Pte
Albert Pickavance

Information about birth

Date of birth:
23/05/1892
Place of birth:
St. Helens, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom

General information

Profession:
Farrier - Shoeing Smith

Army information

Country:
Canada
Force:
Canadian Expeditionary Force
Rank:
Private
Service number:
67373
Enlistment date:
17/11/1914
Enlistment place:
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Units:
 —  Canadian Infantry, 25th Bn. (Nova Scotia Rifles)  (Last known unit)

Information about death

Date of death:
08/11/1917
Place of death:
Passchendaele, Belgium
Cause of death:
Killed in action (K.I.A.)
Age:
25

Cemetery

Tyne Cot Cemetery
Plot: XIV
Row: C
Grave: 19

Distinctions and medals 2

Points of interest 3

#1 Place of birth
#2 Enlistment place
#3 Place of death (approximate)

My story

Albert Pickavance was born on the 23rd of May 1892 in St Helens, Lancashire. In 1912, Albert, at the age of 20, immigrated to Canada. According to his immigration papers he was traveling to his brother-in-law, who lived in Berwick, Nova Scotia, where he would work as a blacksmith.

On 16 November 1914 Albert enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Albert eventually served in the 25th Battalion Canadian Infantry (Nova Scotia Rifles) and was send to France and Flanders. On the 25th of June 1916 he was wounded in his right leg and was send to hospital, where he remained for several months. Albert recovered and his Battalion moved early November 1917 to the Ypres sector in Flanders, where the Canadians were to relieve the exhausted Anzac troops for the final push on the Passchendaele heights.

The 25th Battalion moved to the frontline on 5 November 1917. They arrived at Seine, without casualties and dug in for the night. In the early hours of 6 November 1917 the men witnessed at first hand, the attack on the ruins of Passchendaele. German shells landed among the 25th battalion’s positions, but casualties were slight. The shelling continued till the next morning. At 5.20 a.m. S.O.S. flares were fired from the frontline and the allied artillery responded. In the meantime the German artillery laid down a heavy barrage on the slope in front of Seine.

At night Albert’s Battalion relieved the 26th Battalion (New Brunswick) in the frontline, running through Passchendaele itself. Battalion headquarters were established at Hamburg. The line they took over was nothing more than a series of disconnected shell holes. And the men worked the whole nigh to connect the posts. Throughout the 8th of November the positions of the Nova Scotia Rifles were heavily shelled. After a night and a day under heavy fire, the 25th Battalion was relieved from the frontline and marched back to the hinterland.

Twenty-five-year-old Albert Pickavance was killed in action on 8 November 1917, while his Battalion was holding the line at the ruins of Passchendaele. Albert was initially buried near the Passchendaele church. His remains were interred in Tyne Cot Cemetery after the war.

Files 2