Frequently Asked Questions

Q:  Where did you get the information in the profiles?

• A:  The online sources listed in each soldier/airman’s profile were accessed from the Canadian Archives and other publicly available websites.  Each Canadian Archive Personnel file is comprised of the soldier/airman’s enlistment papers, will, pay records, training records, medical records, and the correspondence with the families after the man perished.  Of course, some of these records are over 100 years old, so each one has some (or a lot) of the items missing.  There are other online resources that were used to flesh out some of these profiles, and each profile notes the web pages specific to those individuals.  The archives do not have personnel files for Korean War soldiers posted to the archives website, so the profile for Private Laurie Canning was pieced together from other sources.

• Wedding notices, articles and obituaries were primarily from the Liverpool Advance.  The Queens County Museum maintains a card file that contains files for most articles that have been printed in "The Gold Hunter" and the "Liverpool Advance".  We hope for additional material from family members and archival sources as this project becomes more widely visible.

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Q:  Who wrote these profiles?

• A:  The profiles were primarily compiled and composed by Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Chris Charlton.  Chris Mansfield, of Milton and the author of "Queens County Nova Scotia War Dead" contributed text, photos and copious research that brings home the humanity of who these soldiers and airmen were. 

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Q:  Is this website affiliated with the Remembrance Day Ceremony in Caledonia?

• A:  Yes.  Most of the folks on the "About" page are members of the committee organizing the 2025 Remembrance Day Activities.  We plan to produce a 65-70 page handout for the ceremony that includes the textual portion of each Soldier or Airman's profile.  The goal is to produce enough handouts for ceremony attendees ,and to have extras so that families of the Fallen could visit the North Queens Heritage Society to pick one up after the ceremony.

 

Q:  How are you funded?

• A:  This website is funded by a one-time donation for the year 2025.  From 2026 onwards, it will be funded and maintained by the NQ Heritage Society.  We have applied for Veterans Affairs funding to support printing the handouts.  

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Q:  Why is a soldier/airman's name spelled differently than what is on his headstone or the Caledonia Cenotaph?

• A:  Occasionally families may have recorded a soldier/airman's name incorrectly on a memorial marker placed well after his death (several of the soldiers/airmen are listed with their parents or siblings on local headstones).  Every military personnel file has a copy of a soldier/airman's enlistment papers, which he signed on the day he enrolled.  These profiles use the spelling that the soldier/airman used as his signature on the enlistment record.

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Q:  Why does the genealogical information not match what is in my family records?

• A:  The information for parents, siblings and spouses was obtained from the Canadian Census (before and after the Soldier or Airman's death), from the findagrave.com website, and the familysearch.org website.  All of these sources are prone to human error, so we have pieced together the family connections as diligently as possible.  If you find errors or omissions, please contact northqueensremembers@gmail.com

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Q:   Why is the rank Sergeant spelled like this?

• A:  Sergeant is spelled as it is in the RCAF files from the forties.  There are several potential spellings, but these instances are all in RCAF files, thus the RCAF spelling.

           

Q:  Why is the rank in the profile different than what I have seen on a man's headstone or the Caledonia Cenotaph?

• A:  In some instances, the difference is merely designation within a rank as it was used in those eras.  For example, Sapper was a designation, so if a man is called Sapper vs Private, then there is no conflict.  The same was true for Gunner vs Private; and for Corporal vs Lance Corporal.  But there is one case where the actual rank is incorrect on a man’s civilian headstone.  WWI casualty, Cpl McGuire is listed as a SGT on his local headstone.  Nowhere in his personnel file is he assigned that rank, and he was in fact, promoted to Corporal shortly before his death.  He is recorded as Corporal at the Ypres Memorial.  His family clearly had the headstone inscribed in error, but in this material, as in his personnel file, he is referred to as Corporal.

 

 Q:  May I post a link to this website or a specific profile to Facebook or other social media?

• A:  Yes please.  The goal of this website is to honour these men and their sacrifice through public awareness.  If posting the information, please use a link to the page instead of copying the information, so readers can search the website for other profiles that might interest them.

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Q:  How can I get an answer to a specific question I have about this website?

• A:  Please send the question directly to the webmaster at northqueensremembers@gmail.com

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Q:  My family saved some letters sent by one of these fallen soldiers/airmen.  Would these be of any interest to the website?

• A:  Yes!  If you have photos, letters, certificates or information that would add detail to the written profiles or to the additional material below the profiles, please contact a team member to determine how to add it to a profile page.  If the information is already in digital format, please send it to northqueensremembers@gmail.com

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Q:   Why do weird things happen to the menu when I look at the website on my IPad or Apple Computer?

• A:  The dropdown menu may remain overlaid if you are using the native Safari browser on an IPad or Apple computer that is more than a few years old.  This is due to your device running an older Safari version that no longer updates.  If you open the webpage in a different browser like Chrome or Firefox on your Apple device, the site will behave correctly.

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Q:  The website menu does not fit on my phone.

• A:  The website is optimised for viewing on a computer or tablet because there are many letters and documents accompanying each profile that are too small to read on a phone.  The profiles are viewable on a mobile phone, but the menu pages are difficult to navigate.

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Q:  Why does a profile page not look right when I print it?  

•   A:  When you save or print a webpage, your computer likely converts it to PDF or DOC format.  Those formats do not deal well with embedded images and may add them after or over the text of the profile.