Honouring
my father’s amazing sense of humour with another of his Santa letters. This one deserves some explanation for those
who didn’t live in Ontario in the 80s.
They introduced the first drinking and driving laws, and the road checks
were through a campaign called RIDE. You will see some references to computer
codes… which will make sense if you are of a certain age and a little geeky. Acid rain is still a thing today, and in the 80s it was a huge environmental issue. This letter includes
the teenage children’s letters to Santa, which give his reply a little more
context worth noting. What can I
say? It was the 80s. Read on…
Hi Santa!
Well, it’s that time of year again!I’d say you would be getting a little
old!You’ve been delivering gifts for at
least 17 years!!!Maybe you ought to
take it easy this year…just relax in
front of a nice warm fire with some lemon tea and cookies (and Ex-Lax if you
need it) and let someone else do the work for you.As for your reindeer… I think some hay mixed
with rum would be especially neat.I am
sure Blitzen would love it.Well, I hope
you’ll be ok after your long journey.Maybe Mrs. Claus will give you some warm milk if you ask her nicely (I’m
humouring you).
Much love and Merry Christmas,
Allison
Dear Santa,
I know you were probably expecting to see
me in Calgary, but here I am back in Markham!I suppose you didn’t receive me temporary change of address card… it
probably got lost in the mail… though I am not expecting more than an education
for Christmas this year, I certainly hope it doesn’t arrive here after all…
dreaming formulas while on vacation is a real drag… I hope this doesn’t mean
you have to go back to Calgary!And
you’re welcome to sack out in Peter and I’s room if you get really tired by
your journey’s end… (there’s a sleeping bag in Radar’s closet).
Anyways, won’t keep you waiting… I know
you’ve got things to do, so ‘til next season, see you.
PIX ‘4’ SANTA
Greg
Dear Santa
Would you have your reindeer run over my
parents ‘cause their driving me mad with the present they’re getting me.I was gong to make a stiff drink for you but
my mom wouldn’t let me what with all the huff about the new law on
drinking.Don’t forget to buy my cat
something.I gave you a cutout joint.Say sorry to your reindeer, ‘Sorry
reindeer’.I didn't know how many there
were so you can share it and Party Hardy!
Trevor
PS I really have been a good boy
Dear kids
Say I really like this new pen you got…
It was terrific getting your letters again
this year.Your parents must be really
pleased- the grammar and spelling has improved enormously.
It’s been good news and bad news this
year.The good news... These new space age materials
are terrific:
Got a new suit from NASA and hardly ever get singed knickers in the fireplace anymore.
Blitzen broke off half an antler in November – ordered a plastic replacement in five weeks. You can’t tell the difference.
The “great eight” have been slowing down a bit but now we’re back up to speed in the sleigh with a hovercraft fan for lift.
The bad news:
What's with this .05% in
Ontario? Speeded up the rounds this year
but sure cut down the fun! Those damn RIDE guys – spotted ‘em hiding behind the
CN Tower restaurant.
Energy costs are really hitting
us up in the North. The reindeer always
used to lap up lichen, now with these trips to the south the darn critters have
acquired southern tastes. Do you know
what it costs to grow (under artificial light) hay and apples in the Arctic?
This acid rain stuff is really
lousing up some of my landing fields.
The lakes don’t freeze properly.
Ever tried landing in corrosive slush?
Greg, I was able to keep track of your
movements.Population growth has forced
me to modernize so I’m hooked up to one of those computer data bases for
addresses, then for my run on the 24th I use one of those neat route
scheduling systems with optimum load packaging and balancing.Got to stay with the times or be left behind…
and disappoint all you little kiddies – never!I checked out Radar’s bag – thanks (PICTURE IS ‘4’ – Cobal.Never did dig Fortran).
Allison you should check your mother’s
age.Santa is supposed to be nice so I
cannot reply to your bloody rotten comments about age.
Trevor never got the weed out here – won’t
grow but it sure improves Mrs. C’s cookies.Thanks, I’ll “party hardy”.
As we used to say – and still do – Wish you
all A FAST FIRST AND A COOL YULE EH!
