clifton passed away there on January 20, 1949, at 74 years of age. His widow Cora remained in Charlesville, where her daughter, Sadie McComskey, was living. Cora passed away on May 6, 1960, at 79 years of age, and was laid to rest beside her husband in Green Grove Cemetery, Charlesville.

Special thanks to Dylan Hubbard, Boston, MA, great-grandson of Fred's brother George, who provided a picture of his great-great-uncle and contributed valuable information on the Hubbard family.