In reviewing ‘Blacks’ in the Military one sees definitions and attitudes change. It should be understood that ‘Black’ is a current, accepted term. Researching the topic was exceptionally interesting. References are included. Jamaican history is fascinating.
I encountered many stories and present three interesting men and one woman among the many who deserve attention during Black History Month. One, Percy, is buried in the old Moose Jaw Cemetery.
William Neilson Edward Hall, Petty Officer 1st Class, VC
William Neilson Edward Hall was born in Horton's Bluff, Nova Scotia, on April 28, 1827, the son of escaped American slaves.William Hall is the first Black Nova Scotian (Canadian) to be awarded the Victoria Cross and the first of four Afro-Caribbean British service personnel to be awarded the Victoria Cross. (Canada was not yet a country when William Hall was awarded the Victoria Cross). The Victoria Cross is the highest and most prestigious military award presented to British and Commonwealth military personnel.
The information at the Veterans’ Affairs Canada website is excellent and is quoted here.
The “Victoria Cross citation, The London Gazette, 1 February 1859” reads:
“Lieutenant (now Commander) Young, late Gunnery Officer of Her Majesty's ship 'Shannon,' and William Hall, 'Captain of the Foretop,' of that Vessel, were recommended by the late Captain Peel for the Victoria Cross, for their gallant conduct at a 24-Pounder Gun, brought up to the angle of the Shah Nujjiff, at Lucknow, on the 16th of November, 1857.”
The award was for events during the Siege of Lucknow, November 1857.
The reference continues, “Hall lived in relative obscurity until 1901, when His Royal Highness, the Duke of Cornwall and York, the future King George V, visited Nova Scotia to unveil a monument. A parade was held in his honour, and Hall was in attendance, with his Victoria Cross and other service medals pinned to his chest. The Duke noticed this and enquired about the medals, opening a conversation between the two men.”
The story goes that the Duke of Cornwall, who had served in the Royal Navy and made a career of the Navy until his brother died, was doing an inspection at a function in Nova Scotia and was shocked by the medal worn by William Hall. It was obviously the Victoria Cross, which normally carries a crimson ribbon. Hall’s VC had a blue ribbon, indicating it was for service in the Royal Navy. This led to the Duke having a long discussion with William Hall.
Siege of Lucknow, 1857 and the Indian Mutiny
The route through history is never simple and direct. The ‘Indian Mutiny,’ for which William won his VC, was a case of Indian soldiers employed by the British East India Company rebelling against British rules and regulations. The locals resented the British and wanted to establish their own country, just like the Americans did with their Rebellion for Independence. India did not become independence until 1948.
Career
Hall began his career as a sailor on an American merchant ship and joined the Royal Navy in 1852. He sailed and fought around the world, including in the Crimea. He was soon promoted to “Captain of the Foretop” meaning he was in charge of the crew handling the fore-mast sails. He eventually reached the rank of Petty Officer First Class and retired to Horton Bluff, Nova Scotia in 1876. He died in 1904 at age 77.
Private James Munroe Franklin – First Black North American Killed in WW I
Private James M. Franklin, #141432, 4th Battalion, (Central Ontario Regiment) Canadian Expeditionary Force, was killed October 8, 1916 in the Battle of the Ancre Heights, part of the First Battle of the Somme. He is listed as age 18 when he was killed by explosion of a huge artillery shell.James was born on October 12, 1897 in Whitaker, Missouri, U.S.A. He was a child when the family moved to the Hamilton area of Ontario, Canada for a better life.
His father is listed as Walter Van Twiller Abraham Franklin (Mark McNeil). His mother died when he was young and James was placed in an orphanage. As a teenager he took a job as a messenger in Hamilton. The 5 foot 7-inch Franklin enlistment on July 26, 1915 in Hamilton, Ontario.
Private Franklin has no known grave and is remembered with other Canadians at the Vimy Memorial, Pas de Calais, France.
His Attestation Papers shows “Negro” as written in the section “eye colour, hair colour and complexion”. There was no place on the Attestation Paper for ‘race.’The purpose of collecting description information was to help with identification if the person was injured or killed. The British military has had a long history of accepting members of all races.
The sincere youth left his life insurance money to the Stewart Memorial Church of Hamilton, one of Canada’s earliest Black churches.
Lieutenant Percival Swaby Nash, 210th Battalion CEF, and the Royal Flying Corps
In today’s definition, Percival Swaby Nash would be listed as ‘Black’ although in Moose Jaw in 1912 he was considered as being from the British West Indies (Jamaica), which were a collection of British Caribbean Islands. Jamaica was his ancestral home.
Percy was educated in the finest schools in England. He probably spoke English with a sophisticated, refined English Accent.
Percy’s final resting place is the North-east corner of the old Moose Jaw Cemetery, off 9th East. His headstone reads: Lieutenant Percival Swaby Nash, Royal Air Force. He died June 27, 1919 in Moose Jaw. The bottom inscription reads: “Only Son of the Late James Nash, Solicitor, Jamaica, West Indies.” He died at the Moose Jaw General Hospital while undergoing surgery.
