Flight Sergeant Douglas Seaman Cameron—Accidentally Killed January 3, 1943

 Douglas Seaman Cameron was born at Aspen, Guysborough County, on June 18, 1917, the oldest of George Leibert and Alma (McKeen) Cameron’s five children. Douglas was a direct descendant of Dougal Alistair Cameron, born at Kilmallie, Argyllshire, Scotland, on June 18, 1786. Dougal immigrated to Nova Scotia between 1825 and 1835, and was head of one of Cameron Settlement’s founding families.

Flight Sergeant Douglas Seaman Cameron

Among Dougal’s children was a son, John Dougal “Short John,” born at Fort William, Lochaber, Scotland, in 1827 or 1828. John Dougal accompanied his father to Nova Scotia. At the time of the 1871 Canadian census, he was residing at Caledonia, Guysborough County. Later records identify his place of residence at Forks of St. Marys. John Dougal passed away at Aspen in 1892, and was laid to rest in Evergreen Cemetery.

John Dougal’s son, Dougal/Dougald Archibald “Archie,” was born at Caledonia or Aspen on October 15, 1864. Archie married Margaret Isabelle “Maggie” McDonald, daughter of Hugh and Catherine McDonald, Lochaber, on June 11, 1894. Archie and Maggie’s oldest child, George Leibert, was born at Aspen, Guysborough County, the following year.

On October 27, 1916, Leibert married Alma Margaret McKeen, daughter of Samuel and Eliza McKeen, Aspen. While Alma’s family also traces its roots to the British Isles, her ancestors followed a much longer and different route before arriving in Nova Scotia. The family’s North American pioneer, John McKeen, was born at Londonderry, Ireland, in December 1700 and immigrated to the American colonies with his family, arriving at Boston Massachusetts, on August 4, 1718.

Around 1741, John married Martha Cargill at East Darby, New Hampshire. The couple eventually settled close to the mouth of the Connecticut River—across Long Island Sound from Long Island, New York—where four of the couple’s five children were born. John established a shipping and supply company that operated routes to Boston, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and St. John, New Brunswick.

In 1760, the family relocated to Truro, where they were among the community’s earliest settlers. John and two of his sons—William and John Jr.—were also “grantees” of the township established there, receiving adjoining lots. At the time, the community consisted of 60 families. John Sr. and his wife Martha both passed away at Truro on the same day—December 30, 1767—and were laid to rest in the old Presbyterian Cemetery.

Following his father’s passing, John Jr. assumed operation of his supply vessel. He married twice—first to Rachel Johnson, a marriage that resulted in the birth of three sons and two daughters, and then to Rachel (Duncan) Archibald, a union that produced one son. John Jr. made frequent trips to St. Marys, NS, where four of his sons—John, Samuel, Adam and William—eventually settled, along with his brother David and sister Margaret.

After his second wife’s passing, John Jr. moved to St. Marys, where he resided with his youngest son William until his passing.  Born at Truro on September 13, 1857, William married Catherine Kirk, daughter of William and Catherine (McDonald) Kirk, Pictou, and established residence on “McKeen Hill,” Aspen, where the couple raised a family of 15 children.

One of William and Catherine’s children was a son, Samuel G. McKeen, born on May 26, 1825. Samuel G. married Margaret Taylor McKeen, daughter of Samuel and Margaret (Glencross) McKeen, in 1852. Samuel G. and Margaret’s son, Samuel Thomas, was born at Melrose around 1865. Samuel Thomas married Elizabeth “Eliza Bessie” Carthew and raised a family of three children—two sons, Clarence and William, and a daughter, Margaret “Alma.”

Alma McKeen married George Leibert Cameron in a ceremony held at East River St. Marys on October 27, 1916. The couple’s first child, Douglas Seaman, was born at Aspen the following year. A daughter, Olive Mildred, joined the household on February 14, 1919. At the time of the 1921 Canadian census, the family of four was living at Aspen, with Leibert’s occupation listed as “farmer.” His parents, Dougal and Margaret Cameron, resided next door.

Sometime shortly after 1921, the Cameron family relocated to Iroquois Falls, ON, where Leibert went to work for Abitibi Power and Paper Company. Established in 1914, its Iroquois Falls plant quickly became a major supplier of newsprint to the Canadian market. Three more children were born after the couple’s move to Iroquois Falls—sons George Bruce (YOB 1924) and John Leibert “Jack” (DOB May 31,1932) and a daughter Margaret (YOB 1933).

