Nov. 8 is Indigenous Veterans Day

Posted on Friday, November 8th, 2024

As we honour the service and pay tribute to Canada’s Indigenous veterans, we learn about two veterans who are connected to our AlgonquinFaded poppies with two black and white photos of two soldiers from WWI and WWII College community.

Pte. John Carle and Pte. Joseph Carle were the great-great-grandfather and great-grandfather, respectively of Anita Tenasco, Director of Indigenous Initiatives. Here are their stories of service.

Pte. John Carle was born on Aug. 31, 1871. He enlisted on July 15, 1916. On Nov. 27, 1916, Carle went to France with the 14th Company, Canadian Forces Corps. The 14th Company was sent to a forested area in Normandy called Bois Normandy to fell trees and cut sawn lumber for the British and Canadian armies fighting in France.

John finished out the war there as a lumberjack. John and the members of the 14th Company were confined to their camp until Dec. 11, 1918, when they received their orders to report to the Canadian military base hospital in Étaples, France for a routine medical inspection prior to their return to England. When John’s turn came for inspection, the camp medical officer discovered that John had lost part of the index finger on his left hand in a childhood accident. He was missing the third toe on his left foot from a logging accident 23 years prior. None of these injuries prevented John from putting in a full day’s work, but the medical officer declared him unfit for further military service, one month after the war ended and three and a half years after he enlisted. He was discharged in Ottawa on Feb 15, 1919. John lived to the age of 100.

Pte. Joseph Carle was born on Jan. 29, 1896, but on his enlistment papers he gave his date of birth as Jan. 15, 1895. He was the son of John and Marie-Anne Chìbayàtig. He had a good service record while working as a lumberjack with the 224th Canadian Forestry Battalion in London, England. Joseph remained in London until he received his sailing orders for Canada on June 24, 1919. He was discharged on July 7, 1919. During his three years of service, he assigned $20 of his monthly pay to his foster mother, Mary-Anne, in Maniwaki.

(reprinted with permission from Since Time Immemorial: “Our Story” The Story of the Kitigan Zibi Anishinàbeg)


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