Lest We Forget – The Hadden-Wagner Wall of Fame

At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we pause to reflect and remember those who went before us, bravely sacrificing their youth and in too many cases their lives, for our freedom.

Poppy
The following is the list of those known brave ancestors, some from my family and some from Ellen’s, who gave so much. Each year this list is updated to include family members whom we have come to learn have served our country through their military service and sacrifice.
Sadly, but very proudly, more names are being added to the family’s Wall of Fame this year. The names of four additional heroes, all from World War I and all volunteers for the Canadian Expeditionary Force.

Today especially, we remember them. They shall not be forgotten.

World War I

GAMMIE, James (1895-1918), Private, Canadian Expeditionary Force, killed in action

GAMMIE, Peter (1893-1984), Private, Canadian Expeditionary Force (enlisted, not sent overseas)

GORDON, Alexander Garrow Duncan (1891-1917), Private, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, killed in action

MCRAE John_in_uniform_circa_1914

MCCRAE, John MD (1872-1918), Lieutenant Colonel, No. 3 Canadian General Hospital, died in service

MERNER, Albert Edward ‘Herbert’ (1897-1917), Canadian Expeditionary Force, killed in action

TRIGGS, James Little (1899-1916), Cabin Boy, Royal Navy, killed in action

TRIGGS, Phillip (1899-1967), Cabin Boy, Royal Navy

FINDLATER, William (1880-1918), British Army, died at home from wounds

FILKIN, Carl William (1897-1976), Canadian Expeditionary Force, lost left arm to shrapnel gun shot wound in France

SHAUGHNESSY William DArcy Catherine and son gravestone St Francis Cemetery Ajax

SHAUGHNESSY, William D’Arcy, Sr. (1883-1953), Canadian Expeditionary Force, 123rd Battalion, Royal Grenadiers

BREITHAUPT, Carl Louis (1896-1946), Canadian Expeditionary Force

BREITHAUPT, William Walter (1894-1977), Canadian Expeditionary Force

KNETCHEL, Norval Laverne ((1895-1968), Canadian Expeditionary Force

MCRAE, Philip Ambrose (1879-1965), Canadian Expeditionary Force

 

World War II

SENATO, Nicola F. (1913-1945), U.S. Army, killed in action, Japan

NUSBICKEL, Thomas Raymond (1923-2002), U.S. Army

GAULL, George Leonard ‘Lenny’ (1920-2013), Canadian Armed Forces

MORGAN, Bruce Evan, M.D. (1924-2007), Navigator, Canadian Air Force

SHAUGHNESSY William DArcy Catherine and son gravestone St Francis Cemetery Ajax

SHAUGHNESSY, William D’Arcy, Jr. (1924-1945) Canadian Armed Forces, 6th Armoured Regiment, killed in action, The Netherlands

WAGNER, Carl Francis (1917-1993), Canadian Armed Forces

WAGNER, Gordon Gilbert Henry (1914-1994), Canadian Armed Forces

My Foley Cousin – A War Hero! (Part 1)

As I grew up, my mother would regale me with stories about her Irish roots, family members and ancestors. There were of course the O’Neill’s and Foley’s, the Fitzgerald’s and Boland’s. But never was there a mention that I can recall of the name Shaughnessy.

You can imagine my surprise then when, as a result of researching the siblings of my great grandfather John Foley, that I discovered John Foley’s younger sister Catherine Foley had married a man named William Shaughnessy and that William and Catherine had a son whom they named William D’Arcy Shaughnessy, my first cousin twice removed.

I was even more surprised when I learned through my research that William D’Arcy Shaughnessy had married Margaret Beatrice O’Leary and that both of them were buried in an out-of-place little cemetery only about a mile and half from my home.

St. Francis de Sales Cemetery is located on Notion Road in Pickering, Ontario, at the intersection of two streets that terminate at the cemetery. It is in what is now a primarily industrial, almost forgotten part of the city. The cemetery appears to have been established as part of St. Francis de Sales Roman Catholic Church (now a municipal community centre) which is located across Duffins Creek, just a few hundred yards away.

I don’t know if William D’Arcy Shaughnessy was aware that his grandfather William Foley had been a founding member of St. Francis Church when the Foley family farmed in the area of what is now Ajax, Ontario. So I also don’t know why they chose to be interred at St. Francis; maybe William did know the connection or maybe it was because Margaret was born in Pickering, Ontario and the little cemetery represented for her the only Catholic cemetery in her hometown.

Several days ago, I paid a visit to the cemetery and found their grave marked by a very nice monument.

SHAUGHNESSY William DArcy Catherine and son gravestone St Francis Cemetery Ajax

Gravestone of William D’Arcy Shaughnessy, Senior and his wife Margaret Beatrice (O’Leary) Shaughnessy, St. Francis de Sales Cemetery, Pickering, Ontario (Photo by Ian Hadden, 2016)

Immediately on seeing the gravestone, I noted the name of their son “Tpr. [Trooper] D’Arcy” listed on the stone as being killed in Holland on 13 April 1945. That suggested only one thing to me, Trooper D’Arcy Shaughnessy, my second cousin once removed, died a war hero in World War 2. I was a bit incredulous as I had certainly never heard any stories about any family members having fought and given their lives in either of the 20th century World Wars.

The records uncovered to date however tell the heartbreaking story of this Shaughnessy family.

William D’Arcy Shaughnessy was born on 21 Dec 1883 in Barrie, Ontario, the son of William Shaughnessy and Catherine ‘Kate’ Foley. As you can see, the current Royal Family is not the first to lay claim to having a William and Kate and my family’s William and Kate added a bit to talk about given that they had been married only a month before the birth of their son.

