Letters from the Great War - Earl Campbell's Story

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Earl Campbell (1895-1971) grew up in King Township and attended S.S. #23 Kinghorn School.

In 1916, Lorne Campbell, Earl’s cousin came to King on a recruiting assignment for the 127th Battalion, York Rangers of Aurora and signed up Earl on February 14, 1916. Earl was sent overseas in 1917 but returned to Canada in 1919 after suffering a wound and gas inhalation when his gas mask became entangled in barbed wire.

Between 1916 and 1919, Earl sent over 100 pieces of correspondence, including letters, postcards, and photographs to his family in King Township. In his writing, Earl refers to himself as "Yek", his childhood nickname. Through this correspondence, Earl captured the conditions of living in the trenches, the sights and sounds of constant bombings, and sadly news of friends and comrades that were killed or injured. Earl's letters also capture the events that were happening at home in King Township.

Original Letters - 1914/1915

Original Letters - 1916

Original Letters - 1917

Original Letters - 1918

Original Letters - 1919

Original Letters - no date

127th Battalion

The 127th (12th York Rangers) Battalion, CEF was a unit in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the unit began recruiting in late 1915 in York County. After sailing to England in August 1916, the battalion was designated the 2nd Battalion, Canadian Railway Troops on November 8, 1916.

As railway troops, the 127th Battalion specialized in building light railway lines close to the front, a Canadian specialty, for the rapid movement of troops and supplies from established railway heads. The battalion prided itself on its rapid bridge-building skills and an improvised turntable it crafted on several occasions.