Remembering Private Lewis Walker Kelly, MM—DOW October 25, 1918

Lewis Walker Kelly was born at Caledonia, Guysborough County, on May 21, 1895, the eldest of George Walker and Laura Emma (Fulton) Kelly’s three children. Lewis spent his childhood years on the Kelly family farm, relocating in early adulthood to Pictou County, where he worked as an “auto driver.”

Pte. Lewis Walker Kelly's 193rd Battalion portrait

On March 7, 1916, Lewis enlisted with the 193rd Battalion at New Glasgow, NS. Two months later, he made his way to Camp Aldershot, where the 193rd trained alongside its Nova Scotia Highland Brigade comrades—the 85th (Nova Scotia Highlanders), 185th (Cape Breton Highlanders) and 219th Battalions. On August 2, Lewis was admitted to military hospital at Halifax for treatment of pneumonia. Discharged three weeks later, he recuperated for several weeks before being assigned to the Special Services Company, Halifax, on September 30.

Two weeks later, Lewis’s Highland Brigade mates departed for England, its overseas arrival coinciding with significant Canadian Corps casualties incurred at the Somme. As a result, two of its battalions—the 193rd and 219th—were dissolved before year’s end and their members dispersed to other units. Meanwhile, Lewis remained in Nova Scotia, where he was transferred to the 246th Battalion—the Highland Brigade’s reinforcement unit—on December 9. He spent the winter of 1916-17 at Camp Aldershot, NS, while the 246th attempted to recruit its ranks to full strength.

While the 246th began dispatching its recruits to England in “reinforcement drafts” during the spring of 1917, a second health issue delayed Lewis’s overseas departure. On March 31, 1917, he was admitted to military hospital with diphtheria. Discharged to duty two and a half weeks later, Lewis finally boarded SS Olympic at Halifax on May 31 and arrived at Liverpool, England, nine days later. Transferred to the 185th Battalion (Cape Breton Highlanders) on June 11, he spent the remainder of the year at Camp Witley with his new unit, awaiting the opportunity to proceed to France.

When military authorities disbanded the 185th in February 1918, its ranks were gradually assigned to existing units. On March 8, 1918, Lewis was assigned to the 25th Battalion (Nova Scotia Rifles) and immediately departed for France. Eight days later, he reported to his new unit’s camp at Raimbert, France.

Throughout the spring and early summer, Lewis served regular rotations in the line with the 25th. In late June, the battalion entered Divisional Reserve, its soldiers spending the following month training and rebuilding its ranks. On July 30, the unit made its way southward to Briquemesnil, near Amiens, France. Following a week’s preparation, the 25th assembled on the outskirts of Cachy during the evening hours of August 7. The following morning, its personnel participated in a massive Allied counter-attack on the German line east of Amiens.

On the first day of fighting, the 25th occupied support positions behind two of its 5th Brigade mates, the 22nd (Quebec’s “Vandoos”) and 24th (Victoria Rifles of Canada, Montreal) Battalions. The following day, the 25th participated in an attack on the village of Méharicourt. The unit remained in the line until mid-month and received several days’ rest before making its way northward to the Arras area on August 21.

On the evening of August 25, the 25th’s soldiers assembled at Beaurains and prepared for their second combat engagement in less than a month. The following morning, the 5th Brigade moved forward in reserve as Canadian units launched an attack on German positions east of Arras. Two of its battalions—the 24th and 26th (New Brunswick)—led the attack on August 27 and 28, while the 25th occupied support positions behind their comrades on both occasions.

On August 30, the unit retired from the line and spent the first two weeks of September training while rebuilding its ranks. Lewis came through the August engagements without injury and returned to the forward area with his comrades at mid-month. Prior its departure for the line, the 25th’s war diary reported that 23 of its “other ranks” (OR) had been awarded the Military Medal for bravery, while five other OR received a bar to the Military Medal, “in connection with the operations in front of Amiens.” Private Lewis Walker Kelly was one of the recipients, although the details of his actions on the battlefield were not recorded.

