Background
I am working on a database of all Cape Bretoners that served in some capacity during the Second World War. I decided to do this because of the following reasons:
- To my knowledge, it has not yet been done on an island wide basis.
- Even though those that died in the service of their country are commemorated, their deeds and those of others who served are not remembered as they should be. Many groups and communities have in the past, and especially in 2005 for the Year of the Veteran, have done a great job in gathering information on veterans for their area of concern but many areas and individuals have still not been covered.
- We recognize that those who died and were wounded were casualties of the war but I feel that all those who served made sacrifices and are casualties, not only for interrupting their lives, but for those who witnessed the horrors of war first hand. Whether they were wounded, died or just served, they are all casualties and heroes of the war.
I have attempted to gather as much information as I can, primarily from the pages of the Sydney Post-Record, the daily newspaper of the time, and create a database. I realized that this would be far from complete and have also contacted all branches of the Royal Canadian Legion in Cape Breton for their assistance. As well, I am reviewing obituaries and cemetery records for names of individuals who served. There are many other sources for information too. Needless to say, this is still a work in progress. At this time, I am appealing to the general public for any information on family members that served in World War Two they might have and would be willing to submit to my database. I am looking for basic information and will make reference to any additional information in my database as source material. Since putting my database online I have received a great number of replies to my request for information and I want to take this opportunity to thank all those that have contributed thus far.
I am still looking for the following types of information:
Name of individual :
Rank :
Unit(s) served :
Service Number :
Hometown :
Next of kin :
Dates of service (Enlistment/Discharge, etc.)
Places served (Canada, UK, Central Mediterranean, Northwest Europe, for example) :
A photo would be nice if available.
To date, I have been
able to collect data on approximately 15.800 individuals from Cape Breton that served in
World War Two. I have included a nominal roll of those individuals on this web
site. My database varies as to the amount of data I have on each individual and
would like as much as you can supply. I am not in a position right now to
supply the information I have, other than the data shown here, but in time will
include it all on the web site.
I would like to thank the Cape Breton Genealogy and Historical Association, and in particular Lark Szick, for providing me with the web space for my data.
Wayne Macvicar
Mira Gut, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia