Gabriel Emille Carriere was born in Cornwall, Ontario, on 19 September 1924. He first enlisted in the Canadian Army in March 1941 and served as a gunner in anti-aircraft artillery, but a birth certificate established that he was underage and he was discharged in December 1941. He re-enlisted at Ottawa on 16 October 1942, trained for infantry service, went overseas in November 1943 and eventually served as a private with the Royal Regiment of Canada. Before his later enlistment he had worked in Cornwall and at a munitions plant in Valleyfield, Quebec. Carriere was killed in action in France on 25 July 1944, aged 19. He was initially buried at Colombelles and was later reinterred at the Canadian military cemetery at Bretteville-sur-Laize, France.
Conflict:
WW2
Regimental No.:
D/118259
Cause of Death (in war):
Killed in Action
Branch:
Army
Regiment:
Royal Regiment of Canada, R.C.I.C.
Battalion:
Company:
Date of Birth :
Place of Birth:
Cornwall, Ontario
Date of Enlistment:
Age at Enlistment:
18 years
Date of Discharge:
Age at Discharge:
19 years 10 months
Date of Death:
Age at Death:
19 years 10 months
Country Born:
Canada
Trade or Calling:
Labourer
Next of Kin:
Mother: Ozelina Carriere, 25 Cartier Avenue, Cornwall, Ontario
Address at Enlistment:
25 Cartier Avenue, Cornwall, Ontario
Religion:
Roman Catholic
Place of Enlistment:
Ottawa, Ontario
Was a Prisoner of War:
No
Height:
5 ft 8.5 in / 174 cm
Weight:
146 lbs / 66 kg
Chest:
38.0 in / 97 cm
Expansion:
2.5 in / 6 cm
Marital Status:
Not Specified
Prior Military Experience:
Yes
Saw Service in:
Europe
Place of Discharge:
France
Discharge Type:
Regular/End of Service
Discharge Notes:
Killed in action in France on 25 July 1944 while serving as a Private with the Royal Regiment of Canada.
Battle Died/Wounded:
Length of Service:
648 days in service
Buried at:
Bretteville-sur-Laize Canadian Military Cemetery, Bretteville-sur-Laize, France
Links
Ranks
| Conflict |
Rank |
Regiment |
Branch |
Unit |
Company |
Date From |
Date To |
| WW2 |
Private |
Royal Regiment of Canada, R.C.I.C. |
Army |
|
|
|
|
| Final operational rank/unit. Exact date joined Royal Regiment is not established by the supplied file and is intentionally left blank. |
| WW2 |
Private |
Canadian Army |
Army |
Q.O.R.; D. & H. Rifles; training/infantry units |
|
|
|
| Principal re-enlistment; D. & H. Rifles supported by Aug 1943 personnel record and 8 Nov 1943 will. |
| WW2 |
Gunner |
Royal Canadian Artillery |
Army |
2nd Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment / 1st Heavy A.A. Battery |
|
|
|
| First, underage enlistment episode. |
Awards
| Conflict |
Award |
Action |
Date of Award |
Date of Citation |
Source |
| WW2 |
1939–45 Star |
|
|
|
|
| WW2 |
France & Germany Star |
|
|
|
|
| WW2 |
War Medal 1939–1945 |
|
|
|
|
| WW2 |
Canadian Volunteer Service Medal and Clasp |
|
|
|
|
Service Chronology
1924-09-19 — Born in Cornwall, Ontario.
1941-03-04 — First enlisted in the Canadian Army as a Gunner; this service episode was later terminated because he was underage.
1941-06-10 — Posted to 1st Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery, 2nd Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment.
1941-08-14–1941-08-18 — Granted embarkation leave.
1941-09–1941-10 — Service record documents absence without leave / disciplinary action and forfeited service during the first enlistment.
1941-09-15 — Struck off strength of 2nd Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment.
1941-10-02 — Transferred/taken on strength in the subsequent training-centre sequence.
1941-11-19 — Taken on strength on reposting to A-2 at Petawawa.
1941-11-27 — Medical Board recorded his true birth date as 19 September 1924 and recommended Category A, underage.
1941-12-10 — Discharged because he was under 17/18 years of age at the date of application; civilian clothing and $35 were authorized.
1942-10-16 — Re-enlisted in the Canadian Army at Ottawa as a Private. His original regimental number D-118259 was subsequently restored.
1942-11-21 — Transferred to No. 32 Canadian Army (Basic) Training Centre at Peterborough.
1942-12-15 — Original regimental number D-118259 restored, with prior service in the 2nd Anti-Aircraft Regiment recognized.
1942-12-30–1943-01-03 — Granted New Year's leave with ration allowance.
1943-01-07 — Allocated to Infantry from General Service.
1943-01-26 — Struck off strength of No. 32 C.A.(B).T.C. on transfer to Camp Borden.
1943-02-16 — Taken on strength of Q.O.R. from C.I.T.C. A-11, Camp Borden.
1943-03-27–1943-04-13 — Granted fourteen days furlough plus accumulated leave.
1943-05-04–1943-05-21 — Admitted to Debert Military Hospital for right hammer toe; discharged improved after 18 days.
