Regimental Number: 16430
Rank: Private
Branch: 7th Battalion; Canadian Machine Gun Corps
Orton was born in Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan on November 30, 1889. He enlisted in the Canadian Army at Valcartier in September of 1914. In September of 1916, Orton was buried in a German dugout. He suffered from shell shock as a result, experiencing nervousness, fatigue, insomnia, stiffness in his back, tremors in his hands and tongue, knee jerks, a rapid pulse, and a weak memory. As of October of 1918, Orton was still suffering from shell shock. He was at a base for a while shortly after having been buried, then sent back to the front lines. After two years, Orton was finally sent to England for convalescence. He reported that the shelling was unbearable for him during that time. Orton was discharged on November 26, 1918 because of his shell shock. Around March of 1918, Orton married a woman named Ellen from London. In 1919, Orton filed on a homestead at NW 16-70-8-W6, though his present address card from the 1920s states his mother’s address in Vancouver as his current address. Orton died on May 21, 1965 in the Shaughnessy Hospital in Vancouver.