Duncan Cenotaph
As part of our project to document the names on the Duncan Cenotaph in Charles Hoey Park, here is a page about Sergeant Harry Hardy, who died on 22 April 1915, aged 37, while serving on the Western Front with the 16th Battalion, Canadian Infantry. He has no known grave but is commemorated on the Menin Gate in Ypres, Belgium.
Harry Hardy was born on 15 July 1877 and was serving with the Manitoba Regiment (16th Battalion) at the time of his death. It was very common for soldiers killed on the Western Front to have no known grave. Many were killed by artillery shells, which often left little remaining.
Here is the local Cowichan Leader newspaper report of Sergeant Harry Hardy being missing in action:
“Sergt. Harry Hardy, 16th Battalion, missing, was at one time employed at the Cowichan County [Note: misprint. It should be “Country”] Club, Duncan. He is an old soldier, having spent nine of his 12 years service abroad with the Northamptons, with which regiment he served through the South African War.”
(Source: Cowichan Leader, 27 May 1915, from Cowichan Valley Museum & Archives collections)
Here are some websites with more information on Sergeant Harry Hardy:
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