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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Myers Siblings' Headstone, Evergreen Cemetery, Guysborough, NS

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

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

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

Staff Sergeant Frederick Leo Hubbard

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Private James David Dort—Killed in Action February 29, 1944

James David Dort was born in Little Dover, Guysborough County, on February 19, 1923. His parents, David Leander Dort and Bertha Reynolds/Rhynold, were also natives of the Canso area. David Leander was born in Canso on May 26, 1896, the youngest child of Albert and Abigail (George) Dort.

Private James David Dort

On June 6, 1918, David Sr. was conscripted into military service at Camp Aldershot, NS. He departed for overseas on August 2, 1918, and arrived in Liverpool, England, two weeks later. David was immediately assigned to the 17th Reserve Battalion, which provided reinforcements for Nova Scotian infantry battalions at the front.

After spending two months at Camp Bramshott, David was assigned to the Royal Canadian Regiment (RCR) “for service on the continent” on November 16, five days after the armistice that brought fighting to an end. He spent one month at the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp in France before joining the RCR’s ranks on December 24.

In total, David spent six weeks on the continent with the unit before returning to England on February 8, 1919. He departed for Canada aboard SS Adriatic on March 1 and arrived in Halifax one week later. On March 15, 1919, he was discharged from military service and returned home to Canso.

On October 7, 1922, David Leander Dort married Bertha Rhynold [surname recorded as Reynolds on marriage license], daughter of James and Esther Jane (Snow) Rhynold, Dover, at St. Ann’s Roman Catholic Church, Guysborough. Tragically, David Sr. passed away in mid-December 1922 at 26 years of age. The exact date and circumstances of his death are unknown, as no formal death certificate is available.

Pregnant at the time of her husband’s passing, Bertha gave birth to James David Dort at Little Dover on February 19, 1923. The following day, a second family tragedy occurred when Bertha passed away at age 23. Her death certificate identifies the cause of death as kidney disease and “apoplexy”—unconsciousness or incapacity from a cerebral hemorrhage. Bertha’s death certificate makes no mention of James David’s recent birth.

David, as he was known to family, was taken in by his maternal grandparents, James and Esther Rhynold, Little Dover. James passed away at age 64 on August 4, 1924, while his wife Esther died on April 13, 1931. After Esther’s passing, an elder cousin, James Boudreau, and his wife, Eliza Blanche Keefe, assumed responsibility for David’s care. (James was the son of David’s maternal aunt Margaret (Rhynold) Boudreau and her husband John.)

From an early age, David aspired to a career in aviation. To further his education, around 1936 he moved to Springhill, where he lived with Frances Carrigan, another maternal aunt, and her husband William “Bill.” Each summer, however, David returned to the Boudreau home in Little Dover.

David Dort (right) with aunt Frances (Rhynold) Carrigan (center) and her daughter Gertrude

After completing two years of high school, David decided it was time to set out in pursuit of his dream. In the early summer of 1940, he headed to Toronto, where he found work as a “bus boy” at the National Club, a men’s social facility. At the time of his arrival in the city, interest in the war overseas was spreading across the country. Caught up in the excitement, David enlisted with the 2nd Battalion, Irish Regiment of Canada, a local militia unit, on July 26, 1940.

From September 9 to 21, David attended the regiment’s annual training session at Niagara Camp, ON. While there, he made the decision to enlist for overseas service with the regiment’s 1st Battalion. His attestation document lists his occupation as “aviation student,” an aspiration mentioned elsewhere in his service file.

At the time of his enlistment, David gave his birth date as February 19, 1922, exaggerating his age by one year. He was actually 17 years and seven months old when he joined the Canadian Army. David listed his aunt, “Mrs. William Carrigan, Springhill,” as his next of kin, and later named Frances as heir on his military will. In the event of Frances’s death, James Boudreau, Little Dover, was identified as an alternate heir.

The Irish Regiment of Canada traces its origins to the 110th Irish Regiment, authorized on October 15, 1915. Based in Toronto, the unit recruited soldiers for the 180th and 208th Battalions during the First World War. After arriving overseas, both units were dissolved and their personnel dispersed to existing units.

Re-designated the Irish Regiment following the war, the unit expanded its title to “The Irish Regiment of Canada” in 1932. Four years later, it amalgamated with the 1st Machine Gun Battalion, Canadian Machine Gun Corps, to form The Irish Regiment of Canada (MG).

On September 1, 1939, the Irish Regiment was placed on active service for local guard duty and formally mobilized for overseas service in May 1940. Six months later, the Regiment dropped its machine gun role and became a regular infantry unit. As a result, it was re-designated “The Irish Regiment of Canada, CASF.”

