Private Ray Douglas Uloth—Died of Wounds October 14, 1944

 Ray Douglas Uloth was born in Dort’s Cove, Guysborough County, on March 29, 1925. Both of Ray’s parents were Guysborough County natives. His mother, Anita Louise “Nita,” was the daughter of Percy John Peart and Charlotte Noble “Lottie” Cook, Cook’s Cove. His father, Sylvester Philip, was the son of Adam Caspar Uloth, Cole Harbour, and Mary Elizabeth Dort, Dort’s Cove.

Private Ray Douglas Uloth

Sylvester Uloth was also a First World War veteran. Conscripted into military service at Camp Aldershot, NS, on June 4, 1918, the 22-year-old served with the 6th Battalion, Canadian Garrison Regiment, Halifax, for the month of July before departing for overseas on August 2. Two weeks later, Sylvester disembarked in Liverpool. England, Upon arriving at Camp Aldershot, he was assigned to the 17th Battalion, the reserve unit that provided reinforcements for Nova Scotia’s 25th and 85th Battalions.

On September 5, Sylvester was diagnosed with mumps and placed in an isolation unit for almost three weeks. After returning to duty, he spent four months in camp before he was transferred to the Canadian Army Medical Corps, Shorncliffe. Upon arriving there, he was assigned to Granville Special Hospital, Buxton, where he served in an unknown capacity for five months.

Following a 12-day leave in early July, Sylvester reported to J Wing, Canadian Corps Camp, where he awaited orders to return to Canada. He departed for home aboard SS Saxonia on August 13 and arrived in Halifax 10 days later. Officially discharged from military service on September 28, 1919, he headed to his home in Dort’s Cove.

Upon returning to civilian life, Sylvester worked in the local fishery. He and Nita Peart married in Queensport on December 16, 1924. Ray, their only son, was born the following year. A daughter, Phyllis Mae, joined the family in 1935, while a second daughter, Barbara Louise, was born in 1942.

Ray completed Grade VIII and five months of Grade IX before leaving school at age 15 “to help his father.” During the summer and autumn months, he worked in the local fishery. He then spent the winter in local lumber camps. At the time of his military enlistment, he was employed by Chisholm Brothers, Garden of Eden, Pictou County.

In early 1944, Ray was “called up” under the terms of the National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) and enlisted as an NRMA soldier at Halifax on January 28, 1944. Early the following month, he commenced training at No. 60 Canadian Army Basic Training Center, Yarmouth. On April 4, Ray enlisted with the Canadian Active Service Force and reported to No. 14 Canadian Infantry Training Centre, Aldershot, for advanced instruction at month’s end.

On May 23, Ray received permission to marry Marion Winnifred Taylor, daughter of William and Nettie (Spanks) Taylor, Cook’s Cove. Six days later, the couple married in the United Church Parsonage, Guysborough. Ray then returned to duty for four weeks before receiving two weeks’ pre-embarkation leave on June 24.

Ray departed from Halifax on July 20 and set foot in the United Kingdom one week later. He was initially assigned to the reinforcement list for the Prince Edward Island Light Horse, an armoured unit that served as the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade’s Headquarters Squadron. After arriving overseas, he changed his next of kin from his mother Nita to his wife Marion, Cook’s Cove.

At the time of Ray’s overseas arrival, there was considerable demand for infantry reinforcements, as Canadian units were involved in fierce combat in both France and Italy. As a result, he remained in the United Kingdom for only three weeks before departing for the European continent on August 17. Ray came ashore in Normandy the following day and spent only two weeks in reinforcement camp before he was assigned to the South Saskatchewan Regiment on September 1, 1944.

The South Saskatchewan Regiment (SSR) traces its origins to the 95th Saskatchewan Rifles, an infantry regiment authorized in the Districts of Assiniboia and Saskatchewan on July 3, 1905, two months prior to the formation of the province of Saskatchewan. The unit established its headquarters in Regina, which became the provincial capital shortly afterward.

