True and Fascinating Canadian History
Vet of the Month: September, 2022
Inspector James Lorne Sampson. O.281
RCMP Vets. Ottawa, ON
Although James Lorne Sampson was well known for his professional high standards and his personal qualities such as honesty, integrity, loyalty and resilience, he was also a great police officer who possessed keen investigative skills. However, the life of James Lorne Sampson was sadly marked by tragedy. In WWI, he saw bitter action and death in France, and years later after he returned home from overseas, his death on Canadian soil was violent, untimely and very sudden. He died at 38 years of age.
According to his obituary which was published in The Quarterly in 1933, James Lorne Sampson was born in Marksville, ON in 1895. He moved to Saskatchewan with his parents in 1914, and he joined the Royal North West Mounted Police (RNWMP) in September of the same year. Soon after his engagement in the RNWMP, Sampson was promoted to Corporal.
A year later, Corporal Sampson took his discharge from the RNWMP to join the Canadian Expeditionary Force (C.E. F.). He served first with the 119th Battalion in Canada and in England, and then he was transferred to the 58th Battalion. He saw war and death in France, and one can speculate that he, like many other soldiers, was affected by the most threatening consequences of war; ongoing fear, guilt, sickness and sleeplessness. After his release from the C. E. F. in 1919, Sampson reengaged in the RNWMP in Regina, and he was soon promoted to Sergeant. His new promotion came with a transfer from Regina to Vancouver, BC. His devotion to duty and to Canada was absolute.
Sergeant J. L. Sampson served as a plain clothes Detective in Vancouver. He was highly regarded by senior Officers, and his work was reputed to be very detailed and of high quality. As a Detective, he was known to be a man of integrity and honesty. His presentation of evidence in court was of superior quality, and the judiciary often remarked on his oral expertise. His name came to the attention of the Commanding Officer who wrote the following appraisal about him,
for his successful handling of a number of difficult cases."
It was well known in Vancouver police circles that Sergeant Sampson was highly successful in the prosecution of Japanese fishermen under the Immigration Act and their fraudulent use of Naturalization Certificates. (Noted in Obituary, The Quarterly: 1933)
In 1932, Sampson was transferred back to Regina. He was soon promoted to Sergeant Major, and in April, 1933 he was promoted again to the Commissioned rank of Inspector. This particular promotion came about only one month prior to his untimely death. In May, 1933, Inspector Sampson was ordered to Saskatoon for riot duty.
Inspector J. L. Sampson died on duty in a most violent way. It was reported that on May 8th, 1933, a riot broke out in Saskatoon and RCMP horses and their riders were being pelted with rocks, one of which struck Inspector Sampson on the head. He fell backwards, but his foot caught in a stirrup and his horse bolted out of control.
Immediately after Inspector Samspon lost control of his mount, two other RCMP members Reg.#10140, N. B. Cleary and Reg.#11745, H. S. Spalding tried to box his horse in to stop it, but the horse was spooked, in a rage and out of control. The mount ran between a row of posts dug into the ground, and Inspector Sampson's body swung in an arc hitting a post with his head with such force that the stirrup strap broke. Only in this way was his lifeless body freed from the stirrup. His death by tragic means brought to an end a promising career for a superb and highly skilled police officer, and someone who left behind a legacy of high expectations.
Inspector J. L. Sampson was married with two small children. He was buried with full Regimental Honours in the RCMP Cemetery at 'Depot' Division.
by J. J. Healy
RCMP Vets. Ottawa, ON
September 23, 2022
was buried in the 'Depot' Cemetery
The Quarterly. 1933. V1. July, 1933 to August, 1933