The unit spent more than two years in Canada before heading overseas. From July 1940 to April 1941, its personnel were stationed at Camp Borden, ON. In August 1941, the Regiment travelled by train to Camp Aldershot, NS. By that time, it had been assigned to the 4th Canadian Armoured Division’s 11th Canadian Infantry Brigade.

After arriving in Nova Scotia, the Irish Regiment’s soldiers were assigned to guard duty at various strategic locations around the province. “A” Company—the section to which David belonged—was sent to the Strait of Canso, while the remaining three Companies proceeded to Halifax for duty in and around the capital city.

On October 11, 1941, David was admitted to military hospital at Debert for treatment of a concussion. The circumstances in which he sustained this injury are not recorded in his service file. David spent one week under medical treatment before being discharged to “three days light duty.” He then resumed his regular routine. While at Debert, David completed his military will, naming his Aunt Frances as his heir.

The Regiment received new assignments in April 1942. “B” Company travelled to Shelburne, while “C” Company departed for coastal duty in the Gaspé. The unit’s remaining soldiers were stationed at Mulgrave. While there, Lieutenant Colonel Robert C. Clark assumed command and would eventually lead its soldiers into combat.

The battalion returned to Debert in August 1942 and commenced preparations for its overseas departure. On October 28, 1942, the Irish Regiment of Canada departed for overseas aboard the Queen Elizabeth and disembarked at Greenock and Gourock, Scotland, one week later. Personnel began to arrive at Aldershot Camp, Hants, England, on November 6.

Over the ensuing months, the men completed a training regimen that included speed and route marches, obstacle courses, and basic tactical drills. On December 15, David was granted one week’s leave, returning to Aldershot in time to celebrate the unit’s first overseas Christmas with his mates.

Early in the New Year, an officer completed a confidential assessment of David. The document describes him as a “very sensible lad [who] [h]as seen tough times in his upbringing. Wants to join Air Force because he feels that he is wasting his time here….Stable. Wants to learn, but doesn’t want promotion here.”

On January 11, 1943, the Regiment’s 11th Infantry Brigade was transferred to the 5th Canadian Armoured Division. The composition of Canada’s two Armoured Divisions—4th and 5th—differed from their infantry counterparts. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd Canadian Infantry Divisions each contained three brigades, consecutively numbered 1st through 9th. In contrast, Canada’s two armoured divisions included only two brigades—one armoured and one infantry.

The 5th Canadian Armoured Divisions’ 5th Armoured Brigade included the 2nd Armoured Regiment (Lord Strathcona’s Horse); the 5th Armoured Regiment (8th Princess Louise’s Hussars, New Brunswick); and the 9th Armoured Regiment (British Columbia Dragoons). Its 11th Infantry Brigade included the 1st Battalion, Perth Regiment (Ontario); 1st Battalion, Cape Breton Highlanders; and 1st Battalion, Irish Regiment of Canada. The 11th Independent Machine Gun Company (Princess Louise Fusiliers) rounded out its combat personnel.

Three days after the change in assignment, the Irish Regiment relocated to Wadhurst, approximately 70 miles east of Aldershot. The men were billeted in the community’s castle during their time in the area. While stationed there, David completed a driver’s course, qualifying as “Driver I/C [In Charge] (Wheeled), Class III” on February 19, 1943.

Later that same month, the unit participated in Scheme Spartan, a three-week exercise during which its personnel pursued a retreating “enemy” across southern England. After its completion, the soldiers returned to Wadhurst for another two months’ training. During that time, David received a nine-day personal leave on April 20.

On May 16, 1943, the Irish Regiment proceeded to Salisbury Plains for training in conjunction with the 3rd Army Tank Brigade. The soldiers practiced “in close Company - Squadron co-operation,” a dress rehearsal for active combat service. On July 4, personnel relocated to King’s Lynn, Norfolk, approximately 100 miles north of London, for training. While stationed there, the Regiment provided the Royal Guard while King George VI and his wife, Queen Elizabeth, visited nearby Sandringham House, one of their royal residences.

In mid-August, the Irish Regiment returned to southern England and set up camp in Barton Stacey, Winchester. While there, its soldiers participated in Exercise Harlequin, a dress rehearsal that simulated an invading force’s troop movements. The nature of the exercise suggested that departure for an assignment on the continent was imminent.

In fact, several months previously, Allied forces had commenced their first major combat offensive in Europe.  In late June 1943, a convoy containing British, Canadian and American units departed from the United Kingdom for the Mediterranean theatre. The troops landed on the shores of Sicily on July 9 and crossed to the Italian mainland in early September 1943.

