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Canadian Virtual War Memorial

Charles Alexander Shand

In memory of:

Chief Radio Officer Charles Alexander Shand

December 13, 1942

Military Service


Age:

19

Force:

Merchant Navy

Unit:

Canadian Merchant Navy

Division:

S.S. Verdefjell (Norway)

Additional Information


Born:

April 22, 1923
Toronto, Ontario

Son of Daniel Shand and Jean Wears from Toronto, Ontario.

During the First World War, Daniel enlisted on 12 November 1914 with the 19th Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force in St. Catharines, Ontario. Sent to France, he was wounded in action three times - by shrapnel received in the right wrist and jaw (loss of teeth) on 11 September 1916 at Poziers; on 17 August 1917 in the left thigh; on 2 October 1918 in the left jaw. Repatriated on 25 February 1919, he was demobilized on 22 March in Toronto. He was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.

He was presumed drowned at sea on 13 December 1942.

Commemorated on Page 224 of the Merchant Navy Book of Remembrance. Request a copy of this page. Download high resolution copy of this page.

Burial Information


Cemetery:

HALIFAX MEMORIAL
Nova Scotia, Canada

Grave Reference:

Panel 20.

Location:

The HALIFAX MEMORIAL in Nova Scotia's capital, erected in Point Pleasant Park, is one of the few tangible reminders of the men who died at sea. Twenty-four ships were lost by the Royal Canadian Navy in the Second World War and nearly 2,000 members of the RCN lost their lives. This Memorial was erected by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and was unveiled in November 1967 with naval ceremony by H.P. MacKeen, Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia, in the presence of R. Teillet, then Minister of Veterans Affairs. The monument is a great granite Cross of Sacrifice over 12 metres high, clearly visible to all ships approaching Halifax. The cross is mounted on a large podium bearing 23 bronze panels upon which are inscribed the names of over 3,000 Canadian men and women who were buried at sea. The dedicatory inscription, in French and English, reads as follows:

1914-1939
1918-1945
IN THE HONOUR OF
THE MEN AND WOMEN
OF THE NAVY
ARMY AND MERCHANT NAVY
OF CANADA
WHOSE NAMES
ARE INSCRIBED HERE
THEIR GRAVES ARE UNKNOWN
BUT THEIR MEMORY
SHALL ENDURE.

On June 19, 2003, the Government of Canada designated September 3rd of each year as a day to acknowledge the contribution of Merchant Navy Veterans.

Digital Collection

Send us your images

  • Photo of CHARLES ALEXANDER SHAND– Submitted for the project, Operation Picture Me
  • Newspaper clipping– From the Toronto Telegram November 1942. Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me
  • Newspaper clipping– From the Toronto Telegram January 1943. Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me

Learn more about the Canadian Virtual War Memorial

To learn more please visit our help page. If you have questions or comments regarding the information contained in this registry, email or call us. For inquiries regarding the names and information found in the RCMP Honour Roll, please email the RCMP.

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