10661088 Pte. George Francis Grant was born on June 29th, 1897, Bruce County, Ontrario, to Mr. and Mrs. George Grant. George was the youngest child of the couple's five children when the family moved to the farming community of Oxenden, Kepple Township in Grey County, Ontario.

Nineteen year old George was still working the family farm when he attested into the 248th Battalion, in Owen Sound, on February 15th, 1917. Billeted locally over the remainder of the winter George would have been put up in one of the hotels in Owen Sound. Sailing with the unit in May of that year, the 248th Battalion was absorbed into the 8th Reserve Battalion upon its arrival in England.

George was taken on strength of the 4th C.M.R. in the field on November 9th, 1917, in a reinforcement draft after the Battle of Passchendaele. Serving with the unit through the winter, George's first and only full scale offensive operation was the Battle of Amiens, the opening battle of the Canadian Corps final 100 days of the war.

Common practise of units going into battle was to hold back ten percent of their men in reserve so that if the unit was decimated they would have experienced soldiers to rebuild the unit. George may have been held back for the opening day of the Battle of Arras or he may have already been selected for his next assignment. Whatever transpired on August 27th, while the unit was engaged in the battle, George was taken out of the line and sent on a Lewis Gun course. As a consequence he did not return to the unit until after the armistice was signed.

1066088 Private George Francis Grant sailed home on the Carmania and was struck off strength from the 4th C.M.R. on March 19th, 1919. Returning to Canada his last known residence was the town of Frankford.

---

Credit and many thanks go George Auer for the above biography.