RootsChat.Com
Research in Other Countries => Canada => Topic started by: islay 1 on Thursday 10 June 10 10:51 BST (UK)
-
Hi,I am trying to piece together what happened to a couple of my mum's brothers,and am starting with this gentleman.
He was born in 1898 in Ayr,Scotland and was only 16 in 1914 when the First World War began. He was not old enough to enlist in a Scottish regiment,so joined a Canadian one instead.
He was a motorbike despatch rider,receiving a commendation for bravery,but unfortunately was badly injured,losing his right arm and left leg.
All we know is that this Canadian regiment took him back to Canada and looked after him for the whole of his life.He remained unmarried.
I would like to find out where in Canada he lived out his days,when he died,where he might be buried,and even if I'm lucky,the name of his regiment that supported him for his lifetime. Could you help and advise me on the best way to proceed?I would be very grateful,thank you.
-
Hi :)
There is a way of getting copies ofarmy files of soldiers in canadian regiments in WW1- I got my uncle's papers that way and it gave quite abit of background about him. But... :-[ :-[
I can't remember what the site is called.
Another way of coming at this may be to ask Canadian Vets Affairs about your uncle.
That Govt Dept. would have a websire I'd think.
charlotte
-
http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/cef/001042-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=142140&interval=20&&PHPSESSID=aaej2702k8pk4qsa3ljudlet30
Link to the Canadian database for WWI soldiers and the only Robert McCracken listed. From this site you can order his military file and the cost is reasonable. The only file I ordered cost about $12.50 Cdn.
Debbie
-
http://www.rootschat.com/links/08vj/
Most likely the Robert McCracken who signed up to serve arriving in Canada. He is listed as a dentist which coincides with the type of work on the attestation papers and he is headed for Port Arthur, Ontario where the attestation papers were signed.
Ship Athenia from Glasgow to Quebec City arriving 30 June 1914.
Debbie
-
Thank you for that - interesting about the Port Arthur reference because my granny and grandad were living there at the time,having come out to Canada in 1910.Mum was born there.I'm off now to look up the links you sent - many thanks.Best wishes.
-
Wow! That is definitely him,right address in Ayr and everything.how can i find the link for his brother Thomas,who joined the same regiment just after him?This is really exciting for me.
-
http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/index-e.html
Go to the Military and Peacekeeping link for WWI soldiers.
From Exploration and Settlement you can use the information for Thomas' arrival to find the ships image. Not indexed by name but by ship so you do have to scroll through the entries.
Debbie
-
thank you,Debbie,I'm going to do that now.Many,many thanks for your interest and help.
-
If he lived in Ont. at the time of his death he may be on the OCFA [Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid]. It's free to search and a great site.
charlotte
-
I am going to post the information that I have that may help with both Thomas and Robert.
www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/cef/index.html
Robert McCracken
Reg. # 438773
joined at Port Arthur spring 1915, 52nd Battalion
You can view his attestation papers at the above site and also order his complete military file from the same site. the cost is 40 cents per page plus postage and handling. It takes approximately 30 days to receive the information. Most files have 25 to 50 pages. If Robert was injured there may be a lot of follow up information in the file including his death records.
http://www.52ndbattalion.com/index.php
This site will give you the nominal roll of officers and noncommissioned officers that joined plus the 1st and 2nd reinforcing names. This site also gives the names and medals of any recipients from the 52nd. Robert McCracken is listed as a member but no medals are shown for him. His brother Thomas is not listed anywhere. There are no attestation papers for Thomas McCracken joining in either Canada or the UK. It is possible that they were in different battalions and served in the same area. If Thomas was living in Scotland, it would be likely that he served with a Scot regiment and battalion. I would check to see what regiments were raised in the Ayr Scotland area.
I will keep looking.
-
I am a bit confused about a few things. You state you are looking for a couple of your mum's brothers, Robert and Thomas.
You also state in one post that the Port Arthur reference is interesting as your granny and granddad were living there at the time and that your mum was born there and that your grandparents came out in 1910. Are you referring to Thomas and Mary Mccracken? In May, 1915, Robert Mccracken on his attestation papers states that his next of kin is his father T. Mccracken, 48 Princess St. Ayr, Scotland.
In another of yor posts you stated that he was a sergeant major and was awarded the MM and the DCM. Which brother are you referring to, Robert or Thomas. Do you have the paperwork that shows when and where these were awarded.
Matrix Project
http://www/cefreserch.com/matrix/index.html
The 52nd Battalion was raised in Northern Ontario in the spring of 1915, mobilzation headquarters at Port Arthur (Thunder Bay), Ontario. The Battalion joined the 9th Brigade, 3rd Canadian Division on Feb 23, 1916.
