Month: September 2026

On The War Memorial Trail…..The WWII Soldier From Piusville Who Was Seriously Wounded Twice But Survived The War

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September 26, 2026. We love it when a story about one soldier leads to a story about a family member! A few months ago, Brenda Graves of North Tryon, Prince Edward Island, had told us about her grandfather, Cyrus Joseph GALLANT, of Piusville, Prince Edward Island, who served in both WWI and WWII before his death from pancreatic cancer on October 31, 1942.  (See https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2026/06/20/on-the-war-memorial-trail-the-wwi-soldier-from-piusville-who-enlisted-in-the-veterans-guard-of-canada-in-wwii/)

While researching Cyrus’s story, Brenda explained that his son, Everett John GALLANT, had served in WWII and survived the war, in spite of being wounded twice. Would we be willing to research her uncle’s service? Of course, we said, and that led to Brenda and me subsequently meeting with Everett’s daughter Elaine Gallant, who provided photos and information on her father’s post-WWII life.

Born August 19, 1923 in Piusville, Prince Edward Island, Everett was the son of Cyrus Joseph and Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’ Marie (nee Gallant) Gallant.

….Everett enlisted in 1943….

Everett John Gallant. (Photo courtesy of the Gallant Family)

When he enlisted on March 11, 1943 at No. 6 District Depot in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Everett had several years already of work experience, as he’d left school after completing Grade 8.  He’d been employed as a stevedore in Halifax, Nova Scotia for Cunard Steamships, Ltd since 1942. Before that, he’d worked as a farm labourer, with seasonal work in woods as a chopper.  It was noted that he was fluent in English, and could speak French.

After successfully completing his basic training at No. 62 Canadian Army (Basic) Training Centre in Charlottetown, Everett was transferred to A14 Canadian Infantry Training Centre (CITC) at Camp Aldershot in Nova Scotia on April 2, 1943. Here he would have been given for more intensive combat training in tactical firearm use and field exercises.

On July 17, 1943, he was given 6 days of special leave, the last chance he had to see his family before being posted overseas.

….Everett left Canada for overseas service ……

On August 27, 1943, Everett left Canada aboard a troopship in Halifax, and arrived in the United Kingdom on September 1, 1943.  Upon arrival, he was placed with No. 7 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU), a training and holding base for infantry reinforcements located in Airedale, Castleford in West Yorkshire.

The North Nova Scotia Highlanders were based in Fort Brockhurst in December 1943.  (Map source: Google Maps)

On December 10, 1943, Everett was transferred to the North Nova Scotia Highlanders, joining them at their winter base in Fort Brockhurst in Gosport, near Portsmouth.  The Regiment was carrying out combined operations and tactical exercises in preparation for Operation Overlord – the landing on Juno Beach in Normandy on June 6, 1944 – in what we know today at D-Day.

He would have trained with John ‘Weston’ CAMPBELL from Clermont, Prince Edward Island.   In ‘No Retreating Footsteps’, author Will Bird recorded that among “…the officers selected to land in France on D Day with the North Novas….” was Lt. J.W. Campbell who would be leading an anti-tank platoon. (See https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2024/09/30/on-the-war-memorial-trail-the-wwii-soldier-from-clermont-killed-during-operation-veritable/)

…Everett survived D-Day….

D-Day invasion map. The Canadians landed on Juno Beach in Normandy, France. (Map source: https://www.ddaylepe.org.uk/index.php/overlord-neptune/)

In April 1943, the Regiment moved to a marshalling area south of Southampton and continued training….and waiting….

The North Nova Scotia Highlanders, as part of the 21st Army Group’s Allied Expeditionary Force, left England for Normandy, France on June 6, 1944, after waiting in place in the English Channel on landing craft earlier.   The war diary for Sunday, June 4, 1944 noted that “…we are tied up with two other landing craft tank.   The Padre is on one, so he had a church service at 10:30 hours on the quarter deck of the middle craft…”

On June 5, 1944 the war diary recorded that “…at 14:00 hours the flotilla moved out to the open sea and formed up with the other craft taking part in the invasion…”

After landing on the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944, as part of the 9th Infantry Brigade, 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, 21st Army Group, the war diary noted that the Regiment had 10 casualties that day– 4 killed, 6 wounded. (See https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2024/06/01/on-the-war-memorial-trail-commemorating-the-80th-anniversary-of-d-day/)

Everett had survived D-Day but his luck ran out a month later, as the Regiment moved through France towards Caen.

…Everett was wounded during Operation Charnwood….

