b'The Prince Albert Infantry In April 1863 the Reach/Prince Albert Volunteer Infantry Company wasformed at a meeting held at McClues Hotel, Manchester.Sign for tenders. and shed built for volunteers to practice military drills.Canadians have an inborn desire to come to the defenseAlongwithotherlocalmilitiagroups,thePrinceNiagara peninsula. of freedom and democracy. They have sprung up to de- Albert Company was alerted and dispatched to Oshawa.At 11:00 in the evening of June 3, the Prince Albert fend the rights and freedoms of people and to fight againstCaptainT.C.FormanreportedbacktotheOntarioCompany was sent to the Great Western railway station tyrannyallaroundtheworld:Afghanistan,Bosnia,Observer, after leaving Prince Albert, we made goodto receive the wounded and dead from the battlefield and Rwanda, Vietnam, Korea, Europe and the Far East. time to Raglan where we stopped a few minutes and thenlater to guard the captured Fenian prisoners at Torontos But,manyforgetthatourownbordershavecomeproceeded to Oshawa. We repaired to our billets and par- Don Jail. under attack several times in our history and, here again,took of excellent dinners. We were treated with kindnessMeanwhile in Prince Albert a committee was organ-local volunteers have quickly responded to those threats. by the people of Oshawa. ized to look after the wants and needs of the families of This occurred during the 1812 War when the US triedIn Oshawa the Rifle Companies from Oshawa, Whitby,our volunteers who have gone to the front. They will to rid North America of British interests. It occurred againBrooklin and Columbus joined them, and infantry com- use every means in their power to mitigate the loss sus-in1866whenthousandsofAmericans,ledbyangrypanies from Whitby and Uxbridge.tained by the families of our noble volunteers who have Irishmen and unemployed soldiers from the Civil War de- Thefollowingday,theyboardedtrainstoToronto.so manfully clutched their weapons and gone forward in cided yet again to rid North America of British influence. The Uxbridge and Prince Albert Companies remained in The Irish Republican Brotherhood began in Ireland inToronto while the others went on to the battlefront in thePlease turn to page 401858 with the purpose of separating Ireland from Britain. The movement quickly grew in the British colonies and became known as the Fenians, named after legendary ancient Irish warriors. They gained a huge following inMichelle Stephens and John Stephensthe United States.owners of Port Perry Salvage, remember WiththeoutbreakoftheCivilWarintheUnitedall veterans and especially highly decoratedStates in 1861, there was an immediate concern that the US might expand the war and take control of the British*RODERICK J. PURCELL ,territories in Canada. With memories of past conflicts her great uncle. such as the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, a wave of patriotism spread across the CanadianRoderick enlisted at the young age of 16 in 1915 provinces.John A.Macdonaldwhowastheattorneyand served through many battles, including the general of Canada West, created a Ministry of MilitiaBattle of the Somme until his discharge in 1919.Affairs. As early as 1857, a Volunteer militia was establishedRoderick always remembered his in Prince Albert. This was the 5th Battalion of OntarioCompany Commanders instructions, CountyandwasundertheleadershipofLieutenant- Never ask your men to do anything Colonel P.A. Hurd.you wouldnt do yourselfIn 1863, as Volunteer enthusiasm rose to new heights,and he lived by those words throughout thecountymilitiawasreorganizedagainandthehis years in the war.Volunteer Militia Company of Infantry of Prince Albert was established with Captain T.C. Forman, Lieutenant * Distinguished Conduct Medal, British War Medal, John Billings and Ensign Richard Herbert Tomlinson.Victory Medal, 1914-1915 StarAt the end of the American Civil War, many unem-ployedformersoldierslookingforacausejoinedthe Fenians in the U.S. In March 1866, news spread of a pend- Port Perry Salvage Inc.ing attack on Canada. On May 30 a large Fenian force& DEMOLITIONgatheredatBuffaloinpreparationforsuchanattack.132 Reach Industrial Park Rd., Port PerryThey crossed the border, capturing Fort Erie on June 1 and advanced to Ridgeway.Yard 905-985-61211-877-587-4557Major T.C. Forman38 FO FOFOCUCSUS S NEOPVTEEMMBBEERR2200116939FOCCUUSS NSOEVPETMEMBEBRER 2 0210916'