Background
Perceval Swaby Nash was born May 2, 1891, in Montego Bay, St. James Parish, Jamaica, the son of Hortense Gertrude and James Nash. His father was a well educated, well respected Solicitor. The family later took up residence at Horner Rd., Lucea, Jamaica.
Percy was sent off to England at age 18 for a ‘proper’ British higher education. He studied Architecture at Maidstone Grammar School between 1909 and 1912 while a member of the “Royal West Kent Buffs” Militia.
Percival Swaby Nash in Canada
Twenty-two-year-old Percy came to Canada about 1912 and settled in Moose Jaw. Like all young men of the time, Percy was seeking travel, adventure or career opportunity. The Henderson Directories at the Moose Jaw Public Library archives show his addresses and occupation in Moose Jaw as:
- 1913 Nash, Percival; Draftsman for E.B. Merrill and Co – rooming at 142 Ominica Street East
- 1914-15 Nash, Percy Architect living at 1124 and one half Henleaze Avenue W
- 1916 – Living at 1136 – 3rd Avenue N.W., Moose Jaw and working as an Insurance Agent
The 1918 Henderson Directory shows Percy working for Kern Agencies Ltd., 13 High Street, Moose Jaw, a Stocks, Bonds and Grain Broker. Percy was in the Insurance Department but listed as “on Active Service” in 1918, meaning he was in the military. The Kern Agencies President was John H. Kern Jr. who lived at 1053 Chestnut Avenue, Moose Jaw.
Percy Joins the 210th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force
Percy Nash is listed at only 5 feet 5 inches tall with black hair, dark eyes and dark complexion. He was assigned Regimental Number of 255211.
The well educated lad was chosen for Officer Training in Winnipeg and emerged as a Lieutenant with the 210th Battalion.
Percy had health problems and was unable to go overseas with the 210th Battalion because of ill health. On May 1, 1917, he was declared ‘surplus’ and Struck Off Strength (S.O.S.) and Discharged because of poor health.
Soon he was seconded to the Royal Flying Corps, (the Royal Air Force). The RFC needed men, training facilities, airfields and aircraft. RFC training was in Ontario at Long Branch (the former Curtiss Flying School), Borden and Leaside (Toronto). No. 4 School of Military Aeronautics was established at the U of T.
Percy completed his training with the RFC in the fall of 1918, probably at the University of Toronto. The name, Percival Swaby Nash appears on the RFC Nominal Role. (members)
Percy was S.O.S. and Discharged from the military on December 13, 1918 and made his way back to Moose Jaw, luckily missing the Influenza Epidemic. He settled back into his job with Kern Agencies Ltd. on High Street.
Percy needed an operation. It was scheduled at the General Hospital in Moose Jaw. The nature of the operation is not known. He went under the knife on Friday, June 27, 1919.
Percival Swaby Nash never made it. He died on the operating table.
The next day, June 28, 1919 “The Moose Jaw News” printed the following story about a young man who had found acceptance, a new home, a new country and had made many friends.
“Popular Member of Younger Set Passes Divide
“Percy Nash Died Yesterday Following a Serious Operation
“Percy S. Nash, one of the most popular young men of the city, passed away yesterday afternoon following a complicated operation at the General Hospital here. Funeral will be held tomorrow (June 29, 1919) afternoon at 3 o’clock from the “Ranch”, 922 Main Street North, Moose Jaw. Captain Williams of the Saskatchewan Military Hospital will officiate, while the members of the local Great War Veterans of whom P. Nash was a member, will parade in a body.
“Mr. Nash was at one time a Lieutenant in the 210th Battalion, but owing to ill health was unable to proceed overseas. Not to be denied, however, he later enlisted in the Royal Air Force and had just completed his training when the armistice was signed. His sudden demise will be greatly felt in many circles as he was a prominent member of the gold, tennis and Prairie clubs in addition to being one of the charter members of the Kiwanis Club. A well known musician, Mr. Nash was also a composer of some talent and in this regard he will be missed in the musical circles of the city.
“Mr. Nash was in his 28th year at the time of his death. He is survived by his father, who resides at Montego Bay, Jamaica (It appears his father was dead at the time of Percy’s death) and by two sisters who reside in the States of New York and New Jersey, respectively.”
Very Special Note
Mary Seacole, Nurse, British West Indies (Jamaica)
Like Percy, Mary was British-Jamaican. She was born in 1805 in Jamaica. One might consider her the British-Jamaican Florence Nightingale. In 1854 she was with the British Army in the Crimea at the same time William Hall was in the area with the Royal Navy.
Mary tended to the wounded soldiers who called “Mother Seacole.”
In 2016 a statue of Mary Seacole was placed at the St. Thomas’s Hospital, Lambreth, London, England.
References:
Private Franklin: SEE Researcher Thomas Toliver Smith
Percival S. Nash: June 28, 1919 “The Moose Jaw News,” Moose Jaw Public Library archives
