Celebrity Genealogy      Research - My Family

Honouring My Great-Grandfather: A Family’s Legacy from the Battle of the Somme

Growing up, I was always aware of my family’s deep military history. My maternal grandmother, Anne Crosby, carried with her the story of her father, Norman Crosby, who was killed during the Battle of the Somme in September 1916. She was just under four years old when she lost him. Throughout her life, my grandmother made sure that her children and grandchildren understood her father’s sacrifice—and that there was nothing glamorous about war, only courage, loss, and remembrance.

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Discovering My Great-Grandfather’s Story

After my grandmother passed away in 2002, I began sorting through her personal papers and photos one quiet Saturday evening. Among her keepsakes, I found several precious items belonging to her father.

One was a handwritten postcard my great-grandfather had sent home to his wife and children, just a few months before his death in France. Another was the original telegram notifying my great-grandmother of his death—its language painfully formal and detached.

Then, I discovered a yellowed newspaper clipping from the Toronto Telegram. Reading it, I learned that my great-grandfather had been only 27 years old when he was killed—leaving behind a young widow and three small children, aged five, nearly four, and one.

At that moment, I was 36 years old—nine years older than he had ever lived to be. It struck me how young he truly was. Grandparents and great-grandparents had always seemed old to me, but 27 was hardly old at all. He still had so much life ahead of him.

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A Journey to the Battlefields of France

Years later, while vacationing in France with three close friends, I decided to visit the World War I battlefields to pay tribute to my great-grandfather and ensure he was not forgotten.

Driving through the French countryside east of Paris in torrential rain, we set our GPS for Courcelette, one of the key sites of the Battle of the Somme. Somehow, whether by mistake or divine intervention, we were redirected off the main roads and onto narrow rural paths. Eventually, we stumbled upon a small, weathered sign marking the very area where the battle had taken place—right in the middle of a farmer’s field.

There were no large road signs or tourist markers—just quiet land that still bore the weight of history. As we continued toward Courcelette, we passed numerous Commonwealth War Cemeteries, each beautifully maintained, often surrounded only by open fields.

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The Power of Remembrance

Standing among the rows of pristine white headstones, I felt a deep sense of reverence and sorrow. Many graves were marked simply, “A Soldier of the Great War”—no name, no regiment. Thousands of brave soldiers who fought and died in World War I were never identified.

Yet despite the sadness, there was peace. These men were laid to rest beside their comrades, together in death as they had been in life. The cemeteries were lovingly maintained—silent, sacred places that honored their memory with dignity and care.

The photo gallery below features my personal photographs from the Somme and Vimy Ridge, where Canadian soldiers with no known graves are memorialized.

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A Lasting Legacy of Service and Sacrifice

Since that journey, I’ve continued to uncover more stories of men and women in my family who served bravely across generations. Their courage and sacrifice are part of who I am. I am deeply proud of my ancestors—those who fought to defend freedom—and I remain forever grateful for their service.