838505 Pte. Vernon Elvidge was born to Clifford and Beatrice in the small farming community of Durham, Grey County, Ontario, on May 19th, 1893. The eldest son of the couple's five sons, Vern was working as a clerk when he attested to the 147th Battalion on January 6th, 1916. He was assigned to "C" Company under the command of Captain Dobie.
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. 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. Vernon was taken on strength of the 4th C.M.R. on April 22, 1917, in a reinforcement draft after the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
Vernon served with the 4th C.M.R. through Hill 70, Passchendaele and it was during the Battle of Amiens that Vernon was wounded on August 26th, 1918. After the war Vernon married and moved to Windsor, Ontario.
Private Vernon Elvidge passed away on January 15th, 1953.
Credit and thanks go to George Auer for the above biography.