From Garage Sale to Peel Archives - First World War Photo Returns to Peel

The photograph was donated to the Region of Peel Archives and has been scanned and added to our database.

Earlier this year the Region of Peel Archives received an e-mail from a woman in Leamington, Ontario anxious to find a good home for an old photograph she uncovered at a garage sale.

After taking apart a framed print she purchased from the yard sale, the woman discovered an old photograph of men in military uniform. Several names were written on the front of the photograph, and using the Internet, she was able to find the attestation papers of one of the men; Frederick John Hamilton of Port Credit, Ontario.

Further sleuthing by the Mississauga Library and the Region of Peel Archives identified many of the remaining individuals. The group was part of the 126th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force, and was comprised exclusively of men from Peel County. The battalion arrived in England in 1916 and was broken up to serve as reinforcements for various units in France.

“The First World War was Canada’s coming of age experience. The contributions of the people of Peel were significant and deserve to be remembered,” says Diane Allengame-Kuster, Senior Archivist, Peel Heritage Complex, “We are very grateful that the donor took the time to identify it and pass it along to us. Through contributions such as this our collection continues to grow and serve the community.”

For information on uncovering the service record of Canadians in the war, visit collectionscanada.ca/archivianet and access the “Soldiers of the First World War” database. Information on Peel residents who served in the First and Second World Wars may be uncovered at the Region of Peel Archives, along with war-related letters, diaries, posters and photographs.

If you have a reference question about the Archives collection, please send us an e-mail.

For those who are not able to come to the Archives in person, the Staff can undertake limited research on a fee for service basis. The charge for this service is $25.00 per hour (or part thereof), with a 4 hour maximum per request. Details