Corporal Clarence William Duncan
Survivor of WW2
Date of Death:
Service Biography
Clarence William Duncan was born at Glenelm, Quebec, on 29 September 1912. He completed Grade 9 in Quebec in 1929 and later attended commercial school in Montreal and Malone, New York. Before the war he worked as a grocery clerk, as a painter's helper for his father, as a weaver in Huntingdon woollen mills, and from 1940 to 1942 as an immigration inspector with the Department of Mines and Resources at Huntingdon. He served briefly under the National Resources Mobilization Act from 13 November 1942 to 11 January 1943, then enlisted for active service at Huntingdon, Quebec, on 12 January 1943 as D-139221. He served first with the Canadian Armoured Corps and later with the Canadian Infantry Corps, working as a Clerk Group C. He was appointed acting corporal on 21 May 1943 and confirmed in the rank of corporal on 21 August 1943. His wartime service included 23 months in Canada and 15 months in the United Kingdom. He was discharged at Montreal South, Quebec, on 25 March 1946 on demobilization. Clarence William Duncan died at Valleyfield, Quebec, on 25 June 1981, aged 68. His obituary named his wife, Doris Tilden, and children Charles Taylor and Mary Lou Riggs. He was interred in the Field of Honour at Huntingdon Protestant Cemetery.
General Information
Conflict:
WW2
Regimental No.:
D139221
Cause of Death (in war):
Survived
Branch:
Canadian Army
Regiment:
Canadian Infantry Corps
Battalion:
1 Canadian Infantry Training Regiment
Company:
Date of Birth :
Place of Birth:
Glenelm, Quebec
Date of Enlistment:
Age at Enlistment:
30 years 3 months
Date of Discharge:
Age at Discharge:
33 years 5 months
Date of Death:
Age at Death:
68 years 8 months
Country Born:
Canada
Trade or Calling:
Immigration Inspector
Next of Kin:
Mr. William Duncan (father), Glenelm, Quebec
Address at Enlistment:
182 Chateauguay Street, Huntingdon, Quebec
Religion:
United Church of Canada
Place of Enlistment:
Huntingdon, Quebec
Was a Prisoner of War:
No
Height:
5 ft 3.0 in / 160 cm
Weight:
144 lbs / 65 kg
Chest:
35.5 in / 90 cm
Expansion:
2.5 in / 6 cm
Marital Status:
Single
Prior Military Experience:
Yes
Saw Service in:
Great Britain
Place of Discharge:
Montreal South, Quebec
Discharge Type:
Regular/End of Service
Discharge Notes:
Battle Died/Wounded:
Length of Service:
1168 days in service
Buried at:
Ranks
| Conflict |
Rank |
Regiment |
Branch |
Unit |
Company |
Date From |
Date To |
| WW2 |
Corporal |
Canadian Infantry Corps |
Canadian Army |
1 Canadian Infantry Training Regiment |
|
|
|
| WW2 |
Corporal |
Canadian Armoured Corps |
Canadian Army |
2 Canadian Armoured Corps Reinforcement Unit |
|
|
|
| WW2 |
Corporal |
Canadian Armoured Corps |
Canadian Army |
#1 Training/Service Regiment |
|
|
|
| WW2 |
Corporal |
Canadian Armoured Corps |
Canadian Army |
#1 Canadian Armoured Corps Training Regiment |
|
|
|
| WW2 |
Acting Corporal |
Canadian Armoured Corps |
Canadian Army |
#1 Canadian Armoured Corps Training Regiment |
|
|
|
| WW2 |
Trooper |
Canadian Armoured Corps |
Canadian Army |
#1 Canadian Armoured Corps Training Regiment |
|
|
|
Awards
| Conflict |
Award |
Action |
Date of Award |
Date of Citation |
Source |
| WW2 |
Canadian Volunteer Service Medal and Clasp |
|
|
|
|
| WW2 |
War Medal 1939-1945 |
|
|
|
|
Service Chronology
1912-09-29 — Glenelm, Quebec — Born.
1942-11-13 — Canada — Began NRMA service.
1943-01-11 — Canada — Discharged from NRMA service before active-service enlistment.
1943-01-12 — Huntingdon, Quebec — Enlisted in the Canadian Army (Active), service number D-139221.
1943-02-23 — Borden, Ontario — Struck off strength on transfer to Canadian Armoured Corps (Other), Camp Borden.
1943-02-24 — Borden, Ontario — Attached to A8 Canadian Armoured Corps for advanced training.
1943-03-27 — Borden, Ontario — Admitted to Camp Borden Military Hospital; suspected mumps recorded.
1943-04-12 — Borden, Ontario — Discharged from Camp Borden Military Hospital.
1943-04-29 — Borden, Ontario — Admitted to Camp Borden Military Hospital with scarlet fever.
