McQUAID, Norman Michael

NAME              McQuade     Norman Michael
RANK              Corporal        19348                                                                                                                                                  I Canadian Corps - 1st Canadian Infantry Division - 2nd Infantry Brigade                                UNIT                No. 3 Field Company - Corp of Royal Canadian Engineers.
                        “whither right and glory lead"                               
                        "everywhere”                                                                                                                          AWARDS         Military Cross                                                                                                                    Residence       Seaforth, Ontario                                                                                                                         Born                June 22, 1914 - Tuckersmith Township - County of Huron - Ontario                                            DIED               December 9, 1943          29 years   5 months
Cemetery        Moro River Canadian War Cemetery - San Donato - Ortona - Chieti - Italy.
                        V     D     10
Parents           Mr.  Joseph and Mary McQuaid - Seaforth - Ontario                                                                    Brothers          Wilfred McQuade - Seaforth - Ontario                                                                                                                     John McQuade - St Thomas - Ontario                                                                                                                       Clarence McQuade - Toronto - Ontario                                                                                                                     Reverend Thomas McQuade - Perking - China                                                                          Sisters            Mrs. Harold Allin - Goderich - Ontario                                                                                                                       Mary and Rose McQuade - Toronto - Ontario                                                                                                           Mrs. V. J. Lane - Seaforth - Ontario

Norman was born in Seaforth on June 22, 1914 and once he had completed his education and became
employed he was a bricklayer by trade. He was raised Roman Catholic and would have attended St James Catholic Church. He apparently was a farmer and a bricklayer prior to his enlistment

Canada

He travelled to London on September 24, 1939 and enlisted into the Canadian Army at 24 years of age. When he enlisted he stood 5' 7" tall and weighed 153 pounds. He had a fair complexion with brown eyes and light brown hair. He was Taken on Strength on October 2 and then on December 7 he was attached to the 3rd Company of Royal Canadian Engineers with the rank of Sapper. He was immediately sent to the east coast to Halifax in preparation for overseas duties.

Overseas

Sapper McQuade was Struck off Strength of the Canadian Army in Canada on December 18, 1939 and the same day embarked for overseas from Halifax. The next day he is Taken on Strength with the Canadian Army Overseas. He disembarked in Gourock, Scotland on December 30th.                                                                His training in the United Kingdom continued into 1940 and on June 4 he forfeits 4 days of pay and again on October 3 he forfeits 8 days pay and both times are for being AWOL. Between December 18-25 he is granted privileged leave.                                                                                                                                                    For the first  eight months of 1941 ca and the training continued and in June he received privileged leave. Between June 27-July 9 Sapper McQuade was a patient at No. 5 Field Ambulance.

In the field

On August 4 he was assigned to Force 111, a mostly Canadian operation which was part of Operation Gauntlet. This an operation where the Canadians would send the 3rd Field Company of the Royal Canadian Engineers, a Company and a Platoon from the Edmonton Regiment, a machine gun detachment of the Saskatoon Light Infantry, a detachment of the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals, a detachment from the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, a detachment of Norwegian infantry and a detachment of British Army Commandos to Spitzbergen, Norway..                                                                                                                                            In 1931 coal mining became the industry of the island and up to 1940 Germany had not paid any attention to the coal industry at Spitzbergen.                                                                                                                          The Canadians were training and conducting daily route marches and practicing in landings and boat drills, the engineers focused on demolition, the use of tractors on the beaches and dock equipment and the construction of beach roadways and this was at the Continued Operations Training Centre in Inverary, Scotland.                    The objectives now were the destruction or removal of coalmining facilities, stocks of free coal, transit facilities between the mines and the wharves, harbour facilities, wireless stations, meteorological stations wherever they were and the removal of all Norwegians to the United Kingdom.                                                                    Force 111 left Scotland on August 19 and sailed to Iceland to refuel and then on August 21 left Iceland and approached Spitzbergen on the morning of August 25. Signallers went ashore at the wireless station at 4:30 am and by 8 am the other ships had anchored in Green Bay. An estimated 450,000 tons of coal in large piles were destroyed by fire and an estimated 275,000 gallons were destroyed. Essential mine equipment was either destroyed or removed and the power plants received special attention from the Engineers. The town of Barentsburg was also destroyed. The wireless station at the town and the overhead conveyor system to move the call was destroyed.   Force 111 departed Spitzbegen on September 2 and on their way back to Scotland the Navy captured three laden German colliers, a tug, two sealing vessels plus a whaler. The force was back on Scottish soil on September 5. On September 9 he was Taken on Service with 38 British Divisional Signals. During December he received privileged leave. 

Overseas                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              The training was ongoing as 1942 arrived and between October 8-22 he was attached to No. 2 Field Park Company and between November 4-December 3 he was attached to No. 5 Construction Company. He received privileged leave four times during the year.                                                                                                      From February 18-25, 1943 he was a patient at the Military Hospital in Drymen, Scotland on Loch Lomond. He then received leave from April 6-15.

In the Field

In the middle of June on the 14th he was Struck off Service of the Canadian Army in the UK and embarked from the UK. The following day he was Taken on Service with the Canadian Army in the Mediterranean Theatre and he disembarked onto the beaches of Sicily with the invading forces on July 9, 1944.                                          He survived the fighting in Sicily and was now on Italian soil in 1944 was now involved in the Battle for San Leonardo.   As the sky began to brighten on the morning of December 9 the enemy was still in San Leonardo and dominated the river below the town. During the night of December 8/9 Corporal McQuade and the 3rd Field Company of Engineers had begun to construct a diversion across the Moro River and around the blown bridge. While they were constructing the diversion they were under constant enemy fire from shellfire and snipers. By 6 am the armour was ready to move across the river.                                                                                          This is where Corporal received what would prove to be fatal wounds. He arrived at No. 4 Canadian Field Ambulance at 7:30 am in severe shock and wound to his chest, arm and face. Shortly after this he was moved to No. 5 Canadian Field Ambulance and he arrived there about 8:10 am and he immediately received 1/2 g of morphine. He had a large sucking chest wound and wounds to his left arm and thigh caused by an enemy high explosive shell. At 11:30 am, noon and1:30 pm he received 540 ccs of plasma. At 2 pm he received 1/2 g of morphine and at 2:30 pm he received 540 ccs of plasma. Then at 4:20 pm of December 9 there were so signs of a pulse and he stopped breathing. He was originally buried near the local cemetery at Fossachesia.

At some point while in Italy Corporal McQuaid had been awarded the Military Cross for bravery. This was awarded on January 26, 1944.He fought his way through Sicily (the invasion of Sicily, and the battles from July 7-August 17)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            On June 30, 1944 he is mother received the Memorial Cross. On October 28, 1949, Corporal McQuade was awarded the 1939-45 Star, the Italy Star, the Defence Medal, the War Medal and the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal. 

Norman is honoured and remembered on the Seaforth Cenotaph and on the Memorial Plaque of St James Roman Catholic Church. He is honoured and remembered on the Memorial Plaque of the Canadian Military Engineers Museum. He is also honoured and remembered on the Virtual Canadian War Memorial.                         
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