Canadian brass...well some of it is.

[Laurence Strong]

Ships crest

[Laurence Strong]

how she is today, an artificial reef outside on Lunenberg, Nova Scotia.

Edited April 3, 2006 by Laurence Strong

[Guest Darrell]

Here's a couple of Hat Badges I have "inherited".

The first one belonged to my Mother in Law's father:

Obverse:

[Guest Darrell]

This was from my Uncle:

[Laurence Strong]

Thanks for the photo's Darrell.

Keeping with the navy at the momment "Standing Naval Force Atlantic" command badge. Worn on the right side breast pocket.

Edited April 18, 2006 by Laurence Strong

[Laurence Strong]

Ships Diver. The obverse has the plastic backing that you wore inside your shirt to keep on looking "smart". These are current day issue.

Edited April 18, 2006 by Laurence Strong

[Sauce]

One from my neck of the woods

They have a neat little museum here in Niagara On the Lake, if anyone is ever around.

Dan

[Laurence Strong]

Ok Darrell a little about the British Columbia Dragoon's, better known as the "BCD's"

Battle Honours: Second World War

Liri Valley, Melfa Crossing, Gothic Line, Pozzo Alto Ridge, Lamone Crossing, Naviglio Canal, Fosso Munio, Conventello-Comacchio, Italy, 1944-1945, Ijsselmeer, Delfzijl Pocket, North-West Europe, 1945.

Details of the Regiment were placed on active service on 01 September 1939 for local protective duty. The Regiment mobilized the 5th Canadian Motorcycle Regiment, C.A.S.F. (B.C.D.) on 24 May 1940. The unit was converted and redesignated The British Columbia Dragoons on 09 February 1941 and again on 11 February 1941 as the 9th Armoured Regiment (The British Columbia Dragoons). It embarked for the United Kingdom on 13 November 1941 as the junior armoured regiment of 2nd Armoured Brigade, 5th Canadian Armoured Division. After the re-organization of Canadian armoured formations in early 1943, the Regiment landed in Italy on 19 December 1943 as the junior armoured regiment of 5th Armoured Brigade, 5th Canadian Armoured Division . It fought in Italy until February of 1945 when it moved to North-West Europe with the rest of 1st Canadian Corps. The active unit was disbanded on 31 January 1946. A 9th (Reserve) Armoured Regiment (The British Columbia Dragoons) served in the Reserve Army.

The regiment earned

5 Military Crosses

6 Military Medals

2 DSO's

and 1 DCM.

All but 3 of those were Immediate awards for a specific act of gallantry.

[Laurence Strong]

Rick just for you, I finally found it. The upper is Officer, the lower is troop.

WW1 8 Bn CEF

1914.08.06 8th Canadian Infantry Battalion (The Black Devils), C.E.F. formed at Winnipeg, Man.

1920.09.15 disbanded; perpetuated in 1921 by The Royal Winnipeg Rifles.

Battle Honours:

Ypres 1915 '17, Gravenstafel, St Julien, Festubert 1915, Monut Sorrel, Somme 1916, Thiepval, Ancre Heights, Arras 1917 '18, Vimy 1917, Arleux, Hill 70, Passchendale, Amiens, Scarpe 19188, Drocourt-Queant, Hindenburg Line, Canal du Nord, Pursuit to Mons, France and Flanders 1915 '18.

Edited April 20, 2006 by Laurence Strong

[Laurence Strong]

Hi Dan

Thats a very interesting hat badge with quite a history

The history of the Regiment can be traced to the raising of Butler's Rangers on 15

September 1777. Major John Butler, an officer in the Indian Department, was a Loyalist

from the Mohawk Valley in New York. After the Battle of Oriskany, he convinced Sir

Guy Carleton that a Ranger unit should be raised to fight on the frontiers in conjunction

with the Indians. He eventually raised 10 companies and some 800 men served in the

Rangers. The Corps fought on the frontiers of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey,

West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky. It was reduced to nil strength on 24 June 1784.

On the disbandment of the Rangers, John Butler, now a prominent leader in Niagara, was

appointed Commanding Officer of three battalions of Nassau Militia. Nassau was one of

the Districts of Upper Canada, Niagara being only part of the district.

With the reorganization of the province into sixteen counties in 1792, Lincoln County

(with 20 townships) came into existence. The militia was renamed and the Lincoln

Militia, with three battalions came into being, some 849 strong. By 1794, Butler was a

full Colonel with four battalions reporting 976 all ranks. Most of the officers and a great

many of the NCOs and men had served in the Rangers and had received land grants in

Niagara for this service. With the gazetting of officers in this year, the Regiment marks it

as the official birth of the Lincoln Militia.

At the outbreak of the War of 1812, the Lincoln Militia was organized into five

regiments. Flank companies of those regiments took the field in all major engagements

from Niagara to Detroit including the battles of Queenston Heights, Lundy's Lane, Stoney

Creek and Fort Detroit. In all cases they were a credit to their country. From the

Regiment's association with Major General Sir Isaac Brock comes the scallop shell on the

cap badge. It is taken from the coat of arms of Brock's family on the Isle of Guernsey.

