Yarmouth Black Soldiers of the No. 2 Construction Battalion of Canadian Expeditionary Force (1916-1920) Names: Service No. Pte. Freeman Berry 931406 Pte. Freeman Leslie Berry 931012 Pte. Gordon Berry 921216 Pte. John Brown 931213 Pte. Bowman Crawford 931214 Pte. Percy Fenton 931309 Pte. Luke Francis 931297 Pte. Clarence Johnson 931333 Pte. Pannell, Chester 931187 Pte. Aubrey Simmons 931296 Pte. Charles, N. M. Smith 931215 Pte. Arthur Stevens 931174 Pte. John Stevens 931310 Pte. Leslie H. Stevens 931217 Pte. Benjamin Wesley 931175 Captain Samuel Hood (Officer) Captain Samuel Clifford Hood was the only white member of the Battalion from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia All officers in the No. 2 Construction Battalion were white except for Reverend William Andrew White, the Chaplain of the Battalion.

The No. 2 Construction Battalion was created on July 5th, 1916. Black volunteers came from All over Canada, the United States, and the West Indies. 600 men were eventually accepted. They first began their training in Pictou, Nova Scotia and later in Truro, Nova Scotia. In March 1917, the Battalion sailed from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to England. The Battalion unit was based at Seaford, East Sussex, England, from April 18, 1917. Following ten days of quarantine, which was normal for arriving recruits, they were employed on work parties digging trenches for troops in training. They also maintained roads with the expanding base. The Battalion embarked England and disembarked in France on May 17, 1917, at Boulogne. They proceeded east to the area of Lajoux in the Jura mountains, the wooded area at the foothills of the Alps, joining No 5 District, Canadian Forestry Corps. The Battalion had responsibilities that included construction and maintenance of waterworks, maintenance of roads, and overall responsibility for the districts shipping and receiving. Wilfrid Jones Davidson (1898-1931) of the No. 2 Construction Battalion (Service No. 931158) also had ties to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, after World War I. Originally a carpenter, Wilfrid Davidson was discharged in February, 1919 and returned to his mother’s home at Halifax. After his marriage in 1920, he began theological studies, and served as Pastor of the Disney Chapel in Yarmouth for five years from 1923-1928. Other Reading on the “Black Battalion” No. 2 Construction Battalion: Black Cultural Centre of Nova Scotia – No. 2 Construction Battalion Canadian Encyclopedia – No. 2 Construction Battalion

Yarmouth Memorial No. 2 Construction Battalion

Rev. Wilfred Davidson