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It is foolish and wrong... Part lll

6/17/2020

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The last entry in this mini series about remembrance left off telling of the terrible story of living in the wilderness, not far from Victoria BC for 2 children, Doreen and cousin Tony.

Both were chased and attacked by a  7 ft or longer, very hungry cougar. The story told of how each was attacked and came to the defense of the other. Both were later  awarded the Albert Medal. They were the youngest boy and girl to receive such a high British medal of heroism for civilians.  If you missed the story you should  have a look at the last blog. It is most interesting, but not well known today.

Regular readers of these blogs know of my deep interest in women's history. That being said, I would like to make ever so brief a mention of a number of women who's service to Canada or within the country that you may not be aware of.

I'll start with a brief mention of  Mary (Molly) Brant. An American by birth, she lost her husband when fighting with the British back in the days of the US Revolutionary War. Coming to Canada she became  a leader of  the Six Nations Matrons and played a major role in negotiating with the native community. She was most  instrumental in bring the news that the Americans were about to attack what would much later become the Canada of today.

There  is much on the net about her and below is a Canada Post stamp issued in her honour back in 1986. 

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The stamp has three facets, being the  Iroquois , Loyalist and European aspects of her life.
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Above are pictures of the Badge of Military Merit and today's Purple Heart Medal

There are three known Badges of Military Merit in existence today. The stories of these have appeared here in the past. Each is slightly different, clearly showing that each was sewn by hand.

While the three above are  apparently the only known  Badges in existence  today,  there seems to have been more than three medals, or at least the certificate that came with the medal that exist. One of these came to a soldier from Quebec. His story I believe has been written about here some time ago.

The Purple Heart is said to be giving life to the long extinct Badge of Military Merit. It has been argued by millions to be the rebirth of the Purple Heart when, prior to its creation In WW11, it did not earlier even exist. The PH today exists as a result of the desire to honor the bicentennial birth of General Washington, the creator of the "Badge." Because it was on blue cloth and in the shape of a heart, the uneducated refer to it as being the Purple Heart, when such is not the case.

That being said, it is interesting to note that when the Purple Heart was created after WW l, and with the interests generated because of the efforts of General MacArthur, the Purple Heart was created.  In most places he is credited with being the first ever to receive this medal.

But if truth be told, his wounds qualifying him for the PH came AFTER the date that PEI born nurse Beatrice MacDonald was injured and thus qualified for the medal. So history, like the National Purple Heart  Hall of Honor (as verified by them to me in the past) shows that the first PH in its existence, was awarded to MacDonald. Latest estimates have it that some 1.8 million have been awarded.   (When created, the legislation allowed for the back dating for award purposes, and thus MacArthur's and MacDonald's awards were made retroactive to their earlier wound dates.

And speaking of WW l medals I would also like to note, as done in past blogs here, that the first ever Distinguished Service Cross and numerous other medals were also awarded to PEI's MacDonald. 

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Here we see US Secretary of War  Baker presenting MacDonald, a Canadian serving as a nurse with the US Navy, with her Distinguished Service Cross in Feb. of 1929. This was also the first DSC ever awarded.

Two other women also deserve most honourable mention at this time.

The first being Lenah  Sutcliffe, but you might better know her by her married last name of HIGBEE.   Covered in earlier blogs, New Brunswick born Lenah married a US soldier by the name of Higbee. In her earlier life she was the US Navy's Superintendent of their  Nurses Corps.

While her citation talks about her services at the highest level of her profession, they don't mention that she and three other female nurses became the only females of the day, and it is believed since, that earned  the US's Navy's Navy Cross for their work during the 1918 pandemic. I believed three died, and she became the first and only women to be so awarded. (Unless others in recent days have also been so awarded.)

Her husband,  a Lt. Col, was buried at Arlington as was she. A US Destroyer was named after her in 1945, and another is in the process of being built with finish dates believed to be in 2024. Yet the first destroyer in her name and the initials MC are  lacking on her grave stone. An insult to descendants, the navy and indeed all women of North America. Surely some sort of a descriptive plaque could be placed near bye.

For the non military, the Navy Cross is second only to the Medal of Honor in the hierarchy of bravery medals in the US Navy, US Marines and Coast Guard.

Below are pictures of this hero, an example of her medal and her grave marker.

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Here we see, Chicago born nurse Madeleine Jaffray, who came to Canada in the early days of WW1. When the desperate call came out for nurses by the French Government she would join 9 others that were sent representing Canada and who would do good service for the French Flag Nursing Corp.

While on active duty in Belgium, her field hospital was bombed and she was badly injured which eventually resulted in her losing her left foot. She would become the first Canadian women ever to be awarded the French Croix de Guerre medal.

She was also the lone Canadian woman who served in the war and became an amputee, and worked for years for that cause and so many others. Her story is well covered on the internet.

The internet tells great stories of Jemima Warner back in 1775. When her husband went off to war she accompanied him so as to help in event of injury. But when he caught what was probably smallpox she was of little help and he died in Maine.

Rather than returning home she ran to catch up with his regiment carrying his arms and proceeded onto Canadian soil and during the Siege of Quebec she took a British musket shot that killed her. In so doing it is said that she was the first American women ever, to be  killed in action. 

Many a story is available about women both on the Confederate and union sides in the US Civil War of 1861-5  disguising themselves as men and carrying their muskets into battle. Many were American and a handful were Canadian, or shall I say British North Americans.

Some being killed and only having  their sex discovered after death. A few lived after being wounded and  allowed to back away quietly before it became well known that they were of the finer sex. Women in men's clothing were found laying dead on the very battlegrounds at Gettysburg.

