Red River Ancestry

Family Page: JOSEPH HOWARD OIG (1896-1929)

Please post comments and queries about Joseph OIG and his family here.

Hi Gary;
I'd like to offer the following small tweak to the description of medals awarded to H41666 Pte Joseph Howard Oige:

L-to-R: 1939-45 Star; Pacific Star, Defence Medal, Canadian Voluntary Service Medal with Overseas and Hong Kong Bars, and War Medal 1939-45

Also shown is the Memorial Cross (aka Silver Cross) awarded to his wife (or mother?). This medal is given to the next of kin of a member of the Canadian military that died in active service.

As always, you have a great website!

Thanks very much Mike – I extended the caption.

Hi Gary;
I've been poking at the available WWI records for 721292 Pte Joseph Albert Oig (the records aren't yet among those fully digitized yet). It would seem he was taken on strength of the 108th in Selkirk MB on 18th Dec 1915 (bottom page 2 of attestation) and embarked aboard SS OLYMPIC in Halifax with the battalion on 18 Sep 1916 (page 13 of the BN's nominal roll).

Sailed for England about 19 Sep. and arriving about 1 Oct. The people in the 108th were then transferred to the 14th Reserve while they cooled their heels in southern England awaiting reassignment to an active battalion in France. It would appear he probably was assigned to the 107th Pioneer Battalion (a group of specialized infantry units) since his "casualty record" (when he died after the war) records him in the 107th BN. He was aboard the Hospital Ship ARAGUAYA 19-29 Nov 1917 while he was invalided to Canada on account of loss of function of his left arm. This would place him on the Western Front probably in early 1917 (possibly in time for Vimy Ridge) and most of the Battle of Passchendaele.

I don't yet see him on any medal rolls but he'd be entitled to at least the Victory and British War medals.

regards, Mike

Thanks again Mike. I have added your comments to the narrative.

I'll provide an update when his records are released. The Library and Archives Canada are digitizing all WW1 personnel and posting them online. While some files are there now, this is going to take up to another two years and until then the paper files are not available.

Re: William Edward "Bill" Oig dit Poirier (1939 to 2006)
Bill is the grandson of Joseph Howard Oig and the son of Muriel Grace Oig born in 1939. Bill's father is unknown at this time. At some point he either married Jean Smith or was common in law with her. They had 5 children using the last name Oig in the Selkirk area of Manitoba. Then Bill either married or was common law with Jane Ann Harkin and had 3 more kids under the name Bill Poirier. They were born in the Edmonton area. Another daughter was born from a 3rd relationship.