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Second World War

Heroes Remember

Transcript
Interviewer: What do you remember was your reaction when the Second World War started and you realized that Canada was going to have to fight the Germans again? Yes, it was terrible, it was terrible, and they wanted spruce, so, for airplanes in those days, it wasn't aluminum, it had to be spruce. And I logged spruce for them and they pinned the job on me in the woods to watch for the Japs coming over. They were afraid of the Japs on the coast there so they armed me. I trained my camp, sixty men; we had drill all the time, rifles and sten guns, bombs, there in camp. That's right on the west coast of Vancouver Island of course, you see. (inaudible) Sound. Interviewer: So in your logging camp, the one that you were running at the time, your men, your lumberjacks and lumbermen were trained as best they could be to repel a Japanese invasion if it came. That is right, and I kept them all the time, they were afraid to go to town because they'd get picked up and put in the army see, so they never quit. Interviewer: During the Second World War, did you continue to lumber spruce for the benefit of the aircraft production? No, then aluminum came in and it was cheaper and easier to get.
Description

Mr. Routhier describes his activities in Canada during the Second World War. He talks about the lumber camp he operated which provided spruce for the construction of aircraft.

Harry Routhier

Harry Routhier was born December 6, 1899 in Chelsea, Quebec. He is the third of five children. His father was a steam engineer and his grandfather served in Parliament and wrote the words to "O Canada". He attended school in Phoenix and Mission Junction, British Columbia. He worked on a farm in the Prairies, never finishing school. Lying about his age, Mr. Routhier joined the army at the age of sixteen. After his training in Regina, he joined the 217th Battalion and was later transferred to the 46th Battalion. Mr. Routhier was an active participant in the Battle of Amiens, France in August, 1918. After the war, he worked as a lumberjack, and later resided in Langley, British Columbia.

Meta Data
Medium:
Video
Owner:
Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:
01:52
Person Interviewed:
Harry Routhier
War, Conflict or Mission:
Second World War
Location/Theatre:
Canada

Copyright / Permission to Reproduce

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