Pte
John Bradeen
Information about birth
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Date of birth: 01/04/1887 |
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Place of birth: Page, Nebraska, United States of America |
General information
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Last known residence: 12244, 105th Street, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada |
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Profession: Farmer |
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Religion: Presbyterian |
Army information
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Country: Canada |
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Force: Canadian Expeditionary Force |
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Rank: Private |
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Service number: 812161 |
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Enlistment date: 03/04/1916 |
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Enlistment place: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada |
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Units: — Canadian Infantry, 85th Bn. (Nova Scotia Highlanders) (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 30/10/1917 |
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Place of death: Vienna Cottages - Stein Hof, Passchendaele, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 30 |
Cemetery
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Tyne Cot Cemetery Plot: II Row: J Grave: 2 |
Distinctions and medals 2
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British War Medal Medal |
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Victory Medal Medal |
Points of interest 4
| #1 | Place of birth | ||
| #2 | Last known residence | ||
| #3 | Enlistment place | ||
| #4 | Place of death (approximate) |
My story
John Bradeen was born on April 1, 1887, in Page, Nebraska, USA. When the farmer enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in Edmonton, Alberta, in April 1916, he was married and living in Edmonton. He was eventually assigned to the 85th Battalion, better known as the Nova Scotia Highlanders, part of the 12th Canadian Brigade of the 4th Canadian Division.
On October 28, 1917, the 4th Canadian Division left their camp near Ypres. They moved to Seine Corner, at the front, where they relieved the 44th Battalion at Keerselaere, between Tyne Cot and Passchendaele. The men spent October 29 in shell craters and narrow trenches, preparing for the next day’s attack.
On October 30, 1917, the Canadians resumed their assault on Passchendaele. The 85th Battalion (Nova Scotia Highlanders) followed the Ypres–Roulers railway line toward Vienna Cottages — once a cluster of houses nestled along the tracks. The hamlet had been reduced to a chain of shell holes. The Nova Scotia Highlanders faced fierce resistance: the artillery meant to support them had sunk into the mud and could barely offer assistance. As soon as the Highlanders pulled themselves free of the mire, they came under heavy fire. But the storm surged forward, unstoppable. In exchange for the stinking craters around Vienna Cottages, half of the Highlanders were killed, wounded or missing. Before returning to Canada, the 85th Battalion erected a memorial close to their approximate jumping-off point.
John, aged 30, was killed in action on October 30, 1917, and was buried directly at Tyne Cot Cemetery, Plot II, Row J, Grave 2.
On October 28, 1917, the 4th Canadian Division left their camp near Ypres. They moved to Seine Corner, at the front, where they relieved the 44th Battalion at Keerselaere, between Tyne Cot and Passchendaele. The men spent October 29 in shell craters and narrow trenches, preparing for the next day’s attack.
On October 30, 1917, the Canadians resumed their assault on Passchendaele. The 85th Battalion (Nova Scotia Highlanders) followed the Ypres–Roulers railway line toward Vienna Cottages — once a cluster of houses nestled along the tracks. The hamlet had been reduced to a chain of shell holes. The Nova Scotia Highlanders faced fierce resistance: the artillery meant to support them had sunk into the mud and could barely offer assistance. As soon as the Highlanders pulled themselves free of the mire, they came under heavy fire. But the storm surged forward, unstoppable. In exchange for the stinking craters around Vienna Cottages, half of the Highlanders were killed, wounded or missing. Before returning to Canada, the 85th Battalion erected a memorial close to their approximate jumping-off point.
John, aged 30, was killed in action on October 30, 1917, and was buried directly at Tyne Cot Cemetery, Plot II, Row J, Grave 2.
Sources 5
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Hayes J., The Eighty-Fifth in France and Flanders, (Halifax, Royal Print & Litho Limited, 1922), 90-96. Sources used |
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McCarthy Chris., Passchendaele. The Day-by-Day Account (London, Unicorn Publishing Group, 2018) 153. Sources used |
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Personnel Records of the First World War (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC), RG 150, Accession 1992-93/166, Box 992 - 28). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
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War diaries: 85st Canadian Infantry Battalion (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC), RG9-III-D-3, Volume number: 4944, Microfilm reel number: T-10751--T-10752, File number: 454). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
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War Graves Registers: Circumstances of Death (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC), RG 150, 1992-93/314; Volume Number: 157). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
More information 4
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Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/462020 |
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Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=8839fc9e-ae02-4920-968f-2906947e2738 |
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The Canadian Virtual War Memorial https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/462020 |
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Lives of the First World War (Imperial War Museum) https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/5477223 |