Private Lorimer Leigh Johnson—Killed in Action April 21, 1945

 Lorimer Leigh Johnson was born in Hazel Hill, Guysborough County, on February 12, 1916, to George James and Laura (Lawrence) Johnson. James was the son of John Joseph and Nancy (Williams) Johnson, Salmon River, while Laura was the daughter of Benjamin and Mary (Dismal) Lawrence, Boylston. John and Laura were married in Canso on May 11, 1898. Their first child, John “Jack,” was born later that year, while a second son, Benjamin arrived in December 1900.

Private Lorimer Leigh Johnson (Source: Canadian Virtual War Memorial website)

Over the following decade, another four children joined the Johnson household—James (February 1902), Rubin (February 1904), Vernon (August 1908) and Dorothy “Dora” (June 1910). One child, Russell, died in infancy in 1906. By the time of the 1921 Canadian census, the family had expanded to include Ida May (c. 1911), Lorena “Lula” (c. 1913), Leigh (1916), and Muriel (c. 1919). The youngest Johnson child, a daughter Edith, was born around 1923.

Leigh, the ninth of James and Laura’s 11 children and their youngest son, left school at age 12 after completing Grade VI. No details are available on his adolescence. During the four years prior to his military enlistment, he worked in the local fishery in the employ of Mr. James Drover, Superintendent of the Commercial Cable Company’s Hazel Hill facility. On August 15, 1938, Leigh married Hattie Aleta Bennett, daughter of James Lemuel Bennett, Mahone Bay, Lunenburg County, and Rosamond Amanda “Rose” Reynold, Philips Harbour. The newlyweds established residence in Hazel Hill. 

Within weeks of the outbreak of the Second World War, the strategically important Strait of Canso area became a beehive of military activity. Artillery batteries at Auld’s Cove and Sand Point guarded the entries to the water passage and Canadian militia guarded the facilities. In the midst of the country’s rapid preparations for war, Leigh Johnson enlisted with the Canadian Active Service Force in Mulgrave on July 23, 1940.

Immediately following his enlistment, Leigh joined the ranks of the Pictou Highlanders, a Canadian militia unit that provided guards for the various military installations in the Mulgrave area. Meanwhile, Hattie remained in Hazel Hill, where she looked after a household that included three children—Howard Donald Bennett, age seven; Russell Johnson, age two; and Ralph Nelson Johnson, age three months.

Leigh spent almost one year in Mulgrave before receiving a transfer to a Pictou Highlanders detachment in Dartmouth. During the second half of November 1941, he was assigned to guard duty at Devil’s Battery, an artillery installation located at the entrance to Halifax Harbour. In early January 1942, Leigh completed a three-inch mortar course. He served in the Halifax area until early December 1942, when he travelled to Sussex Camp, New Brunswick, for a driver training course.

Upon completing the requirements for the trade of “Driver Wheeled Class III” in early February 1943, Leigh proceeded to the Canadian Army Training School, Woodstock, ON, for Advanced Driving and Maintenance instruction. After completing the “Phase III Driver Mechanics” program, he qualified as a “Driver I/C [internal combustion] Class III, M/C [motorcycle] Grade III.” on April 2, 1943, and received a two-week furlough.

Leigh and unidentified soldier in training (date and location unknown)

On April 19, Leigh returned to duty with a Pictou Highlanders detachment stationed in Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador. He served there until mid-September 1943, when he returned to Nova Scotia. Following a second two-week furlough, he briefly reported to Debert, NS, before relocating to Saint John, NB, on October 9. At the first of the following month, he was promoted to the rank of Acting Corporal.

On November 28, Leigh was attached to A-30 Canadian Infantry Training Center, Utopia, NB—near St. George—for two weeks. He then returned to Saint John, where he remained for the winter of 1943-44. The exact nature of his duties while stationed there are not known. On April 23, 1944, Leigh reverted to the rank of Private at his own request, a sign that he was preparing to depart for overseas. The following day, he was “struck off strength” by the Pictou Highlanders and posted to No. 1 Transit Camp, Windsor, NS.

Leigh spent two months with the 1st Training Battalion, Debert, before departing for overseas on July 20, 1944. One week later, he arrived in the United Kingdom and was assigned to No. 4 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU). On August 4, he “re-mustered” as a “general duty” soldier. By that point in the war, Allied forces had been fighting in Normandy, France, for almost two months, creating a significant demand for reinforcements.

While waiting for a transfer to an active combat unit, Leigh completed a mortar course in mid-August. At month’s end, he was transferred to the 2nd Canadian Base Reinforcement Group. Leigh landed in France on August 30 and was assigned to the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada three days later.

The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (Princess Louise’s) was established in Hamilton, Ontario, on September 13, 1903. Two community organizations—the St. Andrews Society and Sons of Scotland—contributed to its foundation as a Highland regiment. During the First World War, the Argylls provided 145 officers and more than 5,000 “other ranks” for service with Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) battalions, particularly the 16th (Canadian Scottish), 19th (Central Ontario) and 173rd (Canadian Highlanders) Battalions.

On September 1, 1939, “details” from the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders were placed on active service as a machine gun unit. Expanded to full battalion status in August 1940, the unit converted to an infantry regiment on February 1, 1941. A battalion of recruits from the regiment carried out garrison duty in Jamaica from September 1941 to May 1943. The soldiers briefly returned to Canada before departing for the United Kingdom on July 21, 1943.

Following its overseas arrival, the Argylls were assigned to the 4th Canadian Armoured Division’s 10th Canadian Infantry Brigade, where its personnel would serve alongside two other Ontario units—the Lincoln and Welland Regiment (“Lincs”) and the Algonquin Regiment (“Algonquins”). 

During the third week of July 1944, the Argylls crossed the English Channel to France with the 4th Canadian Armoured Division (4th CAD). Before month’s end, its personnel relieved the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division’s Highland Light Infantry of Canada (Waterloo, ON) in a sector of the front line south of Caen, France.

The Argylls participated in the August 1944 push southward toward Falaise and the subsequent pursuit of German forces as they retreated northward toward the Seine River. While the 2nd and 3rd Canadian Divisions proceeded toward the French coast, where they “liberated” the Channel ports, 4th CAD headed northward toward the Belgian frontier. When Private Lorimer Leigh Johnson joined the Argylls’ ranks on September 4, its personnel were enjoying several days’ rest near Buigny-l’Abbé, east of Abbeville, France.

Leigh was part of a large reinforcement draft that “enable[d] the Battalion to return to the four-Company basis” that was standard for infantry units. The Argylls’ war diary noted that B and C Companies had been “operating as one Company for some time.” Leigh was among the new arrivals assigned to B Company, allowing it to return to its previous status.

During the Argylls’ brief stay in Buigney-l’Abbé, British forces liberated Brussels, Belgium, and reached the port of Antwerp. The successes set the tone for a major campaign to secure a water passage from the North Sea to the liberated port, whose infrastructure was largely intact after German forces were cleared from the city.

Once in Allied hands, Antwerp’s facilities would provide Allied forces with a much shorter route for bringing supplies into the Dutch and Belgian combat zones. All three Canadian Divisions—2nd, 3rd and 4th CAD—played a central role in what became known as “the Battle of the Scheldt,” a two-month campaign to secure the northern and southern shores of the West Scheldt, an inlet connecting Antwerp to the North Sea.

During the days immediately after Leigh’s arrival, 4th CAD commenced a rapid advance northward. The Argylls moved out at 1030 hours September 6, their eventual destination an area north of Ghent, Belgium. Personnel crossed the Belgian border at 1400 hours the following day, its war diary describing the civilian population’s response to their arrival:

“Our reception along the way has benefited a stirring one; people crowded the streets of the towns as we pushed through, and when we paused for a few minutes gathered around our vehicles. They would press bottles of champagne, cognac, beer, etc., upon us.”

On September 8, the Argylls reached Bruges, three of its Companies crossing the Ghent Canal at Oostcamp and establishing a bridgehead in Moerbrugge, despite heavy enemy fire. Over the next several days, 10th Brigade units slowly pushed northward, reaching the Leopold Canal by mid-month. Fierce resistance to further advance resulted in Allied commanders ordering the 10th Brigade to advance eastward through Maldegem and Eeklo to the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal. Upon reaching the water course during the evening of September 17, the Argylls and their comrades pushed northward toward the Dutch border.

Allied commanders assigned the task of securing the “Breskens pocket,” a large area of German-occupied land north of the front line between Bruges and Ghent, to the 2nd and 2rd Canadian Infantry Divisions. The 4th Armoured Division’s units were responsible for sealing the pocket’s eastern boundary, preventing any enemy retreat in that direction. The northward advance toward Terneuzen, on the West Scheldt’s southern bank, commenced on September 18, 10th Brigade armoured units reaching Terneuzen three days later.

The Battle of the Scheldt (Source: C. P. Stacey, Introduction to the Study of Canadian Military History)

After liberating the Dutch town of Sas van Gent on September 19, the Argylls pushed westward, crossing back into Belgium and establishing a “holding position” along the Isabella Canal, near Boekhoute. For the balance of the month, personnel rotated in and out of the line two Companies at a time, with German soldiers holding the northern canal bank opposite their location.

The stalemate along the canal continued into October, On the morning of October 6, Canadian infantry units staged a “fake crossing” as a diversion to an impending 9th Brigade operation. Three days later, the North Nova Scotia Highlanders crossed the mouth of the Braakman Inlet and established a bridgehead on its western side The opening of a new front to the north was part of a strategy to seal the pocket’s eastern boundary. As 3rd Division units pushed southward, 10th Brigade advanced northward. Finally, on October 15, the two groups made contact, securing the Breskens pocket’s eastern flank.

The following day, the Argylls and their 10th Brigade comrades hastily relocated to a concentration area north-east of Antwerp. Their new objective lay to the north, where 2nd Division units had already advanced into an isthmus leading to the South Beveland peninsula, located along the West Scheldt’s northern shore. The 4th Canadian Armoured Division was given the task of clearing enemy forces from  the 2nd Division’s eastern flank as the campaign into South Beveland and Walcheren Island continued.

