Rank
Pte
Service No.
467541
Unit
63rd Battalion, 7th Battalion
Died
26 July, 1916
Age 32
Age 32
Buried
Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery, Belgium - VII. D. 7.
Additional Info
Norman Ernest Menzies was born 27 July 1884 in Lindsay ON to Robert and Margaret (Mills) Menzies, and was the second oldest of 4 boys. His brother Burton, who also went by Donald, is listed as his next of kin. It appears that most of Norman’s brothers, and his father, ended up in Detroit in the years between the two world wars, working in the auto industry.
Originally Norman enlisted with the 63rd Battalion in Edmonton, and was then transferred to the 7th Battalion in the field on 14 July 1916. Just 12 days later on 26 July 1916, Norman would die of wounds suffered in combat.
The 7th Battlion war diary only has one word listed for the day that Norman died of his wounds: “quiet”. However, the day before notes that the Germans detonated a large mine in the “Bluff Sector” (St Eloi, southeast of Ypres) which caused significant back and forth fighting before the crater created by the mine was consolidated and occupied by No 1 Company, 7th Battalion, and then relieved by the 4th Battalion. Norman primarily died of a shrapnel wound to his face, which could have been received during this action.
Norman Ernest Menzies is buried at Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery, Belgium. He was 32 years old.
Attestation and other Documents (pdf, 40 pages - 16MB)
