censlenov

466275 PTE. A. S. DALE 10-CAN. INF. Born August 22, 1890 at Stewkley, Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire England Dale enlisted in the 63rd Overseas Battalion CEF on July 5th 1915 at Medicine Hat Alberta (Greatest place in the world) and listed his occupation at the time of attestation as a Surveyor. He left Canada aboard the S.S. Metagama on April 22nd 1916 arriving at England on May 5th. Upon his arrival he was transferred to the 11th Reserve Battalion. On June 4th he was posted to the 10th Battalion CEF and joined them in France on June 10th. On October 7th 1916 Dale was attached to the 2nd Canadian Machine Gun Company and served with them until the 19th of November. He remained with the 10th until December 19th when he was transferred to the 2nd CMGC. Dale Served with this unit until June 22nd 1917 at which time he took ill with an undiagnosed condition. Dale was sent back to England for service with the CMGC Depot. Dales condition did not improve while service at the Depot so he was sent to hospital and was admitted to the Canadian Convalescent Hospital at Uxbridge on the 28th of August. Dale remained at Uxbridge until the 7th of September. Dale was then transferred back to the CMGC Depot until the 22nd of October when he was sent to CDD Buxton to receive a discharge for being medically unfit. The voyage back to Canada began on the 6th of November when he set sail from Liverpool aboard H.M. Transport 2810 (S.S. Olympic). Dale was back in Canada and at Vancouver by January 2nd 1918 where a thorough medically examination took place. Follow the examination the doctors concluded that Dale was suffering from a condition known as V.D.H (Valvular Heart Disease). The report issued by the CAMC states that Dale had a ?Mitral Systolic Murmur. Heart enlarged to nipple line. He complains of faintness and shortness of breath on exertion?. It was stated that the condition was most like a result of Rheumatic fever that Dale had contracted while still living in England in 1909. With the diagnosis in hand Dale was issued a medical discharge and received his class a war service badge marked #24219. His medal card confirms his entitlement to the pair only. Arthur Stableforth Dale passed away on November 30 1968 at Hayward Alameda California U.S.A. These medals came into my collection off of Ebay where they were being offered in 2 separate auctions. Fortunately I managed to keep the pair together without going bankrupt. The seller was also from Alameda California. Medals are named: 466275 Pte. A. S. Dale. 10-Can. Inf.

79900 Pte. John Alexander Bell 31-CAN. INF. K.I.A. Pte. John Alexander Bell enlisted in the 31st battalion CEF on November 18th 1914 in Medicine Hat Alberta. His attestation papers state that he was born on the 4th of September 1887 in Liverpool England. His pre-war occupation is listed as a plumber. John Bell arrived in England (Shorncliffe Station) on the 9th of June 1915. He and the 31st stayed in england to complete its training and then embarked for france on the 18th of September 1915. On the 14th of October he was admitted to a British stationary hospital near Ypres with a Gun Shot Wound to the head!. He narrowly avoided serious injury and was admitted with a grazing wound to his skull. His next of Kin was notified of his wound on the 27th while he was recouperating. He was discharged from hospital on the 12th of November and rejoined his unit. In little less then a month Bell was again in the hospital with a slightly less impressive infliction. On the 2nd of December he was admitted to No.4 Canadian field ambulance with a nasty case of diarrhoea. 2 Days later once the squirts subsided he once again rejoined his unit. In April of 1916 the 31st saw some impressive action around the St. Eloi area and Bell was in the thick of things. On the 8th of April while preparing to move to the rear a HE shell exploded near Bell and fragments peppered his back. He was taken to the Canadian Stationary Hospital at Boulogne where his injury was treated. The medical officer attending stated he was "Blown up by an HE shell and then suffered in "Weeping gas" but managed to escape with no fractures. He would do wel with some gentle massage and rest." on May third he was released from hospital to rejoin his unit. Courcelette was another anvil on which the reputation of the 31st was forged. the 31st saw some of its heaviest action to date between the 24th and 30th of September and many of its men fell trying to complete the objectives they were assigned. John Bell was one of the fallen. Its not known exactelly what happened to Bell in those days during that pitched battle but when the smoke began to settle the casualty list grew and Bell was added to the growing list. Following the war his trio and cross were sent to his mother followed by his scroll and plaque but it appears as though his plaque may have been returned as its crossed off his awards card. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts. He is also commemorated on our local cenotaph. A single name among many. He is buried in Courcelette British Cemetery in grave X.C.8.

