McDONALD, Theodore St. Clair

DIVISIONAL UNIT:         3rd Canadian Infantry Division
                                             9th Infantry Brigade
                                             58th Battalion - Central Ontario
                                             Canadian Infantry Corps
SERVICE NO:                   654066
RESIDENCE:                    Wingham – Ontario 
DATE OF BIRTH:            January 19, 1898
                                             Wingham – Turnberry Township – County of Huron - Ontario
DATE OF DEATH:           June 15, 1917                      19 years     5 months
CEMETERY:                     Petit-Vimy British Cemetery – Vimy –
                                             Pas de Calais – France
                                                D     15
PARENTS:                         Mr. & Mrs. Thomas T. MacDonald – Wingham - Ontario
Occupation:                        High School Student            Religion:     Baptist
                                             Drug Clerk
Enlistment:                         Wingham – November 30, 1915 – 161st Huron Battalion
Enlistment Age:                 17 years     11 months

The 161st arrived overseas in England on November 11, 1916. On November 27th, Private MacDonald was Taken off Strength from the 161st and assigned to the 58th Battalion, went overseas and joined his unit on November 29, 1916.
The weather was warm with wind east to north-east at 10mph.
The 9th Brigade took over the Divisional command of the front upon completing the relief of the 7th Brigade. This took place at 12:40am
The Brigade was to be the right flank of the coming operation.
Enemy rifle fire was active during the early morning and patrols were out but no encounters with enemy.
Brigade artillery was active cutting enemy wire and the enemy artillery came to life during night shelling dummy trenches, Mericourt Road and Bois de la Chaudiere at intervals with a few gas shells about midnight.
The front line on the left especially received some light shelling.
The Brigade Trench Mortars fired 165 rounds onto enemy trenches near the railway and at the same time the enemy trench mortars were active.
The Brigade machine-guns were active during the night on the front line
Enemy snipers claimed the life of one man. From our research of the file of Private Macdonald, the 58th Battalion diaries and the 9th Brigade diaries we are assuming that the one man lost this day was Private MacDonald.
During the morning it was reported that 22 heavy explosions took place in Avion.
During the afternoon of the 15th there was another 4 very heavy explosions from Avion.