|
|
|
The 251st
Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force was a unit
raised for service in the First World War.
History
The 251st Battalion, CEF was
raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, from recruits in Military
District 10 (Winnipeg and District).1
Official authorization to form the battalion was published
in General Order 11/17 dated 1 February 1917 and General
Order 48 of 1 May 1917.2
The unit began forming in
September 1916 under Lieutenant Colonel George H. Nicholson.3
Major J.H. Staples, formerly of Saskatchewan's 53rd
Battalion, was named second in command.4
By December 1916, the unit could
boast over 300 men on strength. The unit's headquarters was
in Winnipeg's Clarendon Hotel, and quartered around the city
including the Farmers' Advocate Building and the Cumberland
Block, with rationing done at the Scott Block.5
The unit was still trying to recruit to full strength in
January 1917 when the unit was referred to as the "Goodfellows"
in the press.6
Recruiting proved to be
lacklustre, and in March 1917 a recruiting office was
established in Brandon in order to cast the net wider.7
By 2 October 1917 the battalion strength had dwindled
from over 300 to just 171, with desertions and medical
boards responsible for removing more than 125 men from the
unit's strength.8
The battalion embarked at
Halifax, Nova Scotia on S.S. Metagama for the United
Kingdom on 6 October 1917, and disembarked in England on 17
October 1917 with a strength of 4 officers and 171 other ranks. The
unit was absorbed by the 6th Canadian Reserve Battalion the
next day, 10 June 1917. Some 185 other ranks went to 1 Depot
Battalion, Manitoba Regiment. Brass and bugle bands were in
existence while the unit was in Canada and played at a
number of dinners, dances and concerts.
Among the officers was
Lieutenant William G. Bell, who resigned from the Winnipeg
city tax department to enlist. He was given two weeks' extra
pay from the city, reportedly "the usual" practice.9
A motion was made by the Army
and Navy veteran's association to appoint Reverend
Wellington Bridgeman as unit chaplain. One of his sons had
been killed at the front, and another "crippled for life."10
The appointment was confirmed in January 1917.
Bridgeman began his military work in April 1916 as chaplain
of the Winnipeg garrison.11
The unit officially disbanded by
authority of Privy Council Order 1727 dated 12 July
1918.12
The battalion was not perpetuated
after the war.13
Battle Honours
None.
Unit March
A newspaper article in December 1916
noted that Sergeant M.E. Duncan composed a marching song entitled
"Farewell, Dear Canada" with music by M.J.A. Carons.14
Notable Members
A strange footnote to
Lieutenant-Colonel Nicholson's command was recorded in the
press when he was arraigned on charges of aiding and
abetting persons to illegally wear military uniforms while
soliciting soap and perfume sales.15 The charges
were dismissed four days later when two witnesses, alleged
to have been aided by Nicholson in wearing the uniforms,
denied the charges.16 Nicholson died at home in
Los Angeles, California in January 1929.17
Corporal B.A. Lennox of Winnipeg
was a chiropodist before joining the 251st Battalion. He
accompanied the unit overseas, and was wounded in an air
raid on Dibgate Camp in the UK in December 1917. He spent
time in hospital at Eastbourne, later contracting influenza
and pneumonia. He served as chiropodist to the 18th Reserve
Battalion and returned to Winnipeg in March 1919 to resume
his practice.18
Anthony Hughes, an officer of
the 251st who went overseas as adjutant of the battalion,
served as mayor of Souris and passed away at the age of 78
in May 1937.19
Major-General Hugh A. Young, CB,
CBE, DSO began his military career at the age of 18,
enlisting in the 251st Battalion. He ended up serving in the
44th Battalion, was wounded in action, and returned to
Canada where he finished a Bachelor of Science Degree at the
University of Manitoba. He was in the Permanent Force in
1939 on staff with Military District 13 Headquarters and
went overseas as a major. He served in Normandy as a
Brigadier commanding an infantry brigade, earning the
Distinguished Service Order. He returned to Canada in 1944
to be named Quartermaster General and served after the war
as Vice-President of the Central Mortgage and Housing
Corporation.20 |
|
251st
Battalion, CEF |
|
 |
|
Raised:
September 1916 (GO 11/1917)
Strength: 4 officers, 168 other ranks
Service: Absorbed by the 18th Reserve
Battalion to provide reinforcements for the Canadian
Corps in the field, 17 October 1917.
