838078 Pte Stanley Hall Gardhouse was born in Owen Sound on December 30th, 1894, to William and Henrietta Gardhouse, one of four children born to the couple. Stanley was the only one of their three sons to attest to the Canadian Expeditionary Force, doing so when he enlisted in the 147th (Grey) Battalion in OIwen Sound on December 30th, 1915.
Assigned to "A" Company, under the command of Captain Corrie, Stanley obtained the rank of Lance Corporal prior to leaving Owen Sound.
As the unit was billeted locally over the winter, Stanley probably lived at home until the unit left for training at Camp Niagara in the spring of 1916. With the conditions in the Camp wanting, the unit moved to the new training facility of Camp Borden in late June. Whilst in Camp Borden Stanley reverted to the rank of Private.
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. Finally the unit sailed for Great Britain, with the battalion 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. Francis was taken on strength of the 4th C.M.R. on March 7th, 1917, a month before the assault on Vimy Ridge. Assigned to the 3rd Engineers for the work up to the attack, Stanley rejoined his unit on April 12th.
In June Stanley was admitted to the hospital for various trench related medical conditions. Evacuated to England Stanley didn't return to the regiment until April of 1918, from when he served with them until the end of the war.
Private Stanley Hall Gardhouse was struck off strength of the 4th C.M.R. on March 19th, 1919. Returning to Owen Sound Stanley subsequently enlisted in the Second World War and served with the 48th Highlanders of Canada. He passed away in 1989 and lies at rest in Owen Sound-s Greenwood Cemetery.
Thanks and credit go to George Auer for the above biography.