On October 15, 1943, the Irish Regiment travelled to Eastbourne, where preparations commenced for the 5th Canadian Armoured Division’s departure for Italy. The 15,000-man strong Division constituted the main fighting force in a second contingent of Canadian units assigned to the Italian campaign. Before departure, the men were issued supplies appropriate for service in the Mediterranean—tropical anti-gas ointment, mosquito netting, and anti-malaria tablets, among other items.

After a long train journey to northwest England, the Regiment arrived in Liverpool, where its personnel boarded the Grace Line vessel Monterey on October 23. Over the ensuing days, a convoy of 26 vessels subsequently assembled in the Clyde River and departed for the Mediterranean theatre on October 27. The vessels passed through the Straits of Gibraltar on November 4 and continued across the Mediterranean Sea toward their final destination.

The journey was not without its drama. On November 6, a small group of German aircraft attacked the convoy. Torpedoes struck two vessels—a Dutch ammunition ship and the Saint Elena, a troop ship carrying the 14th British General Hospital’s personnel. While the Dutch vessel was destroyed, the Saint Elena remained afloat long enough for the Monterey to pull alongside and evacuate its passengers.

The following day, the convoy anchored in Philippeville Harbour, Algeria, for a day before resuming its voyage. On November 10, the Irish Regiment landed in Naples, Italy, and marched through the streets behind its pipe band. The men then set up camp in the village of Afragola, on the city’s outskirts.

The 5th Canadian Armoured Division was assigned to I Canadian Corps, which operated under the command of the British 8th Army. To reduce the amount of cargo, the Armoured Division had arrived in Italy without its tanks and vehicles. Instead, military commanders decided that the Division would inherit the equipment of the British 7th Armoured Division, the unit they were to relieve.

Unfortunately, the British vehicles had been used during the North African campaign conducted earlier in 1943. The harsh desert conditions meant that most were worn and badly in need of repair. The fleet also consisted mainly of two-wheel drive vehicles that were poorly suited for the Italian terrain. When the deficiencies were presented to military authorities, a decision to re-equip the armoured units with replacement vehicles transported from the UK delayed their deployment until February 1944.

The situation for the 11th Infantry Brigade’s units, however, was quite different. On November 19, its personnel moved to Altamura in southeastern Italy, where they spent the remainder of the year. The three battalions participated in a training exercise at nearby Irsina from December 18 to 23 before returning to Altamura for a traditional Christmas feast.

As some point during his time in the UK—likely during one of his leaves—David had met Teresa Gilfedder, a young Glasgow resident. His service file contains a letter from Teresa, dated January 1944. Teresa wrote:

“Do you know that this is my fifth air-mail to you? I can’t understand why you are not receiving any of them. Thank you very much for your Greetings at Christmas. Believe it or not darling I actually received your Air-graph Xmas morning…. [A]s you said, we are going to have great times together, when you do come home. By the way, darling, please tell me how to send my photograph on to you. I thought of sending it in that frame you gave me. But if there is a safer way of it reaching you, please let me know. There is an air-mail to follow. Bye for now.”

Teresa Gilfedder, Glasgow, Scotland

David’s service file also contains his pay book, a document that soldiers kept among their possessions throughout their service. Glued to the inside the front cover is a photograph of Teresa, quite possibly the picture mentioned in her January 1944 message. The fact that Teresa’s letter was preserved in David’s service file suggests that it did not reach him prior to his death.

On January 9, 1944, the Irish Regiment and its Brigade counterparts departed Altamura and arrived at San Vito Chietino, south of Ortona, after a two-day journey. On the night of January 12/13, its personnel marched through the ruins of Ortona under cover of darkness. Before daybreak, the soldiers relieved the Royal 22nd Regiment in the front lines as the Irish Regiment commenced its first combat tour in Italy.

The 11th Brigade’s sector was located at the coastal end of a 50-mile front, stretching inland for 3,000 yards across an area of high ground between Ortona and the Riccio River. On its left flank were experienced 1st Canadian Brigade units. The Canadian positions ran along a deep, rugged river valley through which the Arielli River flowed into the Adriatic Sea.

Opposing German forces occupied slit trenches on a high bank opposite Allied units. The Canadians sheltered in fortified buildings during daylight hours, when the situation was usually quiet. Soldiers not assigned to guard duty cleaned their equipment or rested. Artillery and mortar fire at dawn and dusk was routine. As night fell, soldiers moved into slit trenches along the perimeter of each infantry company’s positions.

During the winter months, the area was a “static front” where soldiers conducted “holding” operations, maintaining sufficient defensive positions to repel an attack. Both sides also maintained “around the clock” observation and listening posts tomonitor their opponent’s movements. As movement by either side during the daylight hours prompted retaliatory artillery and mortar fire, both groups dispatched night patrols to prevent enemy forces from infiltrating their positions.