Douglas Seaman Cameron attended Iroquois Public School from 1924 to 1934 and went on to complete two years of studies at Iroquois Falls High School. Upon leaving school in 1936, he commenced employment at Abitibi Power and Paper, but left in 1938 because the “paper mill began running short time.”

Douglas then secured a job as a “diamond driller” [miner] with Pamour Gold Mines, Iroquois Falls, but left the position after 18 months because the “paper mill began to run full time.” During his employment underground with Pamour, Douglas was “hit on [the] left temple with [a] wrench.” The employment record in his service file provided further details:

“Knocked over but not unconscious. No headache or nausea following this. X-ray negative for fracture. Off work (underground) for four weeks but not confined to bed or house at all.”

In mid-1939, Douglas returned to work at Abitibi Power and Paper. In late September 1940, he submitted an application to the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), requesting a “flying duties” assignment. At the time, Douglas made reference to participating in a school cadets program, particularly pins that he earned “for shooting.”

On October 19, Douglas completed an interview at an RCAF Recruitment Centre at North Bay. The interviewer provided a brief assessment of his suitability for service: “Bright… seems very willing, should be o.k. after some training for air gunner.” Douglas returned to Iroquois Falls for several months before attesting with the RCAF at Hamilton, ON, on January 29, 1941, with an initial rank of Aircraftman Class II. Two days later, he departed for Brandon, MB, for basic training.

Douglas returned to Toronto, ON, in early March and remained there until April 20, when he was assigned to No. 5 Equipment Depot, Moncton, NB. He spent three months at the depot, awaiting orders to resume his courses.

On July 20, Douglas commenced wireless operator training at No. 1 Wireless School, Montreal, QC. After successfully completed the course, he was promoted to the rank of Leading Aircraftman on August 21. Douglas remained in Montreal throughout the autumn months, logging flying time and completing additional ground training courses. During that time, he placed 44th in a class of 139 recruits, with an overall grade of 81 %, and received authorization to wear a Wireless Operator’s badge.

On December 7, Douglas was “taken on strength” at No. 1 Bomber & Gunnery School, Jarvis, ON, for the final Canadian phase of his training. Over the next four weeks, he completed ground training courses, placing 32nd in a class of 50 cadets. Douglas also logged approximately 10 hours’ flying time, earning a grade of 77.7 % and placing 21st in his air training assessment. His performance warranted an “above average” rating. One instructor commented that he was “[a] hard worker, attentive at all times. Eager to make good.” Another described Douglas as “[a] popular man, reliable and trustworthy.”

Douglas earned his Air Gunner’s badge on January 3, 1942, and was promoted to the rank of Temporary Sergeant with pay. Three days later, he received two weeks’ embarkation leave and likely returned home for a visit. In mid-January, Douglas was attached to No. 3 Y Depot, Debert, NS, where he awaited orders to depart for overseas. He left Halifax on January 24, 1942, and arrived in the United Kingdom two weeks later.

On February 10, Douglas reported to No. 3 Personnel Centre, Bournemouth, UK. One month later, he “remustered” as a Wireless Operator/Air Gunner Class 2, and was assigned to No. 1 Signals School for further training on March 17, 1942. He then proceeded to No. 3 (O) Air Observers School on May 11, and commenced the final phase of his overseas training at No. 3 Radio School on June 10.

Having successfully completed the requirements for active duty, Douglas was promoted to the rank of Temporary Flight Sergeant on July 5. Following a 12-day leave at mid-month, he departed for No. 5 (C) Operational Training Unit (OTU), Turnberry, Scotland, on July 28.

OTUs provided RCAF personnel with their first opportunity to train aboard the aircraft in which they would serve. Air crews were also assembled at this stage, allowing the men to form a cohesive team during training before entering active service. Douglas’s crew mates were all Canadians—Pilot Sgt. Gilmar Innis Morrison, Vancouver, BC; Navigator Pilot Officer Thomas Harold O’Neil, Hamilton, ON;  and Wireless Operator/Air Gunner Sgt. George Ernest Walker, Outremont, QC.

On September 22, 1942, the crew was assigned to a Torpedo Training Unit located at Abbotsinch, UK. One month later, the four men proceeded to 201 Group for active service. Formed in September 1939 from the Royal Air Force’s Middle East General Reconnaissance Group, the unit was responsible for coastal surveillance and provided vital information to strategic and tactical Allied units during the 1942 North African campaign.

