Pte
Jonathan Crowell
Information about birth
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Date of birth: 10/11/1882 |
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Place of birth: Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada |
General information
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Last known residence: Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada |
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Profession: Marble cutter |
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Religion: Methodist |
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: 282971 |
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Enlistment date: 27/03/1916 |
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Enlistment place: Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, 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: 34 |
Cemetery
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Tyne Cot Cemetery Plot: XXXVI Row: C Grave: 14 |
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
Jonathan Crowell was born on November 10, 1882, in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, where he lived and worked. In March 1915, the marble cutter enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in Yarmouth. 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 camp near Ypres and moved to the front, where they relieved the 44th Battalion at Keerselaere, between Decline Copse by the railway and the Passchendaele Road. On October 29, the men waited in shell craters and narrow trenches, preparing for the attack the following day.
On October 30, 1917, the Canadians resumed their assault on Passchendaele. The 85th Battalion (Nova Scotia Highlanders) followed the Ypres–Roulers railway toward Vienna Cottages—once a cluster of houses nestled beside the tracks. The hamlet had been reduced to a series of shell holes. The Highlanders suffered greatly: the artillery meant to support the attack had sunk into the mud and could barely assist. As soon as the men pulled themselves out of the mire, they came under intense fire. But the storm forward was unstoppable. In exchange for the foul craters at Vienna Cottages, half of the Highlanders were killed, wounded, or went missing. Before returning home, the 85th Battalion erected a memorial marker near their approximate start position.
Jonathan was killed in action on October 30, 1917, just days before his 35th birthday. He was initially buried in a field grave near Vienna Cottages. After the war, he was reburied at Tyne Cot Cemetery, Plot XXXVI, Row C, Grave 14.
On October 28, 1917, the 4th Canadian Division left camp near Ypres and moved to the front, where they relieved the 44th Battalion at Keerselaere, between Decline Copse by the railway and the Passchendaele Road. On October 29, the men waited in shell craters and narrow trenches, preparing for the attack the following day.
On October 30, 1917, the Canadians resumed their assault on Passchendaele. The 85th Battalion (Nova Scotia Highlanders) followed the Ypres–Roulers railway toward Vienna Cottages—once a cluster of houses nestled beside the tracks. The hamlet had been reduced to a series of shell holes. The Highlanders suffered greatly: the artillery meant to support the attack had sunk into the mud and could barely assist. As soon as the men pulled themselves out of the mire, they came under intense fire. But the storm forward was unstoppable. In exchange for the foul craters at Vienna Cottages, half of the Highlanders were killed, wounded, or went missing. Before returning home, the 85th Battalion erected a memorial marker near their approximate start position.
Jonathan was killed in action on October 30, 1917, just days before his 35th birthday. He was initially buried in a field grave near Vienna Cottages. After the war, he was reburied at Tyne Cot Cemetery, Plot XXXVI, Row C, Grave 14.
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 2181 - 35). 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: 169). 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/462436 |
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Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=66b2e8a9-f451-4787-b989-9784b77d609e |
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The Canadian Virtual War Memorial https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/462436 |
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Lives of the First World War (Imperial War Museum) https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/5604061 |