HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2010-11-04, Page 23THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2010. PAGE 23. Morris-Turnberry history book seeks soldiers’ stories
Members of military actions and
units need to get their name to the
volunteers in charge of Morris-
Turnberry’s upcoming history book
if they want their achievements
recognized in the two-tome
publication.
A Harvest of Memories of Morris-
Turnberry is being put together by
volunteers like Donna Nicholson
and they need the public’s help to get
all the stories that need to be told.
Nicholson recently spoke to The
Citizen about the difficulties
associated with the book.
World War I (WWI), and any
military actions of that era, have
proven to be the easier subject
matter than later wars to research,
according to Nicholson, because
documentation is available to
researchers, but that doesn’t mean
it’s easy.
“People who didn’t live with their
parents, or British Home Children
for example, provide a challenge as
we can’t find them by tracing their
heritage quite as easily,” she said.
“And people in the Navy and Air
Force weren’t considered Canadian,
they were considered British, so a lot
of those records disappeared during
bombardments in World War II
(WWII).
“It requires a lot of cross
referencing to make sure we have the
right people,” she said.
Other problems further complicate
the search, including individuals
who lied about their age and marital
status to get to where the fighting
was.
“There were young people who
did it, but it didn’t stop there,”
Nicholson said. “There were 50 year
olds claiming to be in their 30s and
40s and claiming to be single so they
could fight for their country.”
For that reason, the group is
looking for information regarding
any Morris-Turnberry residents who
have a connection to soldiers from
the township.
“WWII [and other, later 20th
century wars are] proving difficult
because of a lack of resources,”
Nicholson said. “There are no
attestations papers, and the privacy
act has forced us to rely on
newspaper microfilm, since the
census hasn’t been released from
those dates.”
Using resources like census
material, government databases,
newspaper microfilms and simple
word of mouth, the volunteers have
been trying to illustrate just how
involved Morris-Turnberry has been
in military and peace-
keeping missions in the past
century.
“We want the reader to know that,
when they are looking at a particular
road, there is someone from every
other farm house that fought
somewhere,” Nicholson said. “That
is a huge impact both [on the front]
and on the area.”
However, they still need more
information, and are looking for any
stories, documents and pictures
available.
History about Turnberry residents
should be sent to Jodi Jerome at
jjerome@hurontel.on.ca while
Morris information should be sent to
Jenny Versteeg at
versteeg@wightman.ca
Nicholson explained that any
stories can be delivered to the
Municipal Office on Wednesday
mornings, and that photos can be
scanned on-site as to never leave the
possession of the owner.
“If you know of any soldiers who
participated in the Boer War, WWI,
WWII, Korea, Vietnam or any
peacekeeping missions, pleasecontact us,” Nicholson said. “Wewant to honour these men and
women. If you have photos of them,
please contact us.”
The research has turned up
interesting information, like the
events of October 26, 1917.
On that fateful day, four members
of the Canadian Army from Morris
ward; William Forbes,
George Davis, Robert Lawson and
Charles Barclay Forrest lost their
lives.
“[Forrest] has an interesting
story,” Nicholson said. “He was the
recipient of the Companion of the
Order of the Bath medal.
The Companion of the Order of
the Bath medal is a prestigious
medal given to British Soldiers who
display service “of the highest
order”.
It is no longer awardable to
Canadian citizens and has only been
awarded to approximately
160 recipients over the award’s
lifetime.
Other stories include John
Barnhill, another WWI soldier who
was recognized with foreign medals
for his bravery.
“[Barnhill] also served in the Boer
War, then turned around and used his
military experience to become a
police officer in London, Ontario,”
Nicholson said.
The book can be pre-ordered for
$100 plus applicable taxes until
February 14, 2011 at the municipal
office. After that, the price will be
raised to $125 plus applicable taxes.
The book should be available by the
end of June, 2011.
Looking to do your own
research?
Two of the volunteers putting
together the Morris-Turnberry
history book, Harvest of Memories
of Morris-Turnberry, Karen Webster
and Donna Nicholson shared their
resources so you can start your own
family research.
Websites
Census information:
1901-1911 -
automatedgenealogy.com
1881-1981 -
www.collectionscanada.gc.ca
WWI Soldiers
www.collectionscanada.gc.ca
Canadian Virtual Museum
www.vac-acc.gc.ca
Soldiers of the South African War
www.collectionscanada.gc.ca
Home Children
www.collectionscanada.gc.ca
Attestation Papers - WW1
www.collectionscanada.gc.ca
Commonwealth War Graves
Commission
www.cwgc.org
Ancestry Library Edition
Accessible through Huron County
Libraries.
Books
Huron County in World War I
Carolyn Duckworth has, over the
last six years, made it her mission to
compile all information on WWI
soldiers who are connected to Huron
County. To date she has found 2,500.
Her information can be seen at the
Goderich branch of the Huron
County Library.
Lest We Forget: A Brief History of
the 161st Battalion of Huron 1916-
1996
Yvonne Reynolds wrote this short
history of the Huron Battalion. It
contains a list of the original soldiers
who enlisted after its formation. A
copy is available in the reference
section of the Goderich branch of the
Huron County Library.
War Memorial of Huron County’s
Heroes and Heroines
A newspaper supplement
produced by the Wingham Advance
in 1919 that paid honour to thesoldiers from the Wingham Area.The Men of Huron: A book of
Honour and Remembrance 1939-
1946
Published by Jim Rutledge in
2009, this book focuses on WWII
soldiers and has a list of known
soldiers from Huron County, each
listed with a brief history,
picture and cause of death if
available.
The book is available in the
Seaforth, Clinton, Wingham,
Goderich and Exeter branches of the
Huron County Library. Rutledge is
currently working on a book
featuring WWI soldiers.
Huron Historical Notes
Created by the Huron County
Historical Society, Volume XL of the
notes, published in 2005, is
dedicated to cenotaphs in the area.
Copies are available for purchase
from the Huron County Museum in
Goderich.
Sandy MacDonald
Sandy MacDonald compiled
extensive information on the 161st
“Fighting Hurons” battalion.
MacDonald visited veterans of the
161st in the 1970s to gather this
information.
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John Anderson
Morris-Turnberry soldiers like John Anderson will be
featured in A Harvest of Memories of Morris-Turnberry, a
dual-volume history book set to be released next year.
(Denny Scott photo)
By Denny ScottThe Citizen