On January 1, 1943, Douglas and his crew mates were attached to No. 39 Squadron, an active operating unit, for torpedo training. A regular bombing squadron at the time of the war’s outbreak, No. 39 Squadron was posted to the Mediterranean theatre in the spring of 1940 and transitioned to a maritime reconnaissance and anti-shipping role.

Following Italy’s entry into the war, No. 39’s aircraft conducted several bombing raids in Italian East Eritrea, after which its crews converted to operating Bristol Beaufort torpedo-bombers in August 1941. The Squadron’s personnel participated in anti-shipping operations for the remainder of the year and conducted their first torpedo attack on enemy shipping in late January 1942.

While No. 39 took part in a mid-June 1942 attack on the Italian battle fleet, its primary duties were mine-laying sorties and torpedo attacks on enemy shipping. Later that year, the Squadron provided support for Operation Torch—the allied invasion of North Africa. Briefly located in Egypt during the autumn and winter of 1942-43, the Squadron mainly operated out of the island of Malta until February 1943.

Two days after joining No. 39 Squadron—January 3, 1943—Douglas’s crew climbed aboard Beaufort DW 825 for a routine torpedo-training exercise in the Gulf of Suez, southwest of Cairo, Egypt, with HMS Arpha—a British naval vessel—playing the role of “target ship.” Documents in Douglas’s service file provide details on the subsequent events. A “Report on Flying Accident or Forced Landing Not Attributable to Enemy Action” states:

“This was the pilot’s first trip since completing a short torpedo course at Abbotsinch. He was detailed to complete two circuits and bumps prior to re-accustoming himself to flying low over the seas in the Low Flying Area. He was briefed not to fly dangerously low, not to attack the target or other shipping, and not to carry out any steep turns over the water.”

At approximately, 10:50 am, “a muffled explosion was heard and a Beaufort was observed about two miles from the ship flying close to the sea, and apparently in difficulties.” The aircraft plunged into the sea, prompting HMS Alpha and a nearby RAF launch to immediately proceed to the crash site. One crew member—Pilot Sgt. G I. Morrison—“was picked up alive, but badly injured. [Navigator] P/O O’Neil was picked up dead. The remaining two crew members [wireless operators/air gunners] were not located.” Sgt. Morrison was rushed to 13th General Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries the following day.

The Report, dated the same day as the incident, proceeded to assess possible reasons why the aircraft struck the water:

“This may have been caused (1) by engine or other failure[,] but as the aircraft completed a satisfactory sortie prior to this sortie and was a most dependable aircraft, this is thought unlikely. (2) An error of judgement by the Pilot in that he completely misjudged his height or flew dangerously low, or (3) He failed to screw his throttles up and they slipped back[,] causing the aircraft to sink and hit the water.”

Wing Commander A. M. Taylor, who compiled the report, stated that he considered number two “the most likely reason” for the accident. Station Commander G. M. Knocker agreed, commenting:

“The pilot Sgt. Morrison came out to M. E. [The Mediterranean Expeditionary Force] by Sea and West Coast air route. Instructions have been given that in future pilots reporting straight to 5 METS [Meteorological Squadron] who have not flown aircraft out are to do at least two hours local flying before recommencing low flying [training] over the sea.”

Pilot Sgt. Morrison and Navigator Pilot Officer O’Neil were laid to rest in Suez War Memorial Cemetery, Suez, Egypt. The remains of the other two crew members—Wireless Operators/Air Gunners Sgt. George Ernest Walker and Douglas Seaman Cameron—were never recovered.

On October 29, 1943, Leibert Cameron received an official RCAF casualty notification telegram, informing him that his son Douglas, “previously reported ‘missing’ believed killed 3-Jan-43 as a result of a flying accident (overseas) (operations over the Gulf of Suez, Egypt) [is] now ‘presumed dead’ 3-Jan-43 for official purposes.” A subsequent letter from RCAF Records Officer T. K. McDougall, dated October 18, 1944, informed Leibert that Douglas has been posthumously promoted to the rank of Flight Sergeant, effective July 5, 1942.

Flight Sergeant Douglas Seaman Cameron’s name is engraved on the Alamein Memorial, located at the entrance to Alamein War Cemetery, Alamein, Egypt. The Land Forces panel contains the names of 8,500 military personnel who died in the Mediterranean theatre and have no known graves. The Air Forces panel displays the names of more than 3,000 Commonwealth airmen who died during Mediterranean operations and have no known final resting place.

