109561 Sgt. John William Randall was born in Evie, near Kirkwall, Orkney, Scotland, on September 10th, 1893.
In 1909, he immigrated to Toronto to work for his uncle in clothing manufacturing. He enlisted as a sergeant with the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles in Toronto on November 27th, 1914.
Within a month of arriving in Europe, in October, 1915, John saw action in the crucial area around Ypres, Belgium. He suffered a slight wound to his thigh and leg in February, 1916, and returned to his unit a month later.
On June 2nd, 1916, at the Battle of Mount Sorrel, John was wounded and taken prisoner by the Germans. A bullet through his shoulder lacerated tendons that crippled his right arm for life. After six months as a POW in Stuttgart, he was transferred to Chateau D'Oex, Switzerland. From there he was repatriated to hospital in London in September, 1917, and honourably discharged in Toronto in April 1918. John was awarded the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal, and Victory Medal.
After the war, John joined the T. Eaton Company, and served for many years as a manager of the men's clothing department in Montreal. He married Elizabeth Gwendoline Keith, of Toronto, in 1935.
John William Randall passed away in Montreal on March 23rd, 1959. He lies at rest at Mount Royal Cemetery, Montreal.
Credit and thanks to John's son, Keith Randall, for the biography and image.