Margaret Beatrice O’Leary on the other hand was born a little over four months prior to her future husband on 15 Aug 1883 in Pickering, Ontario, the daughter of Louis O’Leary and Catherine Cassidy.

The Shaughnessy family moved to Toronto by 1887 and William began working as a teamster, likely with or at least in association with his brother-in-law John Foley. While it is not yet known how William and Margaret met, it is known that William enlisted for service in the Canadian Expeditionary Force going to battle in World War I. At the time of his enlistment in 1915, William listed his occupation as bookkeeper. William and Margaret were married in Toronto, Ontario on 12 Oct 1921.

Two and one half years later, on 13 May 1924, William and Margaret welcomed their first child, a son, into their family. This son was named William D’Arcy Shaughnessy, Junior after his father.

In the 1940s, the Shaughnessy family could be found living at 9 Bales Avenue in Lansing, Ontario, a small community in the vicinity of Yonge Street and Sheppard Avenue for those familiar with the city of Toronto (Lansing was eventually assumed by Willowdale, then North York, and finally as it is currently, the city of Toronto).

It was from this address that 19-year old D’Arcy headed out and enlisted in the Canadian Army. He had completed high school and had plans to go to university but those plans would have to wait until after he had served King and country. D’Arcy’s military service file records that he was five feet, seven inches tall and was a Roman Catholic office clerk who, as fate would have it, held two life insurance policies for a total amount of $3,000.

Lest We Forget – The Hadden – Wagner Families Wall Of Honour

At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, we pause to reflect and remember those who went before us, bravely sacrificing their youth and in too many cases their lives, for our freedom.

The following is the list of those known brave ancestors, some from my family and some from Ellen’s, who gave so much. Today especially, we remember them. They shall not be forgotten.

World War I

GAMMIE, James (1895-1918), Private, Canadian Over-Seas Expeditionary Force, killed in action






GAMMIE, Peter (1893-1984), Private, Canadian Over-Seas Expeditionary Force







GORDON, Alexander Garrow Duncan (1891-1917), Private, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, killed in action





MERNER, Albert Edward ‘Herbert’ (1897-1917), killed in action






TRIGGS, James Little (1899-1916), Cabin Boy, Royal Navy, killed in action

TRIGGS, Phillip (1899-1967), Cabin Boy, Royal Navy

FINDLATER, William (1880-1918), British Army, died at home from wounds

World War II

SENATO, Nicola F. (1913-1945), U.S. Army, killed in action, Japan

NUSBICKEL, Thomas Raymond (1923-2002), U.S. Army


GAULL, George Leonard ‘Lenny’ (1920-2013), Canadian Armed Forces


MORGAN, Bruce Evan, M.D. (1924-2007), Navigator, Canadian Air Force






WAGNER, Carl Francis (1917-1993), Canadian Armed Forces


WAGNER, Gordon Gilbert Henry (1914-1994), Canadian Armed Forces 

A Wagner Family Artifact Comes Home to the Family

You never know what contacts you might make as a result of an online family history blog. Sure, I’ve had the great pleasure of being contacted by long, ‘lost’ cousins but never before did I imagine that a family artifact would find it’s way back to the family as a result of my blog.

Don Wagner (no known relationship to my wife) runs the Soldier’s Museum website. As a history buff, Don also finds and collects historical artifacts. One of Don’s finds was a small, hard covered book (pictured below) entitled, “Americans’ Guide to Hindustani.” The book is best described as a pocket-sized dictionary containing the Hindi-Urdu translations of useful English language phrases and words, likely a useful book to have if you were born in Saskatchewan, Canada and posted during World War 2 to north India.



On the inside flyleaf of the book (pictured below), the soldier who owned the book had written his name and regimental assignment, “F/O Gordon Wagner – 229 Group RAF India.”




When Don decided to do a little research to see if he could find any additional information about the soldier, a Google search lead him to my blog post about Ellen’s uncle, Gordon  Gilbert Henry Wagner. Don left a comment on my Gordon Wagner blog post and then also contacted me by email to see if we could determine if ‘my’ Gordon Wagner was the same Gordon Wagner who had written his name inside the book.

There are precious few records available in Canada covering the 1,159,000 Canadians who served in World War 2 and there are access restrictions to the service files of those who survived the war, including Gordon. Fortunately for me, Gordon had two passionate interests that he pursued in his retirement. Genealogy and writing.

Gordon’s genealogy research served as the initial basis for my own research of the great history connected with Ellen’s family. Gordon’s passion for writing resulted in the publication of several books, including his autobiographical recollections of his time in the Royal Canadian Air Force, entitled “How Papa Won The War” (published by the Flying-W-Publishing Co. in 1989). 

On page 157 of the book, Gordon wrote, “In their campaign to chase the Japanese out of Burma, the British army needed aircraft to transport supplies and paratroops into the jungles of north-western Burma. The Royal Air Force received the army’s request and asked the Royal Canadian Air Force to supply the aircrews. The RAF would fly us to India, providing the planes and the base. The RCAF would form two squadrons, train the crews and take the squadrons into Burma. At least that was the plan, a good one really.”

Gordon provided a copy of his new assignment to the RAF, dated September 12, 1944 to the 229 Group India.

So both ‘my’ Gordon Wagner and the Gordon Wagner who owned the book were both assigned to the 229 Group in India during World War 2. It’s still possible that they are two different people but I doubt that very much.

I agreed to a price for the book (or maybe it was a finder’s fee) with Don and he mailed the book to me. It arrived back in the hands of the Wagner family today!