WW2 memorials - discrepancies
The Beach Drive War Memorial and the Honour Roll document at Municipal Hall do not contain exactly the same lists: William Dyson and William Phillips are missing from the Honour Roll., which also mistakenly substitutes (and misspells) HLG Meyer for his brother HE Mayer.
An earlier OBA PDF list here transcribes the Honour Roll without noting the discrepancies with the War Memorial.
Not yet identified/confirmed: RA Wilson.
Names in the early list published in the Colonist (5 July 1946) which are not on the Oak Bay Cenotaph:
- RB Bush,
- name following JH Doe (may be legible in another edition)
- RA Wilson.
In addition, a number of names are mentioned in early municipal drafts of the list but not included in either of the final memorials:
- Devereux Walton DeBretigny.
- Ernest Franklin Elford
- wife listed on Elford St & Comosun St, mother on Elford St in service record
- sister on Thompson
- attended Central and Vic High schools
- Peter Hindley (Navy, possibly at OB schools)
- one Jones of HMCS Victoria or O Hara
- Bernard Arthur Lewis
- Ian Morton
- Chris Norman (Navy, possibly at OB schools)
- Stephen Rose (see below)
- one Taggart or McTaggart
- Sub Lt James Wilson, 2517 Margate
- RA Wilson "on Valleyfield"
- Roderick Arnold, chief stoker, 21498 RCN confirmed from naval authorities in municipal corresp
- Richard Alexander Wilson KIA 10 December 1943 confirmed by Army authorities, pencil annotation "NO")
Why do several sources (probably quoting each other) describe the WW2 contents of the Oak Bay War Memorial as variations of 97 names, 96 men and one woman, etc? On the Beach Drive war memorial (aka cenotaph) there are 96 names (4 panels with 24 names each), of which 4 are women's: Pamela Bennett, Patricia Cooney, Violet Field, and Nora Johnson. On the Roll of Honour document at Municipal Hall there are 95 names, of which the same 4 are women's. The name of Ronald G. Birch (see below) is in the list printed in the programme for the memorial's unveiling ceremony on 11 November 1948, bringing that list only to the oft-quoted 97 names - but it does not appear on the Beach Drive memorial or the Honour Roll in Municipal Hall.