A grandfather who was known to his only grandson through old diaries and photos led history professor Stephen Davies to his latest project.
His grandfather died in the First World War. That gap in his family, combined with the frustration his students had in locating information on the internet about Canadian war efforts, convinced Davies to do some research of his own.
A year ago he set up the Canadian Letters and Images Project website at www.mala.bc.ca/history/letters. Canadians can tell about war experiences in their own words and images by posting archive letters, diaries, photos and other personal material on the website.
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Davies, who works from Malaspina University-College on Vancouver Island, said he would like more material from western farm families.
“We are seeking copies of letters or letters to borrow for copying from servicemen home, or other similar materials connecting rural Canada to the war effort.”
Davies said that unlike most museum projects that want papers and photos to be donated, he simply scans in the material and returns it to the family.
Since the project began last September, he has sent hundreds of letters to history and genealogy societies plus military museums. He gets material every week and has 3,500 pieces to put on the site.
One of the most touching letters is from Edward Richards who died in 1945, but left a poem he had written to his infant daughter.
“Every letter has some elements of longing for home,” he said. “These people are 18, 19, 20 years old.”
Davies said besides letters to farm families, he also needs more material from women who served in the war as nurses or in other roles. He has had about $15,000 in private donations to assist in the website project and is hoping to get a grant from Heritage Canada.
People interested in sending copies of their family’s war history can contact Davies at the website or mail it to Malaspina University-College, Department of History, 900 Fifth St., Nanaimo, B.C., V9R 5S5.