After World War II, Canada took part in the re-building of England
and Europe by helping with economic growth. For our ancestors engaged in
commerce through thebusinesses of
Hayward & Warwick and Manchester, Robertson, Allison, they could do their
part to re-build the Commonwealth by venturing to London to buy goods, and this
is exactly what Joseph Ringen Allison (my grand-father) did eight monthsafter the war ended.Joe was a bit of a pack-rat (which is awesome
for us genealogists) and kept his two letters to his family recounting his
adventure.He went with nine others on a
buying trip sponsored by London-based Roditi & Sons (a firm about which I
could find no information despite exhaustive online searches).What follows is a transcription of his
letters.Thanks Grampy for this
delightful telling of your story!
D. Roditi and Sons Ltd
12a Golden Square
London, W. 1.
April 29, 1946
Dear Norma:
I thought you might be interested
in learning how the trip over went. Don’t tear this letter up as it will be
easier to show it to the families than to explain the details.
On our arrival in Montreal, we
went to the TCA offices in Paul Street and had our baggage weighed in and were
told to be back there by 1130.At 1145
we took a bus, which took the 10 of us out the 17 miles to Dorval Airport.There, after much discussion with the customs
and immigration men who spoke broken English we boarded our plane.It was a 4-motored Lancaster with a crew of 5
and seating capacity of 10 passengers.It was snowing at the time and generally miserable weather.
Based on the description, Joe and his nine companions likely
crossed the Atlantic in something like this
At 1:06 p.m. we took off and
climbed to 7,000 feet where we were above the storm and the weather was
clear.There was no sensation to the
take off and once you became accustomed to the roar of the engines, the ride
was smoother than any rail trip I ever took.About 15 minutes out the steward gave us instructions as to what we
should do in the event of an emergency landing.The first break we saw in the clouds was about 3:15 when we were able to
look down on the Main Line CPR just west of McAdam.Then the sun came out and we crossed the
Saint John River at 3:45 E.S.T. and flew up the Washademoak then slightly south
– passing about 30 miles north of Moncton at 4 o’clock. At 4:15 we were over P.E.I.
(we were the travelling at 7,500 ft. and about 300 m.p.h.).We then passed on to Newfoundland and the
pilot set us down at Gander – the RAF-USA ferry command airport.He did such a perfect job of landing that
none of us realized we were down until the engines stopped.Incidentally, this airport was built of materials
mostly flown in and constitutes the largest paved area in the world.The immensity of the hangars and the whole
project is unbelievable.They gave us our
support at the RAF officers’ mess.There
is apparently no scarcity of butter in Newfoundland.On our table there were three half-pound
slabs for the ten of us.At 7:45 we
again took off in the darkness and headed out to sea.
By 1:00 a.m., which is 5:00 a.m.
G.M.T. the dawn was breaking and an hour later the clouds had broken and we
were in bright sunshine.At 7 a.m. the
steward served us a breakfast of grapefruit juice, ham, potato salad, radishes,
olives, vegetable salad, rolls, a cream cheese sandwich, a cup of coffee and a
jam tart.Try that some morning at seven
o’clock.
By 7:15 we were off the coast of
Ireland and then proceeded to fly across it towards Scotland.Ireland from the air is one solid mass of
green fields with hardly a tree in evidence.At 8:52 we landed at Prestwick, Scotland – eight minutes ahead of
schedule, which is better time than the C.N.R. can keep on the East Riverside-
St. John run.
There we were passed through the
British Customs with remarkable efficiency.The chief difference is that they know their jobs.