1943-08 — Personnel-selection record states that after Q.O.R. service he was reposted to the D. & H. Rifles.
1943-08-27 — One day of absence without leave is recorded as non-qualifying service.
1943-11-07 — Re-interviewed at Chippawa Barracks and assessed suitable for overseas infantry service.
1943-11-08 — Executed a formal will while serving with 1 Bn D & H Rifles, leaving his entire estate to his mother Ozelina Carriere and appointing her executrix.
1943-11-25 — Taken on strength overseas.
1944-03-02 — Seven days of overseas absence without leave are recorded as non-qualifying service.
1944-07-25 — Killed in action in France while serving as a Private with the Royal Regiment of Canada.
1944-07-31 — Buried initially at Colombelles, France, Plot 1, Row 1, Grave 12.
1946-03-13 — Family notified that his remains had been reburied in Bretteville-sur-Laize Canadian Military Cemetery, Plot 17, Row D, Grave 16.
Notes
True date of birth, supported by the birth-certificate-related medical board and later official records, was 19 September 1924. He spoke French and English. Employment material records work at Canadian Cotton Mills in Cornwall and approximately six months labouring at a Valleyfield munitions plant on a TNT mixing machine. Personnel selection records note that he requested transfer to the Paratroops in 1943 but did not meet the educational/M-score requirements and continued as an infantry non-tradesman.
[Previous notes - manual reconciliation required]
KIA
Additional Service Notes
First enlisted 4 March 1941 as a Gunner in the Royal Canadian Artillery and was discharged 10 December 1941 after a birth certificate established he was underage. Re-enlisted at Ottawa on 16 October 1942, trained as infantry, was taken on strength overseas on 25 November 1943 and later served as a Private with the Royal Regiment of Canada, and was killed in action in France on 25 July 1944.
Additional Next of Kin Notes
Parents: Napoleon Carriere and Ozelina Carriere. Mother Ozelina was the principal next of kin and medal/Memorial Cross recipient at 25 Cartier Avenue, Cornwall, Ontario. A 1944 estate form gives Napoleon as age 68 and Ozelina as age 64 and records four brothers and five sisters; several sibling names/addresses are handwritten and require a second-pass transcription before structured use. He was unmarried and had no children. Estate material states that he left no will and records approximately $500 in Metropolitan life insurance. Carriere executed a formal will on 8 November 1943, leaving his entire estate to his mother Ozelina Carriere and appointing her executrix. A later estate form incorrectly/contradictorily states that he left no will; the actual will and estate-distribution record control.
Research Notes
Carriere had two distinct WWII enlistment episodes. He first enlisted 4 March 1941 as a Gunner in the Royal Canadian Artillery using a declared DOB of 19 September 1921. A later Medical Board recorded that a birth certificate proved he was born 19 September 1924 and was underage; he was formally discharged 10 December 1941. He re-enlisted at Ottawa on 16 October 1942 and the Army later restored his original D-118259 number. The principal CWVMP service episode should use the 1942 enlistment while preserving the first episode in chronology/rank history and setting prior military experience to Yes. Dense 1941 service entries include absence/disciplinary and transfer material that require second-pass transcription. The exact date of overseas embarkation and the date he joined the Royal Regiment of Canada are not yet securely resolved from the first pass. His final operational status is clear: Private, Royal Regiment of Canada, KIA in France 25 July 1944. Personal effects inventory lists a damaged lighter, two leather wallets, photographs/clippings, a notebook and identification card. Pass 2: a formal M.F.M.10 will dated 8 Nov 1943 was located. Carriere left his entire estate to his mother, Ozelina Carriere, and appointed her executrix; the later estate questionnaire entry stating 'No' to a will is contradicted by this stronger primary document and by the subsequent estate-distribution form, which identifies Ozelina as sole beneficiary per will. War Service Grant records show overseas service T.O.S. 25 Nov 1943 and S.O.S. 25 Jul 1944. The awards card has the Defence Medal line struck out, so it is not treated as an award. Final pass: the War Service Grant computation confirms first enlistment 4 Mar 1941–10 Dec 1941 (282 days) and second enlistment 16 Oct 1942–25 Jul 1944 (649 days), for 931 total service days before non-qualifying deductions. The detailed non-qualifying-service sheet records 17 Western Hemisphere days and 7 overseas days, including an AWL entry effective 27 Aug 1943 and an overseas AWL entry effective 2 Mar 1944. The 1941 service sheet visibly records AWL/disciplinary material in September–October 1941, but not all handwritten punishment wording is reliable enough to transcribe. It is therefore preserved as a summarized disciplinary/non-qualifying-service sequence rather than guessed event text. The personnel-selection record states that after Q.O.R. service he was reposted to the D. & H. Rifles by August 1943; his 8 Nov 1943 will identifies his unit as 1 Bn D & H Rifles. The file confirms overseas T.O.S. 25 Nov 1943, but no surviving page establishes a reliable exact date for his subsequent transfer to the Royal Regiment of Canada. Final Royal Regiment service and KIA status are certain, so the Royal Regiment Service Rank/Staff Posting start date remains deliberately blank.