Photograph of Flight Sergeant Douglas Seaman Cameron courtesy of Brenda (Cameron) & Pat Britton, Iroquois Falls, ON. Genealogical information on the McKeens of Aspen courtesy of Gerry & Melodie (McKeen) Madigan, Shubenacadie East, NS. Genealogical information on Douglas's Cameron ancestors courtesy of David Brown, Lochaber, NS.

Private Edward James McIntosh—Died of Illness December 24, 1942

Edward James “Ted” McIntosh was born at Stillwater, Guysborough County, on November 29, 1898, the fifth of William and Olive (Hingley) McIntosh’s eight children and the third oldest of their six sons. As was common at the time, Ted left school at age 10 to work on the family farm and in the local woods.

Pte. Edward "Ted" McIntosh's 193rd Battalion Portrait

 Following the outbreak of the First World War, military recruiters initially focused their recruitment efforts on Nova Scotia’s larger communities. In the spring of 1916, however, efforts to raise a Nova Scotia Highland Brigade consisting of four battalions—85th (Nova Scotia Highlanders), 185th (Cape Breton Highlanders), 193rd and 219th—significantly impacted rural areas of the province. For the first time since the war’s outbreak, military recruiters visited such Guysborough County locations as Sherbrooke, Canso and Guysborough town, in search of volunteers.

Many of the province’s young men were enticed into enlisting with the Highland Brigade, and young Ted McIntosh was no exception. On July 7, 1916, Ted attested for overseas service with the 193rd Battalion at Camp Aldershot, NS. He was almost five months shy of his eighteenth birthday at the time, and listed his occupation as “lumberman.”

Ted departed for overseas with the 193rd aboard SS Olympic on October 12, 1916. Also on board the vessel were the three other Nova Scotia Highland Brigade battalions. Shortly after arriving in the United Kingdom, two of the Brigade’s units—the 193rd and the 219th Battalions—were dissolved and their members dispersed to other units or branches of military service.

Four days prior to departing Halifax, a medical examination revealed that Ted had “flat feet.” This diagnosis, perhaps combined with his young age and pre-service occupation, resulted in a decision to transfer him to the Canadian Forestry Corps (CFC). On January 17, 1917, Ted was “taken on strength” at CFC Base Depot, Sunningdale, where he remained for almost four months before being assigned to duty at CFC Headquarters. On December 1, 1917, Ted was posted to No. 53 District CFC’s “Tech. Warehouse” at Egham, where he served for two and a half months.

With a new fighting season fast approaching and Allied commanders anticipating a major German offensive, military authorities combed the ranks of non-combat units, in search of infantry reinforcements. In mid-February 1918, Ted was transferred to the 17th (Nova Scotia) Reserve Battalion. Stationed at Camp Bramshott, UK, the unit provided infantry reinforcements for the 25th (Nova Scotia Rifles) and 85th (Nova Scotia Highlanders) Battalions serving at the front.

On April 7, 1918, Ted was assigned to the 85th Battalion and immediately proceeded to the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Centre (CCRC) in France. Five weeks later, he left CCRC for the forward area on May 14 and joined his new unit in the field the following day. Ted remained at the front with the 85th throughout the final months of the war, as its soldiers participated in the “100 Days” campaign that brought fighting to an end.

The Allied offensive commenced with the Battle of Amiens (August 8 - 11) and continued for three months. In early September, the 85th was involved in the “Scarpe Operation” near Arras, during which Allied forces broke through the famous German Hindenburg defensive line and advanced toward the strategic city of Cambrai. Ted’s unit saw particularly intense action at Bourlon Wood and Canal du Nord in late September, and was among the Canadian units that pursued retreating German forces into Belgium in early November.

Ted remained with the 85th throughout these events, an experience that exposed the 19-year-old to some of the war’s most fierce fighting. Following the November 11, 1918 Armistice, the 85th remained in Belgium until early May 1919, when the unit returned to the United Kingdom. At month’s end, its soldiers boarded HMT Adriatic for the journey home and arrived in Halifax on June 7. Eight days later, Ted was formally discharged from military service and returned to the Sherbrooke area.