The terrain in the area “lent itself well to mines and booby-traps: flat, sandy, and heavily wooded.” As 4th CAD soon discovered, “the ground was ill-suited to armour.” On the afternoon of October 17, the Argylls moved to a new concentration area three kilometers north of Antwerp. Personnel spent the following day preparing for the gruelling campaign that was set to start within 48 hours.

Operation “Suitcase” commenced on the morning of October 20. The Argyll’s B Company on the right “found the going very tough from the moment they passed the start line…. One of their [supporting] tanks was disabled by a mine, and when the officer got out to investigate the extent of the damage, he was shot and killed by a sniper.” As the area was heavily wooded, personnel experienced difficulty maintaining communication with Battalion Headquarters.

D Company, however, “made good progress against light opposition” and were almost 1,000 metres in advance of B Company. At 1325 hours, D paused to wait for their B comrades and co-ordinate a final push through Kalmthout, which lay in front of them. When B finally arrived, the two Companies proceeded into the town. According the Argylls’ war diary entry, “the troops were under accurate mortar fire almost continuously and were harassed by snipers.” Casualties for the day numbered approximately 30, including two officers wounded and a third officer killed. By nightfall, the two Companies “had dug in and consolidated a [defensive] line.”

Private Lorimer Leigh Johnson was among the day’s casualties. Evacuated to a nearby casualty clearing station, he was admitted to No. 8 Canadian General Hospital. His wounds do not appear to have been serious, as he was discharged from hospital on November 5, only to be readmitted one week later for a two-week stay. Discharged to duty on November 26, Leigh was posted to the active reinforcement list two weeks later.

Leigh spent the next two months awaiting orders to rejoin his Argyll and Sutherland comrades. Finally, on January 23, 1945, he was assigned to the 11th (Reinforcement) Battalion, 2nd Canadian Base Reinforcement Group. Two days later, he returned to the Argylls’ ranks. His time there was brief, as he was admitted to No. 10 Canadian General Hospital at month’s end. On February 15, he was discharged to duty and re-assigned to the Argylls on March 3. Four days later, he arrived in the unit’s camp east of Uedem, Germany.

At that point in the war, Canadian and British units were preparing to resume Operation Blockbuster, a southeastward advance into German territory, with the goal of reaching the Rhine River. Simultaneously, the United States 9th Army to the south was advancing toward their Allies’ forces. On March 8, the Argylls remained in reserve as their two 10th Brigade comrades advanced toward the village of Veen. When the attackers encountered strong resistance, the Argylls moved forward the following day, only to discover that enemy forces had withdrawn from the area during the night.

By the evening of March 10, other Canadian and British units secured the remaining enemy territory west of the Rhine, bringing Operation Blockbuster to an end. The following day, the Argylls withdrew to s’Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, moving on to a training area at Esch, near Boxtel, in the early hours of March 13. Personnel entered billets in the town, where “morale was very high since we were many, many miles from the all-too-familiar whistling, whining, cracking and crumping of enemy shells and mortars.”

The first day was spent cleaning up and resting, while training commenced with a 20-kilometer route march on March 14. A 10-day schedule combined additional route marches with sessions on the “Company in the attack,” training running from 0900 to 1700 hours. During the evening, “arrangements for recreation and entertainment were made.” One week into the schedule, word arrived that American forces had completed the task of “clearing the West bank of the Rhine.”

During the last week of the month, the Argylls received details on its role in a massive Canadian - British crossing of the Rhine and subsequent push northeastward into German territory. Personnel moved out at 0945 hours March 30 and arrived in Kleve at 1315 hours. A British and American force on the Canadians’ right flank had already crossed the Rhine. 4th CAD remained in reserve as the 2nd and 3rd Canadian Infantry Divisions prepared to cross the Rhine northeast of Kleve.

The following day, the Argylls crossed the Rhine west of Rees at 1625 hours and settled in for the night. 2nd Division units had already secured Terborg, the starting position for the unit’s advance, reporting that 
the going [was] very ‘soft’ and no opposition was envisaged for [the Argyll’s] first push towards Lochem.” The unit moved forward during the night of April 1/2, crossing back into the Netherlands and travelling to Ruurlo, south of Lochem, their vehicles travelling without lights in unfamiliar terrain.

During the morning of April 2, personnel pushed forward with tank support to Lochem and the Twente Canal beyond the town. Most enemy forces withdrew to the opposite bank, leaving only a small group in Lochem, which was cleared by midday. The Argylls established positions along the canal, 2nd Division units passing through their lines and establishing a bridgehead on the opposite bank before midnight.

On the evening of April 3, the Argylls headed northeast, arriving at a location along the Twente Canal opposite Delden the following afternoon. Personnel waited for engineers to complete a bridge across the waterway, with their first major objective—Almelo—located 15 kilometers north. The unit’s convoy pulled out at 2200 hours April 4 and was south of its destination by early morning, Companies then set out on foot, reaching the outskirts of the town by first light April 5.

Personnel encountered no opposition as they entered Almelo, clearing the town and crossing a nearby canal by 1000 hours. The advance continued northward toward Emlichheim, Germany, 40 kilometers north. The unit departed at 1530 hours in pouring rain, crossing the German border at Tubbergen and becoming “the first Allied troops to enter this fair-sized border town.” Personnel reached their designated concentration area before midnight and settled in for the night.

On April 6, the Argylls received orders to assist the Lake Superior Regiment (LSR) in clearing the town of Meppen, 45 kilometers east of their location. The main part of the town, located across the Ems River, remained in German hands. The unit reached a position west of their target at 1945 hours and settled in for the night. The following morning, personnel cleared the area west of the Ems, enduring a “substantial amount” of hostile fire from across the river during the operation.

While enemy forces were still in the area, it was believed that the bulk of German tanks and infantry had retreated eastward. At 0600 hours April 8, two Argyll Companies launched an assault across the Ems River. The operation “succeeded without a snag,” making rapid progress. By 1800 hours, a bridge was in place and the remainder of the unit moved into the main part of the town. The unit’s war diary commented, “It was the first fair-sized town we had taken that had not been cleared of civilians. Most of the people had remained in town throughout the fighting, and the few that had pulled out soon started coming back in once the fighting ceased.”

During the night of April 8/9, the Lincoln and Welland Regiment passed through the Argylls’ positions and advanced to Sôgel without opposition. While German forces launched a counter-attack during the night of April 9/10, the Canadians held their ground. Two Argyll Companies moved into the town during the day, the remainder waiting in Meppen for further orders.

At 1145 hours April 11, “one of the hottest days so far this year,” the remainder of the Argylls left Meppen in “kangaroos”—armoured personnel carriers—passing through Sôgel in the early afternoon and moving on to Werlte, where no enemy force was encountered. Personnel spent a “quiet night” in the town before departing for Vrees, eight kilometers to the northeast. the following morning. Once again, personnel encountered no opposition, passing through the town at mid-day and continuing on to Neuvres without incident.

After another quiet night, word arrived on April 13 that the 9th American Army was within 120 kilometers of Berlin. The Lake Superior Regiment, however, had encountered “fanatical resistance in their attack on Friesoythe, the largest town southwest of Oldenburg, and the Argylls were once again ordered to come to their aid.

The Regiment was on the move before midnight and in position by 0200 hours April 14, an operation to clear the town scheduled for first light. The weather was cold with a strong north wind as the advance commenced. By 0635 hours, all was proceeding as planned, the Argylls having pushed “well into the town.” The entire area was cleared by 1030 hours, engineers placing a bridge over a canal and allowing tanks to enter the town. During the afternoon, the Lincoln and Welland Regiment passed through the town and advanced toward the Kūsten Canal, the next major obstacle in the path of the Canadian advance.

Tragically, during the day’s events, a group of German soldiers by-passed during the push to the town followed in its wake, encountering the Argyll’s Battalion Headquarters in “an isolated house… in the mist of first light.” Sentries mistook the group for friendly soldiers and were caught off guard as they approached. 

The enemy party then attacked the house, inflicting several casualties. Most significantly, the Argylls’s Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Frederick Ernest Wigle, DSO, OBE, was “shot through the back by one of the German snipers” when he went upstairs and looked out a window “to ascertain the strength of the enemy.” Headquarters personnel, however, held their ground and drove off the attacking force.

The following day, two Argyll Companies headed toward the Küsten Canal, probing its approaches for enemy forces. Both endured “a substantial amount of mortar fire during the night. On April 16, the Algonquin Regiment passed through the Argylls’ forward line on its way to the canal. Once in position, its soldiers were to establish a bridgehead on the opposite side, allowing the Argylls to pass through and continue the advance.

The Algonquins quickly discovered that German forces were concentrated “in some strength on the other side of the canal” and all bridges across the water course has been destroyed. Nevertheless, the unit established a bridgehead “without meeting much opposition on the ground” during the night of April 16/17. As they settled in, however, significant enemy mortar and artillery fire struck the area, preventing Canadian engineers from assembling a bridge across the canal.

Despite the shelling, the Argylls’ main and tactical Headquarters left Friesoythe at 1800 hours April 17 and advanced toward the canal. The unit’s Companies followed at 2100 hours, A and D crossing the canal by boat within 40 minutes, despite hostile fire. Shortly afterward, German forces launched a counterattack, forcing the Algonquins to retreat toward the canal and placing A Company in a precarious position. The soldiers dug in and held their ground throughout the night as the Argylls’ remaining Companies made their way across.

Heavy shelling continued the following day, inflicting several casualties. Royal Air Force Typhoons attacked enemy positions as a “Class 9 ferry” operated across the canal, moving vehicles to the opposite bank. The Algonquins quickly regained the ground lost during the counterattack and the Lincoln and Welland Regiment arrived in the bridgehead during the late evening and early morning hours.

