Anderson, John

John Anderson was born in Greenock (Renfrewshire), Scotland, on 18 November 1885 to John and Sarah Anderson. He appears to have emigrated to Canada on his own around 1910. He was drafted into the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) under the Military Enlistment Act of 1917 and attested in Peterborough, Ontario, on 18 February 1918. At the time he was living at 264 Stewart St and working as a linotype operator.

His enlistment medical classified him as A.2, or fit for front line service. He shipped out from Canada on 21 February 1918, travelling on the S.S. Melita and arriving in the United Kingdom on 4 March to join the 6th Reserve Battalion. However, a medical board held in the summer of that year at the Seaforth depot noted a severe hearing disability in the left ear and reclassified him as B.1 (rear area duties only) and he was assigned to the Eastern Ontario Regimental Depot, administering men and materials in the United Kingdom for the CEF. His classification did permit him to perform rear area duties in a combat theatre and, on 8 August 1918, he was shipped to France to join the 37th Company of the Canadian Forestry Corps. In October 1918, the 37th was operating around Pont Remy in the Somme area and by this time was having difficulty finding enough lumber for its operations. In November, it was moved forward to the Havrincourt Wood, just south of the Belgian border, to exploit the resources there and to set up a new sawmill and camp. However, by the end of the month, demand for lumber dropped considerably due to the armistice and construction work concentrated on building a new YMCA facility. Private Anderson was returned to the United Kingdom in January 1919. From there he shipped back to Canada on 19 March and was demobilized in Kingston on the 29th of that month.

He returned to his former occupation and address in Peterborough and, within 6 months of his return, he married Clara Jane Ross. By 1921 he is listed as living with his in-laws at 195 Sherbrook St. in Peterborough and working as a linotype operator. The couple had a daughter, Elizabeth, in 1927 but the baby died in childbirth. Clara Jane lived until 1981 but there is no record of John’s death or place of burial.