A First War Victory Medal, to Military Medal Recipient Private William Albert Jewitt, 1st Infantry Battalion, 160th Infantry Battalion, DOW Canada; (651093 PTE. W.A. JEWITT. 1-CAN.INF.). Naming is officially impressed. Replacement ribbon, greening on the reverse, gilt wear, edge nicks, contact marks, near very fine.
Footnote: William Albert Jewitt was born on November 4, 1897 in Kinloss Township, Bruce County, Ontario, the son of Mr. and Mrs. James Jewitt. He was a resident of the family farm at R.R. #5, Lucknow, Ontario, when he signed his Attestation Paper as a Private (651093) with the 160th Infantry Battalion, "Bruce Battalion", "D" Company, on December 31, 1915 in Lucknow, at the age of 18, naming his next-of-kin as his father, James Jewitt of Lucknow, stating that he had no previous military service, that he was not married and that his trade was that of Farmer (Farmhand). His religion was Presbyterian. The Battalion was raised in Northern Ontario with mobilization headquarters at Walkerton under the authority of G.O. 151, December 22, 1915. The Battalion sailed from Halifax, Nova Scotia aboard the S.S. Metagama, on October 17, 1916, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel A. Weir with a strength of 31 officers and 978 other ranks, arriving in England on October 28th. He was awarded one Good Conduct Badge on December 31, 1917. Private Jewitt was struck off strength of the 160th Infantry Battalion, to the 1st Infantry Battalion for service in the French theatre, on February 28, 1918.
He arrived at the Canadian Base Depot in France on March 1st, leaving for his new unit on the 3rd and arriving with them in the field on the 4th. Seven and a half months after arriving in France, 651093 Private William Albert Jewitt was in action when he suffered gun shot (shrapnel) wounds to his head on October 19, 1918. He was immediately evacuated to No. 1 Canadian Casualty Clearing Station, where he died of his wounds that day, at the age of 20, sixteen days shy of his twenty-first birthday. He is buried in Duisans British Cemetery, Etrun, Pas de Calais, France, Grave Reference: VIII. B. 5. and is commemorated on page 436 of the First World War Book of Remembrance. In addition, a memorial grave marker was erected to him in South Kinloss Cemetery, Section: 21, 1188 South Kinloss Avenue, Lucknow, Kinloss Township (Concession 2, Lots 11-12), Bruce County, Ontario. In his Will, dated August 22, 1916, he stated: "My personal estate I bequeath to Mr. James Jewitt, Lucknow, Ontario". He had no real estate to inherit. His brother, Harry Jewitt of Lucknow, received his British War Medal, Victory Medal and Memorial Plaque with Scroll. No Memorial Cross was issued. Private William Albert Jewitt, 1st Infantry Battalion, Western Ontario Regiment was posthumously awarded the Military Medal, the announcement appearing in the Third Supplement to the London Gazette 31430 of Tuesday, July 1, 1919, on Thursday, July 3, 1919, page 8344, without citation.