John Davidson Morrison 1891-1917, Lest We Forget

Unfortunately I had no one submit to the Veterans Stone cleaning contest this year. So I decided I would focus on my families Veterans; and I have a few. I am honoured to introduce you to John Davidson Morrison (1891-1917) my 2X's Great Uncle, My grandmother Audrey 'Morrison' Coddingtons' Uncle, whom was killed in action 2 years before her birth.

History is often written in grand movements; in treaties signed, maps redrawn, and lines of infantry advancing across fields under fire. But the true weight of our history is carried in individual lives, in the quiet spaces left behind in rural communities, and in the names carved into weathered stones and bronze plaques across Ontario and the world. As we approach Remembrance Day, we pause to honor the men from our own backyard who answered the call of a distant war.

Today, we turn our pages back to look at the life and service of a family member whose journey took him from the quiet township of Medina to the harrowing battlefields of France: Private John Davidson Morrison.

Born on April 5, 1891, John was the son of William Wood Morrison, a boot and shoe merchant in Medina, and Mary Anne Beattie. Growing up as a labourer on Lot 25, Concession 10, life moved to the steady rhythm of rural routines and local commerce. Yet deep personal loss shadowed the family long before the war arrived; John lost his sister Bella in 1904, followed by the heartbreaking loss of both his mother, Mary Anne, and his brother David in 1907. Through these tragic years, the family persevered in Medina, where his father later remarried Margaret Beattie.

On November 16, 1917, John enlisted in London, joining the 1st Depot Battalion of the Western Ontario Regiment. Following initial and advanced infantry training at Wolseley Barracks, he boarded the SS Grampian in March 1918, arriving in England on April 4th. Posted to the 4th Reserve Battalion at Bramshott, his path shifted on April 23rd when he transferred to the Canadian Machine Gun Depot at Witley to qualify as a trained machine gunner.

By August 18th, he was posted to the Machine Gun Pool at Seaford as a reinforcement, and on September 17, 1918, he officially joined the 4th Battalion Canadian Machine Gun Corps serving with the 4th Canadian Division in France. Ten days later, on September 27th, the Canadian Corps launched a historic assault across the Canal du Nord. Private Morrison’s company fired both direct and indirect fire missions in support of the 10th Infantry Brigade as they pushed toward the heavily defended villages of Raillencourt and Sailly.

Resistance was fierce, requiring days of relentless effort until Sailly was finally cleared on the afternoon of September 30th. As the 10th Brigade established defensive positions nearly 1,000 yards east, elements of the 4th Machine Gun Battalion; including John. They moved forward to occupy machine gun positions within Sailly itself. The dawn of October 1, 1918, brought a sudden, heavy German artillery bombardment targeting the new positions in Sailly.

During the shelling, Private John Davidson Morrison was hit in the chest by shrapnel and killed instantly at twenty-seven years of age. News of his death reached back across the Atlantic to his grieving father William, stepmother Margaret in Medina, and his sisters, Margaret and Mrs. Jean Neeves of Jones Street East in St. Marys.

Private John Davidson Morrison now rests in peaceful rows at the Mill Switch British Cemetery at Tilloy-les-Cambrai in France. A cenotaph marks his place with his family in Lakeside Ontario. Though he fell in the final weeks of the Great War, his story remains a vital thread in our family’s history, a son of Medina, a brother, and a soldier who stood firm to the very end. We remember him not only this November, but every time we look back across the generations that came before us. Rest in peace, John. You are never forgotten.