Remembering Private William Croft “Willie” Hadley—KIA September 23, 1918

William Croft “Willie” Hadley was born on March 14, 1899, at Guysborough town, the youngest of Martha J. (McKenzie) and James Edward Hadley’s four children. Tragically, Martha’s mental health deteriorated shortly after Willie’s birth and the children were raised in the home of their paternal grandparents, Godfrey and Mary (Renton) Hadley.

Private William Croft Hadley

By the spring of 1916, Willie had left home and was working as a sailor in the Sydney area. On March 13, 1916, he enlisted with the 185th Battalion (Cape Breton Highlanders). Willie immediately commenced training with the unit at Broughton, near Sydney, and followed the battalion to Camp Aldershot in late May for a summer of intense military drill.

The 185th was one of four battalions that comprised the Nova Scotia Highland Brigade. On October 12, its soldiers departed for England with their Brigade comrades—the 85th (Nova Scotia Highlanders), 193rd and 219th Battalions. By year’s end, military authorities dissolved the 193rd and 219th. Willie remained at Camp Witley with the 185th throughout the winter of 1916-17 before receiving a transfer to the 25th Battalion (Nova Scotia Rifles) on May 27, 1917. He immediately departed for France and joined the 25th’s ranks at Gouy-Servins on June 15.

Throughout the summer of 1917, Willie served a regular rotation with the 25th in sectors near Lens, France. In late October, the unit made its way northward to Ypres, Belgium, where its soldiers occupied support positions during the final phase of the Canadian Corps’ attack on Passchendaele Ridge. Personnel entered the front lines on the evening of November 7—the day following the attack’s final stage—and assisted in establishing a new defensive line for several days.

After returning to France at mid-month, the 25th served in sectors near Lens, France, throughout the winter of 1917-18. Unaffected by the German Spring Offensive of late March and April 1918, the unit’s soldiers continued their routine front-line rotations. On the morning of May 6, Willie was struck in the right leg by artillery shrapnel during a barrage of the 25th’s trenches near Neuville-Vitasse. Evacuated for medical treatment, he spent the remainder of the month in hospital at Trouville before being discharged to a convalescent camp on June 1.

At month’s end, Willie was released from hospital and made his way to the Canadian Corps Reinforcement Camp, where he awaited orders to return to his unit. He departed for the forward area on August 3 and rejoined his comrades at Saint-Pierre-à-Gouy, northwest of Amiens, shortly afterward. Willie’s return proved timely, as the 25th was preparing for its role in a major Allied counter-offensive against German forces east of Amiens.

The unit returned to the line on the evening of August 7 and the following morning was in support positions with its 5th Brigade mates as other Canadian Corps units commenced the attack. Later that morning, the 25th remained in support while the 24th (Victoria Rifles, Montreal) and 26th (New Brunswick) Battalions—two of its Brigade mates—continued the advance. The following day, the 25th and 22nd (Quebec’s “Vandoos”)—the 5th Brigade’s two remaining battalions—continued the advance during the early afternoon hours, capturing the village of Méharicourt.

Willie and his mates remained in the line until the early hours of August 17, at which time they retired to camp at Caix. Willie came through the experience without injury and followed the unit northward toward Arras in subsequent days. On the morning of August 27, the 25th was once again in support as its three Brigade mates participated in the second day of fighting east of Arras. Personnel remained in the line for 48 hours before retiring to billets at Achicourt.

Following a brief period of rest and training, the battalion retired to the support area on September 12 for several days before returning to trenches near Chérisy on the night of September 18/19. Over the next several days, personnel played a game of “cat and mouse” with German forces in No Man’s Lands. Amidst consistent enemy shelling, the 25th repelled several German counterattacks and attempted to capture several German outposts.

On September 23, 1918, a party of its soldiers succeeded in capturing two enemy outposts and resisted two German attempts to recapture the positions. The day’s fighting, however, resulted in “heavy casualties—four “other ranks” (OR) killed and 21 OR wounded. Private William Croft Hadley was one of the deceased soldiers: “When on a raid near Inchy-en-Artois, he was shot through the head by a machine gun bullet and died a few minutes later.” He was laid to rest in Triangle British Cemetery, Oeuvres, France.

Willie’s story is one of 64 profiles contained in Bantry Publishing’s First World War Honour Roll of Guysborough County, Nova Scotia, Volume II: 1918 - 1937, available for purchase online at bantrypublishing.ca .