From September 19 to 26, the 25th completed a particularly challenging tour near Inchy-en-Artois, as its soldiers wrestled with their German foes for control of advance posts in No Man’s Land. Upon withdrawing from the line, the soldiers received a day’s rest before occupying trenches near the recently captured Canal du Nord on September 28. The 25th remained there for several days, awaiting orders to advance. On the afternoon of October 1, its personnel moved into support positions near Sailly, where they remained one week, “digging trenches” along a nearby railway line under cover of darkness.

At 1:30 a.m. October 9, the 25th participated in an attack on Canal de l’Escaut, located on Cambrai’s northern outskirts. During the early morning hours, it soldiers successfully captured their final objective on the city’s eastern side, while several Canadian units to the south passed through the city itself. The unit’s war diary later reported 15 “other ranks” (OR) killed and another 85 OR wounded during the day’s advance.

Private Lewis Walker Kelly was one of the day’s casualties. Evacuated to a nearby clearing station with “wounds [in his] back,” Lewis was initially described as “dangerously wounded.” By October 12, Lewis was stable enough to permit transport by ambulance train to No. 55 General Hospital, Boulogne. At the time of his admission, medical staff identified his injuries as “GSW [gunshot wound] back and head.”

Three days later, Lewis was invalided to England and admitted to Endell Street Military Hospital, London. While the evacuation suggests that his condition had stabilized, an October 24 note on his medical chart indicated that Lewis was “seriously ill,” suffering from paraplegia and incontinence. During the night, his condition “gradually got worse—delirious unconscious.” Private Lewis Walker Kelly died of wounds at 5:30 a.m. October 25, 1918, and was laid to rest in Brookwood Military Cemetery, Surrey.

Pte. Lewis Walker Kelly's headstone, Brookwood Military Cemetery, Surrey

Lewis’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 .

Remembering Private Randolph Murray Giffin—KIA October 22, 1918

Randolph Murray Giffin was born at Isaac’s Harbour, Guysborough County, on June 27, 1896, the third of John MacMillan and Emma Maria (MacMillan) Giffin’s eight children. During Randolph’s early years, the family resided at Isaac’s Harbour, where John worked as a bookkeeper, but relocated to Halifax around 1908.

Pte. Randolph Murray Giffin's 219th Battalion portrait

On February 29, 1916, Randolph and an older brother, Lester Douglas, enlisted with the 219th Battalion at Halifax. At the time, the siblings were five feet, two and a half inches tall and weighed less than 100 pounds. Randolph and Lester spent the next seven months training, first at Halifax and later at Camp Aldershot, before the 219th departed for England aboard SS Olympic on October 12. Also on board the vessel were the 85th (Nova Scotia Highlanders), 185th (Cape Breton Highlanders) and 193rd Battalions, the four units constituting the Nova Scotia Highland Brigade.

Before year’s end, two of the Brigade’s units—the 193rd and 219th—were dissolved and their members transferred to other battalions. Lester was assigned to the 85th Battalion on December 28, 1916, while Randolph joined the unit on March 16, 1917. By that time, Lester had already crossed the English Channel to France with the battalion. Following a brief stint with the 4th Entrenching Battalion, Randolph joined the 85th’s ranks in the forward area on April 5.

Throughout the next 18 months, the brothers served side by side in the forward area. The pair were in the line during the 85th’s service at Vimy Ridge, France, and followed the battalion to Belgium for its Passchendaele assignment in late October 1917. On several occasions throughout his time with the 85th, Randolph served as a “batman” (male servant) to Lieutenant George Murray, a native of River John, NS, while Lt. Murray attended officers’ training courses.

The Giffin brothers served with the 85th throughout the spring and early summer of 1918, and were in the line on the morning of August 8, 1918, as the battalion participated in the launch of a major Allied counter-offensive on the German line east of Amiens, France. Four weeks later, its soldiers took part in a September 2 attack on the Drocourt-Quèant Line east of Arras, a section of the Germans’ Hindenburg defensive system. The 85th suffered an estimated 260 casualties—approximately 35 % of its “trench strength”—during the day’s fighting.

