Canada Spit Training

Interesting,

I could not find a grave marker for William Nugent. Only the markers for Eaves and Davies showed the date of Oct. 16th 1942.

 

Lake Simcoe obviously claimed other pilots well.


Love and Wartime at the Cottage

By Bill Johnson, North of Kingswood Acres
For me, the war was exciting and very interesting; after all, at 10 years of age in 1939, the horrors don’t really register. We were not aware of the Holocaust and shocking prisoner of war camps as well as death marches etc. until almost the last days of the war.

I can remember that cool, grey, September day, sitting with my dad in his car parked at the edge of the hill at the cottage listening to his car radio, with an aerial of wire rigged up the old oak tree (there was no T.V. in those days, we had no electricity and radio signals were pretty weak) to hear the news. Orm was upset and somber and muttered a few philosophical comments like “We’ll beat the Germans in no time.”

I was therefore surprised when day after day, the news became “worser and worser” until after a year, it seemed as though he was terribly wrong.

At any rate, aside from two Toronto memories, most of the exciting ones were at the cottage.

Libby Henry’s (now Boyer’s) father, Norm, became our neighbour when they built the cottage to the north of the Mornings’ (now Annis’). Norm was a very successful insurance agent and brought a real touch of class to the hilltop. He wore spats, a top to his bathing suit trunks, and was always dressed in the casual style of the day (jacket, ascot tie and well-pressed slacks). Best, and most impressive of all, he drove the world’s largest black Packard with huge whitewall tires (the first we had ever seen). Always a gentleman and always ready to show kindness.

His daughter Libby was to me a vivacious, social bombshell, on whom I had a crush for many years. Of course, all of the young men seemed to flock around her at every opportunity! I resented being only 9 or 10 years old. When the war started, an English R.A.F. pilot (Peter Campbell) began to court her. He was stationed at Camp Borden (just west of Barrie). Before long, he would be buzzing over the cottages on an almost daily basis. Seeing a plane in those days was a big deal. There were no commercial or Canadian airlines at that time. Quite often Peter would cruise around in a yellow Avro Anson, a sweet little two-engine trainer (no

jets either in those days), about 150 feet out from the edge of the hill at cottage level. On other occasions, he would dive his Harvard at the big rock in our field and parachute loads of various items or even the odd cans of paint. Orm did not like Peter as he referred to us as “Colonials” in an early conversation, and for one of the few times in his life, Orm blasted someone and, although I liked Peter, I must admit to being pretty proud of my dad that day.

Peter had grown up in India and one day he removed his shirt and showed me ten wide claw scars starting at his neck, down to his waist. The tiger who attacked him was killed before the tiger would finish the job. (Our forest, from that day on, seemed just a little more dangerous.)

So Peter became a hero to me as the days went on, and, of course, I could hardly wait to become 18 to join the R.C.A.F. Then suddenly, one wintry night, over Lake Simcoe, everything changed. A pilot was missing from Base Borden and Peter led a flight to try to find him. Peter was never heard from again and the next summer, we found, washed up on our shore, a pilot’s cap which we assumed was Peter’s, and still rests in the big log cottage that he buzzed so often.

 

More background on training accidents at Borden.
Interesting how so many discrepanices can emerge from one event. Assuming that Flt. Lt. Peter Campbell is the same one referred to in the previous story, this doesn't add up. Lake Muskoka is 30 miles north of Lake Simcoe.
WW2 pilot's Canadian lake grave


Published on Thu Mar 30 14:37:08 BST 2006

CANADIAN investigators have found the wreckage of a Second World War aircraft in which an East Preston airman died 65 years ago.
The body of Flt Lieut Peter Campbell, pictured, was never recovered after the North-rop Nomad he was flying crashed into Lake Muskoka, 100 miles north of Toronto.



But now a team of dedicated volunteers are convinced they have located the plane in 120ft of water, and hope to bring it to the surface later this year, so that the remains of Mr Campbell and fellow crew member Leading Aircraftsman, Canadian Ted Bates, can be returned to their families.



The Lost Airmen of Muskoka Project (LAMP) is appealing through the Gazette for any relatives of Mr Campbell to make contact, as efforts to trace them through the authorities have been unsuccessful.



LAMP team members picked up a faint image of what they believe to be Mr Campbell's plane during a sweep of the lake bed using sonar equipment last year, but had to abandon the search as weather conditions worsened. They hope to return next month, when conditions for a sonar scan should be ideal.



One of the team, Matt Fairbrass, whose home overlooks the lake, said: "From my window, I can see exactly where the plane lies beneath the surface. Knowing the plane, and the two airmen, are still down there, you can't not make the effort to recover it.



"We are not treasure hunters. It's a matter of remembrance of the sacrifice these men made.



"If we are able to achieve this, I would like to accompany Peter Campbell's remains home to England and see him laid to rest at last. That would be the completion of my quest."



Mr Campbell went out to Canada in 1940 as part of the highly successful Empire Air Training Scheme, which had been newly set up to train pilots from the Commonwealth and other allies to join the aerial conflict in the Second World War.