During the rebellion of 1837, units of the Lincoln Militia were called out to quell rebel

uprisings in the Niagara Peninsula and the 2nd Lincolns were warned for duty in Toronto.

In 1838, the 2nd conducted marches into the Short Hills to subdue rebel activity there. In

1846, Lincoln County was divided and Welland County was formed with three battalions

of militia. The militia "regiments" were renamed "battalions".

In 1863, the Lincoln and Welland Battalions were reorganized and renamed the 19th

Battalion Volunteer Militia (Infantry), Canada with 10 companies, and the 20th Battalion

Volunteer Militia (Infantry), Canada with six companies. Both had headquarters in St.

Catharines.

In May of 1866, eight companies of the 19th and 20th Battalions were called out to repel

the Fenian invasion of the peninsula. They formed part of Colonel Peacocke's field force.

As a result of the Fenian Raids, the 44th "Welland" Battalion of Infantry was raised. It

took over companies from both the 19th and 20th Battalions. The 20th was redesignated

the 20th "Halton" Battalion, and moved to Milton.

Between 1866 and 1914 there were various name changes and reorganizations. In 1914,

the 19th Lincoln Regiment, with headquarters in St. Catharines, had eight companies, as

did the 44th Lincoln and Welland Regiment, with headquarters in Niagara Falls.

Although not mobilized, the Regiments contributed troops to contingents for the North-

West Campaign and the Boer War.

During the Great War, the two Regiments contributed over 5,000 men to various

Canadian Expeditionary Force battalions, particularly the 81st, 98th and 176th. At the

conclusion of the War, the CEF battalions ceased to exist. It was decided to award battle

honours which a CEF battalion had won to militia units which had contributed 200 or

more men to that battalion.

Both the 19th and 44th trained under extreme difficulties between the wars. An example

of the little training done is that of the 19th which trained 12 days in 1920, 9 days a year

between 1922 and 1927, 12 days a year from 1928 to 1931 and 10 days a year from 1932

to 1936. On 15 December 1936, the two units were reorganized into The Lincoln and

Welland Regiment with an establishment of 467 all ranks.

The day before the Second World War began, the Regiment was called out and posted to

guard the Welland Ship Canal. It was demobilized in December 1939 and almost 500

men immediately volunteered with Toronto Units. In June 1940, the 1st Battalion,

Lincoln and Welland Regiment was mobilized for active service. The 2nd Batallion was

to remain in reserve. The 1st Batallion arrived in the United Kingdom in July of 1943 and

on 19 August became a part of the 10th Canadian Infantry Brigade of the 4th Canadian

Armoured Division.

After landing in France in July of 1944, the Regiment formed part of II Canadian Corp's

"long left flank" of the Allied advance. For the next nine months, it fought its way

through Belgium and the Netherlands into Germany. This was some of the bitterest

fighting of the war, consisting largely of clearing built-up areas and canals.

From Tilly-la-Campagne on 31 July 1944 until Bad Zwischenahn on 1 May 1945, the

Regiment distinguished itself in many actions. Over 1500 men of the Regiment were

casualties. Of the original men who enlisted in 1940, only 3 officers and 22 men were on

parade in St. Catharines in 1946 when the 1st Battalion was dismissed.

In the years since World War II, the Regiment has busied itself with the many tasks

entrusted to the Canadian Militia during peace time. Ceremonial parades have been

attended and Guards mounted, most notably the visits of HRH The Princess Elizabeth

(now HM Queen Elizabeth II) and HRH The Prince Philip to Niagara Falls in 1951 and

HM Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother to Niagara-on-the-Lake in 1981. During the

Blizzard of 1977 in the Niagara Peninsula the Regiment was called out to provide

assistance to the civil authority. It rescued over 1500 stranded school children and

provided assistance to countless residents during the emergency. For this assistance, the

Regiment received a vote of thanks from the House of Commons. More recently, the

Regiment has provided volunteers to assist during the 1997 Floods in Manitoba and the

1998 Ice Storm in Eastern Ontario and Quebec.

1994 marked the 200th anniversary of the Regiment and was commemorated in many

ways.

Recently, an error made over 50 years ago was corrected. Due to an administrative

oversight, two battle honours won in north-western Germany during the final weeks of

the Second World War had never been awarded to the Regiment. After Royal approval,

National Defence Headquarters finally authorized the awards. In October 1995, at the

Regiment's annual Church Parade, scrolls commemorating the battles of K?sten Canal

and Bad Zwischenahn were presented by members of the Regimental Association.

[Sauce]

Thank-you Mr. Strong for all that wonderfull info!!!!

A neat little tidbit about Colonel John Butler, is his grave is around the corner from my house, I live in Niagara On the Lake, anyhow, in the next few weeks Parks Canada, will be opening a tomb that is in the ground, what it is is a spot where they used to seal the Caskets if someone passed on during the winter months, they would hold them there untill thaw.

It has been sealed for almost one hundred years, and My friend from parks canada gets to open it, so ill be there takeing pics. ill let you all know how it gos.

