Training in Kingston, Ontario

It was really interesting to get into a place like Kingston with first rate training in the line of thing that I was going to be in. Something that stayed with me and still does. The fellow that I chummed with, he was a clerk and he come from Toronto. Never shot in his life. He could not hit the target. Well, if there was anything I didn't want to be was a good shooter so I always had one or two of my bullets went into his target and the rest went into mine and they could never figure out, why if you can shoot that good, why can't you shoot them all. God damn it, I can't just overcome that you know, and he was happy as hell to get two in his. So we had our joke between us there.

Mr. Adamson tells a funny story about the shooting range.

John Eldon Adamson

John Adamson was born on September 7, 1920. Mr. Adams was raised in the prairies and worked the harvest in the Brandon area before joining the army with his cousin who lived nearby. He was sent to Kingston where he was trained as a mechanic. Mr Adamson had a brother who was a paratrooper and a sister who was in the peace time army. His service overseas was generally focused on maintenance and repair of vehicles with the Royal Canadian Electrical Engineers. He also remembers being taken away from his mechanic duties to ride shotgun on supply runs with rations or mortar supplies. During his service he was injured by friendly fire by his own air force.

Medium:: Video
Owner:: Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:: 0:58
Person Interviewed:: John Eldon Adamson
War, Conflict or Mission:: Second World War
Branch:: Army
Occupation:: Mechanic

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