Private James Henry Thompson
James Thompson was born on November 12, 1887 in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, England. He enlisted on August 3, 1915 at the Niagara Camp with the 76th Overseas Battalion. This battalion was mobilized in southern Ontario and drew heavily from the surrounding counties before sailing for Europe in April 1916. At the time he was single and employed as a carder with Penmans Limited.
The 76th Battalion had trained extensively as a proud, cohesive unit in southern Ontario under Lieutenant-Colonel J. Ballantine. However, upon landing in Liverpool from the S.S. Empress of Britain, the officers were officially informed that the staggering casualties on the Western Front required the immediate stripping of incoming battalions. Historical accounts note that tears ran down the Commander's eyes as he had to tell his men that he would not be allowed to lead them into battle. This would have been the experience of nearly all of the men from Paris who enlisted in the First World War.
James and his fellow soldiers were immediately marched to massive, congested Canadian transit camps in southern England, primarily Shorncliffe Camp or Bramshott Camp. There, the men from Brant and surrounding counties were split up based on the immediate reinforcement needs of different battle-hardened regiments. They would have undergone training to prepare them for trench warfare including gas chamber drills to test protective masks against chemical attacks, rapid rifle-firing practice and bombing (grenade) school, and brutal route marches carrying full 60-pound battle packs to build physical endurance.
James Henry Thompson ended up serving on the front lines with the 24th Canadian Infantry Battalion (Victoria Rifles of Canada) after his initial unit, the 76th Battalion, was broken up in England. The 24th Battalion was an infantry unit that was part of the 5th Infantry Brigade, 2nd Canadian Division. This assignment sent him straight into the trenches of France and Belgium. By serving with the 24th Battalion from mid-1916 onward, Thompson ended up fighting through several of the Canadian Corps' most defining and hazardous campaigns. He survived the brutal war of attrition in the Somme in late 1916. He participated in the historic nation-building capture of the heavily fortified Vimy Ridge in April, 1917. He weathered the horrific, swamp-like mud conditions of the Ypres Salient at Paschendaele in late 1917. And finally, he fought in the fast-moving, decisive push in the Hundred Days Offensive that ultimately broke the German lines and brought about the Armistice.
Having beaten the immense odds of frontline infantry survival, Thompson was demobilized alongside his unit in 1919. He returned safely to Paris, married his wife Lillian Mae, and quietly resumed his civilian life in the community. He passed away on March 3, 1945, at the age of 58 and was buried in the Paris Cemetery, permanently ending his journey right back in the town he left.