-
I have checked all my sites for information on Thomas Mccracken serving in WW1 and I can't find anything. I put all known info into the search site at ancestry and I came up with census info for Scotland but nothing for military service. If he served in WW1, his records should be on file at the National Archives in London, unless they are some of the records that were destroyed in WW2. There is a Mccracken family tree on the ancestry site which lists the names you are searching. If this tree isn't yours, you may want to check it out to see what info it contains.
www. ancestry.co.uk
At this time I would suggest that you order Robert's military file to see what is in it.
Val
-
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/medals.asp
under What is the Medal Rolls Index, go to search, enter Thomas McCracken - 19 names come up and some are from Scot Regiments.
I can't say for sure if any of these could be your Thomas but it is a starting point to find his military service in WW1.
-
Gosh! I am so, so grateful to you for taking this interest in my puzzle. I shall have to make it a bit clearer though!
At 48 Princes Street,Ayr,lived my great grandparents,Thomas and Mary McCracken.They had several children.One of them,Mary Mccracken,was my granny who left Ayr with her husband to start a life in Port Arthur.There they had two children,my Uncle Fred and mum.
From the remaining children,Robert and Thomas both enlisted in the Canadian regiments I am searching for.The information I posted above is what my mum told me shortly before she died,so I have no one to verify details with,nor any written records to refer to. She was so proud that Robert,who was too young to enlist in a British Regiment,still wanted to help the war by joining a Canadian one instead.
He - I was told - was a motorbike despatch rider,who was bably injured and looked after by the regiment for the rest of his life in Canada.Isn't that amazingly generous?Mum told me that after he had joined up his other brother Thomas did the same,and I was always told that it too was a Canadian regiment,whether the same one or not,I was never told.Mum said that it was this Thomas who received the MM and DCM,although i am not sute what these are,or would have been awarded for!
I shall follow up the sites you gave me today,but I do know that Thomas ended his days in the Vancouver Cemetery.Assumed from this that he lived in Vancouver.I am so,so grateful for your help.I am completely new to all this and live in England.
-
When you say he was "looked after by the reg." do you think he might have been in the Vets Hospital on Vancouver Isl? If so, he'll probably be buried in the special cem there.
charlotte
-
Thank you,Charlotte,I didn't know there was a Veterans Hospital there,or a special cemetery - unless by that you mean Soldiers Plot in Mountain View Cemetery?Thomas is buried there,I believe.The puzzle just gets bigger and bigger!But with everyone's help I don't feel quite so overwhelmed.I am in England and not at all familiar with the resources available. Thank you for your interest.
-
Just to make sure we keep information straight. I believe it was Robert that was injured. If Robert was injured, it would probably be Veteran's affairs that would have taken care of him after the war and not the battalion. Although I am sure members that he served with would have helped in that regard as well. You mention that your grandparents were in the Port Arthur area. Do you know where they are buried, if in Canada, as that is probably where Robert is as well if he returned to Port Arthur (Thunder Bay) after WW1. Do you know if Robert returned to the Port Arthur area after the war. Do you have a time line for Robert's death within a few years. That may make it easier to search. Also can you give us your grandparents names. Just don't post names of the living on this site. If you think that info would help do it through the PM (personal message)
Some sites to search are Veterans Affairs for thunder Bay, the Royal Canadian Legions and the public library. Also the Thunder Bay Genealogical Society.
http://ogs.on.ca/thunderbay/
I still think I would order his miltary file. I think you may find it contains a lot of information.
-
Thomas McCracken
Mountain View Cemetery
http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/NONMARKETOPERATIONS/MOUNTAINVIEW/contact.htm
Thomas C McCracken burial location HORNE 2/*/16/038/0004
They may be able to tell you if there is any other info on the stone if there is one and if anyone else if buried in the same plot.
Information that is needed to obtain his death certificate:
Thomas Cameron McCracken
1938/10/17, age 53, Vancouver
Reg. Number 1938-09-54 8337
Microfilm # B13163 (GSU#1953196)
-
Thomas McCracken
Vancouver Public Library
http://www/vpl.vancouver.bc.ca/
They probably have an "Ask a Librarian" section and you could request a lookup of an obituary. You know that he was married with children so it it possible that the obituary will lead you to living relatives.
Also, there is an on-line search for telephone and addresses that you can search.
www.canada411.ca
If you can narrow down a McCracken in the Vancouver area, you can always post a snail mail letter. You have nothing to lose if you don't get a response.
-
Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness
http://www.raogk.org/bcolumbia.htm
This will give you access to members who do look ups in both British Columbia and Ontario. Just make sure that you have the details for whatever search you ask for as these members are asked for a lot of searches and anything that you can do to make the search easier for them is appreciated. It also allows them to do more searches.
As you find info, share it with us and we will continue to try to help you.
Val
-
Wow,Valerie,what a fantastic amount of information and advice you have given me - thank you so very much.I will follow up your suggestions later today.
Yes,it was Robert who was injured.I don't think he will be buried in Port Arthur because my grandmother,his sister, brought mum and my uncle back to Scotland to live there permanently in 1925 as things had not worked out well for the family in Canada.My grandfather,Charles Caldwell Harvey remained in Canada,but the family story has it that he was buried in a pauper's grave in 1946 in Port Arthur.
Thank you for the wonderful links - I'm going to look at those today.Best wishes.
-
Death of Thomas Cameron Mccracken 17 Oct 1938
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Ag 53y 0m 7d born Oct 10 1885 Ayr, Scotland
Spouse: Mary Mccracken
Parents Thomas Mccracken & Mary Cameron
Film Number: 1953196
Digital Folder4437851 Image: 2233
British Columbia Archives Film Number: B13163
Registration #5337
Collection: British Columbia Death Registrations
http://search.labs.familysearch.org
There are several McCracken in Mountainview including 2 Roberts...One who died in 1915?
-
Thank you,JJ - this is definitely the correct man,all the other names are my g.grandparents,so thank you very,very much.I don't think my Robert will be the one who died in 1915,because of mum's story that he remained unmarried all his life,but was looked after in Canada by the regiment(?) until he died - implied a longer life than dying in 1915.
If Thomas married after he emigrated to Canada,where would be the best place to search for who he married,when and where?Thank you so much for your interest in this post.
-
You have information on Thomas McCracken death and burial so the next step should be to contact the cemetery and find out what information they can give you. The cemeteries often have a lot of information in their files. You can also contact the Vancouver Public Library and ask for an obituary look-up as you have the date of his death. That may give you the names of his children. Also go to the Canada 411 site and look up the name McCracken on the directory and then sent off a letter through snail mail to the ones that look promising. Doing these things may give you a lot of information without spending a great deal of money.
For Robert McCracken, order his military file. I have just gone through some files that I have on my relatives and this is some of the informtion you may get.
1.Attestation papers
2.Particulars of Family of an Officer or Man Enlisted
3.Separation and Assigned Pay Branch documents - Pay sheets will show if he assigned any of his pay and to who. Also will show which battalions he was with when he was paid and if he was in the field at the time.
4.Documents showing his theatre of service, unit and dates
5.Casualty Form Active Service - will show when he was injured, what hospitals he was in and the dates, his injuries and also whether he was able to recover from the injuries or if he was permanently disabled.
6.Dental certificate for demobilization
7. Medical Examination Upon Leaving the Service
8. Examinations
9. Medical History Sheet
10. Records that show his return to Canada, dates and ship
11. Discharge Certificate
12. Record of Promotions, reductions, transfers, casualties, during active service
13. Proceedings on Discharge - This sheet actually will give the proposed residence after discharge and this could be very valuable in your search for Robert. Also on this sheet on one of my documents the death date is written in.
The files that I have ordered each contained around 40 pages and had information that I was able to use to fill in a lot of gaps. If Robert was injured as severely as you think there should be followup information in his military files.
If you know the unit and date that Robert was injured, you can go to the war diaries and find the battle he was injured at.
You can also do a search for the Last Post Fund. This fund has been used to help pay for headstones of military service personnel that don't have a headstone. They may have a contact section and be able to help you.
-
Wow,that's certainly a lot of things to look up and to find information in.Lots of useful tips - very many thanks.I'll let you know how I get on.
-
I am sorry that the paste didn't work & I never noticed it.... The other Robert Ross McCracken d. 1984 could be yours, you said he was young when he entered service...If D.O.b is on files or on monument, they can give you that information as well. There is a Mary, but she died before Thomas, and he was listed as married...Maybe you'll recognize some other names as well...
http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/NONMARKETOPERATIONS/MOUNTAINVIEW/burials/mca-mcf.htm
yes let us know what his military files say. should prove to be very interesting, and help you learn a little more about the man J.J.
-
Thank you,JJ.I'll follow it up as soon as I can.
-
The grave of Robert McCracken who died in 1984 and is buried at Mountain View remains unmarked, according the the Mountain View site. The Last Post Fund is raising money to mark all veteran's graves, and more than 900 remain unmarked:
http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/NONMARKETOPERATIONS/MOUNTAINVIEW/military/Page.htm
-
Thank you,Trillium 62 for that link.You are most kind and helpful,and I appreciate it.