I am a Grade 11 High School student who is writing a soldier biography on this man that was a former student of my school ( St. Joseph High School in Edmonton,Alberta, Canada). I am looking for information about where he was when he died ( July 28, 1943), anything about his personal life and any other information that would not be classified as basic information (i.e date of birth, Date of enrollment, etc.) As a side note: My Social class is doing the same project but, with different former students who have served and lost their lives during World War ll.
Patrick Francis O'Coffey 1920–1943 BIRTH 1920 • Alberta, Canada DEATH 28 JULY 1943 • Sicily, Italy Name: L-Cpl Patrick Francis O'Coffey Death Date: 28 Jul 1943 Cemetery: Agira Canadian War Cemetery Burial or Cremation Place: Agira, Provincia di Enna, Sicilia, Italy http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=56410964&ref=acom Patrick Francis O'Coffey in the Canada, WWII Service Files of War Dead, 1939-1947 Name: Patrick Francis O'Coffey Birth Place: Edmonton Alberta Residence: Fort McMurray Alberta. Service number: M15971 Force: Army Regiment: Loyal Edmonton Regiment, R.C.I.C. Rank: Lance Corporal Next of Kin: Frank Laurie O'Coffey Relationship: Father If you/your school apply for his service records then there is further information available TD
TD beat me to it so some of this repeats the post above. What you really need to look at is the Ancestry genealogy website, someone at your school must have access, where you can get hold of over 40 pages of his service details including his ‘soldiers service book’ and a copy of the letter advising his parents of his death. His attestation paper was 23 Sept 1939 DOB 30 Sept 1920, Edmonton, Alberta Religion: RC Trade: Carpenter Single Height: 5’ 9” Weight: 159 lbs Medium complexion Eyes blue Etc. etc, etc As a student I am sure that you are much more adept at web searching than most so I feel sure that you have already uncovered the following, nevertheless, I will put some links here. He is buried at Agira, Sicily: http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2202742/O'COFFEY,%20PATRICK%20FRANCIS http://www.wikisicily.com/agira/scheda_agira.php?id=343&plot=C&fnd=A.%20265 http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/2202742 This site suggests that the Loyal Edmonton Regt were part of the 2nd Infantry Brigade in the 1st Infantry Division: https://www.junobeach.org/canada-in-wwii/articles/the-invasion-of-sicily/canadian-army-units-in-sicily/ The regiment fought at Agira between 24 – 28th July 43: http://regimentalrogue.com/battlehonours/bathnrinf/40-ler.htm This gives a reasonably detailed account of the action: http://www.canadiansoldiers.com/history/battlehonours/italiancampaign/agira.htm Lieutenant John Alpine Dougan (who is mentioned above) also gets a mention in this book and it also describes some of the individual platoons: https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=aeT7lhe42aoC&pg=PA337&lpg=PA337&dq=john+alpine+dougan+agira&source=bl&ots=pY2N9l4bYR&sig=XSJtbWfCXpkhYrIoKDT5IYkLi7I&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwigs9v499fMAhWIJiYKHZ4JC-YQ6AEIIjAB#v=onepage&q=agira&f=false See page 33 of this: http://www.albertagenealogy-research.ca/LER/49er/49er1953No056.pdf Happy hunting
Hi Polish Perhaps you could tell us the name of your school and where it is?? - maybe you could explain a little more about the project, are others finding out about different servicemen/women who are ex school?? TD
I didn't see the original version but the revised one is definitely the right way to go about asking for help. From the looks of things several of your classmates have posted search queries. As a History teacher myself I applaud the fact that fellow members of my profession are encouraging young people to engage with their local history and realise that people from their neighbourhoods had a part to play in the World Wars. I do however, wish that they would give their students a few tips on how to research. There are a lot of very knowledgeable people on this forum and more than a few veterans who can help if you ask the right way. So, a few tips based on my own experience... Before I first posted a request for help on the site I did a search of the forums for the information I was looking for. I was interested in finding out about my great grandfather who was a prisoner of war so I also browsed the relevant forum here to see if someone had already posted it. When I was sure I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for I then posted a question and gave as much information as I had to help people out. If people can see you tried to find out for yourself they are more likely to want to help. I did a World War One project with my students a couple of years ago that was similar to yours - as others have pointed out the Commonwealth War Graves Commission website is an excellent place to start. Not only can you usually find dates and places of death, serial numbers etc but you can also download a certificate with the info on it and sometimes graves registers and other documents. From there Ancestry.ca can often turn up medal cards, service records and so on. Local newspapers often reported on casualties so a search of the relevant archives can turn up stories and sometimes photos. Other information can sometimes turn up - I found some of my ancestors had been in trouble with the law! Have you checked to see if the Loyal Edmonton Regiment has a museum or website? They will have good information and might be able to put you in touch with local veterans. Finally, have you checked your local library to see if they have a local history section? Our library in Aberdeen was able to provide us with lots of useful information on soldiers from the city who had served in WW1 and put us in touch with local historians. Good luck with your assignment. As a way of saying thanks your class could always collect your research and share it back here in its own thread and that way others who might want to know about the men from Alberta who gave their lives could benefit from your work.