Letters from the trenches during First World War kept loved ones in Timmins informed
Officials with the Timmins Museum say that during the First World War, 12 million pieces of mail travelled between Canada and the front lines every week.
Karen Bachmann said mail was a necessity to maintain morale in the trenches. It's all they had to hang on to when their loved ones were away.
“It’s a very touchy kind of thing to look at when you start looking at these and they can be really quite emotional," said Bachmann.
She said the local newspaper at the time, 'The Porcupine Advance,' would print letters that people received from local soldiers as a way to keep those at home informed.
In one of those letters, C. Digby Salkeld wrote in 1915:
"George, you do not know what mud is, the whole map is nothing but mud ... Dan McRea who you know well had a near shave when his cycle was blown up by a German high explosive."
And in another by Len Dunsford in June 1916, he wrote:
"Well, I had all the bad luck to get shot in the calf of the right leg. We were coming back to the trenches and I caught it coming overland about 600 yards from the line."
Bachmann said it was a time when everyone knew everybody in the Porcupine Camp. The population was only around 3,000 and 651 men enlisted.
A young soldier by the name of Frank Fettes shared one of his observations in France when he wrote a letter to a friend:
"The girls in this vicinity all fall for the Canadians, to the intense disgust of the other soldiers."
Bachmann said it's interesting to learn what local soldiers were longing for from the trenches.
“What they really missed in Timmins was the camaraderie and talking about the boys and going out on Saturday night and (wrote), you know, I miss playing cards with so and so and being home with my wife or mother.”
Bachmann said although all that happened more than 100 years ago, there are still families living in Timmins with ties to the First World War.
In fact, she lost a great uncle two weeks before it ended.
As a sign of respect, the city shines a modern display of remembrance on the McIntyre headframe. The digital poppy signals all who pass by it that Timmins still has connections to that historic event.
Bachmann said the war letters may be read at the Timmins Public Library, which has transferred all the Porcupine Advance newspapers onto a computer.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'We have laws': Premier Smith says police action justified in Calgary
The actions, including the decision to use non-lethal force, to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Calgary campus were justified, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Friday.