In the early hours of April 19, engineers finally completed a bridge across the canal, only to have it destroyed by enemy artillery fire. Work on the structure resumed later in the morning and the bridge was ready for use by midday, allowing the British Columbia Regiment’s Sherman tanks to cross and provide much-needed support for the infantry units.

Enemy fire disabled the bridge during the evening hours, while “fanatical enemy infantry counter-attacked our well dug-in forces.” The Canadians held their ground, driving off the attackers. April 20 started as a clear spring day, German forces still resisting attempts to advance beyond the bridgehead. Typhoons once again targeted enemy positions as the Argylls’ B and C Companies commenced a push northward during the late morning hours.

The unit’s two remaining Companies moved forward later in the afternoon. By nightfall, A Company “had advanced to slightly below the small river that separated us from Osterscheps, on the outskirts of Edewecht, where it encountered small arms and mortar fire.” D Company established positions “slightly to the southwest” as tanks worked their way forward, providing support for the infantry advance.

April 21 commenced with “rain about midnight and [it] continued to pour steadily throughout the night.” Argyll Companies “dug in near the rivulet… spent a particularly unpleasant night, exposed to enemy fire as well as the elements.” Several reconnaissance patrols reported that all bridges across the river “were blown and…the other bank was held in some strength by the enemy.”

The Companies were scheduled to cross the river in assault boats during the afternoon. At 1500 hours, “A Company proceeded up to the river in strength, [but] was subjected to very heavy enemy fire and withdrew.” At 1615 hours, “B Company assaulted across the river and successfully established a bridgehead without meeting too much opposition. They consolidated and dug in near the southern tip of [a] small river.”

By that time, A Company’s No. 7 Platoon that had absorbed the enemy counterattack at the Küsten Canal “was… practically wiped out.” Companies did not encounter much resistance on the ground, with the exception of the occasional sniper, but “the enemy had evidently trained all his guns on the general river-crossing site, and our troops were subjected to more heavy shelling than they had at any time since the Hochwald Gap.”

By 1825 hours, all Companies were across the river. D Company advanced ahead of the others into the southern area of Osterscheps, while B Company remained in support near the river. Fear of a counterattack on its exposed left flank resulted in orders for D Company to retreat and help the unit “firm up” the bridgehead.  Before D Company could do so, the anticipated counterattack commenced. While the soldiers “succeeded in beating off the attack,” they suffered casualties in the process. The situation “quieted down” afterward and the night passed without significant enemy fire.

After three days of combat under continuous hostile fire, the Argylls’ four Companies’ “had been reduced to 55 - 60 each in A, B and C, with only 47 remaining in D…. [The unit’s] fighting strength [was] thus cut down about 50 %, [making] it… imperative that we be assigned some reinforcements before setting out on a new major task.” The unit’s war diary estimated that “since crossing the Küsten canal the Argylls had suffered 150 casualties.”

Private Lorimer Leigh Johnson was among the unit’s April 21, 1945 fatalities, killed sometime during the frantic day of fighting in the vicinity of Osterscheps. The exact circumstances of his death are unknown. Leigh was initially buried in Friesoythe, Oldenburg, Germany, “200 feet south of [a] bridge on [the] main road.” 

On May 10, 1945, Major-General A. E. Walford, Adjutant-General for Canada, wrote to Leigh’w widow Hattie, expressing his deep regret “upon learning of the death of your husband… who gave his life in the Service of his Country in the Western European Theatre of War.” On March 9, 1946, Leigh’s remains were re-interred in Holten Canadian Military Cemetery, Holten, Netherlands, 35 kilometers east-northeast of Apeldoorn.

Private Lorimer Leigh Johnson's headstone. Holten Canadian Military Cemetery

  

Hattie Johnson passed away on June 7, 1979. Leigh and Hattie’s oldest son, Donald Bennett, died in Lakeside, Halifax, County, on May 3, 2014, while their youngest son, Ralph Nelson Johnson, passed away in Hazel Hill, Guysborough County, on April 17, 2017. The fate of Leigh and Hattie’s third son, Russell, is unknown.

Electrical Artificer Huntley Allison Fanning—Perished at Sea April 16, 1945

 Huntley Allison Fanning was born in Drum Head, Guysborough County, on October 28,1921, to Leonard and Thressa [sic] (Manthorn) Fanning. Leonard was the son of Edward Alexander Fanning, Drum Head, and Lavinia Langley, Seal Harbour, while Thressa was the daughter of Charles Manthorn, Seal Harbour, and Elizabeth Taylor, Port Bickerton.

Electrical Artificer Huntley Allison Fanning

Leonard and Thressa were married in Seal Harbour on August 23, 1916. Their first child, Laurie Wilson Fanning, was born in same community on December 26, 1917. Huntley, who arrived almost four years later, was the couple’s second and youngest child. The family resided in Drum Head, where Leonard worked in the local fishery.

Huntley attended the local school, leaving at age 17 after completing Grade IX and “most of [Grade] X.” At an unknown time—likely by correspondence—he completed technical courses in “Blue Print Reading” and “Air conditioning - Refrigeration” from the Nova Scotia Technical School, Halifax.

On May 26, 1942, Huntley enlisted with the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve (RCNVR) at Halifax, NS. According to documents in his service file, he had served with the Pictou Highlanders, a Canadian militia unit, since 1938, suggesting he had lived in Pictou County for several years after leaving school. By the time of his enlistment, he had accumulated three years of “general experience” repairing refrigerator motors and one year of “electrical work” for Northern Electric Co., Ltd., Halifax, immediately prior to his joining the Navy.

Three days after his enlistment, Huntley reported to HMCS Cornwallis, the RCN’s main Nova Scotian training facility, located in Deep Brook, Annapolis County. On August 6, 1942, he was transferred to HMCS Star, a Hamilton, Ontario, training facility where he completed the “electrical artificer” trade program during the winter of 1942-43. “EAs” were responsible for the operation, maintenance and repair of all electrical equipment and systems aboard a navy vessel. Duties also included overseeing the ship’s power generation and distribution system, as well as responding to electrical emergencies.

 In early April 1943, Huntley returned to HMCS Cornwallis, where he completed a five-day “anti-gas” course. On June 1, he was posted to HMCS Stadacona, Halifax. Three weeks later, he officially qualified as “A/EA 4”—Acting Electricial Artificer, Class 4—having achieved an average of 70.9 % in his courses.

On July 4, 1943, Huntley was posted to HMCS Avalon, St. John’s, NL, a Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) ocean escort base. The facility also served as a repair and training centre, offering instruction in anti-submarine warfare, gunnery, radar and Loran (long-range navigation) operation, and night-escort training. During the 15 months Huntley served in Newfoundland, he was confirmed in the rank of EA 4/C—Electrical Artificer Class 4c.” A comment in his service file described him as a “good workman” and “recommended [him] for confirmation.” An evaluation form completed by Lieutenant R. C. Bryer stated that Huntley “demonstrated intelligence, energy and initiative” while serving at Avalon and that his “efficiency is superior.”

Huntley returned to Nova Scotia on October 10, 1944, and was assigned to HMCS Peregrine, Halifax. The city’s second RCN base served as a “manning pool” and co-ordinating centre for personnel drafts to vessels and shore bases. During his brief time there, Huntley was “employed in HMC Dockyard, [completing] high and low [voltage] repairs.” Nine days later, Huntley was assigned to HMCS Esquimalt, a diesel-powered, Bangor Class minesweeper.

Launched in early August 1941 and officially commissioned into service at Sorel, QC, in late October 1942, the Esquimalt carried a crew of six officers and 77 “ratings,” the naval term for “other ranks.” While initially intended for mine-sweeping duties, many of the Bangor Class ships were re-assigned as convoy escorts  during the Battle of the Atlantic. In preparation for possible U-boat encounters, two depth charge launchers and chutes for deploying depth charges were installed on the vessels, while several guns of varying calibres were mounted on their decks.

The Esquimalt arrived in Halifax in November 1942, but was plagued by mechanical issues throughout the next two years. The vessel underwent repairs in March and May 1943, after which it was assigned to the Newfoundland Force, St. John’s, NL, for local patrol duties. In September 1944, it was transferred to the Halifax Local Defence Force and commenced a three-month refit at month’s end.

In early 1945, the Esquimalt returned to duty, patrolling the approaches to Halifax harbour for enemy mines and U-boats. During his time aboard the vessel, Huntley was promoted to the rank of EA Class 3/c on March 27, 1945, having demonstrated “competen[cy] to perform the [required] duties.” The promotion came as the vessel completed preparations for an upcoming convoy escort assignment.

On the evening of April 15, 1945, the Esquimalt sailed out of Halifax harbour for an anti-submarine patrol of its approaches. A crew of 78 all ranks—six officers and 72 ratings—was aboard the vessel. The Esquimalt was to rendezvous with HMCS Sarnia, another Bangor-Class minesweeper, at 0800 hours April 16. The two vessels would then head to HMCS Avalon for a convoy escort assignment across the North Atlantic.

While there had been warnings of U-boats in the area, the Esquimalt did not deploy any of the standard evasion tactics as it patrolled the approaches to Halifax harbour. It followed a straight course, not a zig-zag pattern, and did not deploy a towed decoy designed to attract “homing” torpedoes. Unbeknownst to its crew, German U-190 had been patrolling the area off the Halifax coast for several weeks. In fact, as the Esquimalt exited the harbour that evening, U-190 was eight kilometers off Chedabucto Head.

At 0600 hours April 16, Lieutenant John Smart, the officer in charge of the night watch, ordered the depth charge crew to their stations, a routine procedure during the “changing of the watch.” Seas were calm at the time and the depth charge crew “stood down” 10 minutes later. Around the same time, U-190 detected the Esquimalt’s presence. When its captain, Oberleutnant [First Lieutenant] Hans-Erwin Reith, took the submarine to the surface, he spotted the RCN vessel approximately 1,000 to 2,000 meters away.

