Browse "Communities & Sociology"

"There, one must wear skirts that go past the knees and they would always ask us to say "ma'am, yes ma'am" even if the girl wasn’t right!" See below for Mrs. Leury's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

"They wanted to give a Christmas dinner to service personnel. So that’s the sort of thing that, you know, it really means a lot." See below for Ms. Melton's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

"The excerpt in English is not available at this time. Please refer to the excerpt in French." See below for Mr. Asham's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

"It’s hard to forget. In dreams I keep on coming back. Some nights even now, I dream at night. I mean, it’s a long time ago that this war is over. But I still dream sometimes." See below for Mr. Vicaire's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

"I started to go down to Bay and Wellington. That’s where the recruiting station was. The first time the guy, the recruiting officer, just said, "No, sorry, we don’t take you people."" See below for Mr. Braithwaite's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Leonard Wong served with the Royal Canadian Signal Corps during the Second World War. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

"Boy, you learn all kinds of meals. I still have the cookbooks. I even remember in Korea I had to – the pages were coming apart. I had to take a slat of wood and took two nails and pound it, so it keep these pages together. But they learn all kinds of meals. I know the first thing you learn to cook is shortbread. It was fun" See below for Mr. Hamilton's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Lucien Simard was born in Saint-François, Quebec, in 1926. Both his family and community had strong connections to seafaring. After his 18th birthday, he started working as a sailor on a merchant ship. Soon after, Simard tried to enlist in the Royal Canadian Navy, but was rejected because he couldn’t speak English. He remained in the Merchant Navy for the length of the war and participated in the Battle of St Lawrence. Simard was one of 12,000 Canadians and Newfoundlanders who served in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War. Approximately 1,600 merchant sailors lost their lives due to enemy action. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

"In August 1942 Montgomery’s forward forces had brought Rommel’s army to a halt. RAF bombers, British submarines, had sunk 47 supply ships totaling 169,000 tons. All except two had been a direct result of decrypts from BP." See below for Mrs. Cooper's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Marguerite Marie “Marge” Plante left Alberta to join the Women’s Division of the Royal Canadian Air Force, serving as a timekeeper and typist during the Second World War. Read and listen she describes her enlistment, the death of her brother in Italy, interacting with prisoners of war, and the V-E Day celebrations.Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

In 2010, The Memory Project interviewed Margarita “Madge” Trull (née Janes), a veteran of the Second World War. The following recording (and transcript) is an excerpt from this interview. Marge was born to English parents on 24 July 1922 in Valpariso, Chile, but was educated in England. In 1943, at 21 years old, she and her sister enlisted in the Women’s Royal Naval Service at Portsmouth, England. That year, she met RCAF Flight Lieutenant John Cameron Trull at a dance. The two were engaged by Christmas. In February 1944, John’s plane engine stalled while on a mission over Belgium. With the help of the Resistance, he eventually returned to England, where he reunited with Madge. The couple married on 30 September 1944. Madge’s two brothers also served in the Royal Air Force and Merchant Navy, respectively. In her testimony, she discusses the secrecy involved in her work as an “Intelligence Writer.” She also describes the challenges of working with “Bombes,” electromechanical devices used to decode German messages written with Enigma ciphers. The WRENs were a critical force in eventually breaking Enigma and intercepting German communications. After the war, Madge and John Trull moved to Canada. Margarita “Madge” Trull died in Mississauga, Ontario, in March 2023 at 100 years of age.Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

"I felt the knees of the guy behind me knocking against my legs. So we were very, we laugh about it, but we were also very scared." Marshall Chow served with the Canadian Army during the Second World War. See below for Mr. Chow's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Monty Lee served in the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.