One of Ted’s older brothers, Donald Murdock McIntosh, also served with the Canadian Expeditionary Force in Canada. Drafted under the Military Service Act (1917) at Halifax on March 25, 1918, Donald was “struck off strength” at Camp Aldershot, NS, on September 17, 1918. He remained in the Halifax area, where he married Margaret Winnifred Kelly, daughter of George and Laura (Fulton) Kelly, Caledonia, in a ceremony held at 317 Barrington St., on December 5, 1919.

In June 1922, Donald emigrated to the United States and Margaret followed shortly afterward. They initially resided in Waltham, MA, where Donald’s half-brother, John William McIntosh—a child from William McIntosh’s 1879 marriage to Catherine Leslie—resided. One year later, the couple relocated to Everett, MA, where Donald was hired as shipping foreman at a newly-opened Beacon Oil Company distillation plant. The site contained 20 still houses for processing crude oil and 10 storage tanks that held 400,000 gallons of gasoline and inflammable by-products.

On February 10, 1928, a low-pressure vaporizer located in one of the still houses exploded, triggering a series of smaller explosions. Donald was working at the time of the incident, only minutes from the end of his shift. A contemporary news item in the Boston Herald describes his actions in the immediate aftermath of the blast:

“[McIntosh was] in charge of the valves which fed the scores of huge tanks which covered the 100-acre lot of the company. As the first half dozen stills and tanks blew up, McIntosh, terribly burned and suffering intensely, turned his back on the single opening where he might crawl for safety and be rescued[,]… deliberately crawled on his hands and knees through a wall of solid flame and shut off each of the valves of the other tens of huge tanks. Had these valves not been shut off[,] the entire city of Everett, Mass., would have been blown to bits, [an] explosive expert…states…. The State Fire Mashal, Neal, told The Herald’s correspondent the result of the explosion, had not McIntosh shut off the score of valves, would have been the greatest catastrophe in the history of New England.”

One of Donald’s co-workers, John J. Thompson, survived the explosion and recalled his last glimpse of his “old pal”:

“We watched him, begging, pleading and crying for him to come back…. You see, he realized, he knew what he was doing and he didn’t stop to think…. As we shrieked like crazy men, he just turned with the faintest of smiles on his face and waved his hand. Then he went through that wall of flame, hellish searing fire of burning oil and we never saw him alive again.”

Later that evening, Donald’s remains were discovered in the ruins and identified by a ruby ring he always wore. At least 13 other co-workers were reported killed in the immediate aftermath of the explosion, with several others still missing. Donald was survived by his wife, Margaret, and a four-year-old daughter, Dorothy.

After returning to civilian life in Sherbrooke, Ted quickly established a reputation as an experienced outdoorsman. An unpublished local history compiled by the Sherbrooke Women’s Institute states that Ted, a “popular guide,” set a record for a daily catch on April 16, 1942—the first day of the year’s angling season—landing “five salmon weighing from 16 to 23 pounds each.” The following year, a record catch of 1,005 salmon was landed along the river.

Ted with trapped wild cat pelts

The abundant stock created a valuable seasonal source of employment for local guides. Visiting anglers made their way by train to Antigonish, where they arranged for ground transportation to Melrose, Waternish or Sherbrooke. Employment information in his Second World War service file states that Ted worked for 30 years as a guide along the St. Mary’s River.

At that time, commercially-produced salmon fishing accessories were virtually non-existent. As a result, local fishers and guides were constantly on the lookout for materials that could be used to make salmon flies. Jack Anderson, a long-time Sherbrooke merchant, recalled that the tobacco cans common in the area during the pre-war years came with a pull-tab top, “very much like a sardine can. The top was very, very thin. I remember Ted McIntosh picking’ up… tobacco-can covers he’d find around the country and takin’ scissors and slicing’ that off in little thin strips to get tinfoil for salmon-fly bodies.” Deer hair strands from white, grey, brown and black buck-tails were used to create the final product, attached to a manufactured hook. Ted’s brother Dan is credited with developing and perfecting the popular “MacIntosh salmon fly.”

Ted MacIntosh fishing the St. Marys River

Jack Anderson also recalled that the five McIntosh brothers—Arch, Alex, Clarence, Dan and Ted—“all did some guiding. Perhaps the most famous of the five was Dan. They spent all their time on the river and were very accomplished salmon fishermen… from the late 1920s up… until the late 1970s.” During that time, the river’s abundant fish stock attracted recreational fishers from near and far. Jack described one such party that consisted of “an American doctor who was born near here [and]… a friend of his by the name of… Charlie Am. They were great Yankee ball fans, and this particular year, they brought Babe Ruth up with them on a fishing trip.”

