BUSH, PTE. WILLIAM Reg#27318
William Bush was initially identified as being William Jabez Bush by the Magnetawan Legion as they attempted to provide details related to names of servicemen provided by the Magnetawan Women’s Institute in their book ‘Looking Back’.
This seemed to fit since William Jabez Bush, like the William Bush listed by the Women’s institute was killed in action during the war. William Jabez Bush shown at right had no known connection with the Magnetewan area.
More recent research suggests that William Bush was actually William ‘Uncle Peck’ Bush brother of the previously mentioned Henry and James Bush and son of Charles and Eunice (Cronkite) Bush. William was born December 26, 1886 in Belleville. At the time of the 1891 census, he lived with his parents and siblings in the Chaffey, Sinclair and Stevenson Census Sub-District of Muskoka.
William enlisted on September 18, 1914. In his Attestation papers, William identified that he was from Wanipitae and that he was a cook.
When asked regarding previous military experience he identified that he had been in the Sudbury 99th for 1 month.
William’s records are extremely brief.
William was in the 15th Battalion of the 48th Highlanders of the Canadian Infantry.
William died of wound received between April 22-24, 1915.
On the 48th Highlanders website, it is identified that:
“The 15th Battalion (48th Highlanders of Canada) went overseas with the first Canadian contingent in October 1914 equipped in uniforms paid for by the Regiment. The 48th recruited three battalions, the 15th and two reinforcement battalions, 92nd and 134th. Facing the first gas attack of the war at the Second Battle of Ypres on 24 April 1915, the 48th were ordered to stand to the end. They did, losing 664 Highlanders, killed, wounded or prisoners of war.”
The 15th Battalion was engaged in what is know as the Battle of St. Julien from April 24 to May 4, 1915. It is at St. Julien that Canada suffered those heavy losses on April 24.