He had been there only a matter of weeks when he and Ted Bates took off from the Royal Canadian Air Force base, Borden, on December 13, 1940, to search for another plane which had gone missing in a snowstorm the previous day.

Tragically, another plane taking part in the search collided with the Nomad, and both aircraft plunged into the icy waters of Lake Muskoka.



The second search plane was eventually recovered, along with the bodies of its crew, but it was considered too dangerous to continue looking for the Nomad, as one diver almost lost his life in the bid to find the aircraft.



Mr Fairbrass and other LAMP members, with the support of their British Legion branch, began investigating the Lake Muskoka crash after discovering that a total of 161 aircraft went missing in Canada during the war and had never been found.



They learned that a family of trappers living beside the lake had actually seen the crash and the planes plunging into the water. These eyewitness accounts, and military maps of the crash site, corresponded with the location on the lake bed highlighted by last year's sonar scan.



If next month's scan proves successful, LAMP hopes to raise the plane in 2007.



"I want to see Peter Campbell returned to his family. He must have a family somewhere. It's not as if he is buried in a graveyard. We just felt the time has come, 65 years on, to make that possible," added Matt.



* Anyone who believes they can help trace members of the Campbell family should contact the Gazette, telephone 01903 714135.



THE DAY TWO YOUNG PILOTS PLUNGED INTO ICY WATERS





IT MUST have been with mixed emotions that Flt Lieut Peter Campbell and Leading Aircraftsman Ted Bates climbed into the cockpit of their Northrop Nomad plane one December day in 1940.



Just the day before, Bates, 27, had been told he had been awarded his wings, after successfully completing his initial training at the Royal Canadian Air Force base at Borden.



But his joy must have been tempered by the news, on the same day, that a friend on the base had not returned to Borden after his plane had been caught in a snowstorm.



And so, on December 13, Bates sat behind Campbell in the cockpit of the Nomad as they took off, with another Borden Nomad, to search for the missing aircraft.



Campbell, from East Preston, had been in Canada only a few weeks, seconded by the RAF at the start of the Empire Air Training Scheme, a remarkable initiative which would, over the course of the Second World War, provide large numbers of air crew for the Allies.



But the scheme was very much in its infancy that December day in Canada. Given the treacherous weather, the frozen countryside and lakes, both the Nomad crews would have been aware of the hazardous nature of their mission.



For Campbell, the 24-year-old Englishman, it must have seemed almost like another planet, compared with the mild climate of his seaside home in West Sussex, although at least here, he would be guaranteed a white Christmas, even if it was thousands of miles away from his parents Alexander Farringdon Campbell and Dorothy Fanny Campbell.



Both crews scanned the white wilderness for a glimpse of the missing plane, but then disaster struck, and over the frozen expanse of Lake Muskoka, the Nomads collided and tumbled into the icy waters.



In the days and weeks that followed, efforts were made to find the aircraft, and later, most of the wreckage of one of the Nomads, and the bodies of its crew, were recovered.



But Campbell and Bates' plane was never found – until the Lost Airmen of Muskoka Project (LAMP) was set up to investigate missing aircraft in the area.



Last autumn, LAMP members found what they believed was the wreckage of the Nomad, 120ft beneath the surface. They will return next month for a further sweep in the hope of obtaining a clearer image.



The project has the backing of a local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion, and in November held a wreath-laying ceremony on the lake, above the spot where the Nomad is thought to be lying.



Three months ago, the future of the project, including an attempt next year to bring the plane to the surface, was outlined at a meeting of its supporters. Among them was Tom Bates, the 80-year-old brother of Ted, who lives just 100 miles from the lake, at Guelph, Ontario.



In an emotional speech, he described how he idolised his clever, talented "big brother", and how their Christmas had been shattered by Ted's death, the day after they had been celebrating the happy news he had been awarded his wings.



Tom thanked the LAMP members and the Legion for their efforts to ensure that the airmen who had been forgotten for so long would now be recovered from the lake.



"To the committee responsible for looking for lost aircraft, I would like to say how much I appreciate the work that you are doing and especially for locating the Northrop Nomad aircraft that my brother was in.



"Very seldom do you find people with such interest and skill who are willing to take the time and patience to do a project of this size and nature. I also realise that you would not do it unless you were completely dedicated to the task and fully enjoyed the reward of being successful.



"As each aircraft is found and airman recovered, it will give closure to these brave men."



He added: "It has been 65 years since my brother was lost. But it is gratifying to know that the story that was nearly forgotten and almost lost forever is about to be told."



The LAMP team has been unable to trace Peter Campbell's family and is appealing to any relatives to contact the Gazette. We will, in turn, forward details to Canada.



Using high-tech sonar equipment developed during the Cold War, the project is expensive to run, but costs have been met so far by donations and the volunteers' own commitment of time, effort and money.



LAMP member Matt Fairbrass said the lake waters were the colour of tea, without milk, darkened by the tannin of rotting wood.



But as the ice melts on the lake this Canadian spring, and conditions for sonar scanning are at their best next month, the team is gearing up for one more sweep of the lake, for final confirmation that the Nomad is where they believe it to be, resting on the bed of Muskoka.

