Bernard H. Gregg, WW1 Veteran and gentleman-farmer of Hants Border

Bernard Henry Gregg was born¹ on 29 May, 1894 in the Broughton Borough of Manchester, England, the eldest son of Oliver Gregg (1865-1922) and Ellen Manchin (1866-1933). The Gregg family were prosperous and had been involved in boot and shoe making and the leather trade for several generations.

At some time in 1914 Oliver Gregg moved his family including a younger son George Phillip b. 1896 and daughter Dorothy Edna b. 1905 to a new large semi-detached house at 10 Hoscote Park, West Kirby, Cheshire.³

Bernard Gregg was educated at King Edward VII School, Lytham St. Annes, Lancashire where he was in the Cadet Corps.

He joined the 12th Battalion, Cheshire Regiment as a Private very early on as he was already serving by November 1914. He was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant on 4 December 1914 and immediately posted to the 5th Battalion of the regiment. Arriving at the Western Front on 3 April 1915, he served throughout the war in that sphere, ending as a full Lieutenant. He took part in the battle of the Somme and the 2nd battle of Ypres. The wartime diary of his batman, Thomas Jones, offers a harrowing glimpse of life and death in the trenches. In the British military, a “batman” is a soldier assigned to an officer often handling tasks like managing the officer’s kit and equipment, especially before the advent of motorized transport. The term is derived from the obsolete “bat” meaning pack saddle.

Bernard Gregg’s younger brother George joined the Cheshire Regiment after 1915 serving in the 7th Battalion with the Egyptian Expeditionary Force. On 26 March, 1917 the First Battle of Gaza was fought. This was an attempt to capture Gaza from the Ottoman forces in order to clear the way to Jerusalem. George was reported missing-in-action and presumed dead.⁴

George Phillip Gregg 1896-1917

Telegraph from Buckingham Palace OHMS

During the fighting, Second Lieutenant George Philip Gregg was killed, leading his men in the attack. He was one of over 4000 Allied casualties. He was not quite 21 years old. His body was not recovered. He is commemorated on Grange Hill War Memorial, the Rolls of Honour in St Bridget and St Andrew churches in West Kirby and on the Jerusalem Memorial. George Gregg is also listed on the Remembrance Day Honour Roll each year in Hantsport.

After the war Bernard Gregg was on the staff of Harper Adams Agricultural College in Shropshire, where he appears as an instructor in the 1921 Census of England⁵. In a 1975 taped interview⁶, speaking mainly about the North family, he expressed his own interest in animal husbandry.

Following the death of his father Oliver in 1922, Bernard visited various provinces in Canada as a tourist, staying for a time between 1924 and 1925 in Hamilton, Ontario. He immigrated on the 8th of May, 1926 arriving in Halifax from Southampton on board the S.S. Ohio⁷ with his mother Ellen and sister Dorothy, and settled on the Bluff Road in Hants Border, Nova Scotia where he had purchased a farm. In fact, Bernard Gregg purchased several properties in the area.

“ ‘I am but a stranger here, Heaven is my home.’ This was a hymn sung during our first service in St. Andrew’s Church. It was Evensong. My mother, sister, and I had arrived from England by sea the previous afternoon.” – quote from Some notes on time past by B. H. Gregg – September 1978

He was a faithful member of St. Andrew’s Anglican Church, Hantsport and served for several years as church warden and vestry clerk. He was a member of Lucknow Branch 109, Royal Canadian Legion and was a founding member of the ACA Co-operative. He served several years as Scoutmaster in Hantsport and as a trustee of Hants Border School.¹⁰

Bernard Gregg’s sister Dorothy (1905-1994) displayed an appreciation for the arts, music and drama as evidenced by her collection of quotes and newspaper clippings.¹¹

Elizabeth Esther (Eaton) Gregg was born in Montclair, New Jersey and graduated from the Kimberley School. She attended Miss Beard’s School in Orange, N.J. and was a member of the Junior League.¹² In her 1984 Will she left bequests to St. Andrews Anglican Church, Payzant Memorial Hospital, her brother and sister-in-law, Frederick N. and Helen Eaton of Pasadena, California together with their three daughters; Patricia, Marjorie, and Shirley; her cousins, Virginia Wright of Halifax and John Lawrence of Truro; Mrs. Guinevere Campbell and Miss Ethel Taylor of Hantsport (daughters of Rev. Morris Taylor), Mrs. Elizabeth (Eaton) Catellier of St. Bruno, Quebec, Robert Eaton of Halifax, her sister-in-law Dorothy Gregg of Halifax, Acadia University, Kings College University, and Mount Allison University.

Following the death of his wife Elizabeth, Bernard Gregg moved from his home in Hants Border and lived with his neighbours, Robert and Hillary Sircom, until his own death on 7 February, 1997 at the age of 102.

Bernard and Elizabeth (Eaton) Gregg are buried¹⁴ in Hantsport Riverbank Cemetery.

Sources:

1. England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915; September Quarter 1894, Salford, Lancashire, England Vol. 8d Page 50
2. Nottinghamshire, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1937
3. An Imperishable Record The People of North-West Wirral and the Great War: George Phillip Gregg, biography by Victoria Doran
4. George Phillip Gregg, Photos and Documents: Collection of Bernard Gregg loaned to HHS for scanning by Katherine Sircom
5. 1921 Census of England. Edgmond, Shropshire, Enumeration District 5, Schedule 141, p.1
6. Audio Visual Historical Insight; HHS Collection, Cassette Tapes and Transcripts
7. Canada, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1865-1935
8. Nova Scotia Historical Vital Statistics, Marriage Registration: Year: 1940 number: 102168
9. HHS Collection, Photographic Slides by Bernard H. Gregg
10. Chronicle Herald obituary, Morley Sypher Collection HHS
11. Dorrie E. Gregg, Clippings: Collection of Bernard Gregg loaned to HHS for scanning by Katherine Sircom
12. The Montclair Times 1940-06-28 p.15
13. HHS Collection, Photo from Carolyn Folker
14. Find A Grave Memorials: 285661131 and 118878534