Christian, William Devilla “Bill”

Regimental Number: 1251173; VR-3686
Rank: Gunner; naval rank unknown
Branch: 78th Depot Battery; Royal Canadian Navy

Bill was born in Avoca, Iowa on November 22, 1897. His family moved to Nampa in 1898. At 16, Bill moved to McLennan and worked on the ED&BC Railroad. He enlisted in the army in 1917, but was discharged just days after enlistment because of flat feet. Bill served in the navy, working on minesweepers off the east coast. In 1918 he married Winnifred Haughn in Nova Scotia and the couple returned to McLennan. Bill worked first as a fireman for the railway, then as an engineer. He also worked as a recruiting advisor and the leader of the Veteran’s Volunteer Reserve in McLennan during the Second World War. After the war, the Christians moved to Edmonton. They lived there until 1963, at which time they moved to Delta, BC. In May of 1978, they moved to Calgary and Bill died in September of that year.

Sources: Trails and Rails North, p. 150

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