The Ones Who Did Not Come Home

With Remembrance Day this month, I decided to take a look at some of the men who went overseas during the First World War from Vermilion, but did not come home.

The first person is William Louis Armstrong. He was born on Jan. 17, 1897 and was the son of William and Mary Armstrong of Vermilion.

He died at the Battle of Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917. He was initially reported missing before he was declared dead. At the end of June 1917, his death was confirmed.

Bill Bury was born in England in 1881 and came to Canada in 1909. He was married to Sarah Bury and the two lived in Vermilion. He enlisted with the Canadian Mounted Rifles Third Division and served in the trenches with the First Canadian Mounted Rifles in France and Belgium.

He was killed on Nov. 15, 1917 at the Battle of Passchendaele. According to his Circumstances of Death Register, his wounds included a fractured right knee, and wounds to his head, hand and abdomen. His arm was also amputated at the No. 10 Casualty Clearing Station.

Ivan Connelly was born on July 7, 1896 and was the son of W.A. and Roseanna Connelly of Vermilion. He enlisted with the Alberta Regiment of the Canadian Infantry, serving with the 31st Battalion. He was killed on Nov. 6, 1917.

Robert Frank Fane was born on April 30, 1897 in England and moved to Canada as a young man. He worked for the CIBC in Vermilion. He enlisted on Jan. 7, 1916 in Vermilion, serving with the 10th Battalion. He died on Nov. 11, 1917, exactly one year before the war ended.

John Gibbons was born on Aug. 3, 1897 and he enlisted in Vermilion on Feb. 15, 1916. Serving in the 16th Battalion, he died at the Battle of Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917.

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