Blackbushe Airport
From there – at 9:45 – we took
off in a 20 passenger troop carrying bomber which they have not yet had time and
materials to convert to peacetime garb.It
still had army equipment hanging from the walls and was painted khaki and
camouflaged.It was a big plane and even
smoother riding than the Lancaster we crossed the Ocean in.In about 2 hours we set down at another
Bomber airport at Blackbushe in the suburbs of London.There we boarded a special bus which was waiting
for us and drove the 34 miles into the city.All along the route were large estates and beautiful gardens.The flowers are in bloom here and the trees
in full leaf.They have a privet hedge
here that is yellow green at this time of year and very dense so it can be
trimmed to any conceivable shape.We
were taken to the Airport terminal in central London (the city of Westminster)
and from there we took a taxi to the ‘Green Park’ Hotel which was the only place
Roditi could get reservations for us. Our stay here is limited to 5 days (May 4th)
as is general procedure here and then we have reservations at the Hotel
Piccadilly which is a really modern place.Five days later we move to the Waldorf and that is as far ahead as we
have bee able to get reservations.This
will be alright however as we yet have to go to Stoke, Birmingham, Belfast and
then to Glasgow.Our agents tell us that
there is not much use going on the Continent as goods there are practically
unobtainable and where available are priced beyond all reason.
Caxton Hall
This morning we had to go down to
Caxton Hall to obtain temporary ration books and registrations cards as
required of all visitors.Whoever said
Britain was starving didn’t know what they were talking about.There is an ample supply of good plain
food.For breakfast this morning we had
toast with lots of butter, sausages or bacon, fried potatoes and coffee.The British Ministry of Food has limited all
meals to 3 courses and stapled on them a standard price of 5/5 or about
$1.20.This, however, does not stop
restaurants from charging for extras such as a cover charge and special
services. As a result our lunch today (for 3) cost us 1/7/6/ or about $7.50 –
soup, hamburg steak and green peas and dessert.Everyone stops for tea at about 4 o’clock so they are not ready for an
early dinner.Very few restaurants start
serving before seven o’clock.
London After WWII
This evening we went for a walk
out Half Moon Street (remember in Sherlock Holmes) where our present hotel is
and there along Piccadilly to Piccadilly Circus then down Regent Street to the
‘Mall’ (you can see Buckingham Palace a few blocks up at the end of the
street.) There we went along to Trafalgar Square and into the Strand to Charing
Cross Station which is the terminal of the Southern Railway.There we spent quite a time watching the
local trains go in and out (one about every 3 minutes).After a couple of hours wandering around and
looking in windows we came home.Everywhere is evidence of raids but in this area it is only an
occasional building either burned out or flattened completely.Apparently the greatest damage was around St.
Paul’s and along the River where whole areas were demolished.I haven’t been down there yet.
As nearly as I can figure now, my
reservations will permit me a return flight on the night of June 2nd
getting me in Montreal June 3rd.It may be a day or two before I can get sleeper reservations so I will
be home on June 5th or 6th.Probably won’t have time to write any more
letters.In the meantime if you want me
cable me care of the people on this letterhead.They will have my address.
Love to you – Helen – Joanne and
Albert – also Doc-Doris and Auntie Dot.
Joe/
North Stafford Hotel
Stoke-on-Trent
May 14, 1946
Dear Norma:
I got your letter this morning which
was forwarded to me here by Roditi’s.I
was so excited I could hardly eat my breakfast.Since writing you I have been very busy making as many as 25 calls in a
single day and getting little bits of goods everywhere.We checked out of the Green Park Hotel and
moved into the Piccadilly which is really modern and expensive about 15 dollars
per day with no meals and a 10% service charge for the staff who you tip
anyway.With prices the way they are
here you would be lucky to get by on a 6 pounds per day if you didn’t move out
of your room.
We have pretty well covered all
central London in our meanderings and have seen areas where 4 to 6 blocks have
been leveled by the Blitz and not a wall left standing.In other instances we have seen half a building
blown away and business being conducted on in the remaining portion with
fireplaces and mirrors above them clinging to what is now the outside
wall.There is plenty of food here for
those who eat in restaurants but the average person is pretty strictly rationed
(4 oz. of meat per person per week) and the bread is getting blacker and more
tasteless each day as the percentage of white flour in it is cut.As well as that the hotel meals don’t seem to
satisfy you and an hour after eating you are hungry again.Thus the English have innumerable pauses
during the day for tea.I have never had
so much tea in my life.Even in the
hotels when the maid calls you she pokes a cup of tea at you.This isn’t so bad since the government has
announced all heat shut off as of May 1st and the average night
temperature in the hotels is about 32 degrees.The water here is nice to drink if you are accustomed to drinking bath
water so I have been drinking beer with all my meals except breakfast.Haven’t even seen a sign of any milk since I
left.
