Private George Henry Cracknell
George Cracknell was born in Canning on November 29, 1896 and he lived in Canning, but he had several connections to Paris. When he enlisted, he was working as a knitter in Paris, probably with Penmans. He attended St. Paul’s Methodist (now United) Church. Before the war, he served with the 25th Brant Dragoons. And George enlisted in Paris with the 215th Battalion. As was commonly the case, when he arrived in England, he was transferred to another unit, in this case to the 54th Battalion, where he remained until 1918.
On August 10, 1918, the 54th Canadian Infantry Battalion was heavily engaged in the second day of the Battle of Amiens a major battle in the final One Hundred Days during which the German army fought fiercely while being pushed back into Germany..
Following their initial river crossing on August 8, the battalion moved through newly captured enemy territory, participating in the dynamic and grueling push to break the German lines. The Battle of Amiens was a massive Allied effort intended to break the trench stalemate. The 54th, part of the 4th Canadian Division, operated in the thick of this mobile warfare, enduring mass casualties to shellfire and machine-gun nests. As the Canadian Corps pushed deeper east toward the villages and plateaus overlooking the River Luce, they met stiffening German resistance. Battalions faced heavy machine-gun fire and dynamic counterattacks as the front lines rapidly shifted.
As a Private in the 54th Battalion, Cracknell would have been directly involved in the tactical pushes across the River Luce sector on this exact day, enduring the mass machine-gun fire and shell shock that decimated the unit's frontline strength. George suffered a gunshot wound to his head which ended his military service. He was removed to various hospitals, first in France, then in England, then in Canada after he was discharged. Finally, George was taken to the Brant Military Hospital in Burlington on January 6, 1918. He died of meningitis on November 7, 1919. Private George Henry Cracknell is commemorated at St. Paul’s Church and is buried in the Richwood Cemetery.