838868 Pte. Alexander Ferguson was born on February 12th, 1897, in Sydenham Township, Ontario. Alex was working as a farmer when he attested to the 147th Battalion on February 16th, 1916, just days after his 19th Birthday. Shortly thereafter he was assigned to "D" Company under the command of Captain Pollock.
Billeted locally over the winter the unit left for training at Camp Niagara in the spring of 1916. As the conditions in the Camp were wanting the unit moved to the new training facility of Camp Borden in late June. It was while in Borden that Alexander would commit some offence under military rules and regulations, being awarded a day confined to barracks and 2 days' pay.
In September the unit received their orders to proceed overseas, but due to an outbreak of diphtheria they were detained in Amherst, Nova Scotia, for over a month. The unit finally sailed for Great Britain, on November 14th 1916.
On January 1st, 1917, the 147th Battalion ceased to exist when it became the nucleus for the 8th Reserve Battalion, whose task it was to supply reinforcements to the 58th Battalion and the 4th C.M.R. Alex was taken on strength of the 4th C.M.R. on June 17th, 1917.
Alexander served with the 4th C.M.R. through Hill 70, Passchendaele and into the final hundred days, coming through it all without any visible wounds. It wasn't until after the armistice was signed that Alex would contract jaundice and be medically evacuated to England. Due to his illness Alexander would not sail home with the main body. Instead he sailed home on the Empress of Britain and be struck off strength of the 4th C.M.R. on April 1st, 1919.
Credit and thanks for this biography go to George Auer.