The gravestones of the Chenier bothers,
killed 9 April, 1917, on Vimy Ridge.
Multiple Sons in Service, 1917
The Canadian Annual Review War Series; 1917, by J. Castell Hopkins, F.S.S., F.R.G.S., published 1918 (pp. 548-549)
Mrs Charlotte Susan Wood, of Winnipeg, photographed during the 1936 Vimy Pilgrimage for the dedication of the Vimy Memorial. Mrs Wood lost five sons during the Great War and was Canada's first Silver Cross Mother.
A feature of the military life of Canada in this war was the number of families who contributed all their eligible sons three, four and upwards to the Army, with very often the Father also. Reference has been made in preceding volumes to some of the better- known cases; a few more instances may be given here. The six sons of H. O. Bell-Irving of Vancouver all distinguished themselves in different branches of the Service: Lieut. Henry B. Bell-Irving, D.S.C., Dover Patrol; Major Richard Bell-Irving, R.F.C.; Major Fred. Bell-Irving, M.C., 14th Battalion; Capt. M. Bell-Irving, M.C., D.S.O., Royal Flying Corps; Fl. Comm. Duncan Bell-Irving, M.C., and Bar and Croix de Guerre; Lieut. A. Bell-Irving, R.A. The Lieut.-Governor of Nova Scotia, MacCallum Grant, had 5 sons on active service: Lieut. Eric M. Grant, 13th Batt., Capt. Gerald W. Grant, C.A.M.C., Lieut. J.M. Grant, R.C.N., Lieut. G. Grant, V. Battery, Mid'n H. S. W. Grant, R.C.N. The Stair family of Halifax grandsons of Hon. W.J. Stair—included Gavin and George, who were killed, and Herbert and Denis fighting in Flanders during 1917. Major-Gen. S.C. Mewburn, C.M.G., M.P., Minister of Militia, had a son killed in action, 8 nephews and 14 cousins on active service. The family of the late Thomas Brown, Toronto, had 24 members in the Army, of whom one was the late Lieut. G.A. Ewens and another Major Howard Jeffs, M.C. Mr. and Mrs. J.A. Sullivan of Winnipeg boasted 3 sons and 4 sons-in-law on active service; J.G. Cosgrove of Winnipeg had 3 sons at the Front and with them were 9 cousins—all of Manitoba; Mr. and Mrs. J.W. Glenday of Toronto had 12 sons or nephews on service.
The following statement compiled from all parts of Canada further illustrates this point:
| Parent | Residence | No. of Sons on Service |
|---|---|---|
| Eustace Collins | Montreal | 8 |
| Thomas O'Shaughnessy | Montreal | 5 |
| Mr. Mawhinney | Montreal | 8 |
| James Barnard | Montreal | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| Mrs. M. Morrison | Montreal | 4 |
| Corp. James Murdock | Montreal | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| Charles Cushing | Westmount | 5 |
| Donald McDonald | Toronto | 7 |
| J.E. Boswell | Toronto | 4 |
| Mrs. Priscilla Hay | Toronto | 4 |
| Philip W. Moore | Toronto | 4 |
| William Cooper | Toronto | 4 |
| Pte. H. Marshall | Toronto | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| Pte. John Parm | Toronto | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| John Daly | Toronto | 4 |
| Mrs. David Ashdown | East Toronto | 7 |
| John A. Long | Ottawa | 6 |
| Mrs. McColl | Ottawa | 4 |
| A. Dobbie | Victoria | 4 |
| Sergt. F.J. Barker | Victoria | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| Sergt. J.A. Kenning | Victoria | (Father and 6 Sons) |
| Mrs. N. Pellow | Victoria | 4 |
| S.N. Reid | Victoria | 4 |
| Capt. A.G. Sargison | Victoria | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| Mrs. Malcolm | Victoria | 4 |
| J.K. Nicholl | Halifax | 4 |
| J.W. Nicoll | Halifax | 4 |
| Mrs. Annie Ambrose | Halifax | 4 |
| John Simpson | Winnipeg | 5 |
| G.H. Heath | Winnipeg | 5 |
| Arthur J. Hebb | Lunenburg | 5 |
| Mrs. Letitia Meister | Lunenburg | 5 |
| Mrs. L. Kendall | Vancouver | 4 |
| William Tough | Vancouver | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| Thomas Campbell | Vancouver | 5 |
| S.G. Ball | Vancouver | 10 |
| Mr. Watts | South Vancouver | (Father and 7 Sons) |
| L.G. Doidge | North Vancouver | 4 |
| Pte. Charles E.G. Adams | Kelowna, B.C | (Father and 4 Sons) |
| Pte. M.A. Berard | Kelowna, B.C | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| Thomas Hill | Coldwater | 5 |
| John Ennis | Ayr, Ont | 4 |
| John McLean | Sydney, C.B | 4 |
| Mrs. Solomon Matthews | St. John's | 4 |
| James W. Macintosh | New Glasgow | 5 |
| Robert Mathers | Claburn, B.C | (Father and 8 Sons) |
| Miles Simpson | Shoal Lake | 4 |
| Ernest Gratto | Truro, N.S | 6 |
| Hugh Robertson | Verdun, Que | 5 |
| Lieut. Seymour Greene | Duncan, B.C | (Father and 5 Sons) |
| Mr. Sleight | Tisdale, Sask | 4 |
| Pte. George P. Kennedy | Pilot Mound | (Father and 3 Sons) |
| J.B. Carruthers | Kingston | 4 |
| Mrs. A. Colburne | Cumberland, N.S | 6 |
| Thomas Bovey | Gananoque | 5 |
| M. Thorsteinson | Sturgeon Creek, Man. | 4 |
| Mrs. J. Leavitt | Verdun. Que | 4 |
| Mrs. A.D. Telfer | Edmonton | 4 |
| J.W. MacDonald | Portage la Prairie | 4 |
| Mrs. J.F. Richardson | Maitland, Ont | 4 |
| H. Rathbone | Grand Mere, Que | 5 |
| G.D. Campbell | Weymouth, N.S. | 6 |
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