Unexpectedly, the Esquimalt reversed course and headed directly toward U-190’s position. While the vessel had not detected the submarine, Reith assumed that an attack was imminent and immediately ordered his crew to launch an acoustic homing torpedo at the approaching ship. At 0630 hours, the weapon struck the Equimalt’s starboard side engine room, immediately disabling its power system and preventing its crew from sending a distress signal.

As water poured into the vessel’s hull, it listed severely to the starboard side. Its Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Robert MacMillan, immediately ordered his crew to abandon ship. Unfortunately, nobody thought to fire a distress flare during the process. Due to the severe list,  lifeboats mounted on the starboard side were underwater and could not be released from their davits. Crew members managed to throw four Carley floats—invertible life rafts equipped with basic survival gear—into the water before abandoning ship.

Within five minutes, the Esquimalt slipped beneath the surface. As the attack occurred early in the morning, many of the crew were lightly clothed when they jumped into the frigid Atlantic waters and swam toward the Carley floats. The lack of a distress call meant that several hours passed before anyone realized that something may have happened to the Esquimalt. As a result, many of the men who abandoned ship and made it to one of the four life rafts were soon suffering from exposure.

Around 0700 hours April 16, an RCAF aircraft passed over the location of the sinking. Men in the Carley floats waved frantically, but the air crew assumed they were local fishermen, who routinely waved at passing aircraft, and continued on their way. An hour later, survivors spotted a minesweeper heading toward the area, but it didn’t notice the men and suddenly changed course, disappearing out of sight.

When the Esquimalt failed to arrive for its scheduled 0800 rendezvous, the Sarnia set off in search of the vessel. Almost six hours after the sinking, a second RCAF aircraft spotted the Esquimalt’s sunken hull below the water and issued a distress signal. Shortly afterward, the Sarnia arrived on the scene, rescued 27 survivors from the four Carley floats, and retrieved a number of bodies from the life rafts and the surrounding waters.

EA Huntley Allison Fanning had managed to scramble onto a Carley float with 12 other survivors, but was in poor condition, suffering from hypothermia due to his time in the cold water. Able Seaman Frank Smith, Edmonton, Alberta, who survived the sinking, was aboard the same life raft and later described what transpired in a news item printed in the Halifax Herald:

“His body numbed beyond further suffering[, Huntley] spoke of his fiancée back in his Nova Scotian home town whom he was to have married on his next leave. ‘It looks as if we are not going to make it. I guess we won’t be able to get married this time,’ the dying sailor whispered. A few brief moments of silence followed as his buddies gazed into one another’s eye, then a “So long, fellows; keep plugging” and his body stilled into death.”

After his passing, Huntley’s comrades lowered his body into the water. His remains were never recovered from the sea. Seven of the 13 men aboard Huntley’s Carley float died of exposure before the Sarnia arrived. It was a similar story aboard the other three life rafts. Eight men perished in the actual sinking, while another 44 died from exposure before the Sarnia’s arrival. The Esquimalt was the last Royal Canadian Navy vessel lost due to enemy action during the Second World War.

On April 19, 1945, the Minister of National Defence for Naval Services sent a telegram to Mrs. Thressa Fanning, Drum Head, informing her that “your son Huntley Allison Fanning Electrical Artificer 3rd Class… is missing at sea due to enemy action.” A letter to Thressa from the Deputy Secretary of the Naval Board, dated May 7, 1945, confirmed Huntley’s fate:

“As circumstances surrounding his loss have been carefully reviewed, and as no news has been since received to the contrary, the Canadian Naval Authorities have now presumed his death to have occurred on the 16th of April, 1945.”

Huntley Allison Fanning’s name is engraved on the Halifax Memorial, erected in Point Pleasant Park in 1967 to commemorate 3,257 men and women from Canadian military units and merchant marine sailors who perished at sea during both world wars and have no known graves. Huntley’s father Leonard died in Drum Head in 1975 and was interred in Hillside Cemetery, Seal Harbour. His mother Thressa passed away in 1982 and was laid to rest beside her husband.

Huntley’s older brother, Laurie Wilson Fanning, also enlisted with the RCNVR during the Second World War, serving as a Hull Technician, a trade commonly known as “shipwright”. Laurie was on active duty when he met June Frances Langley in Halifax on January 1, 1942. A native of Port Hood, Inverness County, June had family connections to the Seal Harbour area and was working at the Moirs chocolate factory in Halifax when a cousin introduced her to Laurie. The following day, Laurie departed for Scotland aboard HMCS Hamilton.

Hull Technician Laurie Wilson Fanning

A former US Navy destroyer, the Hamilton was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy in 1941 and routinely escorted convoys across the North Atlantic. Laurie had logged one year’s service aboard the vessel prior to meeting June. Upon returning to Halifax three weeks later, he contacted her. The couple went to two movies and one dance before deciding to marry. As June later recalled, Things were different back then…. It was the height of the war, ships were sinking and I didn’t want to lose him.”

Laurie and June were married on February 10, 1942, in a simple ceremony held in a North End Halifax church. Most of the attendees were Navy personnel. Travel conditions at that time of the year meant that their parents were unable to attend. Several days later, Laurie packed his duffel bag and prepared to return to sea. Upon reporting for duty, he was informed that his time aboard ship and recent marriage had earned him a “shore draft.”

Laurie hastily returned to June with the good news. He remained in Halifax for one month before heading to a new assignment at HMCS Avalon, St. John’s, Newfoundland. In the meantime, June moved in with a cousin who was living in Glace Bay. Determined to rejoin her husband, she soon headed to Newfoundland by ship. It proved to be an arduous, five-day journey, due to intense submarine activity in the Cabot Strait. 

Upon arriving in Port aux Basques, June was initially denied entry to the British colony, but finally managed to obtain a permit for a five-week stay to visit her husband. She somehow managed to continually renew the permit, living in a small apartment for two and a half years while Laurie worked on base. During that time, the couple’s eldest child, a daughter, was born.

After the war, the young Fanning family returned to Drum Head, where Laurie “tried his hand at fishing” for a few years. He then worked on a Great Lakes iron-ore freighter for “about one year”—ship’s manifests indicate the year was 1951—before returning to Nova Scotia. Determined to remain at home, in 1953 he found permanent work at the Mindamar hard rock mine, located in Stirling, west of Framboise, Richmond County,

The Mindamar mine, a copper-lead-zinc operation, had opened in 1927 but was shut down in 1938. Production resumed in April 1952 following construction of a new mill and a four-compartment shaft and continued operation until 1956. During the time in Stirling, the Fanning household included three children, two more arriving in the ensuing years. The family lived in a small house Laurie built on Five Island Lake Road, approximately one kilometer from the mine. The structure was heated with coal and was not equipped with running water or indoor plumbing. A barrel beside the driveway, set into a spring, served as a water source.

When the Stirling operation closed in 1956, the Fannings joined a small group of mining families that relocated to the Heath Steele Mine, a copper-lead-zinc operation 60 kilometres north of Newcastle, NB. The family settled in Sevogle, a rural community approximately 26 kilometers northeast of Newcastle, where Laurie helped convert an old general store into a duplex that housed two families.

When the mine closed in 1958, the Fannings relocated to Ontario, only to return to Newcastle in November 1961 when the mining operation resumed. Laurie and June lived out their remaining years in the New Brunswick community. June passed away there at age 74 on June 10, 1997, and was interred in Miramichi Cemetery. Laurie Fanning died on November 3, 2003, at age 85 and was laid to rest beside his wife.

Background information on the HMCS Esquimalt sinking was obtained from Gerry Madigan's excellent online article, "A Memory Stirred." Information on Laurie Wilson Fanning's life, naval service and post-war years, was obtained from two online sources—an online story about the Sterling Mine written by Laurie's son Zane Fanning, and a profile of Laurie and June Fanning written by Beatrice Jardine and published in the Miramichi Leader on January 29, 1992.

Private Austin Havelock Munroe—Killed in Action March 25, 1945

 Austin Havelock Munroe was born in Little Dover, Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, on December 2, 1919, the youngest of Edward Perry “Ned” and Mary Jane (Murphy) Munroe’s six children. Both of Austin’s parents were Guysborough County natives. Ned was born in Whitehead, the son of Moses and Margaret Munroe, while Mary Jane was born in Crow Harbour (Queensport), the daughter of Thomas and Martha (Ryter) Murphy.

Private Austin Haelock Munroe

Austin spent his childhood years in a rural community where educational opportunities were limited. According to a note in his military service file, he “lived far from school…[and] seldom had a teacher.” During the winter of 1932 - 33, Austin’s family circumstances changed dramatically. On December 25, 1932, his mother Mary Jane passed away at age 56, “due probably to cerebral haemorrhage.” Just over two weeks later—January 10, 1933—his father Ned succumbed to “chronic interstitial nephritis,” a kidney ailment.

Only 13 years old at the time of his parents’ passing, Austin was taken in by a local family. He soon left school and went to work in the local lobster fishery with Alexander Keefe, Little Dover, who may have also been his legal guardian.
 
Following the outbreak of the Second World War, soldiers were a common sight at strategic locations along Nova Scotia’s Atlantic coastline. Local militia units were responsible for securing sites considered potential German U-boat targets. In the case of the Guysborough area, that task fell to the Pictou Highlanders, whose ranks were placed on active service on September 1, 1939, more than a week before Canada declared war on Germany.

Perhaps the presence of soldiers in the local area prompted young Austin to enlist with the Pictou Highlanders at Canso on July 13, 1940. Ten days later, he formally attested with the Canadian Active Service Force (CASF) at Mulgrave, NS. Among its many tasks, the Pictou Highlanders provided personnel for garrison duty at two artillery batteries located at both entrances to the Strait of Canso. Austin served in the area throughout the summer and autumn of 1940.

Briefly admitted to hospital with a “mild” case of influenza on November 19, Austin was discharged to duty one week later. During the spring of 1941, he travelled to Valcartier, QC, for training. Upon returning to Nova Scotia in late April, he was stationed in the Halifax area for the next 18 months. During that time, Austin completed duty assignments at McNab’s Island and Devil’s Battery, Hartlen Point, in January and February 1942. Perhaps not surprisingly, exposure to the damp, cold conditions at both locations led to a brief stay in hospital in late March and early April.

