Samuel Cuthbert
Samuel Cuthbert was born 12 May 1884 in Glasgow, Scotland, the second child of eight and the oldest son of George and Isabella Cuthbert. He was married to Annie Cuthbert and had 4 children, all born in Scotland before the family emigrated to Canada in May 1911. After settling north of Toronto in the Newmarket area in time to be noted on the 1911 census, the family moved to 94 St Patrick Street in Lindsay ON and then the Oshawa area after the war.
He enlisted on 16 January 1916 with the 109th Battalion in Lindsay ON, and was transferred to the 124th Canadian Pioneers upon arriving in England in May 1917. Prior to emigrating to Canada, Samuel served for 4 years with the 3rd Lanarkshire Volunteer Rifle Corps, who were a group of veterans of previous conflicts from the Strathbungo area on the south side of Glasgow.
A carpenter by trade, Samuel would have fit in well with the work of the 124th, who were tasked with laying plank roads and repairing bridges for troop movements. In May 1917, the 124th were in the Ypres region, working on constructing a plank parallel road to the paved Zonnebeke Road.
From the 124th Battalion war diary:
"This particular place was under direct observation, and heavily shelled periodically during the day and night. Major JM Oxley was given charge of this work, the first party commenced work on the early morning of the 18th last. A large party of 8 officers and 440 other ranks under Major NB McLean was sent out in the morning of the 18th to prepare the North side of the road for planking. Party worked about an hour and a half when they were shelled off the road and suffered many casualties. The road at this point is under direct observation. Casualties: 4 other ranks killed, and 12 wounded, 1 died of wounds."
Samuel Cuthbert died of shelling wounds on 18 October 1917 at No 44 Casualty Clearing Station near Brandehoek, Belgium, and is buried in Nine Elms British Cemetery west of Poperinge, Belgium. He was 33 years old.
