CECIL
CHARLES ALGAR
Private
255032
Cecil Charles Algar was born in Newton Ferrers on 4 February 1892, and baptised in Holy Cross Church on 25 March 1892. He was a son
of Charles and Laura Algar, who lived at Myrtle Cottage, Riverside Road West. Charles was the master baker, and also ran a
small carting business which transported road-mending stone to work sites. He was also the enumerator for Newton Ferrers
for the 1901 census. Charles and Laura had a total of 17
children, of whom four died in infancy.
Charles’ sister Emily married Ernest Veale Irish, who farmed at Post
Office Farm at Bridgend. They had no
children, and thus many Algar children came to live at the farm. One such was Laura, born in 1911. She moved into Post Office Farm at the age of
11 months – and Laura Hingston has been there ever since. In the 1901 Census Cecil is shown as living
at Post Office Farm.
He attended the local school from 4 February 1895 until 20 January 1905 (Roll No. 343). After leaving school he helped with the carting
business until one day he saw an advertisement from a farmer in Okehampton needing
help with transporting a flock of sheep to Canada. Cecil joined this expedition,
and then settled in Canada, buying land in Westerleigh, Saskatchewan.
Cecil Algar enlisted in the Canadian Over-Seas
Expeditionary Force on 27 March 1916 (see Attestation Paper
opposite), and joined the 1st Canadian Mounted Rifles (Saskatchewan Regiment),
training as a sniper. The regiment
formed part of 8th Brigade in 3rd Canadian Division. During the Second Battle of Arras an action
took place from 26 to 30 August 1918 known as the Battle of the Scarpe. Three Canadian divisions attacked German
defences at 3.00 am on 26 August, with 3rd Division in
the centre and its left flank on the River Scarpe. Within five hours the division had captured
the village of Monchy and continued to advance
against well-entrenched opposition. Over
the four days of the battle the Canadian soldiers had moved forward some eight
kilometres, in what was hailed as one of the finest advances of the Canadian
Army. However, one of the casualties on
the first day was Private Cecil Algar, killed in action aged 26, and remembered
with honour at Vis-en-Artois British Cemetery, Haucourt (Plot VII.B.7). Like his brother Wallace, he is also
remembered on the family memorial in Holy Cross churchyard.
