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Wartime Heritage
ASSOCIATION
Remembering World War II
Yarmouth Connections
Otis Keith Nickerson
Rank:
Leading Aircraftman
Service No:
R/104088
Regiment/Service:
Royal Canadian Air Force
Date of Birth:
June 2, 1922
Place of Birth:
Yarmouth, NS
Date of Enlistment:
June 18, 1941
Place of Enlistment:
RCAF Recruiting Station Halifax, NS
Address At Enlistment:
Yarmouth, NS
Age at Enlistment:
19
Height: 5 feet, 9 inches
Weight: 126 lbs.
Complexion: Fair
Eyes:
Brown
Hair: Dark Brown
Trade:
Student
Marital Status:
Single
Religion:
United Church
Next of Kin:
Keith Robert Nickerson [Father]
Yarmouth, NS
Otis Keith Nickerson was the son of Keith Robert and Blanche
Annie [Surette] Nickerson, of Yarmouth. In 1922 the family lived on
Baker Street, Yarmouth. His father was a barber. His brother
Malcolm Horace Nickerson (1918-2005) enlisted with the Canadian
Army at Halifax on September 10, 1942 and was discharged at
Halifax March 14, 1946.
Otis attended Yarmouth Center School between 1927 and 1936
and the Yarmouth Academy between 1938 and 1939. He worked as a
clerk in the Men’s Department of the Yarmouth Royal Store, part
time on Saturdays and school vacations between 1938 and 1941. At
the time of his enlistment with the RCAF he was attending the
Yarmouth Academy taking Grade 12 courses. Otis was a Cadet for
the three years prior to his enlistment.
Otis enjoyed bowling, baseball, hunting, swimming, and
sailing. On enlistment he was, in the opinion of the interviewing
officer, “ … a quiet mannered, mentally alert young man”. A
reference letter provided by H Wetmore, a teacher at the Yarmouth
Academy, stated, “He is of a rather quiet disposition, but I always
found him dependable, industrious, and a good student …”
Otis indicated that following his wartime service he would be
interested in continuing in the RCAF or in civil aviation.
He completed training between October 10, 1941 and December 5, 1941 with No 6 Initial Training School, Course 38, at Toronto
and at Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS), Oshawa, Ontario between December 8, 1941 and February 13, 1942.
While training at No. 16 Service Flying Training School, RCAF Hagersville, Ontario, he was flying solo as a student pilot in an
Anson aircraft that crashed on April 13, 1942. Otis Keith Nickerson was killed. His body was returned to Yarmouth for burial.
Date of Death:
April 13, 1942
Age at Death:
19
Cemetery:
Yarmouth Mountain Cemetery (Nova Scotia, Canada)
Grave Reference:
T-10.
The 88th name on the WWII list of the Yarmouth War Memorial
Commemorated on page 102 of the Second World War Book of Remembrance
Displayed in the Memorial Chamber of the Peace Tower in Ottawa on March 4
Sources and Information:
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Veterans Affairs Canada
Otis Keith Nickerson
photo: Wartime Heritage 2016