Austin served in the Halifax area throughout the spring and summer months. On September 10, 1942, Canadian military authorities designated a component of the Pictou Highlanders as a “Special Infantry Company” of the CASF and mobilized its members for active service. Austin was among the personnel assigned to the Company. The group departed for garrison duty in Bermuda on November 6, 1942, and arrived on the island six days later. Austin spent the next 14 months at St. George’s Barracks, an assignment much more preferable to his previous winter’s experience in the Halifax area.

Austin returned to Nova Scotia in mid-January 1944. An assessment completed at the time described him as “a cheerful, eager youth of likeable personality and normal manner and interests.” While slight in build, “he is hardy and of good stamina….” While lacking significant formal education at the time of enlistment, Austin had “acquired a slight ability to read and write while in the unit…. He claims he can write and read his own mail… [and] wants to get overseas; he appears steady and of genuine spirit.”

In early March 1944, Austin was assigned to the Advanced Infantry Reserve Training Centre, Camp Aldershot. An entry in his service file noted, “It appears that he was sent to this centre in error. Munroe is an alert young man with a good attitude towards overseas service…. Satisfactory progress reported at refresher basic, is pleasant and co-operative.”

Upon completing the six-week training program at Aldershot, Austin’s superiors recommended a transfer to the Canadian Army Educational Basic Training Centre, North Bay, ON. He reported to the facility on April 28 and spent one month there before being assigned to No. 32 Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps (RCAMC) Basic Training Centre, Peterborough, ON, in late May. At this point in his service, he appeared destined for a non-combat role once he arrived overseas.

A note in Austin’s personnel file provided this description of the three and a half months he spent at the Peterborough facility: “He writes letters home and can read his letters. States he studies the Reader’s Digest and papers to improve his spelling. He is light weight and will be best on general duty” with a Medical Corps unit.

On September 24, Austin was granted 10 days’ embarkation leave as he prepared to depart for the United Kingdom. During that time, he returned to Little Dover, where he married 20-year-old Annie Elizabeth Barry, daughter of Edmund and Mary Alice (Horne) Barry. The ceremony took place in Star of the Sea Roman Catholic Church, Canso, on October 2, 1944.

The following day, an entry on Austin’s personnel selection form noted that he “did [his] advanced training with good efficiency and very good conduct.” As a result, he was recommended for “general duty” with the RCAMC and deemed “suitable for overseas service (operational).” In late October, Austin reported to No. 1 Training Camp, Debert, where he awaited orders to proceed overseas. Prior to his departure, he changed the next of kin in his service file from his former employer, Alexander Keefe, to his young bride Annie.

Austin departed from Halifax on November 25 and disembarked in the United Kingdom 11 days later. He was immediately re-interviewed by military officials, who determined that he was “suitable… for Inf Rft [Infantry Reinforcement] if priority demands BUT not considered combatant material.” As Canadian units had endured more than six months of intense combat since landing on Juno Beach, Normandy, on June 6, 1944, it is not surprising that any man deemed “suitable” would be assigned to infantry duty. As a result of this re-assessment, Austin was transferred from the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps to the Canadian Infantry Corps and assigned to No. 1 Canadian Infantry Training Regiment.

On February 2, 1945, Austin was placed on the Canadian Infantry Reinforcement List. The following day, he departed for the Western European Theatre. He spent one month at the Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Camp, Ghent, Belgium, before he was assigned to the North Nova Scotia Highlanders infantry battalion on March 4. The following day, he officially joined the unit’s ranks.

The North Nova Scotia Highlanders (M. G.) was formed in 1936, following the amalgamation of the Cumberland Highlanders, Colchester and Hants Rifles, and “C” Company, 6th Machine Gun Battalion. In 1941, its title was shortened to “North Nova Scotia Highlanders.” The unit drew its personnel from the counties of northern Nova Scotia—Cumberland, Colchester, Hants, Pictou, Antigonish and Guysborough.

Following the outbreak of hostilities in Europe, the “North Novas,” as they were known, actively recruited across northern Nova Scotia. In June 1940, the unit was assigned to the 3rd Canadian Division, where it later became part of its 9th Brigade. The North Novas’ 1st Battalion, consisting of 3,000 personnel, departed from Halifax on July 21, 1941, and arrived in Bristol Harbour, UK, eight days later.

As was the case with many other Canadian units, its personnel endured several years of training and defensive assignments before finally seeing combat. The North Nova’s first action occurred on D-Day—June 6, 1944—when the unit’s soldiers came ashore at 1046 hours as part of the second wave of landings. Following the establishment of the Normandy beach-head, the unit participated in the Battle of Falaise Gap and the ensuing pursuit of German forces as they retreated northward into Belgium.

During the autumn and winter of 1944-45, the battalion participated in the Canadian Army’s campaign to liberate the Netherlands, a hard-fought engagement that inflicted significant casualties. In February 1945, the 1st Canadian Army, which included the North Nova’s 3rd Canadian Division, participated in the commencement of the Battle of Germany, a three-month long campaign to clear German forces from the western Rhineland.

The North Novas’ first assignment of the campaign occurred on February 8, when 3rd Division units  cleared a flooded area between the Nijmegen - Kleve Road and the Waal, a branch of the Rhine that flows through the Netherlands. The task was a challenging one, as the area was flooded to a depth of eight inches and contained numerous mine fields. The unit’s 9th Brigade was relieved the following day and retired to Nijmegen until February 28, when its soldiers returned to combat, clearing German forces from the village of Udem.

The battalion remained in the line until March 11, when its soldiers retired to the Reichwald Forest for a rest period. Austin most likely joined the battalion’s ranks during this break from front ine service. Meanwhile, Allied forces continued to advance eastward, reaching the Rhine’s western banks by March 20. The next challenge—crossing the Rhine—was both symbolic and challenging, as it marked the beginning of a push into the heart of Germany.

“Operation Plunder” commenced with a widespread aerial bombardment of German defensive positions on the Rhine’s eastern banks during the early mornng hours of March 23. At 0900 hours, the first Allied units crossed the Rhine. The North Novas, assigned to reserve positions, made their way across the river above Emmerich during the late afternoon and early evening hours, and spent the remainder of the night preparing for their next combat assignment—clearing enemy forces from the community of Bienen.

At 0900 hours March 24, North Nova soldiers attempted to enter the area and immediately encountered fierce resistance. A second assault, launched at 1430 hours, was also met with immense counter-fire but succeeded in establishing a foothold in the area. Fighting continued for another 24 hours before the entire objective was cleared of enemy forces. During the two-day offensive, the unit’s “A” and “B” Companies suffered heavy casualties. A total of eight NCOs (non-commissioned officers) and 31 “other ranks” (OR) were killed, while seven Officers and 60 OR were wounded.

Map of Rhine Crossing (Source: C. P. Stacey, The Victory Campaign)

The attack on Bienen was Austin's first and last combat experience. He was one of the 31 OR fatalities officially killed in action on March 25, 1945. Nine days later, military authorities sent a telegram to his young wife Annie, stating: "Regret deeply F45309 Private Austin Havelock Munroe has been officially reported killed in action." 

Austin was initially laid to rest in the 3rd Canadian Division Temporary Cemetery, Rees, Germany, on April 5, 1945. Five days later, Annie received a letter from Major-General A. E. Walford, offering condolences on her husband’s death. Annie received no further information until August 2, 1946, when military officials informed her that “the remains of your husband… have been carefully exhumed from the original place of interment and reverently reburied in Grave 13, Row E, Plot 17, of Nijmegen Canadian Military Cemetery, four miles south-east of Nijmegen, Holland…. This is a recognized burial ground and will receive care and maintenance in perpetuity.”

Following Austin’s death, Annie married Allan James Munroe, son of George and Mary Martella Munroe, Little Dover. She spent the remainder of her life in the small Guysborough community. Annie Munroe passed away on March 9, 2000, and was laid to rest in St. Agnes Cemetery, Little Dover.

Photograph of Austin Havelock Munroe courtesy of Velda Myette, Little Dover, Guysborough County. 

Sapper Neil Trueman Sponagle—Accidentally Killed March 18, 1945

 Neil Trueman Sponagle was born in Coddles Harbour, Guysborough County, on May 11, 1919. Both of Neil’s parents were Guysborough County natives. His father, George Roy Sponagle, was the son of John Sponagle, Coddles Harbour, and Hannah Gillie, New Harbour. Neil’s mother, Clara May Jones, was the daughter of Jeremiah C. Jones, Cooks Cove, and Ada J. Strople, Manchester.

Sapper Neil Trueman Sponagle

Roy and Clara were married in Cooks Cove on December 24, 1913, and established residence in Coddles Harbour, where Roy worked in the local fishery. The couple’s first child, Annie May, was born in Cooks Cove on May 29, 1915. Their three remaining children were born in Coddles Harbour. Earle Bartlett joined the family on November 25, 1916, while Neil arrived in May 1919. Ward Densmore, the youngest of the Sponagle children, was born on February 25, 1921.

Neil attended the local public school, completing Grade VIII before leaving at age 15. Over the next four years, he worked in the local fishery for “broken periods” and helped out on the family’s mixed farm. He soon developed an interest in diesel mechanics, completing a correspondence course in diesel engineering offered by Nova Scotia Technical College over a six-month period in 1937.

Neil put his newly acquired knowledge to use servicing marine engines on local fishing boats. His mechanical skills may have landed him a job with Locarno Mines, Goldboro, as a “powerhouse [diesel engine] operator” for four months in 1939. In July 1942, Neil commenced work as a “rivet tester” in Pictou Shipyards. He also completed two months of apprenticeship training in “acetylene cutting” while working there.