Following the outbreak of the First World War, the 95th amalgamated with the 60th Rifles of Canada (Moose Jaw) to form the South Saskatchewan Regiment (SSR) The unit provided soldiers for the 4th Canadian Division’s 46th Canadian Infantry Battalion, which commenced service on the European continent in August 1916. During two years of combat, the 46th recorded an astonishing casualty rate of 91.5 %—1,433 fatalities and 3,484 wounded—resulting in the term “Suicide Battalion” being applied to the unit.

After the war, the SSR expanded to include five militia regiments. In 1924, each became a distinct regiment and the title temporarily disappeared, only to be revived when the Weyburn Regiment and Saskatchewan Border Regiment (Estevan) amalgamated to form the South Saskatchewan Regiment on December 15, 1936.

On September 1, 1939, the SSR mobilized an infantry battalion for immediate service. Its personnel departed for overseas in mid-December 1939 and were assigned to the 2nd Canadian Division’s 6th Infantry Brigade. The Regiment served alongside the Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders of Canada (Manitoba) and Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal (Montreal, QC) throughout the Second World War.

The SSR and its 6th Brigade comrades participated in the ill-fated August 19, 1942 Dieppe Raid. Its personnel came ashore at Pourville, west of Dieppe, and encountered heavy German fire as they attempted to enter the village. The unit suffered 84 casualties during the day’s fighting before the survivors withdrew to safety.

After its Dieppe losses, the 2nd Canadian Division rebuilt its ranks while training in the United Kingdom. Its units remained there during the initial D-Day invasion, crossing the English Channel to France in early July and participating in the final six weeks of the Normandy campaign. At the time of Ray’s transfer, the South Saskatchewan Regiment was encamped on the outskirts of Rouen, having crossed the Seine River in pursuit of retreating German forces.

During the early afternoon of September 1, the Regiment departed for Dieppe. Later in the day, it received word that the town “was clear [and there] was no fighting to be done.” As personnel reached their destination, the “civilian population came out in full strength to cheer them on as they passed.”

The 2nd Canadian Division remained on the outskirts of Dieppe for several days, re-organizing and re-equipping while enjoying a few days’ rest. Some of its veterans “visited the Canadian cemetery where those who had lost their lives in the Dieppe raid [had been] buried by the French [residents].” Personnel who had served in the raid attended a service in the cemetery at 1000 hours September 3, “in remembrance of those who lost their lives in the operation.”

That evening, a reinforcement draft of three officers and 191 “other ranks” (OR) arrived in the South Saskatchewan Regiment’s camp. Private Ray Douglas Uloth was one of the new arrivals, who were distributed among the unit’s four Companies. Three days later, the battalion moved out in late evening and headed toward the location of its next assignment—an area along the Belgian coast east of Dunkirk.

On September 8, personnel arrived in Hondschoote, France, adjacent to the Belgian border. Personnel crossed into Belgium at 1650 hours, passing through Veurne and arriving in Nieuwpoort, approximately 35 kilometers east of Dunkirk. The town “[had] been cleared of Germans by the Belgian White Brigade [a resistance group]” and was secured by 2300 hours.

The South Saskatchewan war diary observed that “the population were vey pleased to see the soldiers and pleased more still that they were Canadians.” The unit quickly learned that approximately 700 German soldiers were located on the town’s outskirts “in a well dug position with reinforced pill boxes and…connecting tunnels to each position.” At 0400 hours September 10, two SSR Companies launched an attack on the enemy force, but were “unable to penetrate the strongpoint…. [A]t first light the Companies had to withdraw,” having suffered only light casualties.

A second attack commenced at 1930 hours and secured the unit’s first objective two hours later. Pausing briefly to reorganize, the advance resumed at 0400 hours September 11. While the soldiers managed to reach the enemy pill boxes within 90 minutes, they were unable to advance any further and withdrew before dawn. An aerial attack on the German positions launched by Typhoon aircraft in early evening “missed the main defence point.”

Fighting resumed the following day, the 4th Canadian Brigade’s Essex Scottish Regiment securing one German strongpoint at 1205 hours. Four hours later, a South Saskatchewan Regiment officer delivered a surrender ultimatum to the remaining strongpoint. After a brief discussion, the officer in charge of German forces agreed to surrender at 0830 hours September 13.

