A Day to Remember

Great Grandpa Harry on far right with a
young daughter on his knee. 

Remembrance Day is a Day where we remember those who died in various wars while protecting our country. It is also a day to remember the sacrifices made by all of those who served, fought for and continue to fight for freedom. Each year, I like to spend some time on Remembrance Day reflecting on my family's history of service.

My paternal Great Grandpa, Harry Johnson was born in Binfield, Berkshire, England. His family later moved to Fulham, England. He first joined the military on November 7, 1892 at the age of 17. He served with the 97th Foot Soldiers. Side note: he was listed as being 5' 3 3/4" - The Johnson's aren't known for being tall. Although, being only 17, he may have grown a bit taller. Harry enlisted to Serve in The First World War at the Fulham Town Hall. Listed as Private H. Johnson, he served with the First Battalion of the Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment). This battalion served primarily in France.

Great Grandpa Harry and Great Grandma Florence on the far right 

It is believed that he became ill from the uses of Chlorine gas in battles. He was eventually sent home shortly before his death, he died at Fulham hospital on April 7, 1917. He is buried at the Fulham Old Cemetery among others who also died during their service in WW1. He was 44 years old and left behind his wife, Florence Johnson (nee Bennett) and 6 children between the ages of 7 months and 15 years old. His death is recognized by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Harry's youngest brother, Richard Edwin Johnson, was killed in action just two days later; at the battle of Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917 in Flanders, France. He was also serving with the First Battalion of the Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment).

Grandpa, Harry G.A. Johnson

My paternal Grandpa, Harry George Arthur Johnson, was born in Fulham, England and at the age of 17 immigrated to Canada. He was part of a group of people from England being assisted by the Salvation Army to immigrate to Canada. He was orphaned at the age of 14 when his mother died, just 3 years after his father. He disembarked the ship 'Regina' 14 Mar 1924 in Halifax and worked his way west living in several places including Medicine Hat, Alberta and Dawson Creek, British Columbia before settling in Vancouver.

Grandpa Harry in the middle

He served in World War Two with the 10th Field Squadron Royal Canadian Engineers. He primarily worked along the coast of the Pacific Northwest. Soon after I started my journey of researching my family history, an uncle of mine gave me one of my Grandpa's war medals which I keep in  a shadow box along with this photo of him in uniform.



In 2013, I took  a trip out to Germany and Poland to visit the areas where my maternal Grandma, Elisabeth Couper (nee Tautz), lived. She was born and grew up in a small village in Silesia  called Eisersdorf which was part of the Kingdom of Prussia. Soon after the Second World War ended, this area became part of Poland and the German's were deported. My Grandma's family became refugees and taken west to Nordenham, Germany to begin a new life. This part of Germany was occupied by the British during the era of Allied-occupied Germany. The British began offering jobs to Germans who wanted to immigrate to Britain and Grandma accepted an offer to work in Scotland where she lived the rest of her life.

My Grandma, Elisabeth is the young girl at the front on the far left,
her brother Georg Tautz is the young boy on the far right.
Glatz, Silesia, Prussia, Germany

Grandma would often talk about how Hitler was "no good" for their country. However, despite her families disapproval of Hitler and the Nazis, her brother, Georg Tautz, was forced at gunpoint to join them. After his departure he was captured by the Russians and put into a war prison. He was later taken to Luxembourg where he was released at the end of the war. He eventually found his family in Nordenham, Germany. He kept a diary during his time in the prison, it is in German but it would be awesome to have it translated into English to learn more about his experience.

While I was in Germany, I visited a cemetery with some of my Mom's cousins and in that cemetery was a war memorial area where German soldiers where buried, not unlike the ones I had seen in Canada, USA, Scotland or England. However, seeing this in the "enemies" country made me stop and reflect. Yes, these soldiers were fighting on the other side but they were also someones son, brother or husband that didn't return to their family. Reflecting on the experience I had heard of my granduncle, I also realized that many of these soldiers likely fought unwillingly. My grandma also often talked of  a boyfriend she had who was killed while fighting for the Nazis.

I asked one of my cousins how people in Germany generally feel about the Great Wars and she said, "Germany is better today because we lost the war".

Kyle also has ancestors who served with the USA army in the First and Second World Wars.

Kyle's maternal great grandfather, Joseph Familo, also listed on records as Famularo, was born in Oswego, New York. His parents had immigrated to New York from Italy. Joseph was drafted from Michigan where he was living at the time and inducted into the army in Oswego on August 26, 1918. He trained at the 152nd Depot Brigade and then served overseas from October 20, 1918 to March 6, 1919 when he was given an honorable discharge. His obituary mentions that he was a member of Mattydale Post 3146, VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars).

Kyle's maternal grandfather. Lloyd Benjamin Familo was born in Oswego, New York where he was living when he was drafted into the army on June 30, 1942. He served as a Private with the First Infantry. Grandpa Lloyd shared a story where he was sleeping and awoke to a Nazi, sitting in a tree who shot at him and just missed a bullet to his head.

We look forward to sharing these stories of service with our children as we encourage gratitude for the freedom we have today.