 

'I could not find a grave marker for William Nugent. Only the markers for Eaves and Davies showed the date of Oct. 16th 1942.'


Thank you very much for the photos you sent. The lot looks very peaceful and it's interesting to compare the old photos with how it looks now.
If you look at the newspaper cutting I posted a couple of days ago, it gives some more info about F/O Nugent. He was from Toronto and a service and his burial took place there. According to the paper, he was buried in St John's Cemetery on Torornto.
The bodies of the Sgt Eaves and my Uncle Sgt Davies were removed from the wreckage and they lay in Jennett's funeral parlour in Barrie before their burial. According to a search, the funeral parlour has been renamed since, although the chapel retains the Jennett name, and it rests on the same site in Barrie.
Thanks again

 

Red Devil,
Be interesting to hear if you have re-made contact with the familiy of Sgt Eaves who prompted the search. There is now quite a lot of info on this forum about Sgt Eaves and my Uncle and the other person on the aircraft, and those recent photos from Barrie Union Cemetery which Canuck kindly sent.
Thanks
Interested

 

I have been unable to find the original email, although I have thousands saved in google, I did send them this url so they could read it for themselves but since then, they have not come back to me. I suppose we can only hope that you have all provided them with the information they so earnestly sought.

 

I got this request but I seriously doubt if we will be successful in finding anything out on this, but my fingers are crossed.

I hope you don't mind this enquiry but I am trying to track down information regarding my uncle Edward Lawrence Eaves who flew a spitfire towards the end of the Battle of Britain. He survived and after the battle he was reassigned to Canada there to help train the next generation of "spit" pilots. While there a new variant of the "spit" was being tested by a WW1 flying ace who invited Ted and his colleague to take her up. Sadly the plane exploded October 41 all killed. Security forces were involved in the investigation as to why, certainly here in the U.K. his parents my Grandparents were asked if anything in his letters indicated the "top secret" nature of the trials taking place. Unfortunately I can not find out what the results were or how to access those findings, of course sabotage was considered most likely.

Any suggestions as to how or where I might look ? I have tried the National Archives and even tried to access Canadian records but have drawn a blank so far.
Also have you any idea what he might have taken up on that fateful day?
Hi,
My Uncle is also an Edward Lawrence Eaves who died in Canada when his plane apparently got shot down.. He was born 15th April,1920 in London and apparently is buried in Canada. I saw your posting and wondered if we might have the same Uncle? His parents are a Henry Lawrence Eaves and Edith Alice Nee Robinson. His father in 1911 census was still a single man and in the military in 'Meerut',India aged 24yrs, in the 13th Hussars Regiment. Hopefully you are still a part of this forum.
Kindest regards,
Terry

 

Thanks for the information. I hope the originator reads all this.

 

Hi,
My Uncle is also an Edward Lawrence Eaves who died in Canada when his plane apparently got shot down.. He was born 15th April,1920 in London and apparently is buried in Canada. I saw your posting and wondered if we might have the same Uncle? His parents are a Henry Lawrence Eaves and Edith Alice Nee Robinson. His father in 1911 census was still a single man and in the military in 'Meerut',India aged 24yrs, in the 13th Hussars Regiment. Hopefully you are still a part of this forum.
Kindest regards,
Terry
Hello, after a while and having given up (!) I had a look at the page again to find this. I believe we are atalking about the same Edward Eaves. If you go to the Commonwealth Wargraves Commission site and do a search, it gives more family details - parents names and his date of birth all seem to tie up.
Have you subscribed to this WW2 site? If you subscribe, you should be able to read the details that I put on there a while ago, including photos of the graves (past and present (latter kindly supplied by a gentleman who lives not far from barrie)) extract from my Uncle's logbook and a newspaper article describing details of the crash. Please ket me know if you are able to see these and what you think. I would be very interested to know what details your family has of the incident. Regards.

 

To avoid confusion, my uncle was Sgt Davies who was I believe one of the 3 on the same aircraft. I never got a reply to the Eaves family member who originally posted.

 

Edward Eaves was the eldest of 5 children(my mum Mary his sister) joined the RAF was Ground Crew-too young to fly-on Spits in the Battle of Britain and trained in Canada in the freer airspace. He died as RAF.542619 SGT E.L Eaves on 16.10.42. I was brought up with the story that Uncle Ted was test-flying new planes when he was killed(not shot down) and have photos of him in the cockpit of a Vampyre. I have several photos of him in Canada. His other sister, Dorothy told her children that he had taken a plane up without permission, that the plane was experimental and their deaths were hushed up. Those are the family stories-I would love to see the logbook of Davies, who appears to have been killed with him-we have no written records in the family. His surviving siblings are Jack-who went into the Marines 10days after Ted's death and doesn't know the circumstances around the planecrash-now living in Australia and Rose, the youngest who doesn't have any further information. I can send copies of photos of Ted if that would help.

 

Hi, this is fascinating stuff isn't it? I only have a few minutes now, but if you are a member, you should be able to see the attachments I made to my post on 7/11/10 with pictures of the log book and a newspaper cutting describing the accident. Let me know if you cannot see these. Maybe you can scan images of your collection onto the site, or you should be able to send me a private message if you'd prefer.