In late 1942, Neil was “called up” for service under the National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA). The federal law required all men of military service age to register, after which they could be required to complete a six-week training program. Neil underwent a medical examination at No. 6 District Depot, Halifax, NS, on December 29, 1942, and was “taken on strength” as an “NRMA soldier” the following day.

Less than one week later—January 5, 1943—Neil enlisted with the Canadian Active Service Force (CASF) at Halifax. A note in his service file states that he “was turned down in 1940, [but] got called again in 1943 [and] went active.” Documents in his file contain no details on the earlier rejection.

On January 29, 1943, Neil reported to No. 60 (Basic) Training Centre, Yarmouth, NS, for initial instruction. While there, a case of mumps in late March resulted in a three-week stay in a hospital isolation unit. Discharged in mid-April, Neil moved on to A14 (Advanced) Infantry Training Centre, Aldershot, NS, on May 14, 1943.

Shortly after arriving at Aldershot, he received permission to marry school teacher Naomi Gertrude “Goldie” Hayden, daughter of Edmund James Hayden and Sarah Atwater, Boylston. Neil had met Naomi around 1940, when she arrived in Coddles Harbour to teach in the local school. In fact, she boarded with Neil’s uncle and aunt, who happened to live just “down the hill” from his family home. 

On July 3, Neil was awarded six days’ leave. Two days later, he and Naomi were married in the United Church Manse, Guysborough. Following his leave, Neil briefly returned to duty at Aldershot before proceeding overseas on July 18. Upon arriving in the United Kingdom 10 days later, he was posted to No. 7 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU).

Neil and Naomi (Hayden) Sponagle on their wedding day

Prior to being assigned to active units, all “general reinforcement” personnel underwent an interview and assessment to determine where their skills could be best utilized. An interview report in Neil’s service file, dated September 9, 1943,  identified his civilian occupation as “diesel operator” and indicated an interest in “diesel work” while in uniform. The officer completing the assessment described Neil in these words: 

“Youthful, ambitious and willing…. He would be useful to RCE [Royal Canadian Engineers] as a diesel maintenance man. Very interested in diesel work…. [He] made trips on boats from harbour to harbour to gain experience. Has good educational level and high learning ability. Would possibly make good NCO [non-commissioned officer] material.”

As a result of the assessment, Neil was transferred to No. 1 Canadian Engineers Reinforcement Unit (CERU), Royal Canadian Engineers, on September 27 and re-mustered as an “electrician.” In mid-November, he commenced a course on pump operation, qualifying as an “Engineer Hand I/C [internal combustion], Category C” one month later. On December 23, 1943, Neil was assigned to the 11th (Lambton) Field Company, RCE.

The 11th Field Company traces its origins to the First World War’s 15th Field Company, Canadian Engineers (CE), organized in Ottawa, ON, in March 1916. The unit arrived in the United Kingdom on May 31, 1916, and was re-designated the 11th Field Company the following day. Its personnel landed in France with the 4th Canadian Division in mid-August 1916 and served on the European continent for the remainder of the war.

In May 1918, the 11th Field Company was absorbed into the 11th Battalion, Canadian Engineers, which also included personnel from the 124th Pioneer Battalion and 4th Canadian Engines Brigade. While the 11th Battalion was disbanded in November 1920, the 11th Field Company continued to operate, initially establishing its Headquarters in Windsor, ON, before relocating to Walkerton in 1924.

Due to a lack of financial resources, the 11th went dormant three years later but returned to active status shortly after the Lambton Regiment, a Sarnia artillery unit, began a transition to infantry service in late December 1936. At that time, a group of the Regiment’s personnel formed the 11th (Lambton) Field Company, RCE. Two other engineering units—the 7th Field Company and 1st Field Park Company—also operated in the same military district.

The 11th (Lambton) Field Company mobilized following the outbreak of war overseas. In 1940, all three of its military district’s engineering units were assigned to the 2nd Canadian Division. The 11th departed for overseas on July 22, 1940, and immediately resumed training. During their first year in the United Kingdom (UK), personnel spent one month at a “bridging camp” located in Pangbourne, Reading, on the banks of the Thames.

When the 2nd Canadian Division was assigned to home defence duties in October 1941, the 11th Field Company spent the winter of 1941-42 in Seaford, located on the southern coast of England. During home defence service, its “sappers” constructed beach obstacles, pill-boxes, anti-tank ditches and minefields in preparation for a possible German invasion. Other tasks during its time in the UK included adapting British roads to heavy military traffic and building military facilities, hospitals and airfields.

In May 1942, the 2nd Division entered reserve as several of its units prepared for their role in Operation Jubilee, an amphibious attack on the French port of Dieppe. 11th Field Company contributed 65 men to the ill-fated August 16, 1942 raid. During the months after the operation, its personnel completed courses at the School of Military Engineering, Ripon.

The remainder of the 11th’s time in the UK was divided between training and military exercises as Allied forces prepared for an invasion of the European continent. Due to its losses at Dieppe, the 2nd Division was not selected for service in the Italian campaign that commenced in July 1943. Instead, its units continued to train in preparation for an invasion of German-occupied Western Europe.

Sapper Neil Trueman Sponagle served with the unit during the final six months of training, On May 31, 1944, Neil qualified as “Driver Mechanic Class C,” suggesting that he would be involved in maintaining the unit’s equipment after its combat deployment in Europe.

2nd Canadian Division units remained in the UK on June 6, 1944, as an Allied force that included the 3rd Canadian Division landed on the beaches of Normandy, France. At that time, the 11th Field Company was stationed at Old Park Barracks, Dover, where its personnel awaited word on an imminent departure. At 0200 hours July 4, the unit moved out by vehicle to the London area. By mid-day, the convoy had arrived in Epping Forest, London, where the men exchanged their sterling currency for French francs, drew 48 hours’ rations, and were issued “Mae Wests” (inflatable life jackets) in preparation for the Channel crossing.

At 0600 hours July 5, the 11th travelled to East India Docks, where the process of loading equipment commenced. Personnel boarded the Empire Lancaster and headed down the Thames at 1640 hours. The ship anchored off Gravesend, where a convoy gradually assembled. At 1900 hours July 7, a flotilla of 20 vessels departed for the continent, passing through the Straits of Dover at midnight. Personnel first sighted the “shores of France” at 1800 hours July 8 as their convoy anchored off the Normandy coast, near Le Hamel.

The following day, the 11th’s men began clambering into transports at 1300 hours. Once all were ashore, they marched to a concentration area near Buhot. The 11th’s equipment was still aboard transports, heavy seas slowing the unloading process. Finally, at 0030 hours July 11, the Company moved out to a new location near Rots, northwest of Caen. Upon reaching their destination, personnel found themselves “in range of enemy mortars and shell fire” for the first time.

As the 11th commenced its service on the European continent, its composition reflected the standard for RCE Field Companies. At full strength. a Field Company consisted of seven officers and 249 “other ranks,” divided into four platoons—a Headquarters Platoon, consisting of four officers and 46 men, and three “working” platoons, each consisting of one officer and 68 men. Platoons were assigned identifying numbers—1, 2 or 3—and were referred to as such in the unit’s war diary, a daily record of its activities.

While Neil’s service file does not clearly indicate his assignment, a later entry in the war diary suggests that he was assigned to the Headquarters Platoon. His pre-war experience and military training suggest that he was likely part of a team of mechanics who serviced the unit’s diesel-powered equipment, which included bulldozers and heavy equipment trucks.

Before the end of its first day in France, 11th Field Company personnel checked for mines in two nearby areas. The unit was also informed that its personnel would provide support for the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division’s 6th Brigade units in upcoming operations. 

On July 12, the Company’s first full day in the line, two platoons departed at 0730 hours to “clear roads through [recently captured] Carpiquet and bury dead animals in vicinity of village.” A third platoon cleared anti-personnel mines near Villeneuve. By 1400 hours, the “streets [of Carpiquet were] nearly clean for one-way traffic. Thirty dead horses and cows have been pulled out of barns and buried outside the village.” The day’s activities reflect the most common daily RCE Field Company tasks in Normandy at that time. 

Canadian units had liberated Caen as 2nd Canadian Division units were landing in France. On July 18, 11th Field Company relocated to the outskirts of the city, where personnel prepared to ferry Sherman tanks across the Orne River, located along Caen’s southern boundary. 

Over the next 48 hours, the unit’s platoons checked and constructed approaches, taped out a roadway, and assembled a Bailey raft for the ferrying task, which commenced at 0900 hours July 19. By 1800 hours, a total of 40 tanks were transported across a 37-meter-wide section of the river, providing much-needed armoured support for infantry units clearing enemy forces from the river’s southern banks. 

The following day, 11th commenced construction of a Class 30 “double - double” Bailey bridge near the rafting site. When the first attempt “failed,” its nose dropping into the river at 0600 hours July 21, personnel worked in shifts throughout the day and night, disassembling and reconstructing the structure. The unit’s war diary commented, “Everyone is getting very tired after nearly two days of continuous work.” The bridge was completed at 1130 hours July 22 and immediately commenced operation.

The following day, personnel focused on road clearing and repair as Allied units commenced an advance south of Caen. Enemy artillery and mortar fire made conditions “very difficult,” forcing platoons to cease work on at least one occasion. The unit’s war diary reported its first Normandy fatality on July 25, when early morning mortar fire resulting in the death of one sapper. The following day, another two men were killed, a third fatally wounded, and three others injured when an artillery shell landing in the midst of No. 2 Platoon as it carried out road work. The incidents reveal the perilous conditions under which RCE units operated while serving in combat zones.

During the first two weeks of August, Allied forces conducted two major advances southward along the Caen-Falaise road. Prior to and during the attacks, the 11th and its RCE comrades checked for mines, repaired and cleared roads, and established water points. By August 21, Allied units began a northeastward advance toward the Seine River, in pursuit of retreating German units. Among the tasks the 11th’s personnel undertook as they made their way toward the famous French watercourse were construction of two bridges across a river north of Orbec, and a third structure at Brionne.

