Seeking Cemetery Photo - ST STEPHEN, NB (Updated 12 Jun 11)

[armyvern]

Trooper Hugh Gordon  McNaughton - Canadian Virtual War Memorial

Soldiers of the South African War (1899 - 1902) (database link) - Service record: "Contents of File Missing"

See, I asked the right person!! Thanks Michael. I'll dig through that now.

Ahaaa!! "McNaughton" vice the "MacNaughton" as indicated on the War Memorial in the cemetary.

 

[Michael OLeary]

I am down to looking for photos of three graves, out of 826 known graves and memorial inscriptions for casualties of The Royal Canadian Regiment in the First World War.  Surprisingly, I have received all required photos from all six other countries in which these soldiers are buried and commemorated - but not yet all those in Canada.

The three I still seek are:

Sgt George William HARRISON in the Veterans' Cemetery (Esquimalt). A new and hopefully readable photo of the gravestone for Pte Robert Scotchbright would also be welcome.)

Lt.-Col. John D. DOULL in the Montreal (Mount Royal) Cemetery. (Fresh photos of the graves of Pte Clayton, Lt Roberts and Sgt Wilkinson would also be welcomed.)

Hon. Capt. A.J. FOWLIE in the Black River Cemetery. This one is a bit of a mystery, ArmyVern confirmed he is not in the cemetery at Black River near Black River in north-eastern New Brunswick. The next possibility is near St Stephen, N.B., but I cannot offer more details at this time - the Commonwealth War Graves Commission database now records the cemetery as "BLACK RIVER (ST. STEPHEN'S) UNITED CHURCH CEMETERY."

Any assistance to round up these few remaining photographs would be very welcome.

 

[Michael OLeary]

With spring finally gaining ground over most of the country, is anyone able to visit these cemeteries?

Thanks in advance for any efforts.

Michael

 

[Otis]

Michael,

Now that I'm back on the left coast, I'll go have a look for your Gravesites in Esquimalt ... I think it's supposed to rain tomorrow though, so if you want clear pictures, it might have to wait until the weekend.

Otis

 

[Michael OLeary]

Otis, thank you. There's certainly no rush, so take your time until the weather and your schedule cooperate.

Cheers

Michael

 

[Otis]

Michael:

Incoming PM with attachments to your gmail account!

Otis

 

[Michael OLeary]

Otis, thank you. Received and posted to my page for Veterans' Cemetery (Esquimalt).

And then there were two ...

 

[57Chevy]

I took the time today to go up there on the hill. (Mount Royal)
I'm hoping the photos are to your satisfaction.
If not.......I know where they are now  ;D

Photobucket:    http://s964.photobucket.com/albums/ae122/picpie/

I also noticed another RCR (Phillip A Crotty) up there, so I took his picture too.

The colonel was a bit hard to find.

 

[Michael OLeary]

57chevy,

Those are great, thank you very much. I should have them posted to the site some time tomorrow. Unless you'd like something different, I'll give photo credit to "57chevy, a member of the Army.ca forum."

Thank you as well for the shot of Pte Crotty's grave too.

Michael

 

[57Chevy]

"57chevy, a member of the Army.ca forum."

That would be fine Michael, you can add X-RCR if you want.
It was a real pleasure to do so.

There are so many beautifully sculptured monuments up there that made the visit even more
enjoyable. It was especially nice to see the little Canadian flags next to each of the soldiers.
As I searched through the site, I came upon one with my own surname.
They have a really nice terraced area with flowering shrubs next to a gentle slope where the cannons are.

I noticed there were barrels filled with water throughout the site and a huge undrinkable water trailer. I am wondering if they
are for cleaning monuments. Is that allowed ? or is it reserved to the immediate family?
.......because the Colonels monument needs cleaning.  ;D

I had no idea that the site was so big, 165 acres with more than 162,000 interments
and is the final resting place for a number of notable Canadians.
It includes a veterans section with several soldiers who were awarded the British Empire's highest military honour, the Victoria Cross.
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Royal_Cemetery )
I will be going back some time to look for my Grandfathers monument.

Map of the cemetary: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~qcmtl-w/MtRoyalMap.html

Anyone looking to obtain photos of ancestors monuments resting in any of the Montreal cemetaries I would be pleased to assist.
OK. I guess I got right into it.