The following morning, the surrender proceeded as agreed. Later in the day, the SSR commenced preparations for a move to Bray-Dunes Place, adjacent to the Belgian border east of Dunkirk. The Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders “were having a sticky time with their objective” and the unit was dispatched to “provide a firm base on the beach” while its Brigade mates attacked enemy positions from the west.

The Camerons’ attack commenced in early evening, but its soldiers found themselves “pinned down” and unable to retreat by 0300 hours September 14. At first light, “they were fighting in a hard, close quarter battle at the crossroads on the outskirts of Bray-Dunes Place.” In response, Brigade commanders assembled plans for a South Saskatchewan night attack across the dunes to relieve the pressure and allow the Camerons to withdraw.

The attack commenced at 0600 hours September 15 and was successful, the only casualties caused by “German wooden shoe mines” planted on the beach, Bray-Dunes was secured by 1500 hours and SSR Companies began to advance eastward along the coast, encountering enemy fire after only 200 meters. Efforts to clear the area stretched into the following day as German forces established a defensive position in a nearby sanatorium.

An SSR platoon that advanced toward the location encountered heavy fire. One officer and nine other ranks “OR” were killed, while another six soldiers were wounded during exchanges of fire, the first significant casualties since Ray joined the unit. By the afternoon of September 17, the SSR received word that German forces were withdrawing from Dunkirk by water as efforts to seize the sanatorium continued into the following day, without success.

During the evening of September 18, the Regiment was relieved and travelled to a concentration area near Kontich, 15 kilometers south of Antwerp, the following morning. Personnel settled into camp for a period of rest, reorganization and training after its Bray-Dunes tour. Over the next several days, the 6th Brigade organized a sports meet and an evening dance attended by locals.

The SSR moved out during the early morning hours of September 23, travelling northward across the Albert Canal to Gravenwezel, east of Antwerp, in late afternoon. Its soldiers then moved into positions along the Antwerp-Turnhout canal as enemy forces entrenched on the opposite bank directed mortar and machine gun fire at the new arrivals.

A 6th Brigade plan called for two units—the South Saskatchewans and Fusiliers Mont-Royal—to cross the canal the following morning and establish a bridgehead on the opposite bank. The operation commenced at 0600 hours September 24, the Fusiliers crossing at Lochtenberg while the SSR made its way across a smaller canal to the west. As its soldiers approached the Antwerp-Turnhout canal’s southern bank, enemy machine gun and sniper pinned them down and prevented further advance.

In early afternoon, South Saskatchewan personnel managed to cross the canal at a location closer to the Fusiliers and began to advance eastward toward their Brigade mates. In early evening, a German force of 200 soldiers and 12 tanks launched a counter-attack on the Fusiliers’ beach-head, requiring the SSR to pause. The presence of enemy tanks and lack of anti-tank guns forced the two battalions to retreat across the canal. The 6th Brigade reported a total of 113 casualties during the failed crossing, the majority of whom were Fusiliers personnel.

Over the next three days, 6th Brigade units rested and re-grouped as plans for a second canal crossing took shape. During that time, Typhoon aircraft and medium-range bombers launched air attacks on the German positions. On September 27, enemy artillery, mortar and sniper fire on the SSR’s location resulted in 10 casualties, including one fatality.

A second crossing attempt by SSR personnel commenced at 1530 hours September 28, under the cover of a smoke screen and with artillery support. The maneuver was actually a diversionary attack as 5th Infantry Brigade units crossed the Antwerp-Turnhout canal to the east of the 6th Brigade’s positions and secured a section of its northern bank near Brecht. Once word of the 5th’s success arrived, the SSR’s men retreated across the canal.

The Regiment endured sporadic enemy artillery fire throughout the night and following morning before moving out to a concentration area near Westmalle, 20 kilometers northeast of Antwerp, in late afternoon September 29. The following day, the unit’s war diary reported a total of 218 casualties—14 officers and 204 OR—during the month. The statistic included a total of six officer and 18 OR fatalities.

