Life on the Ship

Heroes Remember

Life on the Ship

Transcript

Went over on the Louis … Louis or the Britannica ship … the Britannica. And it took us about two weeks to get there on convoy. And I think on the way over, I think there was a couple of ships hit. There were eight … the bunks, the hammocks, were eight high. You just had to kind of straighten yourself out and then slide in because that’s all the room there was. So if you ever got hit by a torpedo, you’re gone you know. But we were all right. We did all right and the food wasn’t that great on a ship. Well, it’s gruel that’s about what it is, gruel. There’s nothing tasty about it. You got your potatoes and maybe gravy or, well, real thin gravy. We called it gruel. And you didn’t get eggs or anything like that on the ships. It was rough, it wasn’t ... you could eat it. Well, you had to eat it, eh, that’s the only thing. Well, when we left we were pretty happy. Everybody was cheering and hollering on the sidelines and we thought it was going to be a real big deal. Once we got on the boat there, there was always these ‘night black out’ drills and you couldn’t smoke outside and no lights to be shone and they give us lifesavers to wear. One of the guys threw his lifesaver over and it went right to the bottom, didn’t float. It was the big cork ones, so we didn’t have too much faith in those. I think we were about week, a week or maybe a little more on the boat going over. But it was all drills, lifeboat drills and stuff like that. They didn’t have enough lifeboats anyway. Now I don’ many men would be on one of those ships, probably eight or ten thousand, you know, the way they stack them in. You wonder wher you are going, you know, what’s ahead of you, but you don’t worry about it, not then. There was no beds at all. Like, say the wall would be this high, the room, there may be six bunks or hammocks all in a row and you’d have to get a hold of the edge of the bed and kick your feet up and slide in. Once the guy got in the one on top of you, if he was a big guy he didn’t get out.

Description

Mr. Baker speaks about his experiences aboard ship travelling to Europe, and the type of food they were provided.

Thomas Baker

Mr. Baker was born in Pearson, Manitoba on October 3, 1923 into a family of six brothers and two sisters. While in Grade 9, Mr. Baker made the decision to quit school and join the army. Although his father was reluctant to let him go, Mr. Baker was determined to serve his country and joined the 14th Canadian Armoured Regiment, 1st Armoured Brigade (Calgary Tanks). During his service, Mr. Baker was wounded, but continued to serve until the end of war. In later years he was honoured as the “Poster Boy” for a local lottery draw held in Alberta - a special recognition and a great surprise to Mr. Baker. After the war, Mr. Baker moved to Toronto, Ontario, continued his education and began a 40 year career with General Electric.

Meta Data

Medium:: Video
Owner:: Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:: 2:27
Person Interviewed:: Thomas Baker
War, Conflict or Mission:: Second World War
Location/Theatre:: Atlantic Ocean
Branch:: Army
Units/Ship:: 14th Canadian Armoured Regiment
Rank:: Tank Corp.

Related Videos

Getting Wounded

Mr. Baker speaks about getting wounded in Italy while riding his motorcycle and how they evacuated the wounded from the battle field.

Being in Battle

Mr. Baker describes what it’s like to be in battle - the lack of food, the fear and the reality of life in the army. As Mr. Baker says, "You never know when you're gonna get it."

The Pride for D-Day Dodgers

Mr. Baker speaks about being referred to as D-Day Dodgers and explains the term. Although being miffed by the attitudes towards these soldiers - some believing they tried to avoid the Italian invasion - Mr. Baker speaks about the truth of their duty and the pride for their service.

The Gurkhas - Beautiful Soldiers

Guard duty was the honour of the Gurkha soldiers. Mr. Baker describes his respect for the Gurkha soldier and their respect for Canadians.

Pride for the Regiment

Mr. Baker speaks about the respect we should have for our country and the importance of taking the time to reflect on the service that was given by all regiments during wartime service.

Date modified:: 2019-04-03