Patrol size varied, depending on the assignment. A “recce patrol” usually consisted of an officer and three to four “other ranks” (OR). Tasked with reconnoitring enemy positions, the men were instructed to avoid any contact with the opposing side.

A “standing patrol” consisted of any number up to platoon size (20 to 50 soldiers) and was intended to provide protection against attack by an enemy patrol. Its soldiers were prepared to ambush and kill enemy personnel, if any were encountered.

A “fighting patrol” consisted of an officer and 10 men to 25 men, Its assignment was to move through the “no man’s land” between opposing lines and make contact with the enemy. The goal was to identify enemy units on the other side, ideally by returning with a prisoner.

As the 11th Brigade settled in for its first tour in the line, its officers received word of plans for a two-battalion attack across the Riccio River and into German-held territory. The Perths and Cape Breton Highlanders would carry out the offensive action, with the Irish Regiment remaining in reserve. The attack took place on the night of January 17, but did not unfold as planned. While the Irish Regiment sheltered in reserve trenches, supporting tanks drew German machine gun fire onto their location, inflicting the unit’s first casualties of the war.

Meanwhile, the Perths and Cape Breton Highlanders crossed the Riccio River toward the German line in a staggered attack. Their opponents, seasoned and disciplined soldiers of the 1st German Parachute Division, repelled both advances, inflicting eight officer and 177 OR casualties in the Brigade’s first combat experience. A major reason for the failure was a decision to have the Perths attack their objective first, followed shortly afterward by the Highlanders. The ill-conceived plan allowed enemy artillery to concentrate its fire first on one party before transferring to the other.

The 11th Brigade remained in the line for the remainder of the month, conducting routine patrols in wet weather that turned the heavy clay ground into a muddy quagmire. Night-time temperatures dropped below freezing, making conditions even more uncomfortable. On January 31, a German patrol attacked a “C” Company Irish Regiment platoon but was driven off. The following day, a “B” Company patrol brought in the unit’s first prisoner of war.

On February 8, the unit relieved the Carleton & York Regiment in a nearby section of the line. The move took place over muddy terrain in a steady rain, under cover of darkness. The new Irish position consisted of open slit trenches filled with muddy water, typical of most locations along the line. Three days later, the weary soldiers marched out to the village of Roatti for a welcome five-day rest.

The Irish Regiment returned to the line in relief of the Cape Breton Highlanders on February 16. The unit’s second tour in the line involved “intensive patrolling.” On February 22, the battalion recorded its first combat fatality when Lieutenant R. D. Heard, the officer in charge of its Scout Platoon, was killed when he stepped on a mine on the German side of the Arielli River.

There was one “decent ford” across the river in the 11th Brigade’s sector. At various times, both sides waded through its shallow water and into the other side’s lines. The Irish Regiment’s nightly patrols headed out through a dark valley leading to the ford, scrambled up the mine-infested slope on the opposite side and into German-held territory.

On the evening of February 29, 1944, Major George Macartney led an “A” Company fighting patrol, consisting of 25 men, across the Arielli. The group “opened up a heavy firefight” with German forces at a location known as “Cork” and “did much damage before withdrawing to their own side of the river.” Two Irish soldiers were wounded in the encounter, but safely made their way back with their comrades.

After returning to the Irish Regiment line, Lt. Macartney realized that one soldier—Private James David Dort—was missing. The officer later returned to the location of the firefight with a patrol in search of “Porky,” the nickname his comrades had given their lanky young comrade. Unfortunately, Macartney “was unable to find any trace” of David, who was officially listed as “missing in action.” Shortly after the incident, authorities notified David’s aunt Frances of his disappearance.

Several months passed with no sign of David. On November 18, 1944, officials sent a telegram to Frances, stating that her nephew, “previously reported missing in action[,] has now been for official purposes presumed killed in action” in Italy on February 29, 1944. Over the ensuing months, there was no trace of David’s remains.

Private James David Dort’s name is inscribed on the Cassino Memorial, erected at Cassino, Frosinone, Italy, in memory of more than 4,000 British and Commonwealth personnel lost in the Sicilian and Italian campaigns who have no known graves. Its green marble walls display the names of 193 Canadian soldiers who died without a trace while serving in the Mediterranean theatre.

Photograph of Pte. James David Dort in uniform courtesy of Betty Boudreau, Little Dover, Guysborough County. Remaining images obtained from Pte. Dort's service file. Special thanks to the children of Teresa (Gilfedder) Flynn, Glasgow, Scotland, for consenting to the inclusion of her picture and letter in this post.