Summerside's War Effort During WWII

The newspapers in Summerside were very diligent in reporting on the circumstances of the men and women of the town and surrounding areas that joined the armed forces. They carried news of their going as well as the news of their return.

Unfortunately many of Summerside's young men never returned. Once the next of kin received a telegram advising them of the death of their loved one, the newspapers would spread the word to a wider audience. The news items would reveal as many details as known.

Sometimes the telegram and consequent article told of someone being wounded or taken prisoner of war. In some cases this was often a precursor to the notice of death that came later. For those lucky enough to survive, the news of their arrival home was noted in the papers.

One of the earliest war casualties was the death of Clarence Gallant in the spring of 1941. There were relatively few deaths reported in 1942 and 1943 when most of the Canadian troops were waiting in England. However in 1944 and 1945 almost every issue of the Journal carried items about Summerside men being killed or missing. A few POWs were heard from and some men were coming into Halifax on hospital ships such as the Lady Nelson.

The attached page show examples of the articles that appeared.