Clarence Marvin Baird was born at Ormstown, Quebec, on 1 July 1911. He married Margaret Elizabeth McNeil in 1933 and was working as a bus driver before enlisting at Westmount, Quebec, on 29 July 1940. Baird served as a Private with the Canadian Forestry Corps. He went overseas in 1941 and served with forestry companies in Scotland and later in Northwest Europe. In July 1944 he joined No. 28 Company for service in France, and his wartime service subsequently included Belgium, Holland and Germany. He returned to Canada in June 1945 and was honourably discharged at Montreal South on 1 August 1945. His awards included the 1939-45 Star, France and Germany Star, Defence Medal, Canadian Volunteer Service Medal and Clasp, and War Medal 1939-45. After the war he returned to Ormstown, where he hoped eventually to own a farm. He died there on 2 February 2004 at the age of 92.
Conflict:
WW2
Regimental No.:
D110150
Cause of Death (in war):
Survived
Branch:
Army
Regiment:
Canadian Forestry Corps
Battalion:
No. 2 Company
Company:
Date of Birth :
Place of Birth:
Ormstown, Quebec
Date of Enlistment:
Age at Enlistment:
29 years
Date of Discharge:
Age at Discharge:
34 years 1 month
Date of Death:
Age at Death:
92 years 7 months
Country Born:
Canada
Trade or Calling:
Bus Driver
Next of Kin:
Margaret Elizabeth Baird (Wife), Ormstown, Quebec
Address at Enlistment:
Ormstown, Quebec
Religion:
United Church of Canada
Place of Enlistment:
Westmount, Quebec
Was a Prisoner of War:
Height:
5 ft 9.0 in / 175 cm
Weight:
132 lbs / 60 kg
Chest:
33.0 in / 84 cm
Expansion:
2.0 in / 5 cm
Marital Status:
Single
Prior Military Experience:
No
Saw Service in:
Europe
Place of Discharge:
Montreal South, Quebec
Discharge Type:
Regular/End of Service
Discharge Notes:
Honourably discharged 1 Aug 1945 at Montreal South under Routine Order 1029, para. 5, to return to civil life on demobilization. Intended residence: Ormstown, Quebec.
Battle Died/Wounded:
Length of Service:
1829 days in service
Buried at:
Links
Ranks
| Conflict |
Rank |
Regiment |
Branch |
Unit |
Company |
Date From |
Date To |
| WW2 |
Private |
Canadian Forestry Corps |
Army |
No. 2 Company |
|
|
|
| Initial rank and principal early unit; remained Private throughout service. |
| WW2 |
Private |
Canadian Forestry Corps |
Army |
No. 28 Company |
|
|
|
| Northwest Europe service; Baird states he remained in France/Belgium/Holland/Germany to 31 May 1945. |
| WW2 |
Private |
Canadian Forestry Corps |
Army |
Headquarters Company / No. 4 Company |
|
|
|
| Broad supported sequence; exact internal transfer date not forced. |
| WW2 |
Private |
Canadian Forestry Corps |
Army |
|
|
|
|
Awards
| Conflict |
Award |
Action |
Date of Award |
Date of Citation |
Source |
| WW2 |
War Service Badge — General Service Class |
|
|
|
Proceedings on discharge |
| WW2 |
1939-1945 Star |
|
|
|
Awards / service verification |
| WW2 |
France and Germany Star |
|
|
|
Awards / service verification |
| WW2 |
Defence Medal |
|
|
|
Awards / service verification |
| WW2 |
Canadian Volunteer Service Medal and Clasp |
|
|
|
Awards / discharge records |
| WW2 |
War Medal 1939-1945 |
|
|
|
Awards / service verification |
Service Chronology
1911-07-01 — Born.
1933-09-02 — Married Margaret Elizabeth McNeil/Baird.
1940-07-08 — Medical examination; found fit Category A.
1940-07-22 — Executed a wartime will before enlistment/service processing.
1940-07-29 — Attested/enlisted for active service; joined No. 2 Company, Canadian Forestry Corps as Private.
1941-02-16 — Official overseas-service period began; proceeded overseas with Canadian Forestry Corps.
1941-06-13 — Birth of a daughter recorded while Baird was serving overseas.
1942-11-06 — Reported sick with dyspepsia/abdominal symptoms; later radiological review noted an old retained .22-calibre bullet and pleural scarring from a prewar shooting accident.