Jack described an incident that occurred while the trio were fishing on the river:

“[O]ne day they were fishing… at the Flat Rock Pool. The river was very high early in the spring, Dan [McIntosh] was there, and Babe Ruth was sitting in the center of the punt, fishing away. Babe, I think, leaned too far over to one side and over he went, plunk-o, into the river. Now Babe Ruth was a very big man at that time. I would say he weighed two hundred and thirty or forty pounds, maybe. Dan, he was a kind of small little fellow who could curl up on the back seat of the punt and haul his legs underneath him. He got a hold of Babe by the scruff of the neck when Babe was going’ by him in the current. Well, Babe wasn’t able to crawl in over the side of the punt because the side boards on them were only about nine inches. And Dan wasn’t able to haul him over it at that stage, wet clothes and all. So the situation ended up that Dan had to hold onto Babe with one hand, pull up the anchor rope, and pole the boat ashore with [the other] hand. Eventually he made it and after he rolled him around in the rocks there a little bit, he made it up to the car. He had quite a stay here that time, and he went back to New York with a dozen or so cans of Pictou Twist [a popular local chewing tobacco brand to which Babe took a liking] and a dozen big salmon. But the salmon, I don’t think he ever caught one himself.”

The interest in the outdoors appears to have run in the family. Like his five sons, William McIntosh was an accomplished salmon fisher. While census records consistently listed his occupation as “farmer,” William’s September 26, 1922 death certificate gives his last source of employment as “guide” and identifies his former occupation as “guide and fishing.”

Ted also turned his hand to several other trades. He was a skilled welder, and his Second World War enlistment papers identify his occupation at the time as “pipe fitter.” He also expressed an interest in pursuing training as an “electrician.” The wide range of Ted’s skills is impressive, particularly considering his lack of formal training.

Ted remained a bachelor well into his 30s. On August 18, 1936, he married Anna Beulah Jack, daughter of William F. and Nora (Coles) Jack, Sonora. Over the ensuing years, five children joined the MacIntosh household—James Calvin, Dorothy Ann, Margaret, Clara Bonita and Helen Viola.

The outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939 no doubt stirred memories in the minds of First World War veterans like Ted. While recruiters told the “old soldiers” that their age made overseas service impossible, many were determined to serve their country in some capacity. Their persistence eventually persuaded the Canadian government to put their military experience to use.

In May 1940, the federal government established the Veterans’ Home Guard, later renamed the Veterans’ Guard of Canada (VGC). Modelled on the British Home Guard, the organization was initially created as a defensive force against a possible German—and later Japanese—attack on Canadian soil.

The VGC was organized into numbered Companies of 250 men, and included both active and reserve units. Active Companies served full-time at various locations across the country, while Reserve Companies fulfilled roles similar to militia units, training in the area where their personnel resided. At its peak in June 1943, a total of 451 Officers and 9,806 other ranks were on active service with the VGC.

One of the primary duties assigned to VGC active units was guard duty at prisoner of war and internment camps established across the country during the war. Other units protected military property on Canadian soil. The vast majority remained in Canada, although several companies were dispatched to British colonies for specific duties and one was attached to Canadian Military Headquarters, London, UK.

By late 1942, Ted was head of a household consisting of a wife and five young children. Despite these family obligations, he felt compelled to serve his country in its time of need. On December 7, 1942, Ted travelled to New Glasgow NS, and enlisted for active duty with the VGC, No. 6 District Depot, Canadian Army. A medical examination conducted after his enlistment reported only one minor issue—an “injury to left ankle in 1934. Ankle weak after walking long distance.” Otherwise, Ted displayed no significant health issues at the time.

Ted spent the next two weeks settling into the VGC routine. On December 23, he was granted five days’ Christmas leave and returned home to Sherbrooke. His service file makes no reference to any health concerns prior to his departure. The day after his leave commenced—December 24, 1942—Ted passed away suddenly at home.

Available documents suggest some confusion as to the cause of death. A casualty notification in his service file states: “Cause not known. Investigation under way.” Subsequent documents provide different assessments as to the reason for Ted’s passing. A “circumstances of casualty” form identifies “acute bronchitis and laryngitis” as the cause, while a “Report on Death of a Soldier” gives “myocarditis” (inflammation of the heart muscle) as the reason. An obituary published in a local newspaper informed readers that the “well-known guide of St. Mary’s River… died of pneumonia.” The official province of Nova Scotia death certificate combined factors mentioned above, attributing the main cause of death to myocarditis, while listing acute bronchitis and laryngitis as contributing factors. Ted’s younger brother, Archibald “Archie”, was the informant.

