Ernest Ottaway was born in Alberta on August 29, 1912, the son of Ernest Augustine Ottaway (born in London, England) and Lillian Florence (nee Dochstader) Ottaway, of Lincoln Park Avenue, Sarnia. Father Ernest Augustine was born in England, but his family immigrated to Calgary, Alberta, in 1904, when he was 15 years old. He married Lillian Florence in Calgary in 1911 and served as a soldier during World War I. The Ottaway family included Ernest Edward and his three younger sisters, two being Virginia and Ruby Gertrude. Ruby was born in March of 1915, but died 6 months later. Edward’s early childhood was in Calgary, Alberta. The family came to Sarnia in October of 1920, residing at 112 north Christina Street. Not long after, nine year-old Ernest would lose his father, Ernest Augustine, age 32, who died in September of 1921, the result of his service overseas. He had been gassed in France and died as a result of congestion of his lungs.
Ernest Edward Ottaway was a member of St. George’s Anglican Church. Prior to enlisting, Ernest Edward Ottaway was employed in Sarnia as a printer. He was employed for ten years with the Frontier Printing Company, and about a year with the Canadian Printing Company. Ernest, a member of the local militia unit before enlisting, was one of the first men to enlist in Sarnia in 1939, joining the Canadian Army, 11th Field Company, Royal Canadian Engineers as a corporal. Not long after, he was promoted to the rank of sergeant.
Ernest would marry Gertrude Leila Hallam, the youngest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Hallam at Canon Davis Memorial Church, in Sarnia on October 10, 1936. The groom’s sister, Miss Virginia Ottaway, served as bridesmaid and William E. Baldwin served as the best man. After the ceremony, Ernest and Gertrude Ottaway left on a wedding trip to the United States and, on their return, they resided at 413 Nelson Street. At wartime, the couple resided at 163 ½ north Forsythe Street, Sarnia. Ernest and Gertrude would have a daughter together, Marlene Diana, born in April of 1938, and the family would later reside at 149 North Brock Street, later 302 George Street, Sarnia.
After helping to train troops at Petawawa camp, Ernest went overseas with the Royal Canadian Engineers, 11th Field Company, attaining the rank of Sergeant-Major. In August of 1942, after being overseas for more than two years, Ernest would spend his 30th birthday still overseas, somewhere in England, far from his wife and daughter. In April of 1943, Ernest returned to Canada to take an officer’s training course and was pleased to be home in Sarnia, in time for his daughter Marlene’s fifth birthday. When he arrived in Sarnia by train, he was met by his wife and daughter; Sergeant-Major Alf. Luckins with whom he had served overseas; and two members of the Canadian Legion. Although she had not seen her father for almost three years, little Marlene Diana rushed toward him as he alighted with two other soldiers. “She knew him instantly,” her mother said. Ernest said, “My one worry from the time I left England was whether I would make the grade in time for her birthday. Now we’ll have a nice little party.”
While in Sarnia, he told a reporter for the Canadian (Sarnia) Observer of some of his experiences. On more than one occasion he had been close to exploding bombs. He was so close to one that it lifted him bodily, together with the truck he was driving, and deposited both of them in a nearby field, after the truck had neatly cleared a four-foot hedge. Miraculously, Ernest escaped injury. “The bomb exploded about 40 feet away from the truck one night as I was driving to the barracks,” he said. “Owing to the noise of the engine I did not hear its approach. I didn’t know what happened until I found the hole made by the bomb in the road.” He said that he was in London on several occasions when “Jerry came over” as he put it. He said that the approach of a high explosive bomb can be likened to the noise made by an express train. Half an hour after he arrived at an English camp, a lone plane came over and strafed the barracks with machine guns. Just about a month before he returned to Canada, he was machine-gunned again with other soldiers stationed at a point on the south-east coast of England.
Approximately one year before his death, he would return to Canada to secure his commission in the infantry, receiving his certificate at the Canadian Army Officers’ Training Centre at Brockville in July of 1943. He was then posted to Camp Ipperwash for advanced training, graduating in late August of 1943 with the rank of Lieutenant. In December of 1943, Ernest would spend a Christmas leave at home in Sarnia with his wife and daughter. It would be the last Christmas they would spend together. Ernest Ottaway then returned to England in March of 1944, acting as commander of his new unit from April to August of 1944, when he went to France. Lieutenant Ernest Ottaway came to the Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada R.C.I.C. on October 10,1944 as a replacement officer. In a letter to his wife Gertrude in Sarnia, he indicated that he first participated in the fighting on October 16. Ernest Ottaway would lose his life only five days later on October 21, 1944 while leading his platoon of Alpha Company during the Battle of the Scheldt at the town of Schoondijke, in Belgium. The Scheldt Campaign was the first stage of the Liberation of the Netherlands.
In late October of 1944, Gertrude Ottaway in Sarnia would receive a telegram from the director of records in Ottawa informing her that her husband, Lieut. Ernest Edward Ottaway has been killed in action overseas. No other details were provided. Ernest Ottaway would later be officially listed as, Overseas casualty, killed in action, in the field (Holland). In mid-November of 1944, widow Gertrude Ottaway in Sarnia would receive a letter of condolence from the officer commanding the 1st Battalion, Queen’s Own Rifles, relating the circumstances in which her husband Ernest, met his death. The following is the letter from Lieut.-Col. S.M. Lett, commander of the 1st Battalion Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada:
It is with great personal regret and sorrow that I have to write you concerning the death of your husband on October 21 during the battle of the Scheldt pocket. The battalion had driven the enemy from the village of Ijzendijke and was pursuing them into the heavily defended belt based on the town of Oostburg. “A” company, to which your husband was attached, was given the job of “feeling out” the enemy defences in the area of a large farm, which was manned by several machine-guns and a number of snipers. During the course of the patrols that were necessary to get this information your husband, while leading his platoon forward, exploded an anti-personnel mine in the ditch up which he was crawling, killing him instantly.
Although Edward had been with us only a few days, we already knew that we had been lucky in getting an officer of his caliber. We are all very sorry to lose him in this way, as we were convinced he had a future with the regiment. I can assure you that he died carrying out his duty, leading his platoon into an action which we all knew was an extremely dangerous and hazardous one. We have indeed lost a very fine soldier. May I offer you, on behalf of myself and the regiment, our sincere sympathy in your great loss.
Ernest Ottaway left behind his wife Gertrude and their seven-year old daughter Marlene. Ernest Edward Ottaway and his father Ernest Augustine Ottaway both died at the age of 32, each as a result of war. In early December of 1944, a memorial service in Ernest Edward Ottaway’s honour was held in St. George’s Anglican Church, Sarnia during the regular morning Sunday service. Rev. F.G. Hardy, the choir and congregation paid a solemn tribute to his memory, which included the singing of a favourite hymn of his, “Unto the Hills Will I Lift Up Mine Eyes” and the recital of appropriate prayers. Thirty-two year old Ernest Ottaway is buried in Adegem Canadian War Cemetery, Belgium, Grave II.E.7. On Ernest Ottaway’s headstone are inscribed the words, In loving memory of my dear husband who was killed in Oostburg, Holland.
SOURCES: A, B, C, D, E, F, J, L, N, 2B, 2C, 2D