December 6, 1917. The day began like any other for John Henry McVittie, a member of the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve stationed aboard the HMCS Margaret. Stoking coal, McVittie fuelled the ship as it patrolled the coastline, searching for enemy vessels and submarines.
The lurking threat a German presence loomed large, but the waters were still, calm SA国际影视传媒� far from the theatres of war that clamoured and clapped an ocean away. Then, just after 9 a.m., the war came to Halifax Harbour SA国际影视传媒� and to McVittie.
"9:10. Terrible explosion of munition shipSA国际影视传媒A国际影视传媒� the shipSA国际影视传媒檚 log sheet read.
The scribblings, etched into history, document the Halifax Explosion, when the SS Mont-Blanc, a French cargo ship packed with explosives, collided the SS Imo in a narrow straight along the harbour. Flames quickly engulfed Mont-Blanc, its cargo exploded, and, in the blink of an eye, a wave of fire and destruction flattened large swathes of the bustling port city. Nearly 2,000 were dead, another 9,000 left injured SA国际影视传媒� and, among the survivors, stood McVittie.
Now, 100 years later and thousands of kilometres away, a family member of McVittie is remembering that fateful day SA国际影视传媒� and the "nice, peaceful guy," that was thrust into the grip of war and into the history books that followed.
SA国际影视传媒淲hen we were kids, I can remember people in our family saying, 'John was in the Halifax Explosion',SA国际影视传媒� said Brian Latham, nephew of McVittie and longtime Yellowknife resident. SA国际影视传媒淏ut, I didnSA国际影视传媒檛 talk to him about it. HistorySA国际影视传媒檚 standing right in front of me and I didnSA国际影视传媒檛 go and ask him.SA国际影视传媒�
Appreciating the gravity of the event
Latham's inability to truly appreciate the gravity of the event as a child, coupled with McVittie's reluctance to openly share his experience, he said, meant the deadly blast was rarely mentioned during their time together.
After McVittie died quietly in his home on St. James Island, Ont., in 1969, history was no longer right in front of Latham, no longer teaching him how to shoot a rifle, no longer fixing his broken toys. But, history endured.
It was buried in books, tucked away in reports and documents. It lived in photos and clippings. Through his love of genealogy, Latham asked the questions that youthful naivety couldn't.
"It came from doing family history. Records are easily obtained nowadays. I had to add the meat on the bones, by what people remember, by what I remember,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
Little by little, Latham's questions were answered, as his piecing together of the past revealed more details about his uncle's experience during the seminal December day. Latham learned that records described a chaotic scene on-board the Margaret after the explosion occurred two kilometres away from the vessel, with crashing tidal waves, shattered windows, broken doors and the ship becoming unmoored. Every on-board crew member survived, but two servicemen on shore were killed in the blast. At 9:35 a.m., the captain and navy administered first aid on the ship and then in the dockyard. By 11:00 a.m., McVittie was back to his regular on-board responsibilities, because it was his "duty" Latham said.
But Latham's genealogical digging unearthed more about McVittie than what transpired that harrowing winter day. According to Latham, his uncle was due to sail on the Titanic, but a quirk of fate left him off the ship. Before joining the volunteer navy reserve, McVittie, it was discovered, worked as an orderly in a hospital, too.
"You begin to understand him. I didn't talk to him about this so I didn't totally understand him SA国际影视传媒� now I can understand," said Latham.
The material clues he picked up along the way, in record books and log sheets, Latham said, often complimented the memories of his uncle he still holds today. For instance, it wasn't until after learning of McVittie's days as an orderly that Latham remembered his uncle's habit of washing his hands all the way up to his elbows.
"Like the hand washing SA国际影视传媒� it came to me in the middle of the night, the pieces just fell into place," he said. " Everything he did made him the man that we knew.SA国际影视传媒�
His idiosyncrasies, his crack-shot with a rifle, his strength into his eighties and his kindness SA国际影视传媒� it's the little things that are conjured to mind when Latham hears his uncle's name. And, of course, he remembers Dec. 6, 1917.
"I think itSA国际影视传媒檚 a lesson to be learned. Fighting doesnSA国际影视传媒檛 really get you anywhere," said Latham. " Things like Remembrance Day are really important but itSA国际影视传媒檚 important to remember what the product was, and that was SA国际影视传媒� we get along.SA国际影视传媒�
While Canadians will mark the 100th anniversary of the Halifax Explosion in their own ways, Latham said that by sharing his uncle's story, he hopes he can "keep his memory alive."
