838925 Pte. Harry Floyd Ainsworth was born on May 23rd, 1887. Born in Toronto, Ontario, he moved to Meaford and was married to Lillian Winterton, working as a cabinet maker, when war broke out.
He enlisted in the 147th Battalion on March 6th, 1916 and went under his basic military training as a member of 'A' Company.
Sailing with the 147th Battalion in November of 1916, he became a member of the 8th Reserve Battalion prior to being taken on strength with the 4th C.M.R. on April 22nd, 1917. This was as a reinforcement draft to replace the casualties taken during the Battle of Arras.
Harry served with the 4th C.M.R. until he was wounded around 5th September 1917, suffering the effects of heavy gas shelling on their positions in the La Chaudiere area, near Arras. Many men succumbed to gas poisoning, with Harry being initially treated at No.30 Casualty Clearing Station on the 7th. He was then evacuated to No.9 General Hospital in Rouen, before being sent back to Cheltenham, England, for further treatment on the 19th. He was transferred to the Canadian Convalescence Hospital at Monks Horton, between Ashford and Folkstone, in mid-November.
Harry didn't return to the Front after that, and finding himself at Witley Camp in April 1918, it was during P.T. on 18th April 1918 that he injured himself. A subsequent x-ray showed a fractured left fibula. This hospitalised him for 11 weeks at Bramshott. The injury bothered him from them on.
Having survived the war, Harry was struck off strength on January 10th, 1919. He subsequently passed away on 27th November 1955, aged 68.
Biography details credit: George Auer, with additional details supplied by 4cmr.com