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Edmond Rollo Mainguy, naval officer (b at Chemainus, BC 11 May 1901; d at Nanaimo, BC 29 Apr 1979). After graduating from the Royal Naval College of Canada, he served in various posts until 1939, when he took command of the

Sir Edward Belcher, naval surveyor, explorer (born 27 February 1799 in Halifax, NS; died 18 March 1877 in London, England).

John Meares, sea captain, entrepreneur, fur trader (b 1756?; d 1809). He entered the Royal Navy in 1771, and was promoted to lieutenant in 1778. After leaving the navy in 1783, Meares formed a company for trading furs on the

Captain George Downie, naval officer, military figure in the WAR OF 1812 (b at New Ross, Ireland; d near Plattsburgh, NY, 11 Sept 1814). George Downie joined the Royal Navy in the 1790s and was promoted to lieutenant in 1802.

Leonard Warren Murray, naval officer (b at Granton, NS 22 June 1896; d at Derbyshire, Eng 25 Nov 1971). Murray joined the navy in 1911, served in WWI and by 1939 was deputy chief of the naval staff.

Walter Hose, naval officer (b at sea 2 Oct 1875; d at Windsor, Ont 22 June 1965). After 21 years in the Royal Navy, Hose transferred to the Canadian navy in 1912. Until 1917 he commanded the RAINBOW on the Pacific coast, then the trade defence forces on the Atlantic coast in 1917-18.

Sir Charles Edmund Kingsmill, naval officer, public servant (b at Guelph, Canada W 7 July 1855; d at Portland, Ont 15 July 1935). He joined the Royal Navy as a midshipman in 1869, served in the Sudan in 1884 and as British vice-consul and agent at Zeyla, Aden.

William Moss Landymore, naval officer (born 31 July 1916 in Brantford, ON; died 27 November 2008 in ​Halifax, ​NS).

Sir Richard Henry Bonnycastle, soldier, author (b in Eng 1791; d at Kingston, Canada W 2 Nov 1847). Educated at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, Bonnycastle entered the Royal Engineers as an officer, serving in the WAR OF 1812.

Jack Hamilton (Jake) Warren, OC, public servant, diplomat, business executive (born 10 April 1921 in Howard Township, ON; died in April 2008 in Ottawa, ON).

During the Second World War, Sheila Elizabeth Whitton was a coder for the Canadian Navy. Whitton was sent to England in preparation for D-Day to work on coding machines instrumental to the Allies’ success. Read and listen to Whitton’s recount of the loss of her husband in the war and the resilience she had to put forward.

Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.

Sir Henry Kellett, naval officer, arctic explorer (b at Clonabody, Ire 2 Nov 1806; d there 1 Mar 1875). Kellett joined the British navy in 1822 and served in the West Indies and on survey vessels in Africa, the Far East and Central America.

Sir Francis Leopold McClintock, explorer (b at Dundalk, Ire 8 July 1819; d at London, Eng 17 Nov 1907). One of the British navy's most experienced arctic explorers, he participated in several expeditions to search for Sir John FRANKLIN.

Sir George Strong Nares, naval officer, Arctic explorer (born 1831 at Clytha, Wales; died 15 January 1915 at Kingston upon Thames, England).

Sir William Edward Parry, naval officer, Arctic explorer (born 19 December 1790 in Bath, England; died 8 or 9 July 1855 in Bad Ems, present-day Germany).

James Alexander Gordon, naval commander (b 1782; d 1869).

Robert Heriot Barclay, naval officer (b at Kettle [Kettlehill], Scotland, 18 Sep 1786; d at Edinburgh 8 May 1837). Robert Barclay was only 11 when he began his naval career in 1798, joining the crew of the 44-gun ship Anson as a midshipman.

Sir James Lucas Yeo, naval commander (b at Hampshire, Eng, 7 Oct 1782; d at sea 21 Aug 1818). The eldest son of a naval victualler, James Lucas Yeo left school to volunteer for the Royal Navy at age 10. Within four years he had risen to the rank of acting lieutenant.

William Howe Mulcaster, Royal Navy officer, military figure in the WAR OF 1812 (b 1785; d at Dover, Kent, England, 2 Mar 1837). William Mulcaster joined the Royal Navy as a midshipman when he was 10 years old and immediately saw action against the French.

Women served in the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) throughout the Cold War. Known for much of this period as “Wrens,” they played an important role in RCN missions and operations, including antisubmarine warfare. In 1951, the Canadian Naval Reserve began recruiting women into the service. Women could join the regular navy beginning in 1955; the RCN was the first Commonwealth navy to integrate women into the permanent force. For many years, Wrens served in shore-based branches and trades, including stores, communications, intelligence, submarine detection and in the medical services. By the end of the Cold War, all naval trades and occupations, except submarine service, were open to women. (See also Canada and the Cold War; Women in the Military.)