Pte. Edward James McIntosh was laid to rest “with full military honours” in Waternish Cemetery. Ted was survived by his wife Beulah and his five young children, brothers Archie (Sherbrooke), Alex (Ecum Secum), Dan (Sherbrooke) and Clarence (Dartmouth), and sisters Sarah C. Lowe (Dartmouth) and Laura MacInnis (Dartmouth). On August 7, 1943—almost eight months after Ted’s passing— Beulah gave birth to a sixth child, a son Edward Roy “Eddie” McIntosh.

Ted’s nephew, Burns—a son of his older brother Archibald Henry “Arch”—also enlisted for service during the Second World War. After training at New Glasgow, Camp Borden and Aldershot, Burns proceeded to the United Kingdom. He served with the Canadian Army in Italy, where he was wounded twice. Transferred to the Carleton & York Regiment following his recovery, Burns saw action in France, Belgium and Holland before returning home to Canada, having risen to the rank of Sergeant. After his discharge, Burns found employment with the Canadian Veneer Co., Saint John, NB. He later retired to New Glasgow, NS, where he spent his final years.

NOTE: Ted’s family surname was consistently spelled “McIntosh” in all available Canadian census documents (up to 1921) and throughout his First and Second World War military service records. Most family descendants adopted the spelling “MacIntosh” during subsequent years.

Special thanks to Mae MacIntosh, Sherbrooke, NS, and Michelle Wilmott, Calgary, AB, who provided information on the McIntosh family, particularly the lives of Ted’s brothers Donald and Dan, and the family’s connections to the recreational salmon fishery. Thanks as well to Sherbrooke Village for providing a salmon fishing photograph of Ted from the John Cameron Collection.

Merchant Seaman Roderick James Gillis—Perished at Sea November 7, 1942

 Roderick James “Rod” Gillis was born at Mulgrave, Guysborough County, on August 7, 1913, the sixth of Neil McLean and Mary Elizabeth “Eliza” (Hayes) Gillis’s 10 children. Neil, the son of Roderick and Catherine (McLean) Gillis, was born at McPherson’s Ferry, Richmond County, on December 5, 1873. The small community was the Cape Breton terminus for one of three ferries crossing the Strait of Canso by mid-19th century, with its mainland terminus located at Steep Creek, near Mulgrave. Each operation consisted of a small barge capable of transporting a horse and wagon across the Strait.

Brothers Rod (left) and Alec Gillis

 

Rod’s mother, Eliza Hayes, was born at Lower River Inhabitants, Richmond County, on September 24, 1883, the daughter of John William and Catherine Anne (Cloake) Hayes. Neil and Eliza were married at St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, Port Hawkesbury, on October 27, 1901.

The couple’s four oldest children were born in Richmond County. Around 1911, the family relocated to Mulgrave, where Neil initially worked as a deck hand on the SS Scotia, the first steam-powered train ferry to cross the Strait and the mainstay of the operation during the last century’s early years.  

By 1921, Neil had advanced to the position of CNR ferry operations manager at Mulgrave. According to that year’s Canadian census, the Gillis household consisted of five girls—Annie, Ida, Tena, Stella and Margaret—and two boys—Rod and his younger brother, William Alexander “Alec,” known to friends as “Sam.” Three years later, the couple's sixth daughter, Nora Bernadette, joined the family. Sadly, two of Neil and Eliza’s children—a son, Harold George, and a daughter, Hilda Catherine—had passed away in infancy in 1919 and 1920 respectively.

Rod attended school in the local community and according to a later news item was active in the local sports scene. Family sources recall that he initially worked on the railway, a major employer in the local community. However, born and raised in a small port with strong connections to the ocean, Rod eventually settled on a career at sea.

Mulgrave Hockey Club—Alec (far left) and Rod (goalie)

Following the outbreak of the Second World War, Rod enlisted with the Canadian merchant marine. A report at the time of his passing claimed that he “had sailed on a number of ships[,]… visited many distant parts of the world and had been torpedoed a number of times” during his first three years at sea aboard merchant vessels. Unfortunately, no documentation is available to support these statements.

