John Roger Colquhoun
Personal History
John Colquhoun was the third youngest of 13 children born to Alexander Colquhoun, b.1842 d.1894 and Johanna Forrest Colquhoun nee Liddell b.1842 d.1911 of Edinburgh.
He emigrated to Canada from Glasgow Scotland aboard the ship the SS Grampian on the 11th of May 1912 and travelled steerage class to Quebec. After visiting a sister in New Jersey, he crossed into Canada at Niagara. From there he very likely proceeded to Port Dalhousie, where his older brother Robert lived on Main St. with his wife and 3 children.
John is shown on the payroll for the Welland Canal Force of the 19th Lincoln Regiment for the 19th of July 1915.
August 4th, 1915 must have been the talk of the town in Port Dalhousie. A contingent of 6 young men made their way to Niagara on the Lake to enlist in the Canadian Expeditionary Force. Of the group, John Lynch and Francis Watson were natives of Port, while the rest were all born in Edinburgh - William Brown and his older brother Charles, George Rhind and John Roger Colquhoun. He was assigned to the 76th Battalion - No. 12 Platoon, C Company.
He was married on March 13, 1916 to Margaret Myrtle Playfair in Barrie Ontario. From the previous November of 1915, he had been stationed and trained at nearby Camp Borden, where incidentally, 50 metres of the pre-existing training trenches were restored in the summer of 2014 by present day Army Engineers.
Five weeks after his wedding, on 23 August, 1916 he embarked on the Empress of Britain in Halifax NS for his second trans-Atlantic crossing. He had spent less than 4 years in Canada. On May 5th he disembarked in Liverpool and proceeded to West Sandling Camp near Hythe, Kent. On June 28th he was transferred to the 21st Battalion and the next day arrived at the Canadian Base Depot in the Rouelles Camp, Le Havre, France. On July 13th he joined the rest of the 21st at the Chippewa Camp Near La Clytte, Belgium, south-west of Ypres.
As a soldier in the 21st Battalion, he participated in the attack on Courcelette on Sept 15 1916. By referring to the Battalion War Diaries for the relevant days, his story can be told in the voice of these historical documents: The 21st Diary for Sept 15th describes the battle plan and the result follows on the next page.
This battle was part of the slow and sacrificial advance made during 4 and a half months on the Somme. The battle of the Somme was designed to be a distraction to the Germans and relieve some pressure on the French who were dying in equal numbers at Verdun.
Of historical significance is the first use of tanks in open warfare. Details on the following map show the paths of the tanks and one can see that it was the section of the field occupied by the 21st as they moved forward toward the Sugar Refinery. The map also shows that most of the tanks got stuck, bringing immediately to mind the mud fields on which these soldiers were forced to fight. The tanks greatest effect on this day was to terrify thousands of Germans who turned to the rear and ran for their lives.
Pte. Colquhoun's War Grave Casualty Form states: "Instantly killed by enemy shell fire about 6:30 pm September 16 1916, after the objective had been reached in the attack on the Sugar Refinery." His reported location of grave was "Buried in Field, near Courcelette. The location was recorded."
When the war ended, the Graves Record Commission made the attempt to locate all the battlefield burials in order to re-locate them to organized cemeteries. Pte. Colquhoun could not be located and he is commemorated at the Canadian National Memorial, Vimy Ridge, France.
Following the war, the British War Medal, Victory Medal, Plaque (Dead Man's Penny), Scroll and Memorial Cross were sent to his widow Mrs. MM Colquhoun, 2 Charles St., Barrie Ontario.
Contributions by:
- Al Lloyd - Webmaster 21st Battalion.ca
- Valerie Colquhoun
Personal Information
Birth date: October 26, 1891
Birthplace: Edinburgh, Scotland
Next of Kin: Robert Colquhoun - Main St., Port Dalhousie - Brother
Occupation: Labourer
Military Information
Service Number: 141644
Rank: Pte
Regiment: 21st Battalion, Eastern Ont. Regiment
Theater of Service: Somme
Date of Death: September 16, 1916
Age: 25
Length of Service: 1 year 5 weeks
Last Battle: Courcelette Sept. 15, 1916
Burial Details: Vimy Memorial Vimy, France (click here for details)
Other Details
Commemorations: - Commemorated on Page 69 of the First World War Book of Remembrance.
- Commonwealth War Graves Commission details
Photos:
- Cenotaph