696965 Pte. Daniel Kennedy 175-Can. Inf. Pte. Daniel Kennedy enlisted in the 175th battalion CEF on June 22nd 1916 at Empress Alberta. His attestation papers state he was born on the 18th of January 1874 in Edinburgh Scotland. The paper also states he currently resided in Acadia Valley Alberta and that he had 2years service in the Canadian Militia with the 90th Winnipeg Regiment. Kennedy?s pre-war occupation is listed as cook. This BWM is very special as it is actually named to the 175th Can Inf. It is most likely one of only a handful named to this regiment as upon arriving in England the unit was broken up for reinforcements for the other Alberta battalions. The naming would indicate that Kennedy never crossed the channel to France but perhaps stayed in England for the duration. Upon receiving his service file i found out that Daniel Kennedy arrived in England aboard the SS Saxonia on October 13th 1916. He remained with the 175th until January 10th 1917 he was then transfered to the 21st reserve battalion. Over the next 8 months Kenedy was transfered between the 21st and ARD a total of 6 times before finally leaving for Canada on the 18th of September. He arrived in Quebec on the 13th of October and was discharged from the CEF. The 175th "Medicine Hat Battalion" was raised in Medicine Hat Alberta (my home town) In 1916. Most of its members served in France with either the 10th 31st or 50th CEF battalions.

As i had posted earlier i Collect primarily medals to men from my hometown who served in the CEF. Although i also pick up other groups that catch mey fancy. The following posts will briefly summarize afew of the groups in my collection.

Great group and excellent research. I should post some of the groups in my collection. I'll add his missing vic to my search list and maybe one day it'll be in your hands. Cheers Chris

Does anybody have a photo of Wilhelm Ensslen wearing his Cross with jewels. He was my Grandfathers cousin and i always wondered what he looked like. Cheer Chris

out of curiousity what kind of stripper did you use on the helmet. Seems to have done an excellent job. Cheers Chris

Let me get back to you on that i'm not 100% sure but i believe so. Cheers Chris

The medal is in extremely nice condition short of the small nick to the white enamell. I feel that this medal is a speciman piece made by whoever was awarded the contract (possibly Huguenin) but that it was never issued. The ribbon is an old weave (i know not definative proof but does help) and doesn't appear to have ever been attached to a suspender. I would suspect that if this medal is being copied we would see copies much more frequently. Cheers Chris

sure why not!!!

Very nice virtual tour i liked it alot. Cheers Chris

Hello Everyone I'm curious to know what everyones got in their collection pretaining to the CEF. This group is to a CPL M J Bennett. A local man whom i managed to track down some pics of at the town archives.

Check out this auction currently running and the others the seller has listed. I don't imagine they will be of great quality but you never know. http://cgi.ebay.ca/RARE-WW-II-GERMAN-MEDAL...1QQcmdZViewItem Cheers Chris

looks fine to me also. I only have Canadian ones but i'm sure yours is fine. Cheers Chris

great citation. I can just picture what he must have gone through and it ain't pretty. Cheers Chris

Researching british medals from this time can be quite a pain inthe arse as was mentioned earlier the Blitz toarched many service file in London so to trace a particular man could be quite tricky. Medals to Canadians and Australians NZ'rs and even South Africans from this time however are quite abit easier to research and there are many great researchers to help in these areas. Cheers Chris

Hi Chris WAG = Wireless Air Gunner The Eagle i believe indicates he was a pathfinder. Cheers Chris

Thanks so much for the info and the welcome guys. I paid $110 for just the medal but i had never seen another before only mini's so i think it is also a very scarce award and it is in great shape on its original ribbon. It's an investment that i'm sure will pay off in the long run. I collect primarily medals to the CEF in WW1 with a focus on men from Medicine Hat, AB. and also gallantry and long service groups to the CASC and CAMC. Prices in my collecting field have gone up to the point where ive been almost forced out so i've began to diversify my collecting intersts. Cheers Chris

I like this BD and Think is good. Great to see i'll have to post some pics of the RCAF stuff i've got from WW2. Cheers Chris

Just found this beauty online and i think it is the Nut Himayat al-Atfal fi al-Iraq, 1941 / Medal for Children's Wefare in Iraq, 1941 i was wondering if anyone could confirm my suspicion and also give me an idea of the price one of these usually sells for. It's not really in my collecting theme but i think i may have got a bargain and i can't pass up one of those. I've tried on other forums to find out for sure what this is but havn't had any luck yet. Cheers Chris