The war overseas also had an impact on Rod’s younger brother Alec, who enlisted with the Royal Canadian Artillery and served at Halifax for a period of time. By late 1942, Alec had relocated to the United Kingdom, where he continued to train in preparation for an eventual Allied invasion of the European continent.

By the autumn of 1942, Rod was serving as a “fireman and trimmer” aboard SS Roxby, a 4,252-ton steam merchant vessel built at Stockton-on-Tees, UK, in 1923. Around that time, an undated article from an unidentified Nova Scotian newspaper reported “the safe arrival at a Scottish port after an uneventful voyage of Rod Gillis, son of Mr. and Mrs. Neil Gillis, Mulgrave….” The item went on to note that Rod’s brother Alec was also “in the old country, and Rod hopes to meet up with him, when and if opportunity offers.” In fact, the two brothers did meet and posed for a photograph before Rod set out on the perilous voyage back to Canada.

The Roxby departed the British Isles as part of Convoy ON-142 (outward, northbound) in early November 1942. As convoys proceeded across the North Atlantic, it was not uncommon for older, slower vessels to lag behind the main group. These “stragglers” were prime targets for German U-boats. In the case of Convoy ON-142, two vessels—SS Glenlea and SS Roxby—were unable to keep pace with their counterparts as the convoy proceeded westward.

At 14.46 hours November 7, 1942, the German U-boat U566 surfaced and struck the Glenlea with a torpedo north of the Azores. The vessel sank and its crew abandoned ship. The U-boat surfaced, took its Master prisoner, and transported him to Brest, France, where he became a prisoner of war. While three crewmen and one gunner were rescued by a Norwegian merchant vessel three weeks later, 39 crew members and five gunners from the Glenlea perished during or after the vessel’s sinking.

The U-boat “wolf pack” continued to pursue the second straggler. At 15.40 hours November 7, 1942, U-613 surfaced and fired two torpedoes at the Roxby. One of the missiles struck the target, approximately 670 miles north of the Azores. Within 30 minutes, the vessel slipped beneath the water. Its Master, George Robison, 10 crew members and two gunners were rescued by the merchant vessel Irish Beach after two weeks at sea and safely transported to St. John’s, NL. The remaining members of the Roxby’s crew were not so fortunate. A total of 28 men and five gunners perished in the sinking, while the ship’s first radio officer died of exposure in a lifeboat and was buried at sea on November 11, 1942.

Roderick James Gillis was among the 28 crew members lost at sea. According to a family source, the ship’s Master later wrote to his parents, stating that Rod was asleep below deck when the torpedo struck. A contemporary news report indicated that the majority of fatalities occurred “when an explosion shook [the crew’s] quarters.” The article went on to state that Rod had perished on his 12th voyage across the Atlantic since joining the merchant marine.

Rod’s name is inscribed on the Halifax Memorial, Point Pleasant Park, Halifax, erected in memory of the 3,267 Canadian and Newfoundland sailors and soldiers who perished at sea during the First and Second World Wars and have no final resting place. Several years prior to the war, Rod had a son, Francis Jerome Gillis MacIsaac, the result of a non-marital relationship. Throughout his lifetime, locals referred to Francis as “Roxy,” an altered reference to the vessel on which his father had perished.

Rod’s brother Alec served as an artillery gunner with 1 Canadian Corps during the Italian campaign, from the initial invasion of Sicily in July 1943 to late February 1945. At that time, the Corps commenced “Operation Goldflake,” a clandestine operation that transferred all units to the Western Front for the final stages of the Netherlands liberation and Allied push into western Germany.

Alec's souvenir of the Netherlands liberation

After the conclusion of hostilities in Europe, Alec safely returned home to Mulgrave. He took up residence with his mother, as his father Neil had passed away from carcinoma of the bladder on April 13, 1943, five months after Rod’s tragic death. Alec worked as a stevedore on the local docks and never married. He passed away at 49 years of age, the result of pancreatic cancer, on August 20, 1965. The disease was a common affliction among the Gillis clan, also claiming the life of Neil and Eliza’s oldest child, Annie Bell Aikins, on December 10, 1964. Eliza outlived her husband, two sons and daughter, passing away at Mulgrave on April 20, 1966.

Special thanks to Neila (Carter) MacDonald, Mulgrave, and Iain Murray Brown, Fredericton, NB, for contributing photographs and information about Rod, Alec and the Gillis family.