Corporal
Staples, Stanley Joseph
Unit
1st Canadian Infantry Battalion (Western Ontario)
Branch
Infantry
Service Component
Canadian Expeditionary Force
Service Number
1540309 and 195213
birth
1896/06/16
Port Hope, Ontario, Canada
death
1917/11/06
Ypres, Belgium
grave
Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Belgium
Gender
Male
Stanley Joseph Staples was born in Port Hope, Ontario, on 16 June 1896.
A mat maker, Staples enlisted in the 93rd Canadian Infantry Battalion in Peterborough, Ontario, on 9 November 1915. He later transferred to the 1st Canadian Infantry Battalion (Western Ontario).
Staples was killed in action on 6 November 1917, when his unit attacked German positions during the Battle of Passchendaele. His body was not recovered. According to its after-action report, the battalion encountered varying levels of resistance as it advanced, with most casualties being caused by snipers and machine guns, rather than artillery.
Stanley Joseph Staples is commemorated on the Menin Gate Memorial, in Ypres, Belgium.
Stanley’s older brother, Charles Henry, also served during the war. He was killed in action on 26 July 1918. Charles Henry Staples is buried in Anzin-St. Aubin British Cemetery, in France.
