WWII

May 23 & 24: Stories & Tales From the Front

May 23 & 24: Stories & Tales From the Front

Event by Backus-Page House Museum
From the muddy trenches of Europe to the resilient “Home Front” efforts right here in our own backyard, join us as guest speakers and acclaimed authors breathe life into the letters, diaries, and records of the Great Wars.

 

Saturday May 23 rd 2026
10 a.m. “A Silver Cross Mother”
The Memorial cross, also known as the Silver Cross, was first created
in 1919 for all the mothers and widows of Canadian military personnel
who died in service. The story of one Silver Cross mother, re-enactor
Tracy Gordon

11 a.m. “Boys to Men”
From 1951 to 1965 those who volunteered to be soldiers who were
under age participated in regular training and upgrading their
scholastic knowledge became part of the regular armed forces after
two years and saw active service. Dough Heil

1 p.m. “Marching Orders”
The creation and continued operation of a successful mobile First World
War education day program of History Matters. A photo rich presentation
outlining this program’s outreach and development with Jeff Brown
2 p.m. “Canadian Military Medicine in the Great War”

During the Great War the Canadian Army Medical Corps (CAMC)
expanded rapidly to treat massive casualties, with over half of all Canadian
physicians serving overseas. It was the worlds largest medical conference
in the world’s worst hotel re-enactor and researcher Peter Monahan

3 p.m. “Rush to Danger”
A front-line recounting of the experiences of stretcher-bearers, medical
corpsmen, nurses, surgeons, orderlies, dentists, and ambulance drivers
from the American Civil War to Afghanistan with military historian
Ted Barris

7 p.m. “Valor Remembered – A Dream to Reality”
Researching the men and women of Dutton-Dunwich who served in
the Canadian Military and who are now memorialized in the recently
dedicated cenotaph local historian Blair Furguson

Sunday May 24 th 2026

1 p.m. “Bluebirds in the Poppy Field”
On the night of May 19-20 in 1918 a German air raid targeted a cluster
of Canadian and British field hospitals along the railways of Etapls France
six Canadian Nursing Siters were killed. Nancy Iron-Murray

2 p.m. “The Liberation Trail”
A film made in 2017 to mark the 70 th anniversary of the liberation
of Holland, which follows two former 1 st Hussars who took part in the
this theater of war by Lt. Colonel Joe Murray

Admission both days by donation

https://www.facebook.com/share/18hCedLwfw/.  Facebook Event
Step back in time with the Backus-Page House Museum in partnership with St. Peter’s Anglican Church for a weekend of remembrance and discovery. “Stories & Tales From the Front” is a unique conference dedicated to the personal histories of WWI and WWII, specifically focusing on the brave individuals and hardworking families of Southwestern Ontario.
What to expect:
Expert Guest Speakers: Deep dives into regional military history.
Author Spotlights: Discussions on the literature of war and local impact.
Local Lore: Specific stories from the Talbot Settlement and surrounding area.
Whether you are a history buff, a descendant of a veteran, or simply curious about our local heritage, this event offers a profound look at the resilience of the human spirit.
This event is being held at St. Peter’s church just down the road from Backus-Page House Museum. http://www.stpeterschurchtyrconnell.org/. Lakeview Line, Tyrconnell across from John E. Pearce Provincial Park.

Admission by Donation: (Suggested $20/person).
All proceeds help offset the costs of our guest authors, speakers, and event promotion. Thank you for supporting local heritage!

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Japanese Canadians in the 1940s.

Japanese Canadians in the 1940s.

Museum Strathroy-Caradoc, 34 Frank Street, Strathroy, Ontario, N7G 2R4

Museum: 519.245.0492 

Learn about life for Japanese Canadians in Canada before war, the administration of their lives during and after war ends, and how legacies of dispossession continue to this day. 

On loan from Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre in British Columbia from October 10, 2024 until February 15, 2025.  Thank you to the Strathroy Middlesex Museum Foundation for their donation.

Grounded in research from Landscapes of Injustice – a 7 year multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional, community engaged project, this exhibit explores the dispossession of Japanese Canadians in the 1940s. It illuminates the loss of home and the struggle for justice of one racially marginalized community. The story unfolds by following seven narrators.

The seven-year, multimillion-dollar research and publichistory project,LandscapesofInjustice, is led bythe University of Victoria (UVic) and involves 15 other partner institutions from across Canada:

  • Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21
  • CanadianImmigration History Society
  • Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre (JCCC)
  • Land Title and Survey Authority of British Columbia (LTSA)
  • Library and Archives Canada (LAC)
  • National Association of Japanese Canadians (NAJC)
  • Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre (NNMCC)
  • OAH/JAAS Historians’ Collaborative Committee
  • Royal British Columbia Museum
  • Ryerson University
  • Simon Fraser University
  • University of Alberta
  • University of Winnipeg
  • Urban History Association
  • Vancouver Japanese Language School & Japanese Hall
Opening October 10, 2024 at Museum Strathroy-Caradoc. L-R: Donna Pammer, Bryan Anygal, and Michelle Wright, museum curator.

The project has benefited from the contributions of a research collective consisting of over 100 members from universities, community organizations and museums. One of the largest humanities-based research projects in Canada today, it is based on the UVic campus at the Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives and brings together researchers in two faculties at UVic—humanities and social sciences. The exhibition showcases the personal histories of people from seven families out of the 22,000 displaced Canadians who wereinterned during the Second World War.

 

 

Remembering

Remembrance Day in the area

Glencoe at the Cenotaph: Park and gather before 10:30 a.m.  Parade begins at 10:45 a.m.   Main Street is closed.  Organized by Royal Canadian Legion, Reg Lovel Branch, 219.  Their facebook page

 

Newbury Newbury Legion Group
Melbourne
No Guns, Just God’s Glory: Tom Wilson

No Guns, Just God’s Glory: Tom Wilson

Glencoe & District Historical Society

Nov 8, 2022.  No Guns, Just God’s Glory

Rev. Tom Wilson joined us live from the French Riviera to tell us about the role of Allied military chaplains and the stories of those who died in the Battle of Normandy from June 6, 1944 to August 25, 1944.  

Tom told us about a the Allied Chaplains in the Battle of Normandy, including what is known about their lives before they joined the service and what is known about their deaths. Often there are conflicting stories of their heroism, and where their final resting places are.

The Revd Dr Tom Wilson has had an interest in World War Two military history since he was 12 years old. Rev. Tom Wilson is a local son, who for 12 years owned and managed the Why Not Shop in Glencoe and lived on a farm near Melbourne.  He was ordained in the Anglican Church in Canada and served as Rector of a parish in southwestern Ontario.

In 2007, he had the chance to spend a year in France, on university exchange program with his wife, Dr Dawn Cornelio. While there he led some of Canadian students on a visit to Normandy where they held a graveside memorial service for Canadian Chaplain Walter Brown. Padre Brown’s murder led Revd Wilson to explore all the Allied Chaplains killed in the Battle of Normandy. After serving in the Scottish Episcopal (Anglican) Church for 5 years, Revd Wilson now is the Anglican Chaplain of St Raphael in southern France where he ministers to a multi-national English-speaking congregation.

Thanks for telling us these fascinating stories, Tom! Let’s do it again!

Tom: “I look back with fondness on my time in Glencoe and SW Ontario. I confess though, I do like the winter here on the French Riviera, as it is normally sunny and warm during the days, but the nights are cool.”

Order his book, No Guns, Just God’s Glory at: OREPeditions