Photograph
Church Lad's Brigade Archives and Museum
Tous droits réservés.
| Nom de l'objet : | Photograph |
| Type de l'objet : | Picture |
| Classification de l'objet : | Man-made Artefact |
| Catégorie de l'objet : | Communication Artefact |
| Sous-catégorie de l'objet : | Art |
| Discipline : | History Local History |
| Constituant de l'armé : | British Army |
| Grade militaire : | Non-commissioned Officer; Other Ranks |
| Unité militaire : | Newfoundland Regiment Royal Newfoundland Regiment |
| Matériaux : | Paper |
| Technique de fabrication : | Developed Printed |
| Numéro d'accession : | NoAccession18 |
| Fabricant : | James Vey |
| Province d'origine : | Newfoundland and Labrador Pre-confederation Newfoundland |
| Pays d'origine : | Canada Dominion of Newfoundland |
| Continent d'origine : | North America |
| Province d'utilisation : | Newfoundland and Labrador Pre-confederation Newfoundland |
| Pays d'utilisation : | Canada Dominion of Newfoundland |
| Culture : | Canadian Pre-confederation Newfoundland |
| Secteur géo-culturel : | North America |
| Contexte culturel : | Photograph |
| Date de début de production : | 1914 |
| Date de fin de production : | 1915 |
| Période : | Early 20th Century |
| Description : | This artefact is an original photo of a section of the Newfoundland Regiment. The photo depicts fifty four Newfoundland soldiers standing on the steps of the Church Lad's Brigade Armoury. The men are standing at attention with their rifles resting on their left shoulders on the steps of the Harvey Road Armoury, identified by the distinct concrete archway that formed the front entrance way. They are wearing the khaki Pattern 1907 Service Dress uniform of the British Army, which includes khaki puttees and black ankle boots. Though the men are in uniform a number of exceptions stand out. One man in the front row is not wearing his puttees, instead letting the cuff of his trousers rest on his boots. To his immediate right a man is wearing a pair of tight fitting leather gloves that are not visible on any other men in the photo. Behind him a man is wearing the caribou hat badge. He is the only man wearing any visible form of regimental identification in the group. All men wear the cold weather cap, with the exception of one man in the back right of the photo who appears to be wearing a civilian hat of some sort. The men carry two different rifles, identified by the bolt and magazine of some, as opposed to the smooth sided lever action rifles carried by others. The photo has been mounted on a green mat that appears to be original. The photo contains an imprint of the mark of the photography company that developed the photo. It reads `James Vey Photographer Gazette Buildings St. John`s. |
| Commentaires : | In the late summer of 1914 as Newfoundland was readying itself for the European war, the Church Lad's Brigade Armoury on Harvey Road in St. John's quickly became the epicentre for all war related activity. It was here that the Newfoundland Patriotic Association was form during a meeting on the 12th of August, and it was here that the Newfoundland Regiment set up its headquarters. In the early stages of recruitment in Newfoundland the Armoury was the only enlistment center and all men wishing to volunteer had to attend to sign up. The original commitment put forward by Governor Davidson was for a detachment of 500 men. The response to the call for men was far greater than most had expected. At the close of the first night of recruitment on August 21st 74 men had enlisted for service, by week's end the number had increased to 275. Numerous men from the cities 4 denominational cadet corps were among the first to enlist. The first man to enlist in the Newfoundland Regiment was Leonard T. Stick a member of the CLB. On August 25th a group of 40 men from the Catholic Cadet Corps enlisted en-masse. By the 2nd of September, 14 days after the call for men, over 700 men had enlisted, 250 of who had been attested. Training of the men began shortly thereafter on the old cricket grounds at Pleasantville on the southern side of Quidi Vidi. The men were outfitted with British Army styled Pattern 1907 Service dress uniforms that had been produced locally. Due to a shortage of Khaki material the men were issued with tunics and trousers only, and wore civilian hats and blue puttees that were obtained from the CLB, who wore the blue leggings as part of their uniform. Though the original men to enlist and be issued the unique leggings were nick named "The Blue Puttees," the puttees were quickly replaced with correct khaki coloured ones when the first contingent landed in England. No other contingents of Newfoundland soldiers were issued the blue puttees. The story of the issuing of the blue puttees has become an enduring part of the legend of the Newfoundland Regiment during the Great War, but it has been challenged in the past. A letter to the editor of the Evening Telegram dated 15 February 1920, by a Mr. P. C. Mars was written as a challenge to the story of the lack of khaki material. In the letter he states that the blue puttees were not used as a substitute, but by choice. They were adopted on the suggestion of Mr. J. G. McNeil and Mars, who were the first members of the NPA equipment committee, as part of a temporary uniform for the Regiment. This uniform was intentionally styled after the Brabant Horse Regiment, who had served in the Boer war in slouch hats, Khaki uniforms, and blue puttees. That being said the predominant explanation for the use of the blue puttees remains one of material shortage. The men in the related photograph are identifiable as men of the Newfoundland regiment, and due to the assortment of rifles they are carrying are probably men from the early stages of the Regiment, though the lack of the dark blue puttees suggests they are not men of the "First Five Hundred. |
| Fonctions : | This photo was donated to the Church Lad's Brigade when they re-established their archives in their new armoury after fire claimed their building on Harvey Road in 1992, along with countless documents and artefacts. |
| Hauteur : | 17.6 |
| Largeur : | 22.6 |
| Unité de mesure linéaire : | cm |
| Nombre d'objets : | 1 |
| Nombre de parties composantes : | 2 |
| Nom des parties composantes : | Photo Mat |
| Étiquette ou poinçon : | James Vey Photographer Gazette Buildings St. John`s. |
| Établissement : | Church Lad's Brigade Archives and Museum |
| Ville de l'établissement : | St. John's |
| Province de l'établissement : | Newfoundland and Labrador |
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