162nd Battalion Posing for a Picture Against a Wall, circa 1916

Interesting photo of the 162nd Battalion.

My guess is that this photo was taken in England. They appear to be Officers and NCOs. My Grandfather is not in this photo.

My Grandfather, Walter James Parker was a member of the 162nd Battalion and joined in January 1915 in Burks Falls. Beginning in the summer of 1915 the battalion trained at Sundrige (where the community has done a marvellous job of noting the location). Following training there they went to Niagara-on-the-Lake and then off to England where they were broken up into reinforcement groups at the manning depot and then sent to units in France.

My Grandfather, because of his age (38) was posted to a Pioneer Battalion (Engineers) and went into France in March 1916. He was - like most of the 162nd boys - at the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

In letter home to my mother (which I still have) my Grandfather said the Belgians treated them badly and he wished he'd not joined. He was gassed, injured and suffered shell shock was was our of action by the end of August 1916.

He, like some many of the boys in the 162nd really never had the 'grand adventure' they had planned on. It was mostly hell and not happiness.

While my grandfather was in the military my grandmother took my mom and the two other kids and moved down to Grimsby Ontario to be with her brothers (she was Clara North).

Back to the picture - judging by the fence in the photo - if it was taken in Canada it would have been at the military training facility in Niagara-on-the-Lake. But I bet it was taken at or near the manning depot in England.

Richard Dowson