Waghorn, Private Gordon Alden

Service highlights

  • Service number: A103282,
  • Rank Private
  • Born 1 August 1920 in Fullarton Township
  • Moved to St. Marys as a boy, worked as a labourer
  • Enlisted 10 June 1942 with the Canadian Active Service Force in London
  • Served in Italy with The 48th Highlanders of Canada
  • Killed 10 December 1944 crossing the Lamone River
  • Buried at Ravenna War Cemetery
  • Remembered on the World War II plaque at St. Marys Town Hall

A Life and Service Remembered

Gordon Alden Waghorn was born in Fullarton Township on 1 August 1920 and came to St. Marys as a young boy with his parents. He was educated in town and, after leaving school, worked as a labourer. The book’s account reads like the story of many local young men of that era: steady work, family close by, then a decision to step into something far bigger than anything life at home had prepared them for.

He enlisted for overseas service in London on 10 June 1942. His training started with basic military instruction and then advanced infantry training at Camp Borden. In December 1942 he sailed overseas, arriving in England before moving through a reinforcement company and then, in August 1943, joining the 48th Highlanders of Canada, who were already serving overseas.

Gordon landed in Italy with his unit and stayed with them through some of the hardest fighting of the campaign. Around Ortona in December 1943, he was wounded in the hand by shrapnel from a mortar bomb and evacuated. Months later, after returning to the 48th, he was wounded again, shrapnel in his right hand, even during what the book describes as a relatively quiet period. He recovered in a Canadian base hospital and rejoined his unit on the Arielli River in April 1944, only to be caught once more in the open by a German artillery barrage and wounded in the neck by shrapnel.

He was a young man repeatedly hit, repeatedly recovering, and repeatedly returning to his friends and unit. By the time of his final action, he had already survived more than most.

On 10 December 1944, the 48th Highlanders were ordered to cross the Lamone River at night using collapsible wooden and canvas assault boats, aiming to seize German defences on the far bank. The crossing was detected and the boats were shelled. A note in his records states that Gordon was helping paddle a boat across the river when it was hit, likely by a mortar bomb. He was killed instantly, and his body was later recovered by the 52nd Field Regiment, Royal Artillery.

Gordon was buried in Ravenna War Cemetery in Italy. He was survived by his parents, James and Ella Waghorn of Thomas Street in St. Marys, his brother Private Alex Waghorn, and three sisters, Myrtle, Irene, and Charlotte. His name remains at home on the St. Marys Town Hall plaque, a reminder that the war reached right into local families and did not let go.

Major battles and operations

  • 1 August 1920, born in Fullarton Township, Ontario
  • Moved to St. Marys as a boy, educated in St. Marys, worked as a labourer
  • 10 June 1942, enlisted in London, Ontario
  • 26 August to 3 December 1942, basic training at No. 10 Canadian Army Basic Training Centre
  • 12 December 1942, advanced infantry training at the Canadian Infantry Training Centre at Camp Borden
  • 12 December 1942, sailed overseas
  • Posted in England to a reinforcement company with the 2nd Canadian Division
  • 19 August 1943, posted to the 48th Highlanders of Canada, serving with the 1st Canadian Infantry Division
  • Landed in Italy and served through the Ortona period, wounded in December 1943
  • Returned to unit, wounded again in the right hand
  • April 1944, rejoined unit on the Arielli River, wounded in the neck by shrapnel
  • 10 December 1944, night crossing of the Lamone River, killed while paddling an assault boat

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