Lt. John Gibson KENWORTHY

  General Notes:

John Gibson Kenworthy, Lieutenant, Canadian Infantry. John was born in Hurst, Lancashire on 27 August 1881, the Son of John and Mary H. Kenworthy, of Tenby, and the elder brother of Donald. He had emigrated to Canada with his wife Iris John Kenworthy, and they set up home there. John had already had 10 years service with the Lancashire Fusiliers in the British Army, and when he enlisted at Valcartier on 7 September 1914 into the 16th (Canadian Scottish) Battalion (Manitoba Regiment) he was commissioned as Lieutenant straight away, and sent to England, arriving on 14 October 1914. The Battalion was attached to the 3rd Canadian Brigade, 1st Canadian Division at Salisbury Plain and during February 1915 moved to the Western Front, taking up positions at Ypres. The Germans renewed their attacks on Ypres on 22 April 1915 with the release of 168 tons of Chlorine Gas on a four mile front held by French Colonial Troops at Gravenstafel, killing around 6,000 men in the first ten minutes. The line broke, and the 1st Canadian Division were rushed into the line, becoming embroiled in the terrible Battle of Gravenstafel for the first two desperate days. On 24 April 1915 the Canadians were still in the line, desperately holding their positions at St. Julien, when John was reported as wounded in action. He was then posted as Missing, but sadly was found to have been killed in action that day. His body was never found due to the terrible state of the battlefield by that time, and so John is remembered on the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial, Belgium.