SOLDIER DETAILS:
Turrell,
Russell Brandon
Private 164th Battalion 663124
January 28, 1918
Bramshott
(St. Mary) Churchyard, Hampshire, United Kingdom
Son of John and Kathleen Turrell of Milton
Maple
Leaf Legacy Project
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Victoria Park Cenotaph
R. Laughton
%20Churchyard.jpg)
Bramshott Churchyard
Commonwealth War Graves
Photo courtesy Peter Bennett of
the Great War Forum
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Private Turrell
is remembered on the Victoria Park Cenotaph in Milton
ON.
Private
Turrell is buried in the Bramshott cemetery in England
(near #12 Canadian General Hospital).
He
suffered a minor accident while in England, leading to a
major infection that claimed his life. Regardless, he
died while on duty for Canada.
I. D. 4. |
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| Other Links: none at this time |
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SOLDIER SUMMARY:
| Private Turrell was the son of John and Catherine
Turrell of Milton, Ontario and like many other local boys he
attested to the 164th Infantry Battalion. He joined the unit on
January 24, 1916. While in England he was transferred to
the 2nd Canadian Reserve Battalion. He was then taken on
strength with the C.M.G.D. (Canadian Machine Gun Corps Depot) on
May 12, 1917 then sent back to the 164th on June 11, 1917.
He was a teamster by trade and died as a result of his work
to support the CEF while on service in England. He was cutting
wood with his axe, when a piece of stone struck him in the jaw,
resulting in a fracture of the mandible and severe bleeding.
Private Turrell's records show he died at 1:33 pm on Monday
January 28, 1918 after many days of a high fever. The doctors
were making an incision under light anesthetic on his infected
wound at the time, as he was experiencing excessive swelling
over his upper body. He had suffered a major contusion to
his face while cutting wood, leading to a Leoffler
Bacillus infection (diphtheria) after surgery to drain
the inflamed area.
It was initially reported he died of "Gas
Gangrene" however after the autopsy the report of death
was changed to "Erysipelas"
(cellulites caused by a streptococci infection). |
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The soldier pages contain information
that is available from a number of resources. The following hyperlinks
are active where the information is available:
The summary of the service is taken from
the soldier's service records, if they were available from Library and
Archives Canada. A complete copy of the service record is
available in electronic and paper format in the Alex
Cooke Memorial Archives at the Milton Historical Society.
Using that summary, combined with the key references, a summary of the
events leading up to the death of the soldier has been prepared.
The research information available is as noted on the Canadian
Expeditionary Force Study Group web site Matrix
Project as well as in the Library and Archives Canada On-Line
War Diaries.
A summary of all the soldiers is
contained on the Web Blog "Great
War Soldiers of Milton, Ontario CANADA". Please also
be sure to purchase your own copy of "Milton
Remembers World War I - The Men and Women We Never Knew" by
John Challinor II and Jim Dills, edited by Ken Lamb. |
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