On September 1, 11th Field Company crossed the Seine near Rouen and headed toward Dieppe with the 2nd Canadian Division. Before day’s end, personnel arrived at Tôtes, south of the coastal town, and moved on to Dieppe the following day. As German forces had abandoned the area prior to their arrival, the Division made a peaceful, triumphant return to the location where its infantry units had lost so many men in August 1942. During the afternoon of Sunday, September 3, a memorial service was held in the cemetery where its fallen soldiers were buried.

After a few days’ rest and maintenance work, the 11th moved off for Calais, France, on September 6, arriving at Gravelines, east of the famous port, early the following morning. Its time there was brief, as personnel headed eastward for Belgium at 0830 hours September 8, passing through St. Omer, Bergues and Hondschoote before crossing the Belgian border at 2100 hours. The following day, the unit set up camp on the outskirts of Vuerne, east of Dunkirk.

Over the next 48 hours, sappers constructed bridges across two canals that intersected in the town. During the ensuing days, the unit removed booby traps along docks in Ostend, removed several rail line blockades, and worked on a third bridge. One platoon cleared mines for the South Saskatchewan Regiment as part of an operation at Bray Dunes, east of Dunkirk.

On September 18, 11th Field Company was on the move again, departing for Antwerp in the early morning hours and arriving on the outskirts of Boechout, 10 kilometers southeast of the Belgian port, shortly after noon. The following day, personnel travelled 15 kilometers northward to ’s-Gravenwezel, in preparation for rafting and bridging work across the nearby Turnhout Canal.

While waiting for 2nd Division units to secure the area, the Company checked local roads for mines and removed road blocks. Finally, at 2115 hours September 30, the task of constructing a bridge across the canal commenced. Shortly afterward, German artillery and mortar fire targeted the work area. A direct hit at 0100 hours October 1 resulted in five fatalities and a sixth sapper wounded.

Despite the losses, work continued at the site, the bridge completed at 2145 hours that day. On October 2, work immediately commenced on a second structure. Two more sappers were killed at the bridge site when a stake they were driving into the ground struck a land mine. Despite several interruptions due to shelling, personnel completed the second bridge by 0900 hours October 3.

Over the next two weeks, 11th Field Company conducted road and bridge maintenance, removed road blocks, checked roads and cleared mines in the area northeast of Antwerp. During a five-day break that commenced October 18, personnel visited Antwerp and Brussels in small groups. In the early hours of October 23, the unit moved northward to Ossendrecht, Netherlands, advancing to Rilland, a village on the South Beveland isthmus, three days later.

Personnel spent the last week of October supporting 2nd Canadian Division units as they advanced westward into German-occupied South Beveland. Their first major task involved construction of two bridges across a nearby canal, a task once again completed once amidst heavy shelling that inflicted eight casualties, one of which was a fatality.

On November 2, the 11th returned to the Antwerp area, entering accommodations in an old chateau near Schelle. Over the next week, personnel spent the morning hours cleaning and repairing equipment and visited Antwerp during the afternoon and evening. Officers also arranged sight-seeing tours to Brussels in small groups.

During the evening of November 9, the Company departed for the Nijmegen area, where it relieved a British engineer unit stationed there. Personnel travelled all night in rain, sleet and cold, reaching their destination at dawn. The unit then made its way to Grave, southwest of Nijmegen, where they entered billets in a large “old age pension house” previously occupied by their British comrades. Within hours of arriving, the men had outfitted each platoon area with a makeshift stove and the required number of beds.

The 11th assumed responsibility for maintaining a Bailey pontoon bridge across the Meuse (Maas) River, approximately two kilometers upstream from Grave. A boom protecting the structure from floating Germans mines had to be moved further upstream. A second major task involved operating sluice gates on a main bridge in Grave that controlled water levels in the local area. Any rapid rise would pose a threat to floating bridges between the town and Mook to the east. A third project involved repairing and widening a local road running northward toward Nijmegen. 

While two platoons focused on road construction, a third tackled the challenge of moving the boom. As personnel attempted to detach and pull the structure upstream, it was quickly apparent that the river’s strong currents would tear it apart once it was disconnected. It was therefore decided to build a new structure further upstream. Before the project commenced, somewhat to the relief of those involved, the 11th was instructed to turn the project over to the 30th Field Company at mid-month.

Work during the second half of November focused on road maintenance and improvement in the Grave area. 50 to 60 truck loads of rubble were hauled by truck daily from Nijmegen as base material. As most construction materials were scarce, personnel scraped ballast off local rail lines to provide a top layer of gravel. Sappers also repaired two roads northeast of Mook in December.

The winter lull in combat provided an opportunity for training in several specific areas—“storm boat” operation, particularly Evinrude motor repair; raft construction; firing range practice; mine warfare and assault demolition. Storm boat and raft training received particular attention, as the crafts were frequently used to transport personnel, vehicles and equipment across the landscape’s numerous rivers and canals.

The unit established a training site on the banks of the Meuse near Gassel, halfway between Grave and Mook. A program commenced on November 25, platoons rotating through the process—one continued road work, a second did storm boat training, and a third focused on raft construction and training. River crossing exercises involving three infantry regiments took place during the first week of December.

At 1430 hours December 25, 11th Field Company held a traditional Christmas dinner, complete with cigars, beer and spirits for the men. New Year’s Day 1945 brought a move to s’Hertogenbosch, southwest of Nijmegen. Throughout the month of January, personnel carried out roadwork in the Groesbeek area, with a particular focus on sanding due to icy winter conditions. While sappers encountered occasional enemy small arms fire, no casualties were reported. During evening hours, the men took in a movie or attended an occasional local dance. Sappers also received leaves to the UK or Brussels in small groups.

Road maintenance and repair continued into early February, the unit’s war diary observing that “roads [were] in bad shape due to heavy traffic.” Work intensified in preparation for an Allied offensive into the Rhineland—“Operation Veritable”—which commenced on February 8, 1945. Three days later, 11th Field Company relocated to Bergen Dal, near Nijmegen. Rising water levels in the Meuse and Rhine Rivers had resulted in local flooding, the sappers kept busy marking affected roads with warning tape.

At mid-month, 11th Field Company retired from the line for a brief rest, having received notice of an impending move in support of a 6th Canadian Infantry Brigade operation. At mid-day February 17, the unit joined a convoy headed to Kleve, Germany. Upon reaching their destination at 1530 hours, personnel established camp “under canvas.” Over the next several days, the Company was once again busy with road maintenance and repair, in preparation for a second Allied push into the Rhineland.

Operation Blockbuster commenced on February 22. Three days later, the 11th’s sappers marked out designated areas for infantry and armoured units participating in the operation’s second stage. At 0430 hours February 26, the attack resumed with a massive artillery bombardment. The 11th’s platoons were on standby near Kalkar, ready to check roads and clear mines as infantry units advanced. The process commenced at 0800 hours, with all 6th Canadian Infantry Brigade units reaching their objectives by 1700 hours.

The following day, the sappers returned to road repair work in the Kalkar area. Damp weather and heavy traffic had made highways “nearly impassable due to mud.” On February 28, the unit relocated to the outskirts of Uedem, where roadwork continued after dark in preparation for another advance. Sappers worked throughout the following day, despite heavy enemy shelling in some locations. Heavy rain turned roads into muddy quagmires, making them virtually impassible. Due to the conditions, all work ceased at 1800 hours.

On March 2, a combination of heavy frost, wind and sun “seemed to be drying up the roads considerably.” 11th Field Company personnel checked and cleared roads through the Hochwald Forest as Allied forces prepared for a final push to the Rhine. Over the next several days, sappers removed rails from a line through the wooded area, converting it into a road that was then widened to permit two-way traffic.

Work on the former rail line was completed on March 8. Three days later, the 11th retired to a concentration area near Kranenbuerg as Allied units had removed enemy forces all the way to the Rhine and no further work was required in the area. At 1530 hours March 11, the Company moved off for Kleve, where personnel entered billets “in a few of the remaining houses still standing” on the town’s eastern side. While German guns across the Rhine “shell[ed] the area periodically,” no casualties were reported.

Heavy artillery fire continued into March 12, but the area where the 11th was billeted was not affected. Personnel spent the day washing clothes, cleaning billets, and attending bath parade. That evening, they enjoyed a movie at a nearby cinema. The following day, a small party did local work while the remainder  of the Company tackled vehicle cleaning and maintenance.

At 1500 hours March 13, the 11th moved off for the Riechswald Forest, where road work was scheduled for the next few days. The Company set up camp under canvas near Kalkar, the location “a well-treed area [that] is nice and clean.” Road building and maintenance work commenced the following morning and continued on a two-platoon rotation for several days.

On March 16, the 11th received a request from the 4th Brigade’s Cameron Highlanders of Canada to clear mines from a nearby area where the unit planned to establish a camp. The following day, as road work continued, Lieutenant Owen Howard Taylor and a small party from Headquarters platoon removed 43 mines from the Camerons’ proposed camp site and placed them “in two dumps[,] well marked by the side of the road,” ready for disposal.

At 0800 hours March 18, two platoons departed for routine road work, while the remaining platoon performed vehicle maintenance and equipment checks. At 1300 hours, Lt. Taylor and a small party from Headquarters headed out to “destroy” the two dumps of mines gathered the previous day. Thirty minutes later, the unit’s war diary reported:

“A terrific explosion shakes [the] camp area and investigation reveals [that the] mine dump has blown up, killing Lt. Taylor, Sgt. C. V. Richards, and Sappers A. Brown, A. A. Steffler, N. T. Sponagle, V. Mayo, E. F. Anderson. H. C. Inkpen, and D. A. McLellan. The cause is unknown.”

At 1500 hours, Honorary Captain (Chaplain) MacRitchie conducted “funeral services for our casualties who are buried at Bedburg. Lieutenants Galway and Redford and a number of men from HQ and 3 Platoon attend[ed] the service.” The accidental deaths of nine men was the 11th Field Company’s worst single-day loss of its Second World War service.

