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Record #4495
Name :
: Bertram HALLS (1910 - 1986)


Father
:
Mother
:
BMD and other details
Date of Birth
: 27 Apr 1910

Marriage (1)
:
Marriage (2)
:

Date of Death
: 1986
Abode (1) : Place of BirthEngland, Middlesex, Clapton, London
Abode (2) : Place of Death / Burial
Sailing Information
Date of Arrival
: 26 Jul 1924
Country
: Canada

Ship
: Ausonia

Placement Family
:
Homes / Agencys
Institution (GB)
:

Agency
: Salvation Army
NotesBert, my father age 7 lost his father to the 1st world war in France during 1917. His mother took in a "lodger" and later became married to this man. My fathers older brother whom he loved very much died at at the young age of 16. My father gradually felt outcast and unwanted in his mothers home and at age 14 he went to Canada to work on farms. The Salvation army arranged for his journey to Canada and the group he travelled with were listed as home children.

Although he never said, I am wondering if he was rejected to the extent that he had to be taken in by a childrens home. I have a photograph of him with his father and brother and he told me he had purposefully cut his mothers picture from the photograph because of his treatment.

He told me his story of his 3 years in Canada and most of it he enjoyed, made friends and was treated very well. He worked with Hereford cattle and horses, the work was hard but he loved it. He did have a very tragic experience when his friend, the son of the family he was staying with was killed in a terrible shooting accident whilst they were out in the horse drawn buggy. The boys were not aware of gun safety and the shotgun was left cocked. It went off when they drove over bumpy ground. My father drove his mortally wounded friend back to his home. His friend died some 3 days later.

I believe his friend was named Walter Mills but I am not sure. My father stayed with 3 families during this time, the Johnsons of Elkhorn, the Mills of Kirkella and the Smithsons of Kirkella Manitoba.

He told me stories of riding on the trucks of coal trains, no fare was paid and I don't quite know where he was going to. He did say he sneaked over the border to America a few times and got in to trouble. He said that he saw a young black man being beaten, so he went in to help him and ended up being hand cuffed by a sheriff to a weighing machine. He ended up being deported from America.

I do have a lovely sepia photo of one of the homes he stayed at and you can see the vast prairie in the background. If anyone is interested maybe I can put the picture on the web site.

My father came back home to England after 3 years, he did not go home but went to a workhouse just for a day and then obtained work and somewhere to live.

My father died in 1986. 
ContributorsCreated : 2008-11-22 21:36:13 / From original database

Last Updated : 2009-01-17 16:26:39 /

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Surnames starting with:   A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z  18 Entries        
IDNameDOBPlace of birthArrivals & ShipsDest.AgencyFamily links
3151 ACRES, John1910ENG,     Jun 1924 : Ausonia CAN Salvation Army  
3176 ADAM, William1906ENG,     Jul 1924 : Ausonia CAN Salvation Army  
5816 ADAMSON, Bernard William1913ENG, KEN, Woolwich Aug 1924 : Ausonia CAN Salvation Army  
18709 BARNES, Ivy E1894ENG,     May 1912 : Ausonia CAN Unknown  
22844 BETTERTON, Charles W1911ENG,     Apr 1928 : Ausonia CAN Church Army  
8396 BRIGHT, Ivy1913ENG,     Jun 1924 : Ausonia CAN MacPherson Homes  
22856 BROWN, Charles1912ENG,     Mar 1928 : Ausonia CAN Church Army  
22859 BRUCE, Charles1911ENG,     Jun 1928 : Ausonia CAN Empire Settlement Act  
15626 CARTER, Marjorie1912ENG,     Jun 1924 : Ausonia CAN MacPherson Homes  
10478 CLOUGH, James G1909ENG,     Jul 1924 : Ausonia CAN Salvation Army  
10481 CORNELIUS, John1912ENG,     Jun 1924 : Ausonia CAN MacPherson Homes  
15609 CRICK, Yvonne C L1914ENG,     Jun 1924 : Ausonia CAN MacPherson Homes  
11872 GOOSEY, Rebecca1914ENG,    , Kettering Aug 1924 : Ausonia CAN Salvation Army  
4495 HALLS, Bertram1910ENG, MDX, Clapton, London Jul 1924 : Ausonia CAN Salvation Army  
13136 HAYWARD, William John1908ENG, HAM Aug 1925 : Ausonia CAN Salvation Army  
13334 MCCORMACK, Bertie1913ENG,     Jun 1924 : Ausonia CAN MacPherson Homes  
15590 WELCH, Dorothy1912ENG,     Jun 1924 : Ausonia CAN MacPherson Homes  
4608 WILSON, Rudolph Alexander Hamilton1910ENG, KEN, Chatham Aug 1925 : Ausonia CAN Salvation Army