Historic Sites of Manitoba: 11th Canadian Field Ambulance War Memorial (University of Manitoba, Winnipeg)

Link to:
Photos & Maps | First World War | Sources

Located on the Fort Garry Campus of the University of Manitoba, this monument was originally situated along the Avenue of Elms (Chancellor Matheson Road), on the grounds in front of the Administration Building, and across from the Manitoba Agricultural College War Memorial. The 196th Overseas Battalion (also known as Western Universities Battalion) included the 11th Canadian Field Ambulance (CFA), and was formed by men of the Manitoba Agricultural College, along with those mobilized from other Western Canada universities. The Tyndall-stone pillar stands about four feet tall and features the engraved names of fallen battalion comrades of the First World War who died during their time in the unit or subsequently elsewhere as part of the Great War. The north, east, and south faces bear the faded names, with the western facade adorned only by the Red Cross emblem. The eastern face also features the emblem of the Canadian Army Medical Corps, and the memorial was initially capped with a bronze sundial. It was designed by CFA serviceman Christopher Thomas “Chris” Best (1889-1969), later a Winnipeg School Division teacher at Daniel McIntyre Collegiate (1923-1929, 1930-1943) and St. John’s High School (1929-1930). The formal unveiling took place on 16 October 1927 before a crowd including Colonel George Randolph Pearkes VC, Colonel Snell, and around 100 CFA battalion members. It was unveiled by Huntley Douglas Brodie Ketchen, the Officer Commanding of Military District No. 10 and President of the 11th Field Ambulance Association, followed with a dedication prayer by Reverend A. R. Hall.

The monument was later relocated to a raised plaza between the University Centre and the Faculty of Nursing Building / Helen Glass Centre for Nursing.

Photos & Coordinates

11th Canadian Field Ambulance War Memorial

11th Canadian Field Ambulance War Memorial (May 2018)
Source: Nathan Kramer

Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.80917, W97.13531
denoted by symbol on the map above

11th Field Ambulance Casualties (Canadian Army Medical Corps)

Name

Occupation

Rank

Birth Date

Death Date

Harry Blackburn Adderley
[Next of Kin]

Foreman Carpenter

Sergeant

9 July 1887

13 May 1918

Alwyn Clarence Brewer

Bookkeeper

Private

12 May 1889

20 October 1918

Charles Bryan
[Miami]

Theology Student

Corporal

14 March 1890

13 October 1916

Robert Thomas Campbell

Druggist Assistant

Private

14 January 1889

27 October 1917

Harold Cormick

Bookkeeper

Private

30 June 1896

14 November 1917

Charlie Ronald Dier

Student

Private

16 April 1897

28 June 1917

James Frederick “Fred” Forster

Clerk

Driver

4 September 1895

1 March 1919

Samuel Grills

Principal, McCauley School, Edmonton

Private

3 October 1882

6 December 1918

John Ralph Hammond

Medical Student

Sergeant

5 December 1893

26 June 1917

Samuel Hanson

Bookkeeper

Private

2 October 1891

26 June 1917

George William Hepworth
[Shoal Lake, Strathclair, Medical College]

Medical Student

Private

16 December 1894

6 July 1917

Albert James Higgs

Printer

Private

17 January 1889

2 September 1918

James Gordon Hill

Student

Private

27 January 1891

28 November 1916

Nelson Jarvis
[Eatons, Next of Kin]

Clerk & Stenographer

Private

4 June 1887

29 September 1918

William Arthur Johnson MM

Carpenter

Private

13 December 1890

28 September 1918

George King

stationary Engineer

Private

20 November 1890

1 October 1918

James Reid Locke

Student

Private

11 October 1897

30 September 1918

Ian Cameron Mallough

Student

Private

5 May 1896

14 November 1917

Heber Havelock Moshier

Professor of Physiology, University of Alberta

Lieutenant Colonel

11 January 1889

29 August 1918

Colin Stewart Murray

Student

Private

16 October 1894

26 June 1917

Frank Samuel Occomore DCF

Medical Student

Second Lieutenant

24 January 1890

1 October 1918

Daniel Fleming Pack
[Brandon College, Medical College]

Medical Student

Private

30 December 1894

12 September 1917

William Ross Pringle

Bank clerk

Private

1 May 1889

29 September 1918

Kelby Roseboro

Student

Private

22 December 1897

27 July 1918

Joseph Lawrence Smith
[Lac du Bonnet]

Arts Student

Flight Cadet

26 January 1894

17 July 1918

Cecil Beacham Spencer

Teamster

Driver

3 June 1897

4 March 1919

William Slater Turner

Theology Student

Private

23 September 1894

27 September 1918

Ernest Clifford Walters

Chauffeur

Private

26 December 1896

29 September 1918

John William Whittaker

Butcher

Private

27 July 1897

16 November 1917

Robert Wray
[Armoury, Orange Lodge, St. Andrew's Church Brandon]

Wiper

Private

2 May 1891

28 September 1918

See also:

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba Agricultural College / University of Manitoba, Fort Garry Campus (Winnipeg)

Sources:

“196th Overseas Battalion Western Universities Battalion - 11th Field Ambulance Western Universities Field Ambulance,” Winnipeg Tribune, 27 March 1916, page 10.

“Lieut.-Col. Moshier a gallant officer,” Manitoba Free Press, 5 September 1918, page 3.

“Monument to Ambulance men to be unveiled Sunday,” Winnipeg Tribune, 14 October 1927, page 9.

“Military unit pays honor to dead comrades,” Winnipeg Tribune, 17 October 1927, page 5.

“Army Medical Corps memorial unveiled,” Manitoba Free Press, 17 October 1927, page 2.

Obituary [Christopher Thomas Best], Winnipeg Free Press, 27 May 1969, page 27.

Soldiers of the First World War - Canadian Expeditionary Force, Library and Archives Canada.

Canadian Virtual War Memorial, Veterans Affairs Canada.

Find War Dead & Cemeteries, Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

War Memorials of Manitoba: A Beginning Inventory by Patrick Morican, 1996.

This page was prepared by Nathan Kramer and Darryl Toews.

Page revised: 28 February 2023

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