On May 8 we checked out of the
hotel and boarded a G.W.R. (Great Western) train at 4:45 en route to
Kidderminster the carpet manufacturing centre.The negines in their trains are about ½ the size of ours but make speeds
up to 80 m.p.h. and we arrived in Kidderminster about 170 miles away at 8
o’clocl.There we checked in at the Lion
Hotel.Next day we visited the factories
in the district and took a car out to Stoveport 6 miles away to another
factory.On May 10/46 the following day
we took a bus to Stourbridge and visitied the glass factories.In the afternoon we took a bus – a fast one –
it took us over 2 hours to cover 30 miles and we had to change 3 times – and we
went to Redditch where the needle factories and finishing tackle makers
are.On Saturday morning we came back to
the Picadilly.Slept most of Sunday and
in the afternoon went to the zoo.Never
saw so many weird anumals in my life.Tell Joanne and Helen that I saw a couple of monkeys there that looked
exactly like them.
Monday morning we took a L.M.S.
(London Midland and Scottish) express from Euston station which did the 175 odd
miles to Stoke (first stop) in about 3 hours flat.An average of about 60 m.p.h.Here we are at the North Stafford Hotel which
is new and modern and we are visiting the potteries and will also do Birmingham
from here.Then on Saturday, Mr. May
from Roditi’s is going to pick us up and we are going to Belfast and the linen
mills returning via Scotland.Will be
back in London about May 28th and then after a few more calls there
will return home.
Glad to hear the kids are
ok.My love to you and the
Brittains.Tell them I can’t possibly
find time to write.
In
the Second World War, the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment played a critical role in the D-Day
invasion and the successful defeat of the German army inland.They fought on the beaches of Normandy,
alongside other Canadian regiments, and took on the German Panzer divisions in the battle for the airfields at
Carpiquet.
Finding records of individuals who fought in
the Second World War is more complicated than digging up archival
materials.Many of those who fought, and
their direct descendants, still live, so their records remain private.The information we have is based on first-
and second-hand recollections.What we
know with certainty is that the men who went into battle knew that two of five
of them would come out the other side:they were brave souls who fought to liberate Europe from Nazi
oppression, and our family should be proud that William Henry Hayward,
Lieutenant of the North Shores, was among those who took on that terrible task.
Conscription is compulsory military service,
and was a subject hotly debated in Canada during WWII. After WWI, when French
Canadians roundly criticized the government for conscription, the government
committed to not turn to this method again to find volunteers for war.Many Canadians who wanted to fight overseas in the earliest days of WWII enrolled with the British armed forces.The public demand for fighters, however, became stronger as the war
progressed.Eventually the government
passed the National Resources Mobilization
Act in 1940.It still did not
require eligible men to fight overseas, but registered them for home defence
duties.
Public outcry grew stronger after the
Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour in December 1941.Canadians wanted a presence in the war
overseas.The only way the Canadian
government could turn to conscription and away from their post-WWI promise was, they felt, through a plebiscite.It was the
Canadian people who voted 64% in favour of conscription.However, Canadians had already volunteered in the hundreds of thousands
for overseas service, so there was no need to turn to the draft.
Certain employment occupations were exempted
from service, among those business owners, upon whom the continued health of the
Canadian economy depended.One such
person was William Henry Hayward Jr., who worked in his father’s business, Hayward and Warwick.It was a successful Saint
John business, with strong ties to England, so supported both the English and
Canadian economies.
Canadians had been watching for years as the
casualties overseas continued to grow in numbers that seemed unfathomable.Nazi atrocities were not yet known to the
extent that we know them today, but there was common knowledge that they were
targeting cultures, religions and peoples and there was something sinister at
play.Young men in Canada wanted to
fight alongside their British brethren.In 1940-1941, Germany made a play against the British people intended to
demoralize them, but it had the opposite effect.The Blitz would kill 43,000 civilians over
eight months, and would galvanize the British and their allies in a way they couldn’t
have imagined.
