Suggestions on locating relatives of a WWII vet?

M3Mike · #1 27-07-09, 16:11

Several years ago I purchased - at auction - a series of letters from Lt. Don Smith written abroad between 1943 and 1944.

I am not a WWII collector (I'm a stamp collector and these were at a stamp auction). I was intrigued enough to buy them, and after reading them, I put them away. It just dawned on me the other day... Don (if he is still alive) or his family may not know that they exist - they were all addressed to Captain Duncan H. Taylor of Winnipeg, Manitoba...

I found a notice of Captain Taylor's death through "Last Post" (link to the posting here). He passed away in 1993 -- I'm assuming that as a result, his possessions may have found their way into auction.

The letters are generally letters to a friend, but they hint towards Don's military service - the fact that he wrote from hospital twice over the period of letters, how we was dismayed at one point about not being at the front, some insight into Captain Taylor's experiences, hints towards morale, and an illustration he did of the Italian countryside.

I know very little of Lt. Don Smith.

In each letter, he writes "LT. D. A. SMITH 3 C.I.B. Sp. Gp. (S.L.I.) C.A.O. C.M.F."

Again, I know very little as to what all these letters mean.

He signs each letter with "Don"... therefore, I did a bit of searching on a Don A. Smith and that's where I determined "S.L.I." was Saskatoon Light Infantry -- he is listed as a Lieutenant on this site.

and I can see that he had some diary entries that they recorded.

Other than that, I know nothing.

How would I go about finding out his whereabouts and/or his descendants? Can I hire someone to do the search for me (as much as I'd like to do it myself, I'm always tied up with my work with very little free time). I'm willing to invest a bit of money to see whether his discendants have any interest in these letters (if not, suggestions on where I should donate them?) Any and all assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Mark W. Tonner · #2 27-07-09, 18:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by M3Mike

In each letter, he writes "LT. D. A. SMITH 3 C.I.B. Sp. Gp. (S.L.I.) C.A.O. C.M.F."

Again, I know very little as to what all these letters mean.
Other than that, I know nothing.

3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade Support Group (The Saskatoon Light Infantry) - Canadian Army Overseas - Central Mediterranean Force

3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade Support Group was a sub-unit of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division Support Battalion (The Saskatoon Light Infantry) from approx. 1 May 43 to 1 Jun 44. - it provided heavy mortar (4.2 inch), medium machine gun (Vickers .303) and anti-aircraft (20mm Oerlikon) support to the 3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade of 1st Canadian Infantry Division in Sicily and Italy (from approx. Jul 43 to Jun 44)

Cheers

M3Mike · #3 28-07-09, 20:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mark W. Tonner

3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade Support Group (The Saskatoon Light Infantry) - Canadian Army Overseas - Central Mediterranean Force

Mark, thanks so much for your prompt reply - it's helpful to get more understanding.

I'm still wondering what I do next - would it make sense to hire a Private Investigator in Saskatchewan, for example? What would be the likelihood that Don was from Saskatoon (given he was in the Saskatoon Light Infantry) -- were they typically shipped all over Canada, so Don's home city could've been elsewhere, or would they have been assigned to something near where they likely enlisted?

Col Tigwell · #4 28-07-09, 23:43

Good morning!

I have had a lot of experience in tracing pedople and their relatives, and whilst a private investigator may reveal what you want it can be expensive.

If you know his home town when he enlisted, you should be able to get it from army records, then my suggestion is a letter to the postmaster may get you put in touch with any relatives that could still be in the area.

Make the letter interesting but to the point and if the information is available you should get a reply, in my case I have about a 80% hit and all it costs is a stamp.

I have used this for people all over the world and it seems to be a cost affective way to start.

Regards

Col

Bill Miller · #5 29-07-09, 00:33

Before you go through the expense of an investigator, I'd try the University of Saskatchewan's archive. they hold the files for the SLI.
http://www.usask.ca/archives/sli/

A quick search on SMith's name pulled up all sorts of available records!?
http://www.usask.ca/archives/sli/sea...sortorder=name

Looks to be info from Part I orders... there is also another Lt. Smith listed too. They may be related. It looks like an archivist at the UofS might be able to give you more clues to Lt. Smith's relatives including wartime and postwar addresses. His is a very common name, but if you know the hometown he may be easier to track.

If he was married. His wife's family may have a more uncommon name to trace. My experience in tracking down vets and their families from the prairies has been quite fruitful and IF he is from Saskatchewan I think it is likely that the family (in some form) still resides there.

Good luck.
Bill.

M3Mike · #6 29-07-09, 14:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill Miller

It looks like an archivist at the UofS might be able to give you more clues to Lt. Smith's relatives including wartime and postwar addresses. His is a very common name, but if you know the hometown he may be easier to track.

Thanks Bill... I don't know why I didn't think of that as a first step!

I've emailed UoS archivist and will keep everyone updated on my progress. I appreciate everyone's help thus far!

Bill Miller · #7 29-07-09, 19:53

Glad to help. Do keep us informed on how the search goes. If you do find the family I am sure they will be glad to have the letters. If you can't find them, or on the odd chance they don't want them, I am sure they would find a good home in the U of S Archives along with their other SLI documents.

Again, good luck!

Rob MacDonald · #8 04-10-09, 17:01

The SLI was amalgamated into the North Saskatchewan Regiment after the war. here is their DND webpage: http://www.army.forces.gc.ca/land-te...eng.asp?id=182

If you contact the Battalion Orderly Room they can put you in touch with the Regimental Association. Although it's getting 'a little late in the day' there may still be someone who served with this officer.