On October 1, the South Saskatchewan Regiment relocated eastward to a new concentration area south of St. Leonard. The soldiers found themselves along the banks of the Antwerp-Turnhout Canal once more. Preparations immediately commenced for an attack scheduled for the following morning. Personnel moved out to an assembly area at 0415 hours October 2 and two hours later the advance commenced.

The SSR cleared enemy forces from the village of Lochtenberg before crossing the canal and securing its northern bank. The following day, the unit continued to push southwestward, clearing the area of Brasschaat, northeast of Antwerp, by 2000 hours. On October 4, personnel retired to Brecht during the late evening hours as Canadian units prepared for a major operation north and west of Antwerp.

While Allied forces had successfully captured the Belgian port in early September, German forces controlled the northern and southern banks of the West Scheldt, the water passage connecting Antwerp to the North Sea. Securing access to the port would allow Allied forces to use its facilities as a much more efficient supply line for units deployed in Belgium and the Netherlands.

Allied military commanders divided the task into two separate campaigns, both involving Canadian formations. The 3rd Canadian Infantry Division and part of the 4th Canadian Armoured Brigade received orders to clear the “Breskens pocket,” a large area of Belgian and Dutch territory northeast of Brugge, Belgium. Named for a town on the West Scheldt’s southern bank, the German-occupied area stretched from Zeebrugge, Belgium, in the west to Braakman Inlet, Netherlands, in the east.

While the 3rd Canadian Division focused on the Breskens pocket, the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division and the remainder of the 4th Canadian Armoured Division were to secure the South Beveland peninsula and the island of Walcheren, located along the West Scheldt’s northern bank. 4th Canadian Armoured units would  cover the 2nd Division’s eastern flank while its infantry brigades concentrated on securing the isthmus leading to the peninsula.

The Battle of the Scheldt commenced on October 6, 1944, as 3rd Division units crossed the Leopold Canal north of Maldegem, Belgium. Simultaneously, units from 2nd Division’s 4th and 5th Brigades pushed northward from the outskirts of Antwerp, with the objective to securing the isthmus leading to South Beveland. The units encountered stubborn resistance, but made steady progress toward their first main objective—the town of Woensdrecht, directly east of the isthmus.

The 6th Brigade was not involved in the initial push. The SSR spent several days in Brecht before moving out on October 9. Personnel passed through several recently liberated towns—Lochtenburg, Fort de Shooten and Braaschaet—to the main Antwerp - Bergen-Op-Zoom road, which they followed northward. The unit crossed into the Netherlands and relieved the 4th Brigade’s Royal Highland Light Infantry near Huijbergen in the early hours of October 10.

The 6th Brigade was responsible for protecting the 4th and 5th Brigades’ eastern flank as their soldiers advanced toward Woensdrecht. While military commanders told the SSR “there were next to no enemy in the area we are to occupy,” the assessment soon proved inaccurate. As Allied forces pushed northward, German units nearby were determined to prevent the loss of the strategic isthmus and would soon engage all Canadian forces in the area.

 On October 11, the SSR’s war diary reported mortar and artillery fire on its location throughout the day as three of its Companies—A, B and D—settled into their assigned defensive positions, a triangular formation west of Huijbergen and east of Hoogerheide and Woensdrecht, Netherlands. C Company remained in reserve, ready to assist its comrades should the need arise.

Hoogerheide and Huijbergen, Netherlands (Google Maps image)

The first full day of the assignment was an eventful one. According to the SSR’s war diary, “Throughout the day the enemy sniped and mortared our positions. It was a very tough day for the boys as any movement brought fire on the spot.” At 2230 hours, an enemy party of 35 to 40 soldiers launched a counter-attack on B Company’s positions, but the soldiers held their ground and repelled the attackers with few casualties.

At 0700 hours October 13, a barrage of artillery and mortar fire targeted A and D Companies, but no subsequent attack materialized. The SSR’s positions were subjected to harassing machine gun and sniper fire throughout the day. By 1600 hours, a group of enemy soldiers had passed unobserved through a wooded area west of A Company’s positions. As machine gun fire commenced from that area, it soon became apparent that the Company was “virtually surrounded.”