Of interest is this memorial burial:

Sir Arthur William Currie - He was the Commander of Canadian Troops during World War I
and he was also Principal of McGill University from 1920 to 1933.
At his death in 1933, a gigantic funeral procession was organized for him. The crowd was estimated at 20,000 people:
politicians, diplomats, military bands and hundreds of veterans attended.
The funeral procession left the McGill Campus, walked up Park Avenue and entered the cemetery gates.
A military monument, the Cross of Sacrifice, marks his grave.

 

[Michael OLeary]

57chevy

Thank you again. The photos have been posted to my page for Montreal (Mount Royal) Cemetery.

This leaves me one photo in New Brunswick to complete the grave photos for First World War casualties of The RCR.

Pro Patria

Michael

 

[57Chevy]

Michael,
from your site.....a little typo         
57Chevy  not  57checy.....hehehehehe

one photo in New Brunswick to complete the grave photos for First World War casualties of The RCR.

Surely there is someone out there in NB to help complete your wonderful project. 

 

[Michael OLeary]

Michael,
from your site.....a little typo         
57Chevy  not  57checy.....hehehehehe

Thanks for catching that. Fixed.

 

[SeaDog]

The cemetery you may be looking for is the one in Black River Bridge, as opposed to Black River.  The name of the church there is St. Stephen United - and it would tie in as it is near to a place called Fowlie's Mill. I will most likely be up in that area visiting my family in Miramichi before the end of the month and will drop in and have a look.  In the meantime I will see if any of my old mates in the area want to take a Sunday drive.

 

[SeaDog]

Further narrowing it down, a search of the Miramichi geneological society headstone database shows an A.J. Fowlie burried in Glenelg Parrish - which is the Black River/Black River Bridge area.

 

[Michael OLeary]

Further narrowing it down, a search of the Miramichi geneological society headstone database shows an A.J. Fowlie burried in Glenelg Parrish - which is the Black River/Black River Bridge area.

If you start here - http://forums.army.ca/forums/threads/85276/post-979513.html#msg979513 - and work backwards in the thread you'll that the Miramichi cemetery has been eliminated.

 

[SeaDog]

I read that - but there is a multitude of little churches in that area and Glenelg parrish covers more than just Black River (Fowlies Mill etc.).  Seeing as though there is an A.J. Fowlie buried in Genelg parrish for certain I figure there is no harm in trying the churchyards  encompassed within the Parrish.

 

[Michael OLeary]

Certainly not, he may be tucked away in there somewhere. And at this point, it's just as possible he's in one of the other cemeteries with a "Back River" name. Unfortunately, each will require a physical visit to confirm or eliminate the possibilities.

 

[SeaDog]

Stumbled across another interesting piece of the information.  I found the death record for an A.J. Fowlie by researching the NB Public Archives.  It lists the same date of death as the Captain A.J. Fowlie whom we are looking for. It also states his county of birth as being Northumberland County, NB (Northumberland County encompassing Glenelg parrish).  Interesting is that it has his place of death is listed as Halifax, Nova Scotia - but has no burial information.

 

[SeaDog]

OK.  I figured the more background information we had on A.J. Fowlie, the easier it would be to narrow down the possible churchyards.  So far I've been able to drum up a few key documents.  The Commonwealth Graveyard Commission had his wife listed as Minnie Martin.  Using that I've managed to find their marriage certificate. They were married in York county (Fredericton) on the 15th of June 1892. His occupation was listed as Drill Instructor and he was born in Little Branch, NB (which is next to Fowlies Mill in Black River Bridge, NB).  He was a presbyterian and the son of Robert and Mary (hard to read the handwriting - looks like Mary). Minnie, on the otherhand, was a Roman Catholic and from Fredericton originally. They were both 29 at the time of their marriage. Next logical step is to start checking presbyterian churchyards.  If it is the A.J. Fowlie recorded as being buried in Glenelg - there is the distinct possibility that the church was converted into a United Church - more than a few presbyterian and methodist churches in that area were. The wife being from York county, does however open up the possibility that he is buried in the Fredericton/St. John area.  Quite the puzzle! I'll be home in NB on summer leave soon enough and may have to spend the odd lazy sunday making the rounds of some the churches to continue the elimination process.