William Malcolm Davidson
31st Battalion Canadian Expeditionary Force
Died 5 April 1916 aged 32
This soldier is one of two commemorated on the Torphins memorial but not in Kincardine O’Neil. William Malcolm Davidson was born on 11 December 1883 at Greenhills in the parish of Coull. He was a son of Williamina Davidson, domestic servant. Williamina, as revealed by the census in 1891, was born at Tough, and on census night that year, she was living at Greenhills in the household of her 81year old widowed father. He was a native of Lumphanan and, notwithstanding his impressive age, described himself as a farmer. Young William was there aged 7, along with other grandchildren of Mr Davidson, who may or may not have been his siblings, and four boarders.
In 1896, William’s mother married James Anderson who was a farm servant on her father’s farm. By 1901 the couple were registered at Balnacraig Cottage, Lumphanan with three young sons of their own, James, Charles and Frank, and James’s stepchildren, Barbara, and Jessie. William would have been 17/18 years of age, and he was no longer part of that household. In 1911 James and Williamina Anderson were at Woodside, Beltie, with James, Charles and Frank, and a further two children Annabella M aged 7 and George aged 4. William who would then have been 28 does not appear to be in the 1911 census and it may be that by then, if not by 1901, he had emigrated to Canada.
William Davidson’s Canadian army service record shows that he joined up (No 80279) at Calgary on 8 May 1915, giving his occupation as Logger and his marital status as single. He became a Private in the 31stBattalion Canadian Expeditionary Force. The 31st sailed for England on 17 May 1915 on the RMS Carpathia – the same celebrated Carpathia that had gone to the aid of Titanic passengers in 1912 (she was sadly torpedoed and sunk in 1918). He made a will on 31 October 1915, leaving everything to his mother who was by then residing at Backhill, Trustach. In November 1915, he contracted bronchitis which became acute, but was discharged to duty on 25 November 1915.
From 27 March to 16 April 1916, the CEF were deployed in actions at the St Eloi Craters as part of the 2ndCanadian Division. Both sides engaged in mining and counter-mining in excavations under no man’s land. British explosives placed under the German lines were detonated on 27 March. Fighting then ensued to capture the craters created by the explosions, in circumstances of almost impossible communications and confusion under heavy barrage in severely muddy conditions with few trenches for cover. Canadians relieved the British in the front line on 3 April. On the night of 5/6 April 1916, the 31st Canadian Bn. repulsed an attack on crater 6. The Canadians lost 1,373 men in the fighting at St Eloi.
William Davidson was killed in action on 5 April 1916. He is commemorated at Spoilbank Cemetery.
Sources
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Registers of Births and Marriages
Censuses 1891-1911
Library and Archives Canada Service record B2329-5024 (birth date on enlistment wrongly stated as 1886)