1944-07-26 — Embarked from the United Kingdom for France with No. 28 Company, Canadian Forestry Corps.
1944-07-27 — Disembarked in France for Northwest Europe service with No. 28 Company CFC.
1945-01-01 — Admitted to No. 39 British General Hospital with gastro-enteritis.
1945-01-13 — Transferred to No. 121 British General Hospital for continued treatment of gastro-enteritis.
1945-02-03 — Discharged fit for duty after approximately 33-34 days' treatment for gastro-enteritis.
1945-06-18 — Overseas service terminated for War Service Gratuity purposes.
1945-06-21 — Taken on strength No. 4 District Depot for demobilization processing.
1945-07-14 — Release medical board initiated; no present disability requiring treatment identified.
1945-07-31 — Release medical board approved; no treatment required.
1945-08-01 — Honourably discharged to return to civil life on demobilization.
1945-09-11 — Wartime will dated 22 Jul 1940 was returned to Baird after discharge.
1946-02-25 — Wrote to National Defence asking which campaign ribbons he was entitled to wear.
1946-03-05 — National Defence advised that he was eligible for the 1939-45 Star, France and Germany Star, and Defence Medal ribbons.
2004-02-02 — Died at age 92.
Notes
Baird left school after Grade 8. His prewar work included a marble-cutting apprenticeship, farm work, and bus driving. The detailed occupational history states he worked for J. Cavanagh of Ormstown as a bus driver from about 1935/1936 to 1940 and also had several years of farming experience. At discharge he hoped to obtain temporary work at a textile factory in Ormstown and eventually purchase his own farm. Personnel selection described him as an outdoor man with a very good army record and considered farming his strongest postwar prospect.
[Previous notes - manual reconciliation required]
Born Ormstown
BIRTH 1 JUL 1911 • Jamestown, Quebec, Canada DEATH 2 FEB 2004
Atip Request confirmation number EA2026_0171040
Additional Service Notes
Enlisted at Westmount, Quebec, on 29 Jul 1940 and served as a Private with the Canadian Forestry Corps. He served first with No. 2 Company in Canada and Scotland, later with Headquarters/No. 4 Company, and from July 1944 with No. 28 Company in Northwest Europe. His overseas service included the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. Official War Service Gratuity records count overseas service from 16 Feb 1941 to 18 Jun 1945. He returned to Canada for demobilization and was honourably discharged at Montreal South on 1 Aug 1945.
[Previous notes - manual reconciliation required]
Additional Next of Kin Notes
Wife Margaret Elizabeth Baird (née McNeil) was next of kin at enlistment, Ormstown, Quebec; marriage date 2 Sep 1933. The 29 Jul 1940 family form lists three children: Wilfrid Kenneth (age 6), Ralph Floyd (age 4), and Ruth Ester (age 1). A 1945 personnel-selection note says Baird then had four children. The 2004 obituary names five children: Ken, Ralph, Ruth, Grace and Archie.
[Previous notes - manual reconciliation required]
Research Notes
Existing CWVMP religion 'Aboriginal' conflicts with explicit United Church evidence and should be replaced. Existing marital status 'Single' is incorrect; Baird married Margaret Elizabeth McNeil on 2 Sep 1933. The family form dated 29 Jul 1940 identifies three children: Wilfrid Kenneth (age 6), Ralph Floyd (age 4), and Ruth Ester (age 1). A 1945 personnel-selection follow-up says he then had four children; the obituary later names Ken, Ralph, Ruth, Grace and Archie. A service entry records the birth of a daughter on 13 Jun 1941, likely the fourth child, but the entry does not name her. Occupation evidence conflicts: p.29 says Labourer, while the Record of Service and occupational-history/personnel-selection records repeatedly identify Bus Driver; Bus Driver is therefore used as occupation at enlistment. Medical records document an old .22-calibre bullet retained near the left diaphragm from a prewar shooting accident, with healed pleural scarring/calcification but no active lung disease. He was hospitalized for gastro-enteritis from 1 Jan to 3 Feb 1945. The July 1945 release medical board found no disability requiring treatment. War Service Gratuity records calculate 1,830 total service days and 1,584 qualifying overseas days, with no non-qualifying service. Official records define the overseas-service period as 16 Feb 1941 to 18 Jun 1945; Baird's later first-person letter says he embarked for Canada on 15 Jun 1945. Both are retained without forcing them to represent the same administrative event.
