A small marble statue of a soldier stands on a granite base at the corner County Road 15 and Main Street in North Augusta, a village in Augusta Township, United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, Ontario. A nearby plaque speaks to a 2011 restoration of the monument, but gives no other history. Other than the names, only the word MEMORUM is on the base.
Fifteen names are on the base, 13 of local men killed in WW1:
- Pte William G.F. Davis 1894-1917
- Pte Thomas Henry Elliott 1896-1918
- Pte James Harold Grube 1894-1919
- Pte Archibald McCrimmon 1887-1918
- Pte Byron Wilfrid Walker 1897-1918
- Sgt Ward Burke 1897-1918
- Trp. Hugh B. Moffatt 1921-1943
- Pte Joseph Norton Bishop 1892-1917
- Pte Elmer Uriah Bishop 1894-1917
- Lt Lynn Newton Bissell 1899-1918
- Capt R.L. Ferguson 1902-1945
- Sgt William Ellis Lane 1893-1917
- Pte Martin Leo Carlin 1899-1917
- Pte John Hilton Towsley 1896-1919
- Pte Jacob Sauer Doyle 1893-1919
Let’s look at the youngest WW1 names.
Martin Leo Carlin was born in Burritt’s Rapids, the youngest son of William Carlin and Catherine O’Neil Carlin. He attested in January 1916, listed as a school boy aged 18. His birthdate is listed as March 1897 in military records. He lied about his age. Family records say he was born in 1899, so only 16 when he enlisted. He was wounded in battle in August 1917 and succumbed to his wounds the following day. He was 18. He is also remembered on the Kemptville cenotaph.
Lynn Newton Bissell was the youngest son of Arthur Bissell and Lillie Clow Bissell, born in Algonquin, a hamlet near North Augusta. He attested in February 1916, giving his birthdate as September 1899. His attestation papers list him as a student, aged 16. (Why was he accepted??) He sailed to England in October 1916. Shortly after his 18th birthday, he was discharged from the Canadian Expeditionary Force and transferred to the Royal Air Force. As a Probationary Flight Officer, he was granted a temporary commission as 2nd Lieutenant in August 1918. On 31 October 1918, he set off with Lt Eric Wensley Bragg on a bombing raid over the German Fleet. “While climbing out from East Fortune stalled and entered a side slip. Crashed upon which a bomb exploded killing both men.” He was 19.
Great War 100 Reads 