This 1916 Christmas card bringing greetings from Lieutenant Colonel Samuel Sharpe and the officers of the 116th Battalion appears to have been sent by Lieutenant Morley Jacobi.
The photo was shot when the Battalion was located at either Camp Bramshott or Camp Witley. The 116th Battalion arrived in the United Kingdom on 31 July, 1916 and moved to Bramshott within a few days. They stayed at Bramshott until November when they moved to Witley. The Battalion underwent training at both camps to prepare them for battle on the Western Front. In February 1917, Lieutenant Colonel Sharpe led the 116th Battalion as it landed in France and headed to the trenches of France.
The following were pre-war members of the 34th Ontario Regiment: LCol S. S. Sharpe, Major H. P. Cooke, Captain A. F. Hind, Major G.W.P. Every, Major R. B. Smith, Captain C.G. Cowan, Captain A.C. MacFarlane, Captain J. Moore.
| Back row (left to right): | ||
| Lt Russell C. Henry | Oshawa, ON | |
| Lt Morley R. Jacobi | Oshawa, ON | |
| Lt Alexander W. Baird | Toronto, ON | Awarded Military Cross and Bar KIA 8 Aug 1918 |
| Lt Franklin W. Ott | Brantford, ON | Awarded Military Cross KIA 17 Sept 1918 |
| Lt Roswell I. Blain | Brantford, ON | |
| Lt Wallace S. Duncan | Port Credit, ON | Awarded Military Cross |
| Lt John A. Proctor | Beaverton, ON | Accidental death 31 March 1919 |
| Lt Wilfred J. Preston | Toronto, ON | Awarded Military Cross and Bar Died as a PoW, 5 November, 1918 |
| Lt Maurice Crabtree | Toronto, ON | Awarded Military Cross |
| Lt Cyril L.S. Newton | Toronto, ON | |
| Third Row: | ||
| Lt Harry H. Hyland | Oshawa, ON | Assistant Adjutant |
| Lt John J. Doble | Sunderland, ON | KIA 11 April 1917 |
| Captain Walter E. Shier | Uxbridge, ON | “B” Company Second-in-Command |
| Major Frederick H. Moody | Toronto, ON | “B” Company Commander |
| Major Henry P. Cooke | Uxbridge, ON | “A” Company Commander |
| Captain Alfred F. Hind | Oshawa, ON | “D” Company Commander |
| Major George W.P. Every | Whitby, ON | “C” Company Commander |
| Captain Arthur W. Pratt | Oshawa, ON | “D” Company Second-in-Command |
| Captain Harold V. Gould | Uxbridge, ON | Awarded Military Cross “A” Company Second-in-Command |
| Captain Henry L. Major | Whitevale, ON | “C” Company Second-in-Command Died of wounds 15 June 1917 |
| Captain George E. Gilfillan | Uxbridge, ON | Dental surgeon |
| Second Row: | ||
| Lt Thomas W. Hutchinson | Died of wounds 25 July 1917 | |
| Lt Geoffrey E. Walls | Sheffield, UK | |
| Captain James Moore | Brooklin, ON | Medical Officer |
| Captain A.W. McConnell | Toronto, ON | Adjutant |
| Major Robert B. Smith | Columbus, ON | Battalion Second-in-Command |
| LCol Samuel S. Sharpe | Uxbridge, ON | Commanding Officer Distinguished Service Order Died 25 May 1918 |
| Captain Carson A.V. McCormack | Toronto, ON | Junior Major |
| Captain Reverend John Garbutt | Oshawa, ON | Chaplain |
| Captain Archibald C. MacFarlane | Cannington, ON | Paymaster |
| Captain Norman E. Fairhead | Uxbridge, ON | Quartermaster |
| Captain Charles G. Cowan | Cannington, ON | |
| Front Row: | ||
| Lt Charles S. Lennox | Toronto, ON | Died of wounds 24 July 1917 |
| Lt Joseph H. Hughes | Toronto, ON | Awarded Military Cross |
| Lt Kenneth L. Wallace | Cannington, ON |
Rod Henderson
Rod Henderson is the Regimental Historian of the Ontario Regiment. He served as a Sergeant in the Regiment and is the author of “Fidelis Et Paratus: The History of The Ontario Regiment RCAC”.