Moving on, while I cannot locate to citation in my large stash of historic notes, but I believe buried within are notes regarding women serving with the North West Mounted Police in 1873  or 1877  and 1875 during the North West Rebellion  in Western  Canada.

At least 8 Canadian nurses would serve to the 7000 Cdn men during the Boer war in South Africa.

On Sunday June 28th I will return and pick up this series with events of the Great War and beyond.

Hope to have you join me then,

Bart

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Blog Delayed till Wednesday...

6/14/2020

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I have had a computer minor crash, thanks to my service provider. The call center attendant was most unhelpful when I sought their help.

Relying  on a computer friend, a few hrs at the desk and then about 6 backing up the entire computer contents has set me back from the tying up of losses ends for today's blog.

But it should be up by Wednesday at the latest.

Life happens I guess...

Hope you will return then... if not before.

Bart

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It is Foolish and Wrong... Part ll

6/7/2020

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My last blog noted that whilst about Medal of Honor matters,  the blog was taking a step outside of the usual.

That step was to give notice, during the very week that the US  celebrates it's Memorial Day events,  to others also most deserving of this respect. I refer to those who's services and sacrifices for their homelands ought to also be remembered.

Today's  is the 2nd of probably 4 blogs on this subject.  This story became international and had its beginning  only about 60 km away from the British Columbia capital of Victoria.  Sadly, few know about it today!

Doreen, born in England, came with her family to Cowichan Bay just before the Great War. Her extended family for a few years included a cousin and his widowed mother, both form Scotland. Their home was in  the wilderness of the day and some 5 km from the closest neighbour.

It was on 23 September 1916 that Doreen and cousin Tony set off to a field about a  mile away to bring home one of their ponies that was grazing.

Along the route they came across an old cougar that was over 7 feet in length. It immediately pounced  on  Doreen and started clawing her back. Hearing the screams Tony turned about and came to the rescue trying to slash at the wild beast with the pony's harness. Doreen started to punch at the beast and actually clawed out an eye as she hollered to Tony to run  home and get help. But the beast then attached him and started clawing at him almost completely tearing off his scalp. Noises in the distance scared the animal off and into the wilderness.

Doreen and Tony managed to get back to the house and tell their story. Soon a man used some dogs to track down the animal. He found it back at the scene of the attack and licking up the blood of its victims from the ground. The neighbour then shot and killed the animal.

News spread quickly to Victoria. The Red Cross wanted to nominate both for a medal. When news came to England, the Royal Humane Society nominated Doreen and Tony for a medal and in December of that year HRH King George V awarded both with the Albert Medal 2nd Class. 

I guess that I should mention that Doreen was ONLY 11 YEARS old and her cousin only 8!

Tony would be the youngest ever awarded such a high medal for bravery for a civilian for his actions in saving Doreen. Her  medal was to the youngest to a female ever awarded such a high award for bravery for heroic actions that  saved her cousin.


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Here we see Doreen and Tony possibly in the Lake Cowichan area around the time of the attack.
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In 1971 The Albert Medal was discontinued from  issue and those holding the award could either keep it or apply to have it replaced with the the new medal... the George's Cross. The Albert Medal is on left and GC on right.

Doreen made application and received the GC,  but cousin  Tony had died previously and thus never had the option to exchange it, if so desired.

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The cougar was stuffed and was said in the press to have been 7 ft. 9" in length. It's scull ended up being placed on display in London with an image of the 2 children and her actual George's Cross.  Both her and Tony's Albert Medals are apparently held by the War Museum in Ottawa.

In late January, 1918, Victor Cavendish, 9th Duke of Devonshire, and serving as Canada's Governor General was in Victoria on business. During his visit he attended what must have been a most prestigious ceremony at the corners of Fort and Langley in  the HQ offices of the Red Cross.

It was here in  the Temple Building, still standing today,   and shown below, that the Governor General presented the Albert Medals to Doreen Ashburnham and Tony Farrar. More is being sought on this ceremony and will be brought to you in due course.  

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Doreen would go on to do some world traveling, get married and settling down in California where she passed away in 1991. Her remains were shipped back to her country of birth for burial. The very nondescript grave is shown below. Hopefully some day it will be joined by  a plaque or other appropriate marker telling the world of her heroic bravery and medal status.
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Cousin Tony Farrar  served briefly with the Canadian Scottish and then with the PPCLI. While serving as a Lieutenant and on a military rifle range in southern Manitoba in 1950, tragedy  struck. He somehow managed to walk in front of the firing line on the range, probably training troops for Korea, when shot and killed instantly. More needs to be learned about this tragic accident, and will be shared when learned.

His body was shipped back to Victoria BC and he was laid to rest at the military cemetery in Esquimalt near Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt and  better known as God's Acre.

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The cemetery has been in existence since 1868 and was originally intended for a naval graveyard. And thus the justification for the Admiral of the day spending a whopping $250 to buy the property.

Over the years the acreage has expanded and now serves as the final resting place for members and their families. Indeed the first burial was a women who worked in  a munitions depot and was married to a serviceman. Today she is joined by about 3,000 neighbours, some 800 arriving since 2014 alone.

The center picture above with me on left and local and extremely credentialed historian John Azar are visiting the grave of Lt Farrar. His marker is in  the centre of the three in front of John and myself.

The last image is of course the Farrar marker. Unfortunately it holds no clues of his status as an awardee of the Albert Medal, and the youngest male recipient in the history of that medal, and in fact also all British medals for bravery.

I will continue on along this line with another blog on topic THIS Sunday coming.

Hope you will join me then.

Stay safe,

Bart

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