Name: William Douglas Adams Rank: Private Service No.: 3530361 Unit: 2nd Battalion, Manchester Regiment, British Royal Army British Expeditionary Force (BEF) Date of Birth: July 8, 1918 Place of Birth: Halifax, Nova Scotia Date of Enlistment: August 8, 1938 Place of Enlistment: Ashton-under-Lyne, England Address at Enlistment: Agricola Street, Halifax, NS Next of Kin: Frank Adams, Halifax, NS (Brother) Occupation: Farm labourer Date of Death: Between May 10 and May 19, 1940 Age at death: 22 Cemetery: Dunkirk Town Cemetery, Coudekerque-Branche, France Grave: Plot 2, Row 4, Grave 44 Commemorated on Page 10 of the Second World War Book of Remembrance Displayed in the Memorial Chamber of the Peace Tower in Ottawa on January 12, 13 and 14 William (Bill) Douglas Adams was the son of James Rupert Adams (1864-1937) and Margaret Jane (Lindloff) Adams (1868-1929). He had two brothers, Francis (Frank) and John, and a sister Cecilia (who died in infancy of cholera; at 11 months). “The trio spent their childhood years in urban Halifax, where the family resided on Clifton, Bishop, and Grafton Streets at various times. [After Bill’s parents’ deaths, his older brothers were old enough to support themselves, but Bill was only 14]. Several secondary sources state that Bill was placed in the care of St. Patrick’s Boys’ Home, Halifax […] . As no official documents exist confirming Bill’s admission to the Boys’ Home, it is unclear how long he remained there. It was common practice for St. Patrick’s to arrange for its older boys to work as farm labourers in various Nova Scotian communities. This may explain how Bill made his way to the Antigonish area around 1935. He first resided with a Roderick MacPherson, address unknown, before relocating to the home of Arthur Dexter, East Main St. For several generations, the Dexter family operated a small farm and orchard close to the railway station.” Based on a school hockey photo, Bill attended high school at Morrison in Antigonish. With considerable unemployment in Nova Scotia, Bill became one of the ‘Manchester 100’. Lieutenant-Colonel R. B. Willis, DSO, a veteran of the South African War and former officer with the Manchester Regiment of England, was serving with the Halifax detachment of the Royal Canadian Regiment, and he was actively recruiting for the Regiment in Halifax. Approximately 85 other Nova Scotians enlisted with the Manchesters. William departed Halifax in July 1938 for the UK, and enlisted on August 8, 1938, at the Ladysmith Barracks Recruit Depot in Ashton-under-Lyne, historically in Lancashire, and a market town in Tameside, now part of Greater Manchester in England. “Bill completed six months’ basic training at the Ladysmith Barracks Recruit Depot […]. Local families took the young Canadians under their wing and frequently provided them with accommodations during their leaves. Upon completing his training, Bill reported to Aldershot, England, where he was assigned to the Manchester Regiment’s 2nd Battalion. Two years prior to Bill’s enlistment, British military authorities had selected the 2nd Battalion for conversion to a fully mechanized machine gun unit. Following a one-year period of intense training, the transformation was completed, and the unit entered quarters in Tournai, Barracks, Marlborough Lines, Aldershot. Two days after the September 1, 1939, German invasion of Poland, Great Britain formally declared war on Germany, a decision that resulted in mobilization of the country’s military forces. The Manchester Regiment’s 2nd Battalion was attached to British I Corps’ 2nd Infantry Division and immediately prepared to depart for the continent with the British Expeditionary Force. On September 23, 1939, 2nd Battalion’s personnel landed at Cherbourg, France. Over subsequent days, its soldiers and their 2nd Division comrades made their way northward to the Franco-Belgian border, where they established camps between Orchies, France, and Saint-Amand, Belgium. Personnel remained in the sector throughout the winter of 1939-40, improving fortifications and communication facilities despite exceptionally cold weather.” William’s exact date of death is unknown, but the Commonwealth War Grave Commission indicates he died sometime between May 10 and May 19, 1940. The chaos of the fighting after Germany invaded Belgium, France, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands on May 10, 1940, make the determination of the date impossible. He was reported missing after the Battle of Flanders in the early days of the war prior to the Battle of Dunkirk. He was interred May 29, 1940.

Halifax Herald (June 1940)