Frank Edward Newcomb – A Hantsport Hero of World War II
Chief Petty Officer Frank Edward Newcomb of Hantsport served in the R.C.N. in World War II. He was born in Hantsport on April 21, 1904, son of Jedidiah Henry and Margaret (Davison) Newcomb. His grandfather was Jedidiah Ells Newcomb who came to Hantsport in 1860 from Cornwallis. On March 20, 1862, he married Rhoda Churchill, daughter of Ezra and Ann (Davison) Churchill. Ezra Churchill owned the Churchill Ship Yard.
Frank grew up in Hantsport; the Newcomb home was on the riverbank just above the wharf with a good view of the Avon River. The house is still there, used as an office for Minas Basin Pulp and Power Company, only now facing on Prince Street. When Frank was in High School in 1919 the FAVONIAN, the last sailing vessel to be built at Hantsport, was under construction and Frank tended the steam box used for bending the planks around the curves of the hull. He kept the fire going in the...