Lt. William Henry "Bill" Hayward
We can’t know precisely why William Henry, or
Bill as he was known, decided to join up with the North Shores in 1942, perhaps
it was the Blitz which was the last straw. You would have to have been very
brave to volunteer at this point.Those
watching the fighting from across the Atlantic would have heard rumours of Nazi
horrors, and they would have known the numbers of Canadians who had already
died to free the continent from the German grip.They would have also known that the only
thing it would take to liberate Europe was men, and more men, who were willing
to fight and die for this cause. Bill signed up with the knowledge that his
training would be destined to send him overseas where so many had already perished.
Training the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment
Since 1939, Woodstock had been home to the
North Shores, where the infantry was trained for coastal defence. By the Fall
of 1940, the North Shores moved to Camp Aldershot in Sussex to train with other regiments.Camp Aldershot is where Bill received his officer training.The North Shore Regiment was organized as part of the 8th
infantry brigade along with the Queen’s Own Rifles (from Toronto), Le Régiment
de la Chaudière (Quebec), and members from Royal Canadian Army Service Corps
and the Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.The 8th brigade was part of the 3rd
infantry division.
In July 1941, the North Shores were given the
notice that they were going to join the fight overseas.They would participate in a scheme called
“Tiger” and training for that mission involved night marches, cipher work,
weapons firing and map reading. They arrived in Liverpool to the sight of ships
partly submerged and a severely damaged waterfront.This was the first sight of the war for the
North Shores, and it must have been quite a rude awakening.You may know what you are getting into, but until
you see the evidence it would be hard to imagine the extent of the damage that
war can wreak.
More intense training took place through
August and September in England where the season was unusual warm and
bright.In the Fall, however, the
weather turned to fog and cold as the training continued.The army had been divided into its fighting
units by this time, and the North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment, along with
the rest of the 8th brigade, became part of the First Canadian Army.
Exercises for the brigade continued through
1942: marches and staged attacks taking place at night, in the daytime, in
rain, snow, wind, and through rivers and mud.In August, the raid on Dieppe marked the beginning of the Canadian
army’s engagement in the European war.More than 900 of the 4,963 Canadian soldiers were killed, and many
others wounded or taken prisoner.The
lessons learned at Dieppe were diabolically harsh, but would help ensure that
Operation Overlord – the allied attack on D-Day – would succeed. The 3rd
Canadian Infantry Division was told in September that they would have the
honour of conducting the next operation.
At the end of the year, Lieutenant William
Henry “Bill” Hayward, joined the Regiment after his officer training came to an end back in Sussex.He, and a number of other officers, had to
learn the ropes quickly in order to be effective during the intense
training.At this point, everyone knew
what they were training for, and the potential devastating consequences.The training took on a different flavour as
they exercised in full battle gear, practiced assaults on beaches, breaching
defensive positions, overcoming wire entanglements, and beating off attacks.
In October 1943 the North Shore was dealt a
terrible blow when a number of men were transferred to the 1st
Canadian Division in Italy.They were
all lost to the fighting. The anxiety and fear of what was to come must have been overwhelming. The North Shores trained hard, because this is what would protect them in the battles to come.
Lt. Bill Hayward was assigned the anti-tank
platoon and likely took part in a number of specialized exercises including
“Can Opener” to coordinate the training of anti-tank platoons.In February the platoon would have joined a
number of other specialized platoons from the army to learn the capabilities of
the German Panzer divisions.
The North Shores had won many honours
throughout their training.They were a
proud regiment - and bold.By the time
Operation Overlord was launched on June 6, 1944, the North Shore Regiment was
ready.
Operation Overlord
After four years of hard training, the North
Shores were moved into action.The victorious D-Day
attack on Juno Beach came with a tremendous loss of life.The first soldiers to unload from their
launches were told that they had to survive the first 15 minutes as many would
be shot as they disembarked.Soldiers
were told to get to the beach! Go forward! Don’t look back! Don’t help your
comrades who fall!Just move! Move!
