True and Fascinating Canadian History
Vet of the Month: May, 2024
Reg.#5862, Constable Willliam & baby Douglas
RCMP Vets. Ottawa, ON
William Douglas was born on May 27th, 1890 in Templand, Dumfriesshire, Scotland. He immigrated to Canada as a single man, and he settled in Prince Albert, SK. In 1914, he joined the Royal North West Mounted Police (RNWMP). At the outbreak of WWI, Douglas 'took his discharge' from the RNWMP when his term expired in August, 1916. He intended to serve Canada in a different capacity than as a police officer.
According to his War Record, Douglas enlisted with the 243rd Battalion on November 6, 1916 at Prince Albert, SK., but it seems that the CEF intended to discharge Douglas due to poor eyesight. Whether or not he was actually discharged was not made clear, but it is clear that he deployed to Siberia with the RNWMP Contingent. Upon his return to Canada, Douglas rejoined the RNWMP in November, 1919. He was posted to Regina, SK.
But, that's only half the story. The birth and death of baby Leslie Douglas and especially the baby's gender gave rise to a mystery for many, many years.
On May 27th, 1925, while serving with the RCMP in Regina, William Douglas and his wife gave birth to a baby; Leslie Douglas. It lived only for four months -- Leslie died on September 6th, 1925. After baby Leslie was buried in the 'Depot' Cemetery, the Douglas family purchased a memorial stone and had it mounted on the baby's grave. It said: "Leslie Douglas." However was 'Leslie' a boy or girl?
Down through the years, no one closely questioned the gender of the baby, and no one thought to ask whether the baby was a boy or a girl? The name Leslie Douglas which is prominent on the baby's grave could be understood to be either a boy or a girl?
Some ninety six years pass by... until 2021
What follows here is a series of messages between Willliam Douglas' granddaughter Ms Sharon Davison and me beginning in January, 2021. Ms Davison enquired about the gender of baby Leslie Douglas? Living relatives of Leslie Douglas did not know if the baby was a boy or a girl?
In January, 2021 I received an email from the granddaughter of William Douglas.
Ms Sharon Davison said, "I'm looking for any information with regards to a burial from 1925 in the 'Depot' Cemetery. I have located a photograph of the tombstone for baby Leslie Douglas, born: 27 May 1925, died: 06 September 1925, but I do not know the gender of baby Leslie -- the baby would either be my uncle or my aunt, so you can see the problem? My mother is not certain if her sibling was a boy or girl, and the name 'Leslie' could be either. My grandfather, Reg.#5862, William Douglas served in the RCMP for many years and was stationed at Regina when baby Leslie was born, and then buried at 'Depot'. Are there any records that would indicate the gender of the baby or any other information? If so, I'd be more than pleased to solve the mystery. I have tried other avenues to search this question, including newspapers and the Saskatchewan Records, as well as other genealogy websites, but with no luck. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!" (granddaughter Sharon Davison, 15/01/2021)
In a subsequent message in January, 2021, Ms Davison provided a clearer overview of William Douglas' RCMP and military career. Ms Davison wrote, "My grandfather is Reg.#5862, William Douglas. I received some information years ago regarding his RNWMP Service. William came from Scotland in 1913 and he joined the Force on 18/08/1914 to 17/04/1916. On the completion of his two-year term, and with WWII raging, he enlisted with the CEF in 1916, but was demobilized in 1917 as "medically unfit" due to lime injuring his eyes.""
Ms Davison also wrote, "William Douglas rejoined the RCMP on 28/08/1918. That fall, a Cavalry Unit of the CSEF (Canadian Siberian Expeditionary Force) was formed in Saskatchewan called "B" Squadron, consisting of RNWMP and civilians. William Douglas became part of that Cavalry Unit and was subsequently sent across Canada by train and ultimately to Vladivostok, Siberia. Upon returning to Canada, and being demobilized in Regina, William signed on again with the RCMP on 24/11/1919 and he served in Regina until 1926/1927. According to information I received, I understand that William was also posted to MacLeod, AB, which I take to be Fort MacLeod.""
"I would appreciate any clarification that you might be able to provide. I do know he was transferred to Victoria, BC sometime in 1926/1927 to work at the Gatehouse at Dockyard (DND) in Esquimalt. William retired 23/11/1946 while still in Esquimalt, BC. He was 59 years old. It was while he was in Regina that William and his wife had their first two children, and then their baby Leslie, who only survived four months. The baby was buried in the RCMP at 'Depot' Cemetery.""
"I only recently found the baby's tombstone through Find A Grave on the Internet. My mother, being the youngest in her family, said there was a sibling who died but she did not know where for certain, but thought it was in Regina, or what year or the gender of the baby. She did, however, think the baby's name was 'Leslie'. As I said, I don't know whether the baby was a boy or a girl or the cause of death? I would appreciate any information you can provide. I am the first in my mother's family to find Leslie and the tombstone. I plan to arrange for flowers to be put at the gravesite in the near future. I know my grandparents never made it back to Regina to visit the site.""
"Thanks for your interest and assistance! I'm sorry if I gave you more info than you were expecting, but I wanted to pay tribute to William's contribution to the Force. Looking forward to hearing from you." (granddaughter Sharon Davison, 15/01/2021)
I replied to Ms Davison on the same day. I wrote, "Thank you for your very informative email about your grandfather. I posted your message on William’s database file because not much was known about his career."
"With respect to baby Leslie, I have a couple ideas. First, the Chaplain at ‘Depot’ is responsible for deaths and burials as well as care of the Cemetery. I will ask 'Depot' for assistance, but due to the pandemic, ‘Depot’ is closed except for emergency duties. This is not the best time to ask for information from 'Depot'. Please let me know if you have discovered anything new with births and deaths?"
Ms Davison replied, "Totally good with waiting for COVID restrictions to be over so will put this on the backburner for now and contact you in the future, if that's okay? I have checked Regina birth and death records online, but there's a limitation on the years that are released and they're not out yet."
On July 10th, 2024, the answer to the mystery of whether baby Leslie was a girl or boy came to me courtesy of Mr Les Kingdon, Chaplaincy Office Coordinator in Regina, SK.
Mr Kingdon wrote, "I found the Burial Permit for Leslie William Douglas, infant son of Reg.#5862, William Douglas in a pile of old documents. I also noticed there were inquiries in the rcmpgraves.com database about the baby, including the baby's gender, as “Leslie.” The middle name William seems to narrow it down pretty well.
The baby's full name was Leslie William Douglas. He died in Regina on September 6th, 1925."
The mystery which swirled around the true gender of baby Leslie Douglas for many, many years has now been solved by Mr Les Kingdon, Chaplaincy Office Coordinator in Regina. It is truly a stroke of luck that the old documents from 1925 were safely stored until they were researched by Mr Kingdon. My sincere appreciation goes to him.
Constable William Douglas served with the RCMP throughout Alberta and British Columbia, and after a long, and honourable career in policing, Douglas went to pension in 1946. He and his wife moved to Victoria, BC.
William Douglas died in Victxorxia, BC in 1957. He was cremated at Royal Oak Cemetery in Saanich, BC. His final resting place is not yet known.
May the Constable William Douglas family all Rest in Peace.
The discovery of baby Leslie William Douglas's gender has been posted on FindaGrave for the benefit of Ms Davison and other family relatives.
Reporting from Fort Healy,
J. J. Healy
May 23, 2024