While Randolph and Lester came through both engagements without injury, the physical and mental strains exacted a price on their diminutive frames. Lester was particularly affected—on September 14, he reported to a nearby field ambulance, suffering from “debility.” Described by medical staff as “completely tired out,” he was subsequently invalided to England, where he remained in hospital for the duration of the war.

Meanwhile, Randolph continued his service in France, participating in the 85th’s September 27 attack on Bourlon, on the outskirts of Cambrai. Five days later, he followed his remaining comrades out of the line, the unit suffering more than 100 casualties during the tour. The battalion spent the first three weeks of October in reserve, training and re-organizing its ranks as the Canadian Corps advanced north of Cambrai, toward the Belgian border.

On the morning of October 22, the 85th was once again on the move, marching from Boeulx to Bessemer, on the outskirts of Denain, France. After a brief rest, personnel continued toward Rouvignies, southwest of Valenciennes. While the day’s war diary entry makes no mention of artillery fire during the march, Randolph became a casualty before day’s end: “While with his Battalion in the vicinity of Rouvignies, and during a halt waiting for greater density of darkness before proceeding further into the line, he was instantly killed by an enemy shell which exploded nearby.” Private Randolph Murray Giffin was laid to rest in Denain Communal Cemetery, Nord, France.

Pte. Randolph Murray Giffin's headstone, Denain Communal Cemetery

Randolph’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 .

Remembering Private Russell C. Hendsbee—DOS October 16, 1918

Russell C. Hendsbee was born at Half Island Cove, Guysborough County, on October 26, 1897, the third of Mary Sophia “Minnie” (Snow) and Thomas Frederick Hendsbee’s nine children and the couple’s eldest son. At a young age, Russell went to work in the local fishery. Following the Canadian Parliament’s passage of the Military Service Act in August 1917, he registered for service as required by the law.

Pte. Russell Hendsbee's CEF Headstone, Union Cemetery, Queensport

For several months, Russell’s civilian life continued without interruption. Undeterred by the prospect of serving overseas, he married Mary Ann Laurie, a native of Sand Point, Guybsorough County, on May 8, 1918. At month’s end, Russell reported to Camp Aldershot, where he formally attested for military service on June 4, 1918.

While his first month of training passed without incident, Russell began experiencing episodes of “headache, dizziness and vomiting” in early July. When the symptoms failed to dissipate, he was admitted to hospital at Camp Aldershot on July 15. At the time, medical records indicate that Russell was suffering from a “severe headache [and] vomiting… [and was] unconscious for three days.”

Medical staff immediately diagnosed Russell with cerebrospinal meningitis. While caregivers performed a lumbar puncture and administered an “anti-meningitis serum,” doctors described his condition as “indefinite.” When a Medical Board recommended “at least three months in [a] convalescent home,” Russell declined further treatment and was discharged from military service as “medically unfit” on September 12, 1918. A comment at the end of the Medical Board report noted: “The Board considers the refusal to accept treatment as reasonable.”

Following his discharge, Russell remained in hospital at Camp Aldershot until month’s end. On October 1, staff permitted him to return home as a “convalescent,” but six days later he was admitted to Camp Hill Hospital, Halifax, “as a stretcher case.” At the time, Russell was suffering from “severe headache and pain in eyes,” and was losing control of his lower limbs.

On October 16, 1918, medical notes state that “anaesthesia [was] given and two oz. spinal fluid removed.” Before day’s end, “failure of respiratory centre result[ed] in patient’s death.” Private Russell C. Hendsbee’s remains were transported back to Guysborough County, where he was laid to rest in Union Cemetery, Queensport.

Pte. Russell Hendsbee's Memorial Stone, Union Cemetery, Queensport

Russell’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 .