Move!(the original footage here is that of the North Shore Regiment landing after the beach had been taken)
Lt. Hayward was not to land with the first
attack.He had to wait for Juno beach
(the site of the Canadian attack) to be taken before he could unload his heavy
equipment at Courseulles-sur-Mer as a reinforcement. He would move with the rest of the reinforcements to Banville to await orders.The reinforcements would have passed hundreds
of bodies and debris as they made their way inland, witnessing the smoke and
explosions of the battle in the distance.While making their way from the beach to Banville, the reinforcements
passed a young man from the Division’s Winnipeg Rifles whose corpse had been
covered in flowers by the locals.They
were told the following day to proceed to Chaudiere.
Prisoners taken by the North Shores
Meantime, the rest of the North Shores made
their way to Tailleville, having taken St. Aubin-sur-Mer, and then to their
next objective.Three-quarters of "A" company was gone, including their commander.The troops set to clearing the woods amongst heavy fighting and trying
to maintain morale despite their heavy losses.The North Shores continued inland attacking enemy gun positions and
tanks.“There never was the like of
those North Shore men for sheer guts and durability,” Major Bill Harvey
wrote.The first phase of Operation Overlord
was declared complete the night of June 11.
Operation Windsor
Operation Windsor
Briefing the Canadian troops at Carpiquet
Next began Operation Windsor – the effort to
take Caen from the enemy.The North
Shores, along with the rest of the 8th infantry brigade, were to take
the town of Carpiquet and the airfield.The
beach-head to Carpiquet was a mere 24 kilometres, but the journey and the
fighting lasted a month until Carpiquet was in allied hands.This was the battle in which Lt. Hayward was
fully engaged.Here, the North Shores
came up against the resistance of the heavily armed and reportedly fanatical 1st
Battalion of the 26th SS Panzer Grenadier Regiment, as well as
strong concrete positions built by the Luftwaffe.The battle for Carpiquet began on July 4,
1944.
Canadian troops at Carpiquet airfield
The North Shores were able to get to their
objective by 0632 and set to cleaning out the village of German troops while
under heavy shellfire.Their victory was
at great loss.The North Shores that day
had their heaviest single day losses of the entire campaign: 132 casualties of
which 46 were fatal.It was during this battle
that Lt. Bill Hayward was wounded and evacuated to England.The North Shores received the Battle Honour “Carpiquet”
for their participation in this action.A tribute to the North Shores stands in Carpiquet as a memory of the
Regiment’s commitment, bravery and loss.
Battle Honour "Carpiquet"
Monument at Carpiquet
Lt. Bill Hayward returned to the North Shore Regiment after he had recuperated to assist with the allied advance through Europe, with battles in France and
Belgium, and the liberation of Zutphen in Holland.The battles were all fiercely fought in horrid
conditions, including flooded fields and bombarded cities. Lt. Bill Hayward at some point in the fighting
was promoted to Captain, and was there when the North Shores ended their
campaign in Aurich, Germany upon the declaration of the cease fire on May 8,
1945.
The North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment had
lost 380 men in their fighting in Europe and another 850 were wounded.The Regiment was finally able to return home
to Saint John on December 29, via Halifax.A special North Shore edition of the Saint John Telegraph Journal published on the 29th reported:
They can claim combat records that will endure for all time, to furnish
stories to be told to breathless audiences and retold to coming generations of
New Brunswickers, glad tales, sad tales, heart-warming tales and heart-breaking
tales, too, for military deeds are not done without grave losses, and many a
brave New Brunswick lad lies over there sleeping his last sleep among comrades
who suffered and died with him.
Sources:
Background
and photo of Lt. Bill Hayward from his son Mark
Photo
présentée dans le livre : La Normandie en flammes
de Jacques Henry, Editions Charles Corlet, 1984.
Archives publiques du Canada
Blockhaus encore visible le long de la route de Caumont devant l'aérogare
de Carpiquet. Le sol a été nivellé jusqu'au béton. Seule la partie
supérieure sort du sol.
