Private Alexander Caddle McNicol^[1]

1885 - 1916  (30 years)

• Name	Alexander Caddle McNicol
  Prefix	Private
  Born	16 Dec 1885	Glasgow, , Lanark, Scotland   [1, 2, 3]
  Gender	Male
  Honoured	McNichol Dr., Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
  	McNichol Drive named in his honour
  Interesting	misfortune, war, military
  Military	WW1
  Residence	1891	Barony, Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland   [2]
  Military	1914	WW1   [4]
  	WW1, Private
  Misfortune	21 Jun 1916	, England
  	died of wounds in WW1
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-66894
  Died	21 Jun 1916	London, England   [3]
  Buried	Kensal Green (All Soul's') Cemetery, London, England
  Person ID	I66894	Generations
  Last Modified	6 Apr 2024

  
  

  Father	Alexander Caddel McNicol,   b. 7 Sep 1855, Calton, Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland ,   d. 19 Feb 1917, , Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 61 years)
  Mother	Annie Kay,   b. 1855, Glasgow, , Lanark, Scotland ,   d. 23 Oct 1918, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 63 years)
  Family ID	F17454	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Alice S. Justice,   b. Abt 1885,   d. Yes, date unknown
  Married	19 Nov 1900	Glasgow, , Lanark, Scotland
  Children	1. Alexander McNicol,   b. 1910, , Scotland ,   d. 4 Apr 1917, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 7 years)   2. David McNicol,   b. 1912, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 4 Apr 1917, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 5 years)   3. Alice Thoms McNicol,   b. 2 Jul 1912, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 4 Apr 1917, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age 4 years)   4. Bessie McNichol,   b. 1916,   d. 4 Apr 1917  (Age 1 years)   5. Nellie McNicol,   b. Jun 1916, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada ,   d. 4 Apr 1917, Galt (Cambridge), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada  (Age ~ 0 years)
  Last Modified	7 Apr 2024
  Family ID	F52499	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Unimaginable grief' when two mothers lose four sons Ten local soldiers were killed 100 years ago, capturing a ruined French village on the Western Front. It was among the bloodiest days this community endured in the First World War and it happened Sept. 15, 1916, at the Somme battlefield. The telegrams reached home three weeks later. Two mothers suffered the most. Harriet Carthy learned that her son Percy was killed in action. That's after his brother Eric was killed in an earlier skirmish. Annie McNicol learned that her son James was killed in action. That's after his brother Alexander died of his wounds following an earlier skirmish. Percy and James climbed out of the trenches at 6: 24 a.m. They were in the first wave to attack the German front line, aiming for the ruins of Courcelette. James, 22, checked train cars before he enlisted. He was a cheerful man who played in the battalion band. "I knew there was something wrong," Annie said, absorbing the terrible news. She hadn't received a letter from her son in three weeks.... 'Unimaginable grief' when two mothers lose four sons. (2016). Therecord.com. Retrieved 15 September 2016, from https://www.therecord.com/news-story/6858427--unimaginable-grief-when-two-mothers-lose-four-sons/ ________________________ Alexander McNicol: Private Alexander Caddle McNicol was born in Glasgow, Scotland on December 16th, 1885. Prior to the First World War, Pvt. McNicol and his wife Alice lived in Guelph with their four children, where he worked as a tailor. According to his Attestation Papers, at the time of his enlistment, Pvt. McNicol was 29 years old, had blue eyes, black hair, and was 5 feet 6 inches tall. According to records, the McNicol family lived in Guelph, on Edinburgh Road before Pvt. McNicol went off to War; however, it seems as though after he was deployed, his wife Alice moved the children to live nearer her remaining family in Galt. During his service in Europe, Pvt. McNicol was attached to the 13th Battalion. Unfortunately, according to the CEF Commonwealth Grave Registry, Pvt. McNichol died on June 21, 1916 at St. Bartholemew's Hospital in London from wounds he sustained during fighting. He was buried in All Saints Cemetery in London. His death would not be the only tragedy for the McNicol family during this time. According to a newspaper clipping from the Guelph Mercury, the Galt home of Mrs. McNicol caught fire on April 5th, 1917. The fire completely destroyed the house, and killed all four of the McNicol children, leaving Mrs. McNicol to be the last surviving member of the family. McNicol, Alexander . (2016). Guelphpl.ca. Retrieved 15 September 2016, from https://www.guelphpl.ca/archives/famous_person.cfm?id=290 ____________________________ Four Children Lost in Blaze at Galt, Ont. - The Mother Went Visiting and Left Small Family Sleeping in Bed - Galt, Ont. April 4 - the four little children of Mrs. Alexander Caddie McNicholl were burned to death tonight in a fire which destroyed her house on Stanley Street. The children were Alexander, aged 6; Alice, aged 5; David, aged 2 and a half; and Bessie, an infant of about one year. The mother was out visiting, after leaving the children in bed and did not learn of the tragedy until an hour after it happened. A soldier of the 122nd Battalion, discovering the fire, tried to save the children but the roof fell in and he could do nothing. Three of the bodies have been recovered. Mrs. McNicholl declared that when she left the house all the fires were out. She and her sister-in-law, Mrs. John Brown, were overcome and were ordered to the hospital. Mrs. McNicholl's husband, Private A.C. McNicholl, was killed at the front last June. Two brothers-in-law were also killed at the front, another is a prisoner of war, and her father-in-law died a few months ago. Unspecified Newspaper

  
  

• Sources

  [S2403] News - Unidentified Newspaper Obituary, Four Children Lost in Blaze at Galt, Ont - Alexander Caddle McNichol - No date specified. [S1546] Census - Scotland - 1891, Reg No. 644/9, Reg Dist.Kelvin, Ed 90, Household 23, Lin 23, Roll: CSSCT1891_279, Glasgow Barony, Lanarkshire, Scotland. Alexr. McNicol 37 b. Glasgow Annie 36 Lizzie 11 Annie 9 b. Stirling, Stirlingshire Mary 7 b. Glasgow Isabella 9 mo. Alexr 5 [S122] Cemetery - ON, Waterloo, Cambridge - Mount View CC#4495 Internet Link . South: Alex C. McNicol/ wounded/ Battle of Ypes/ June 13, 1916/ died June 21, 1916/ Bugler J. McNicol/ killed in action/ Battle of Somme/ Sept. 15, 1916 [S2231] Military - Kitchener Public Library - Soldier Information Card Collection - World War One.

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - 16 Dec 1885 - Glasgow, , Lanark, Scotland Honoured - McNichol Drive named in his honour - - McNichol Dr., Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Residence - 1891 - Barony, Glasgow, Lanark, Scotland Married - 19 Nov 1900 - Glasgow, , Lanark, Scotland Misfortune - died of wounds in WW1 - 21 Jun 1916 - , England Died - 21 Jun 1916 - London, England Buried - - Kensal Green (All Soul's') Cemetery, London, England  = Link to Google Earth