Friday, December 31, 2004

Robert "Bob" Valentine Moodie - an introduction

Robert Valentine Moodie - or Bob as he was known to his friends - was born on 14 February 1886 at Glasgow Scotland. As a young man he served for four years in the "Dunbartonshire M.I." [was this the 1st Dunbartonshire Rifle Volunteers?] before emigrating to Canada. When he enlisted in the C.A.S.C. on 11 November at Winnipeg, he was living at 596 Gertrude Avenue and working as a clerk. In his attestation paper he listed his next-of-kin as his mother, Mrs Moodie of Leiterellen Stepps, near Glasgow. He was 5 feet 10 inches tall, weighed 139 pounds, and had brown hair and brown eyes. He gave his religion as Presbyterian.

It is not clear whether Leslie and Bob knew each other before their enlistment, or whether they stayed in touch after the war. There is, however, a photograph of the latter in the Payne family collection, taken during the war, somewhere in France.

William Percival Hogg - an introduction

William Percival Hogg was 22 years old when he joined up at Winnipeg in November 1914, the same age as Leslie Payne.


This was not the only thing they had in common - both were sons of land and estate agents and had grown up in Normanton, a southern suburb of Derby, in the county of Derbyshire. William was the sixth of nine children of William James Hogg and his wife Louisa nee Scholes. He was born on 21 August 1892 at Trent Vale, Staffordshire, but the family moved to Derby soon after his birth. Initially, they lived at 62 Normanton Road, but later moved to 48 Sackville Street.

It seems likely that William Hogg senior and Leslie's father, Charles Vincent Payne (1868-1941) knew each other well, and may have had business dealings. It is possible that Leslie and William Hogg junior went out to Canada together in about 1912. By late 1914 he was working, presumably in Winnipeg, as a steward. He was 6 feet tall, weighed 165 pounds, had brown hair and blue eyes, and described himself as "Church of England". He was immediately promoted to the rank of Corporal.

New Year's Eve 1914 - Bud Willox's story

By New Year's Eve, the men had been training for six weeks and would have got to know each other fairly well. It is an appropriate opportunity, therefore, for me to introduce some of Leslie's friends, one of whom he remained in touch with for the rest of his life.

George Henderson Willox, or "Bud" as he was known by his friends in the army, was born on 24 January 1886 at Schoolhill Farm, Lonmay in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, the youngest child of James Willox and Christian Henderson. As a young man he served with the Gordon Highlanders, both in Scotland and England - a photo dated 1904 shows him in the regimental tug-of-war team on Salisbury Plain, and another shows him in the pipe band in Scotland at around the same time.

© & courtesy of Hugh & Jean Macartney
George Willox, standing at 3rd from right
Gordon Highlanders tug-of-war team, Salisbury Plain, 1904

When George was 20 he emigrated to the United States, in order to join his elder brother John in Duluth, Minnesota, arriving at New York on board the S.S. Baltic from Liverpool on 5 April 1906. He gave his last place of residence as Fraserburgh, which is some distance north of Aberdeen. Amongst other occupations he worked on the railroad in Duluth, but none suited him and in about 1913 he moved north across the border to Winnipeg in Manitoba, and found employment in the grain business.

By the time of his enlistment in mid-November 1914, George Willox was working as an accountant and was an active militia member, presumably also the 18th Company. Strangely, he stated that he had no previous military service, which we know to be incorrect.

© & courtesy of Hugh & Jean Macartney
L/Cpl "Bud" Willox ca. 1915

Sources:
Anon - Cutting from "The Duluth Herald" newspaper, ca. Dec 1917, Courtesy of Dr. Hugh & Mrs. Jean Macartney
Anon - CEF Attestation Paper, Soldiers of the First World War, Library & Archives of Canada
Photographs, Willox family tree and historical information courtesy of Dr. Hugh & Mrs. Jean Macartney
Ellis Island Passenger Manifest Database

31 Dec 1914 - First Anti-Typhoid Innoculation

On New Year's Eve, the men received the first of three anti-typhoid innoculations. On a medical history sheet compiled at around this time, Leslie Payne stated that he had previously been vaccinated in 1900, presumably against smallpox. Of course, his grandfather Henry Payne (1842-1907) had been Vaccination Officer for the Borough of Derby, and would have made sure that all members of the family received their jabs. The form also gives Leslie's weight as 183 lbs.

Wednesday, December 01, 2004

1 Dec 1914 - Second Equipment Issue

On 1st December, three weeks after his enlistment, Leslie Payne and the other 61 new recruits received another allocation of clothing from the C.A.S.C. in Winnipeg.

Source:
List of "Kit Received at Winnipeg Dec 1.14 from CASC", Collection of Barbara Ellison