About the Virtual Memorial

Early in 2004, I undertook the task of tracing my Grandfathers movements during the First World War. This war had always held an interest for me; I've always believed that it was a major turning point, not just in terms of military history, but also in the social fabric of Canada. I had understood that many historians felt that the war, the battle at Vimy Ridge in particular, was a defining moment in Canadian History, and I resolved to understand why.

My Grandfather, Thomas O'Connor from the Ridge Road in Godmanchester, seldom talked of his war experiences to his children. My mother knew that he had been overseas and that he had been gassed, but that was all. For her '39th' Birthday in 2004, I undertook to write the history of his service, as much as it could be reconstructed from available records. And what a story it turned out to be: a young man that traveled across Canada, to England, who fought in France, was wounded, then recovered to participate in the march across Belgium to participate in the postwar occupation of Germany. This story is available in PDF format and can be found here.

As I studied the First World War, I learned more of the hardships and sacrifices that men made during this time. I felt that it was important that we not forget this, and resolved to do my part to keep their memory alive.

For years, my brother, Gerry Leroux, has been looking into our family Genealogy, and into the history of the Ridge Road area. As some of my research overlapped with his, I decided that a starting point could be to concentrate on the men from the Huntingdon area who participated in the war, starting with those inscribed on the Huntingdon Cenotaph.

This site, greatly expanded from its initial form, is the result. It is very much a work in progress.I continue to research these individuals and Canada's participation in the wars, primarily the First World War and will continually update this site, so please return often.

If anyone has any comments, or can provide more information on the men listed on this site, I would greatly appreciate hearing from you, so please eMail me.

Thanks

Marc Leroux