As I was preparing for Mondays with Myrt (I’m a panelist), I shared a video I’d created in 2019 about my great-grandfathers who had served in WWI. I shared the thought about how three of my great-grandfathers had fought, and of course, my brain got to wondering … why did I have only three, not four?
The one great-grandfather that didn’t serve was actually my step-great-grandfather. He was John Robert Thompson, and I realized he was older than the other great-grandfathers when WWI broke out. He was 45 years old, and when I Googled the age for enlisting, I found that the youngest was 18, although there were cases as young as 15, and the upper limit was 45. So John Robert was too old to fight.
My other great grandfathers; Francis Middlebrough was 30 years and 10 months old. Jesse Oliver was 30 years 7 months. William Beaton was 30 years old, and Jess Vincent, my 1st cousin 2x removed, was just 18 years and 5 months old.
Both Francis Middlebrough and Jess Vincent signed up right away. Joining the 101st Regiment on August 4 and 17th, 1914, respectively. In an article I saw on the Facebook page Historic Edmonton, one person posted that, in a matter of a couple of weeks, over 1200 officers and men had joined the 101st Regiment and were sent to Camp Valcartier near Quebec by the end of August. That would have included Francis and Jess. I wonder, as I look at this photo, if they might have been somewhere in the crowd.
The 101st Battalion marching on 104th Street in Edmonton, Alberta, circa 1914.
Photographer: McDermid Studio, Edmonton, Alberta. Image courtesy of the Glenbow Archives, NC-6-1206.
Jesse Oliver joined the 1st Battalion on January 15, 1915. He like, Francis and Jess would go to France.
William Beaton would join the 138 Battalion in 1916, just 4 months after his wife had died during childbirth. Leaving his four children, aged 3-13, to be looked after by a sister-in-law. I don’t know how long the children were with their aunt, but I do know they were placed in a Home for Children of Returning Soldiers because they were not treated well by that aunt.
Jess Vincent would go to France, was shot and mustard-gassed. He would return home only to die of the Spanish Flu just two days before the war had ended.
Francis Middlebrough
Jess Vincent
Jesse Oliver
? Baker and William Beaton on the right.
I grew up in Germany. My paternal Grandfather served in WW1 in France. I knew this from the stories he had told us. Much later I even received a photo of him in his WW1 uniform. WW1 records were destroyed during WW2 unfortunately. Recently I found a document my paternal Grandfather had filled out after the end of WW2, and he said that he had served in WW1 in France and Russia. I never knew that. I don’t know if my Dad ever knew. He was born after WW1 and probably never knew. The only WW1 records which survived are the Bavarian Personnel Roster 1914-1918.
Yvonne, what an amazing find.