Dan

[peter monahan]

Keep going Laurence I'm enjoying the display.

Same here, laurence!

BTW, the Royal Newfoundland Reg't was originally raised in 1795, then disbanded (1803) after the Peace of Paris then re-raised in 1805 and had a distinguished service in Upper Canada from 1812-1816 (Ask me some day if you're bored! ). Then disbanded again till 1914, when raised as "The Newfoundland Reg't", known on the island and elsewhere as "The Blue Puttees".

In WWI they were at Gallipoli (heavy casulties) then France/Flanders. Chris' photo shows their memorial at beaumont Hamel, wher they suffered 78% casulties in one day. They were the only unit in the Empire to earn the "Royal" title during WWI. In WWII they were designated an artillery unit (Mediums?) and, I believe, stayed in Nfld, though almost certainly sent drafts overseas to other RCA units. A proud regiment, still part of our Reserve Force. I'm sure your dad has good reasons and memories for the badge.

Peter Monahan,

Sergeant, Bulger's Company, Royal Newfoundland Regiment of Fencible Infantry

(War of 1812 Re-enactment unit)

[Michael Johnson]

In WWII they were designated an artillery unit (Mediums?) and, I believe, stayed in Nfld, though almost certainly sent drafts overseas to other RCA units.

There was a 166th (Newfoundland) Battery. R.A., but I don't think that they were connected with the Newfoundland Regt. The 166th served in Italy, and was part of one of the South African divisions for at least part of its service.

(as usual the Sergeants don't have all the information )

Michael Johnson

Lieutenant, 2nd Coy., Royal Newfoundland Regiment

Scout Brigade of Fort George

I'm down there with the Scouts each September (my avatar is me marching down the main street of NOL), so I'm interested in the pics as well.

Edited April 21, 2006 by Michael Johnson

[Laurence Strong]

Thanks guys for your info, and Dan when those vaults are open, please post the results on the forum I think a lot of people will be interested.

Micheal shhhh....NCO's are the back bone of any army, and never let on they don't know the answer

To put the finish on my RCN items

Current day Submariner Badge with makers mark

[Laurence Strong]

I always thought these were rank chevrons, but they are time in service ranks.

Single chevron for 3 to 8 yrs

Double chevron for 8 to 13 years

Triple chevron for 13 and over years

Here's a mixture of single and double in both red and blue chevrons.

[Laurence Strong]

These badges were worn in 3 distinctive colour combinations. The red on black background were for the number 2 (going ashore) uniform and number 3 (working sailor suit) uniform. A gold on black background badge was worn on the number 1 (divisions/parade) uniform. Finally a blue on white background badge was worn on the number 11 (whites) uniform.

Note: The latter badge can also be found in a black on white background and used for the same purpose as the blue on white.

13 years and over with Petty Officer 1st class, these anchors predates QE II's coronation in1953 dye to the Tudor or "Kings" Crown

[Laurence Strong]

The reverse

[Laurence Strong]

Ships Writer (Administrative)

[Laurence Strong]

8 to 13 years with Leading Seaman anchor

[Guest Darrell]

Ok Darrell a little about the British Columbia Dragoon's, better known as the "BCD's"

Battle Honours: Second World War

Liri Valley, Melfa Crossing, Gothic Line, Pozzo Alto Ridge, Lamone Crossing, Naviglio Canal, Fosso Munio, Conventello-Comacchio, Italy, 1944-1945, Ijsselmeer, Delfzijl Pocket, North-West Europe, 1945.

Details of the Regiment were placed on active service on 01 September 1939 for local protective duty. The Regiment mobilized the 5th Canadian Motorcycle Regiment, C.A.S.F. (B.C.D.) on 24 May 1940. The unit was converted and redesignated The British Columbia Dragoons on 09 February 1941 and again on 11 February 1941 as the 9th Armoured Regiment (The British Columbia Dragoons). It embarked for the United Kingdom on 13 November 1941 as the junior armoured regiment of 2nd Armoured Brigade, 5th Canadian Armoured Division. After the re-organization of Canadian armoured formations in early 1943, the Regiment landed in Italy on 19 December 1943 as the junior armoured regiment of 5th Armoured Brigade, 5th Canadian Armoured Division . It fought in Italy until February of 1945 when it moved to North-West Europe with the rest of 1st Canadian Corps. The active unit was disbanded on 31 January 1946. A 9th (Reserve) Armoured Regiment (The British Columbia Dragoons) served in the Reserve Army.

The regiment earned

5 Military Crosses

6 Military Medals

2 DSO's

and 1 DCM.

All but 3 of those were Immediate awards for a specific act of gallantry.

That be them Good summary Larry ...

[Laurence Strong]

13 years and over with Petty Officer 2nd class anchors. That does it for the Navy, Next is my RCAF items.

[Laurence Strong]

Current Issue Pilots Wings. The top cloth set are for wear on the DEU (Distinct Enviorment Uniform) And the metal for shirt order.

[Laurence Strong]

Search and Rescue

[Laurence Strong]

Flight Navigator

[Laurence Strong]

Airborne Electronic Sensor