John Little
18-Apr-10, 21:49
I am slightly subdued over the matter of Portgower at the moment. The vampires thread is enjoyable but I just came across something about a man from Portgower who died a hero far from home.
When I retire I have a small ambition to fill my time. I want to write a paragraph in a small book about each of the men whose names appear on the local war memorial. That would make them more than just names for people who want to buy it from the local post office. It's not an original idea but I would find it interesting.
On December 23 1926 Winnipeg Theatre, Canada, was struck by a disastrous fire. One of the firemen in attendance was from Portgower; Donald Melville.
"All four of the men who died were First World War veterans and were long-time firemen. Smith had lived in Winnipeg for 16 years and was born in Aberdeen, Scotland. Stewart had been born in Perth, Scotland, and had resided in Canada for 20 years, seven of them in Winnipeg. Shearer was a native of Banff, Scotland, and had been in Winnipeg for 15 years. Melville, the brother of Winnipeg police detective-sergeant James Melville, was born in Port Gower, Scotland. Although there is no report on how long he had been in Winnipeg, Melville had served on the city’s fire department for 14 years and five months.
It was reported at the inquest by Roy Turner of No. 2 firehall that Melville’s last words were a warning to run for safety. “Come on Roy, the gallery is giving way!”
A soldier, and at the last, giving warning to another. All honour to a brave man.
http://www.winnipegrealestatenews.com/Editorials.aspx?id=1038
And it made me wonder if there are any more out there. And if you know of any.
When I retire I have a small ambition to fill my time. I want to write a paragraph in a small book about each of the men whose names appear on the local war memorial. That would make them more than just names for people who want to buy it from the local post office. It's not an original idea but I would find it interesting.
On December 23 1926 Winnipeg Theatre, Canada, was struck by a disastrous fire. One of the firemen in attendance was from Portgower; Donald Melville.
"All four of the men who died were First World War veterans and were long-time firemen. Smith had lived in Winnipeg for 16 years and was born in Aberdeen, Scotland. Stewart had been born in Perth, Scotland, and had resided in Canada for 20 years, seven of them in Winnipeg. Shearer was a native of Banff, Scotland, and had been in Winnipeg for 15 years. Melville, the brother of Winnipeg police detective-sergeant James Melville, was born in Port Gower, Scotland. Although there is no report on how long he had been in Winnipeg, Melville had served on the city’s fire department for 14 years and five months.
It was reported at the inquest by Roy Turner of No. 2 firehall that Melville’s last words were a warning to run for safety. “Come on Roy, the gallery is giving way!”
A soldier, and at the last, giving warning to another. All honour to a brave man.
http://www.winnipegrealestatenews.com/Editorials.aspx?id=1038
And it made me wonder if there are any more out there. And if you know of any.