Victor Leroy Hill was born 19 August 1897 at Casey, Clark, IL, son of Charles Taylor and Nancy Jane (Wiley) Hill.
When the Great War broke out, he wanted to fight but the United States had not entered the war yet. He enlisted in the Canadian Army Overseas Expeditionary Force on 10 Sept. 1916 at Camp Hughes, Manitoba. He was assigned to the Canadian Pioneer Unit, 107th Overseas Battalion. He served as a Private. While at Camp Hughes, he had his basic training - basically learning to fire a gun and dig a trench.
photo courtesy of http://www.taniwha.ca/mhsmb/hughes/hughes.html
He sailed from Halifax to England in September 1916 on board the SS Olympic. He was sent “O’Seas” in February 1917, arriving in Boulogne, France. Once the U.S. entered the war, he applied for transfer to the U.S. Army.
Before the transfer could be completed, he was killed in action near Lens, France on 15 August 1917. The report sent to his family states “The above named soldier was working with the rest of his Platoon near Loos digging a trench, when a large high explosive shell burst quite close to him, killing him instantly”.
He is buried in Maroc Military Cemetery in Grenay, France. A large memorial is erected nearby to the Canadians who are buried there. His mother received a pension of $20 per month from the Canadian Pension Commission until she died in 1960.
Kim, Thank you so much for this beautiful post, as well as the ones with Grandma Hill's poetry. I just stumbled on your blog and LOVE It! - Arlene
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