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.