1943-05-20 — Borden, Ontario — Struck off strength on reporting to No. 1 Canadian Armoured Corps Training Regiment.
1943-05-21 — Borden, Ontario — Taken on strength of No. 1 Canadian Armoured Corps Training Regiment.
1943-05-21 — Borden, Ontario — Appointed acting corporal with pay while employed as a corporal clerk.
1943-06-06 — Borden, Ontario — Discharged from Camp Borden Military Hospital.
1943-06-07 to 1943-06-20 — Borden, Ontario — Granted sick leave with ration allowance.
1943-07-26 to 1943-08-08 — Borden, Ontario — Granted furlough.
1943-08-21 — Borden, Ontario — Confirmed in rank of corporal.
1943-11-15 — Borden, Ontario — Qualified Clerk Group C.
1944-04-24 to 1944-05-07 — Borden, Ontario — Granted furlough with pay and ration allowance.
1944-05-11 — Borden, Ontario — Admitted to Camp Borden Military Hospital.
1944-05-12 — Borden, Ontario — Underwent appendectomy at Camp Borden Military Hospital for acute appendicitis.
1944-05-22 — Ontario — Transferred from Camp Borden Military Hospital to Oakville Casualty Retraining Centre and attached for duty.
1944-06-03 — Oakville, Ontario — Ceased attachment to No. 2 Casualty Retraining Centre and returned to unit.
1944-07-03 — Oakville, Ontario — Absent without leave for 22 hours 16 minutes; admonished.
1944-07-30 — Borden, Ontario — Admitted to Camp Borden Military Hospital.
1944-07-31 — Borden, Ontario — Underwent tonsillectomy at Camp Borden Military Hospital for chronic tonsillitis.
1944-08-07 — Borden, Ontario — Discharged from Camp Borden Military Hospital.
1944-08-07 — Borden, Ontario — Applied for discharge on compassionate grounds to care for his 79-year-old father, who was unable to work; application was not approved.
1944-09-20 — Borden, Ontario — Struck off strength to No. 1 Training/Service Regiment.
1944-11-18 — Borden, Ontario — Struck off strength of No. 1 Training/Service Regiment to serial for overseas service.
1944-11-20 — Canada — Struck off strength Canadian Army (Canada) on embarkation for the United Kingdom.
1944-11-27 — United Kingdom — Taken on strength Canadian Army (Overseas) on disembarkation; posted to 2 Canadian Armoured Corps Reinforcement Unit.
1944-11-29 — United Kingdom — Reported for duty with 2 Canadian Armoured Corps Reinforcement Unit.
1944-12-03 — United Kingdom — Taken on strength of 1 Canadian Infantry Training Regiment as Clerk Group C.
1945-02-15 — United Kingdom — Granted Canadian leave.
1945-03-27 — United Kingdom — Attached to 5 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit.
1945-04-03 — Aldershot, England — Medical Board recorded poor musculature/physical inferiority and found him fit for line-of-communication duties.
1945-04-28 — United Kingdom — Returned to 1 Canadian Infantry Training Regiment after attachment.
1945-07-13 to 1945-07-22 — United Kingdom — Granted nine days privilege leave.
1946-02-05 — United Kingdom — Struck off strength to No. 1 Repatriation Depot for return to Canada.
1946-02-21 — Canada — Reported from Canadian Army (Overseas) for repatriation/demobilization.
1946-02-28 to 1946-03-31 — Montreal South, Quebec — Granted repatriation leave and ration allowance.
1946-03-25 — Montreal South, Quebec — Discharged on demobilization to return to civil life.
1981-06-25 — Valleyfield, Quebec — Died aged 68.
1981-06-27 — Huntingdon, Quebec — Funeral service at Kelly Funeral Home followed by interment in the Field of Honour, Huntingdon Protestant Cemetery.
Notes
Completed Grade 9 in Quebec in 1929 and six months of commercial school in Montreal and Malone, New York. Prewar employment: grocery clerk (1930–1935); helper to his father, a painter, at Huntingdon (1935–1937); weaver in woollen mills at Huntingdon (1937–1940); Immigration Inspector, Department of Mines and Resources, Immigration Branch, Huntingdon (1940–1942).
[Previous notes - manual reconciliation required]
Birth 29 sept. 1912 (29 Sep 1912) Death 25 juin 1981 (25 Jun 1981) Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec, Canada
Request confirmation number EA2026_0172270
Additional Service Notes
Served 23 months in Canada and 15 months in the United Kingdom. Served first in the Canadian Armoured Corps and later in the Canadian Infantry Corps, employed as a Clerk Group C.
Additional Next of Kin Notes
Father William Duncan was his next of kin during service. The 1981 obituary names his wife Doris Tilden and children Charles Taylor of Syracuse, New York, and Mary Lou Riggs of Winthrop, New York; it also reports six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Version: 3 Last modified: 2026-09-19 18:52:11
by: marc