Edward William Guy Henstridge signature

On this day in 1916 Edward William Guy Henstridge, a clerk, signed up in Montreal. He was born in Deseronto on April 17th, 1896, the son of Francis John Henstidge and Margaret Eleanor (née Bell). By 1901 the family had moved to Montreal.

Henstridge joined the 3rd Divisional Supply Column of the Canadian Army Service Corps with the regimental number 512529. He was five feet eight inches tall, with a dark complexion, brown eyes and black hair. His service record shows that he arrived in England on the SS Metagama on May 5th, 1916 and went to France on August 11th.  On February 12th, 1918 he returned to England, pending appointment to a cadet unit in the Royal Flying Corps. He was struck off the strength of the Army Service Corps on June 16th, 1918 when he became a flight cadet in the Royal Air Force. His discharge papers from the Army note that his military character was ‘very good’.

Detail of Henstridge's discharge paper

Henstridge survived the war and arrived back in Montreal on board the SS Megantic on September 23rd, 1919. He married Elizabeth Blair McAvoy in St. Catharines on July 14th, 1923. He died on July 12th, 1973 and was buried in St. James Cemetery, Toronto.