Disbanded: Official disbandment 12 July 1918 |
 |
This photo appeared in the Winnipeg
Tribune on 4 November 1916, showing Lieutenant-Colonel Nicholson and
some of his recruits.
This ad appeared in the Winnipeg
Tribune on 30 June 1917
Insignia
The cap badge illustrated above appears
in the
Babin catalogue as E-251.
Battle Honours
No battle honours were awarded to the
251st Battalion, CEF.
Notes
-
Love, p.140
-
Guide to Sources, p.678
-
"Nicholson Heads 251st", The Winnipeg Tribune, 13
Sep 1916, p.1
-
"Major Staples Appointed Second Officer in 251st", The
Winnipeg Tribune, 20 Sep 1915, p.1
-
"More than 300 Men Join 251st Battalion", The Winnipeg
Tribune, 2 Dec 1916, p.2 A figure given in the Tribune
on 16 Dec, two weeks later, was 289.
-
"Will Recruit 251st Battalion to Strength", The
Winnipeg Tribune, 16 Jan 1917, p.7
-
"City Briefs: To Recruit in Brandon", The Winnipeg Tribune,
3 Mar 1917, p.3
-
"Desertions Reduce 251st Battalion Roll", The
Winnipeg Tribune, 2 Oct 1917, p.5
-
"City Employe (sic) Enlists", The Winnpeg Tribune,
23 Nov 1916, p.2
-
"Veterans to Have Camp Next Summer', The Winnipeg Tribune,
15 Dec 1916, p.2
-
"Becomes Chaplin (sic) of 251st Battalion", The Winnipeg
Tribune, 6 Jan 1917, evening edition, p.1. The Tribune
reported on 5 Feb 1917 that his appointment would be extended
until the battalion went overseas.
-
Guide to sources,
Ibid
-
Love, Ibid, p.275
-
"Song is Dedicated to 251st Battalion", The Winnipeg
Tribune, 16 Dec 1916, p.5
-
"Charge Former Colonel Urged Veterans to Wear King's Uniform
Illegally" The Winnipeg Tribune, 22 Feb 1919,
evening edition, p.46
-
"Army's Charges Against Nicholson Dismissed", The Winnipeg
Tribune, 26 Feb 1919, p.1
-
"Lt.Col. Nicholson Dead", Calgary Herald, 5 Jan
1929 p.24
-
"Winnipegger Wounded in Air Raid Returns", The Winnipeg
Tribune, 1 Mar 1919, p.5
-
The Winnipeg Tribune, 14 May 1937, p.8. Also
"An Album of Winnipeg Women", The Winnipeg Tribune,
22 Mar 1941, p.13 which confirms he was adjutant when the
unit went overseas.
-
"Canada's Top Housing Officials 'Go-Getters'", Calgary
Herald, 13 Aug 1947, p.17
References
-
Love, David W.
A Call to Arms: The Organization and Administration of
Canada's Military in World War One (Bunker to Bunker
Books, Calgary, AB, 1999) ISBN 1894255-03-8
-
Stewart, Charles
H. Overseas: The Lineages and Insignia of the Canadian
Expeditionary Force 1914-1919 (Little & Stewart,
Toronto, ON, 1970)
-
Guide to Sources Relating to
Units of the Canadian Expeditionary Force Infantry Battalions (Library
and Archives Canada, Ottawa, ON, 2012)
Archival Holdings
The following holdings at Library and
Archives Canada may be useful for further research on this unit:
-
Badges
-
Audit reports
-
Inspection reports
-
Inspection reports, clothing and
equipment
-
Mobilization accounts
-
Disbandment
-
Pay and paysheets
-
Appointment of officers
-
MD6 file
-
OMFC file
-
Historical record
-
Nominal roll
-
Inspection reports
-
Nominal roll on embarkation from
Canada, 1917
|
