The Archives has recently acquired a series of letters written
from the battlefront during World
War One by brothers, Charlie
and Wally Gray.
These letters
were composed between 1915-1916 by two very ordinary young men.
They are touching in their simplicity and, at this time of remembrance,
reach us in a way that history texts rarely do.
The Archives
of Ontario thanks donors Walter C. Gray and Ronald
C. Gray for their gift of these very personal family
letters and photographs.
You are
invited to read a selection of these letters, listen to excerpts
from them and view photographs and drawings selected from other
First World War collections held by the Archives. |
Click
to see a larger version (31K)
Studio Photograph of Charles and Walter Gray
posing in their uniforms prior to shipping overseas
Reference Code: F
4383-30
Archives of Ontario
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Alfred
and Emily Gray and their family emigrated to Canada in 1913 from
Northfleet in Kent, England. They settled in the Earlscourt
area of West Toronto, located along St. Clair Avenue
east of Old Weston Road. They had eleven children including Charles
Robert (1891-1916) and Walter Henry (1895-1974). |
Click
to see a larger version (50K)
Studio Photograph of Alfred and Emily Gray
from the private collection of Walter C. Gray
Reference Code: F 4383-30
Archives of Ontario
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After the
outbreak of the First World War it wasn't long before Charlie
and Wally decided to enlist, in keeping with the Gray family tradition
of military service.
Together
they joined the 3rd Battalion, Canadian Infantry
in the spring of 1915, and only two years after emigrating to
Canada, they shipped back to Europe to fight with the Canadian
Expeditionary Forces in France. Charlie
and Wally were typical of many residents of Earlscourt. The district
was heavily populated with immigrants from Britain who remained
loyal to their homeland and it is said that Earlscourt sent a
greater proportion of its men to fight in the First World War
than any other area in Canada. |
The
Prince of Wales, on his visit to Canada in 1919, made a
special point of visiting Earlscourt to thank the residents for
their huge contribution to the war effort. |
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Here
are two of the letters that Charlie Gray wrote to his parents from
the trenches at Ypres. |
This letter was written
when Charlie and Wally had not been long in the trenches. Charlie
seems light-hearted, and more concerned about his service pay than
with the enemy, even though the Germans are so close he can hear
them singing.
click here to listen to an excerpt from this letter
in "wav" format (284K). It is also available in "aif"
format (391K)
Letter dated
August 20, 1915,
from Charlie Gray to his parents Alfred and Emily
Reference Code: F 4383-8
Archives of Ontario
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Click
to see a larger version (81K)
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Click
to see a larger version (114K)
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Here, the reality of life in the trenches has begun
to sink in. Charlie and Wally are living with constant noise, mud
and the very real threat of having their heads shot off by snipers.
click here to listen to an excerpt from this letter
in "wav" format (331K). It is also available in "aif"
format (456K)
Letter dated
September 24, 1915,
from Charlie Gray to his parents Alfred and Emily
Reference Code: F 4383-12
Archives of Ontario |
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Charlie and
Wally also received letters from family and friends. Here is one from
their mother, Emily. |
Charlie
and Wally have been away for about a year, and though their mother
is clearly worried, she urges her sons to keep up their spirits.
click here to listen to an excerpt from this letter
in "wav" format (212K). It is also available in "aif"
format (292K)
Letter dated May 18, 1916,
from Emily Gray to her sons Wally and
Charlie
Reference Code: F 4383-20
Archives of Ontario |
Click
to see a larger version (143K) |
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Click
to see a larger version (111K)
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On 3 June
1916 Charlie was killed at the Ypres salient and Wally was badly wounded
by shrapnel. While Wally was recovering in a hospital in Wales, he
wrote this letter home to his mother.
click here to listen to an excerpt from this letter
in "wav" format (600K). It is also available in "aif"
format (826K)
Letter dated July 10, 1916,
from Wally Gray to his parents Alfred
and Emily
Reference Code: F 4383-26
Archives of Ontario |
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Commemorative scroll presented posthumously
to
Pte. Charles Robert Gray
Reference Code: F 4383-27
Archives of Ontario |
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The
letters and photographs featured above are part of the Gray
family fonds (Reference Code: F 4383). They, and other military
records, are available for research and study at the Archives of Ontario.
If you found the Gray letters intriguing, you also may find the
following First World War photographs and drawings of interest.
Visit the Archives'
Visual Database to see more digitized images on a wide
variety of topics. |
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Click to see a larger version (138K)
Men of the Canadian 9.2 having their midday meal, 1st Siege Battery, [ca. 1918]
Unknown photographer.
Canadian Expeditionary Force albums
Black and white print
Reference Code: C 224-0-0-10-26
Archives of Ontario, I0004836
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Click to see a larger version (49K)
A Canadian miner resting after
a heavy night's work,
[ca. 1918]
Unknown photographer.
Canadian Expeditionary Force albums
Black and white print
Reference Code: C 224-0-0-10-15
Archives of Ontario, I0004825
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Click to see a larger version (104K)
A Canadian
Tommy soldier covered in mud returning from the front lines,
[ca. 1918]
Unknown photographer.
Canadian Expeditionary Force albums
Black and white print
Reference Code: C 224-0-0-9-23
Archives of Ontario, I0004782
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Click to see a larger version (68K)
A Canadian Battalion in a Bayonet Charge on the Somme, [ca. 1918]
Unknown photographer
Canadian Expeditionary Force albums
Black and white print
Reference Code: C 224-0-0-9-18
Archives of Ontario, I0004777 |
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Click to see a larger version (139K)
A Thanksgiving Service attended by Canadian troops
being held in the Cambrai Cathedral,
October 13, 1918
Unknown photographer.
Canadian Expeditionary Force albums
Black and white print
Reference Code: C 224-0-0-10-39
Archives of Ontario, I0004849
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Click to see a larger version (72K)
A Canadian soldier badly wounded in his shoulder and leg
drinking hot coffee at a soup kitchen 100 yards from
the German lines at Hill 70,
[ca. 1918]
Unknown photographer.
Canadian Expeditionary Force albums
Black and white print
Reference Code: C 224-0-0-10-10
Archives of Ontario, I0004820
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Click to see a larger version (76K)
Interior of a military hospital showing patients,
visitors and nurses during
Christmas time,
[ca. 1918]
Unknown photographer.
Canadian Expeditionary Force albums
Black and white print
Reference Code: C 224-0-0-11-21
Archives of Ontario, I0004870
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Click to see a larger version (165K)
Soldiers on the road to Steenvoorde, 1917
Lieut. Cyril Barraud
Print
Reference Code: C 334-1-2-0-18
Archives of Ontario, I0003116
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Click to see a larger version (57K)
Cloth Hall Tower, Ypres,
[ca. 1918]
Photographer Unknown
Canadian Expeditionary Force albums
Black and white print
Reference Code: C 224-0-0-9-1
Archives of Ontario, I0004760
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Click to see a larger version (62K)
The Ruins of Ypres, [ca. 1915]
Bertram Buchanan
Print
Reference Code: C 334-1-5-0-1
Archives of Ontario, I0003125 |
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Click
to see a larger version (114 K)
Vote Kemp to win the war
[voter card, Dominion election, December 17, 1917]
Archives of Ontario Library Pamphlets Collection
PAMPH 1917 #137 | |
Click
to see a larger version (129K)
Canada's Answer - a poem
[voter card, Dominion election, December 17, 1917]
Archives of Ontario Library Pamphlets Collection
PAMPH 1917 #137
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