Monday, September 7, 2009

UNKNOWN NAVY: Canada's World War II Merchant Navy

By Robert Halford
272 pages Paperback Vanwell Publishing 2000 978-1551250403
Compared to the well-published achievements of the Navy, Army, and Air Force, an ocean of silence surrounds the long gone Canadian Merchant Navy. Canada operated the wartime world's fourth largest Merchant Navy, almost all of it built in Canadian shipyards.
Second World War merchant marine veteran Robert G Halford put together this interesting work which is composed of historical research, personal recollection and anecdotal input.
Merchant seamen were largely denied veteran’s right and bonuses by most governments after the war with Canada being no exception. This historical slight has now been remedied, no doubt in part by the efforts of Mr Halford in putting this book into the historical and public record. Sadly with the ever diminishing number of veterans every year, it was tremendous that many of these memories were recorded for future generations.

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