Sapper Neil Trueman Sponagle's headstone, Groesbeek Canadian Military Cemetery, Netherlands

On April 2, 1945, Major-General A. E. Walford, Adjutant General, wrote to Naomi G. Sponagle, Riverton, Pictou County, offering his sympathy of the death of her husband, Sapper Neil Trueman Sponagle.  A second letter to Naomi, dated August 9, 1946, informed her that Neil’s remains had been re-interred in Groesbeek Canadian Military Cemetery, seven kilometers southeast of Nijmegen, Netherlands. In fact, the bodies of the men killed in the March 18 accident had been exhumed and transported to a permanent military cemetery on August 28, 1945.

After Neil’s death, Naomi taught school in Pictou County and years later married Louis W. Hughes. Neither of her marriages resulted in children. Naomi Hughes passed away in Aberdeen Hospital, New Glasgow, on December 20, 1995, and was interred in Heatherdale Memorial Gardens, Westville, NS. Neil’s mother Clara (Jones) Sponagle died in St. Martha’s Hospital, Antigonish, on October 20, 1974, and was laid to rest in Riverside Cemetery, New Harbour. His father Roy passed away in January 1975 and was interred beside his wife.

Ward Densmore Sponagle, Neil’s youngest brother, also served overseas during the Second World War. On August 5, 1942, Ward enlisted with the Halifax Rifles at Halifax, NS. Initially an infantry regiment, the Rifles transitioned to an armoured unit—the 23rd Army Tank Battalion (Halifax Rifles)—in the spring of 1942. Assigned to the 2nd Canadian Army Tank Brigade, the 23rd trained in Camp Borden, Ontario, prior to proceeding overseas in mid-June 1943. Shortly after arriving in the United Kingdom, the unit was disbanded, its personnel becoming a reinforcement pool for existing armoured units.

Trooper Ward Densmore Sponagle

 

Following the 23rd’s overseas departure, Ward remained at Camp Borden, where he qualified as a “Gunner Operator Grade C” on December 11, 1943. He proceeded to the United Kingdom aboard the Île de France on February 16, 1944, and arrived overseas eight days later. Assigned to No. 3 Canadian Armoured Corps Reinforcement Unit, he resumed gunnery training and later completed a wireless operator course.

Ward and his sweetheart Phyllis Graham Giffin, Christmas 1943

 

Placed on the Canadian Armoured Corps’ reinforcement list in mid-June 1944, Ward crossed the English Channel to Normandy, France, on July 2 and was transferred to the 27th Canadian Armoured Regiment (Sherbrooke Fusiliers) on July 27, 1944. He joined the unit in the field during the first week of August.  

27th CAR was one of three armoured regiments assigned to the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade, which landed in Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944. Each armoured regiment consisted of three Squadrons—A, B and C. A Squadron contained four troops, each equipped with four Sherman tanks when the unit was at full operating strength.

The 27th’s first assignment was to support the North Nova Scotia Highlanders’ push inland to Authie, France, during the days following the D-Day landings. The task proved to costly—the unit suffered 28 fatalities during its first three full days in Normandy. Seven of its troopers were among a group of Canadian prisoners of war executed at Abbaye d’Ardenne by German soldiers on June 7 and 8, 1944.

At the time of Ward’s arrival, 27th CAR was located “at the edge of Faubourg de Vaucelles,” directly across the Orne River from Caen, France. Personnel spent the first week of August preparing for “Operation Totalize,” the first of two major advances southward toward the town of Falaise. Each CAR Squadron was to support an attacking 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade battalion during the attack.

In the operation’s opening phase, 2nd Canadian Infantry Division units were to advance southward along the right side of the Caen-Falaise highway, with British units moving forward on their left flank. Once the infantry had pierced German lines, 3rd Canadian Division infantry units, supported by armoured regiments, would pass through their comrades’ lines and “exploit to Falaise and the dominating ground” above the town.

27th CAR provided tanks for two Operation Totalize “attack groups.” The first—a “gapping party”—consisted of three echelons, each supported by two tank troops. A second tank force accompanied the main assault force of three infantry battalions, whose soldiers would be transported in “Priests,” American tracked armoured artillery vehicles refitted as personnel carriers. The entire operation would take place at night, withsearchlights directing the attacking force along the central highway axis.

A 1,000-bomber raid preceded the advance, which commenced in the early hours of August 8. Objectives were “generally reached before first light.” By 0600 hours, 27th CAR “remained in positions and continued to support infantry in forming [a] firm base, finally being withdrawn to [a] fortress area… west of Tactical Headquarters 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade.”

The following day, the Regiment was “still in support [of] 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade [units]…[in a] watching role, [with] little activity.” By 1130 hours August 9, the “front appear[ed] to have jelled” as the advance lost its momentum. During the morning of August 10, one 27th CAR Squadron provided support to 5th Canadian Infantry Brigade units, while remaining personnel “clean[ed] and maintain[ed] all vehicles.”

In preparation for a second push along the Caen - Falaise road, military commanders ordered a 2nd Division Brigade to cross the Laize River at Bretteville-sur-Laize and push southward toward the village of Barbery. The 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade and 27th CAR were tasked with carrying out the maneuver.

In the early hours of August 11, the 4th Brigade and 27th CAR tanks passed through Bretteville, crossed the Laize River and headed southward toward Barbery. The vanguard leading the attack “ran into trouble immediately south of Bretteville and as a result at first light… had only reached the high ground north of Barbery.” Unable to advance any further, 27th CAR’s tanks “remained static [for the] remainder of the day.” 

The following morning—August 12, 1944—the 4th Brigade’s three infantry units resumed the advance. The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry pushed on to Barbery, passing through the village by midday. The Royal Regiment of Canada then swung eastward to the village of Moulines. Meanwhile, the Essex Scottish pushed southeast, toward a wooded area of high ground. Throughout the day, 27th CAR tanks supported each advance.

The attack was soon “held up… [[by] heavy mortar and shell fire.” Fighting continued throughout the day as the units attempted to advance through an area of “extremely heavy bush and low ground.”  The engagement proved costly in terms of both equipment and personnel. A significant number of tanks were lost and nine 27th CAR personnel, including one officer, were killed during exchanges of fire with enemy forces. 

Trooper Ward Densmore Sponagle was among an unknown number of 27th CAR casualties during the day’s fighting. Enemy fire—most likely a German 88 mm. anti-tank gun—recorded a direct strike on the tank in which he was the gunner, killing one crew member and fatally wounding another. Instructed during training never to exit through the tank hatch head first, Ward put his left hand through the opening, prompting enemy fire that tore off the tips of his middle three fingers. As he pulled his arm back into the tank, the hatch slammed closed, breaking his little finger.

Ward and several comrades made a second, successful attempt to exit the tank. As the group scrambled into a nearby gully, a bullet struck one of Ward’s legs. When the exchanges of fire ceased, the regiment’s Padré and a party of troopers searched the area for casualties. Upon locating Ward and his comrades, the Padré administered morphine and the wounded Troopers were transported a nearby first aid station. 

Ward and his injured comrades were dispatched to No. 12 Canadian Field Ambulance, where staff administered another dose of morphine to those in pain. In the midst of the turmoil, Ward did not realize that a piece of shrapnel had pierced his uniform’s left breast pocket, striking a metal cigarette case where a photograph holder was also stored. As a medic examined his body for other injuries, he pulled the case from Ward’s pocket and realized the object had likely prevented a potentially fatal chest wound. More remarkable was the fact that a burn mark caused by the projectile stopped on the picture of Ward’s sweetheart, Phyllis Giffin, who later became his wife. 

As soon as his condition was stable, Ward was transported by ambulance to No. 75 British General Hospital, Bayeux, France. The following day—August 13,  1944—he was invalided to No. 24 Canadian General Hospital (CGH), Horley, Surrey, UK. According to family, Neil visited his younger brother in hospital, but it is not clear whether the visit took place in France or the UK. Surgeons at No. 24 CGH repaired his severed finger tips and did their best to return his little finger to its previous position. In the end, a family member recalls, it was “a bit crooked but functional.”

Ward in England, following his discharge from hospital

Ward  spent two and a half months under medical care before being transferred to No. 4 Canadian Convalescent Depot, Hunmanby, North Yorkshire,UK. Discharged from medical care on January 9, 1945, he was posted to No. 2 Canadian Armoured Corps Reinforcement Unit later that month. During his time there, Ward was promoted to the rank of Acting Lance Corporal on May 31 and advanced to the full rank of Corporal on November 15, 1945.

In mid-January 1946, Ward reported to a Dispersal Depot in preparation for his return to Canada. He left the UK aboard SS Aquitania on January 27, 1946, and arrived in Halifax eight days later. Discharged from military service within a month of his return, he went to work as an electrician at Stellarton Armature Works. His older brother Earle owned and operated the business, which rewound electric motors.

Ward and Phyllis (Giffin) Sponagle on their wedding day

 

On August 4, 1948, Ward married his sweetheart Phyllis Graham Giffin, daughter of Roy and Elsie (Wishart) Giffin, Goldboro. The couple established residence in Stellarton, Pictou County, where they raised a family of two children—one son and one daughter. Ward later worked as a tool maker at Trenton Steel Works until retirement. He also served with the Canadian Army militia from January 1957 to March 1967, attending five annual training camps during his decade of service. 

Ward Densmore Sponagle died on November 25, 1994, and was interred in Brookside Cemetery, New Glasgow, NS. His wife Phyllis passed away on November 23, 2004, and was laid to rest beside him.

Trooper Ward Densmore Sponagle's foot stone, Brookside Cemetery, New Glasgow, NS

Photographs of Neil Trueman, Ward Densmore and Phyllis Graham (Giffin) Sponagle courtesy of Ward's daughter, Joyce MacPherson, MacLellan's Brook, NS. Joyce and her brother David, Greenwood, NS, also provided background information on the Sponagle family and details of the incident in which their father Ward was wounded in August 1944.