Jean Longstaff has submitted the following:-
Born on 9th May 1869 and baptised three months later at All Saints Church, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, John Thornhill Irvine was the second son of Irish doctor Walter Gerard Irvine and his wife of three years, Charlotte Thornhill. In 1871 the family, consisting of Walter, Charlotte and their three children, Walter, John and baby Ethel Mary were living in Winlaton, and ten years later had moved to live in Ashburton Crescent, Coxlodge and the family had grown with the addition of Harry and Anne.
John arrived in Canada in the mid 1880s and made his way to British Columbia, where he worked as a fisherman, prospector, rancher and lumberjack.
Enlisting in the Canadian Expeditionary Force at the Forestry Corps Depot in Prince Rupert, British Columbia on 21st February 1917, because of the loss of the fingertips of his left hand John was accepted as fit only for railway or forestry work. Six weeks later Private 2203376 was transferred to the Forestry Depot n Ottawa and posted to the 2nd Reinforcing Draft, with whom he sailed from Halifax to Liverpool in mid August. Posted to the Canadian Forestry Corps Depot at Sunningdale in the grounds of Windsor Great Park, on 1st October he proceeded to France with the 70th Company CFC and was assigned to 10th District Marne Group, based at Noyen, salvaging lumber previously cut by the Germans. This Company was well within range of enemy artillery and was frequently shelled.
From January 1918 Private Irvine was transferred to the 51st Company, 6th District Jura Group based at Gerardmer, where they operated Mill 36 in the Vosges Forest. After spending a week in hospital with lumbago in August 1918 John was granted two weeks leave in England, returning to France in mid September, where he remained until January 1919. Back in England in February, then sailing to Canada on the SS Royal George John arrived in Canada on 25th March 1919 and was demobilised in Vancouver ten days later.
Married to Jane Amelia Blake John became a rancher at Fawn, near Kamloops, BC and he died there from a heart attack on 15th May 1958 and was buried at Williams Lake Cemetery, British Columbia.
John Thornhill Irvine is remembered in Wallsend on W7.19 page 35