At 1700 hours, several enemy tanks and a group of infantrymen attacked A Company’s line, but were driven back. The entire group remained on alert throughout the night, a German prisoner or war revealing that three tanks and approximately 80 enemy soldiers had gathered to the Company’s southeast, cutting off any possible retreat.

By morning October 14, the men were “tired but alert” as they awaited the arrival of a support party from the 4th Brigade’s Essex Scottish Regiment. With the assistance of several tanks, the Essex soldiers established contact with A Company around 1100 hours, capturing approximately 100 enemy personnel in the process. As the party made its way forward, “the Germans threw everything they had in the line of artillery and mortar [fire] at the troops. The artillery was big stuff and one of the dozen or so landed on the houses where [the Company] Command Post was located.”

Believing the situation was now stabilized, the Essex Scottish withdrew during late afternoon. Their departure, however, prompted a second counter-attack on A Company’s positions around 1800 hours. Four tanks and approximately 100 enemy soldiers advanced toward the SSR soldiers. The tanks in particular caused considerable confusion, as the six-pounder field guns defending A Company’s location were unable to target the armoured vehicles due to the angle of their approach.

One tank passed through a platoon position, “shooting H.E. [high explosive] shells into the trees and spraying [the] platoon’s positions with machine gun fire. Casualties from the H.E. were heavy.” By that time, the platoon had lost its commanding officer and platoon sergeant, and the remaining soldiers decided to withdraw to a road behind their position.

A second platoon, seeing their comrades retreat, followed suit. An officer attempted to fire at the tank with a PIAT [projectile infantry anti-tank] but was unable to establish a clear line of fire due to thick growth in the area. At this point, with two of its platoons out of position, the entire Company thought it best to withdraw “to prevent encirclement and possible destruction by the enemy.”

The SSR war diary commented, “Fortunately A Company was able to get most of their men out[,] including its wounded personnel.” Altogether, 15 of its soldiers were wounded and another eight missing after the day’s events. It is not clear to which Company Private Ray Uloth was assigned. However, he was among the SSR soldiers evacuated to No. 4 Canadian Field Dressing Station (CFDS) for medical treatment, having received a “high explosive shrapnel wound” to his upper right chest.

No. 4 CFDS records report that Private Ray Douglas Uloth “died of wounds on admission” and was temporarily buried “200 yards northeast of Ravenof Chateau [Castle],” west of the village of Putte, Netherlands. On June 1, 1945, his remains were re-interred in Bergen-Op-Zoom Canadian Military Cemetery, seven kilometers northeast of Bergen-Op-Zoom, Netherlands.

Private Ray Douglas Uloth's headstone, Bergen-Op-Zoom Canadian Military Cemetery

On October 19, Ray’s wife Marion received a telegram from the Minister of National Defence, informing her that “Private Ray Douglas Uloth has been officially reported wounded in action 14th of October 1944, nature and extent of wounds not yet available.” Two days later, a second telegram informed Marion that Ray had “died of wounds 14th October 1944.”

After the war, Marion (Taylor) Uloth married Frederick Godfrey Dort, son of Lewis and Alice Maud Dort, Dort’s Cove, in Guysborough on December 2, 1946. She and Fred raised a family of three children in their West Cooks Cove home. Marion passed away in Guysborough Memorial Hospital, Guysborough, on August 13, 2009.

Ray’s parents Sylvester and Nita Uloth eventually relocated to the Halifax area, where they raised their two daughters. In their later years, the couple returned to Guysborough town, where Nita passed away on May 29, 1986. Sylvester died in Camp Hill Hospital, Halifax, on June 10, 1989, and was laid to rest beside his wife Nita in Evergreen Cemetery, Guysborough.

Photograph of Private Ray Douglas Uloth courtesy of Stephanie (Lumsden) Hall, Guysborough County, NS. Photograph of his headstone courtesy of The War Graves Photographic Project.