On July 8, 1944, the war diary recorded that “….at 0600 hours this morning, operation ‘Charnwood’ commenced with a heavy aerial bombardment…” prior to the participation a few hours later by the Regiment.   Operation Charnwood was an Anglo-Canadian offensive that took place from July 8-9, 1944, during the Battle for Caen, part of the larger Operation Overlord. The objective of Operation Charnwood was to clear Caen up to the Orne river and, if possible, to secure bridgeheads in southern Caen. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Charnwood)

The Regiment’s task, once two towns were captured by other troops, was to “…capture Authie, exploiting forward to Franqueville….This phase of the battle began at 0900 hours…. At approximately 1045 hours, when the two villages were considered held, we pushed forward to the forming up point which was just south of Buron…Very heavy casualties were inflicted on us by mortar and 88 mm shell fire…”

Everett was one of the casualties, with a gunshot wound in his right leg.  He was evacuated to England, and then taken by train to No. 4 Canadian General Hospital in Aldershot on July 10, 1944.   He was moved to No. 13 Canadian General Hospital on July 16, 1944, remaining there until September 5, 1944, when he was sent for a few days to No. 1 Canadian Special Hospital in Hellingly, East Sussex.

The Canadian Red Cross Overseas Headquarters received a request for a welfare check on Everett by his family on September 18, 1944, and the Matron in Charge at No. 1 Canadian Special Hospital was duly notified and requested for information.

By this point, however, Everett had been transferred to the 4th Canadian Convalescent Depot (CCD) in Farnborough, Hampshire on September 8, 1944. This was a military facility where recovering Canadian soldiers stayed to regain strength and physical fitness before returning to active duty or reinforcement units.  This was Everett’s home until he was discharged on December 22, 1944, and placed with No. 3 Canadian Infantry Training Regiment (CITR) for additional physical conditioning before being sent back to active duty.

….Everett returned to his Regiment in March 1945….

Everett returned to active duty, rejoining the North Nova Scotia Highlanders on March 5, 1945. By this time, the Regiment was in Germany, part of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division, preparing to capture Xanten, near the end of Operation Blockbuster, in a battle that took place between March 8 and 11, 1945.   (See https://legionmagazine.com/the-taking-of-xanten/)

By March 20, 1945, Allied troops were on the banks of the Rhine River for Operation Plunder, a military operation to cross the Rhine on the night of March 23, 1945. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Plunder)

On March 25, 1945, the North Nova Scotia Highlanders were in Bienen, Germany for the climax of 9 Canadian Infantry Brigade’s role in Operation Plunder.

A few years ago, Alice van Bekkum, Chair of the Groesbeek Cemetery Faces To Graves Foundation, had sent Pieter a list of 39 soldiers from the North Nova Scotia Highlanders Regiment who were killed during the Battle of Bienen in Germany on March 25, 1945. Although there were more casualties from this battle, the list was of North Nova Scotia Highlanders buried in the Canadian War Cemetery in Groesbeek, The Netherlands.

The date of the battle was very meaningful.  “…They died on my birthday! I was just one year old!…” Pieter had exclaimed.  This resulted in a series of stories about several of the fatalities, and a visit to Bienen during our 2025 European War Memorial Tour.

….Everett was wounded a second time during the Battle of Bienen….

Map shows position of North Novies on March 25, 1945, near Bienen.  (Map source: Project ’44)

Stolpi on WW2Talk provided background on the leadup to the battle.  “… As night fell on D-Day, 24 March, only on the extreme left of the forces involved in the 21st Army Group’s Rhine Crossing was the situation sketchy indeed. There, in the 30 Corps’ sector at Rees, twelve British and Canadian battalions, supported by 44 DD tanks had crossed the river and formed a small bridgehead. The 51st Highland Division had reached the edge of Bienen, penetrated into Speldrop and were in, though not yet master of, Rees.

A further expansion of the bridgehead was canalized by the old river beds. Only two openings were available through which led the main roads to the north and northwest. One was on the left at Bienen, a narrow land bridge formed by the old river arm of the Alter Rhein and the Millinger Meer, through which passed the main road to Emmerich; the other was at Empel formed by the Millinger and Empeler Meer, here ran the main road to Isselburg. Both offered great advantages to the enemy defense: they were easy to block and he only could be dislodged by frontal assault.

Early on March 25th, it was decided to step up the 30 Corps’ operation to enlarge the bridgehead, by inserting the 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade,commanded by Brigadier J.M. Rockingham, on the left. The 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade was to relieve the 154 Brigade and continue the attack on Bienen.

All through the 25th the 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade made strenuous efforts to seize Bienen and open up a passage towards the north and northwest, in the direction of Millingen and Emmerich. The assignment went to the North Nova Scotia Highlanders, which was the last of the battalions of the 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade to arrive in the bridgehead….”

March 25, 1945 was Palm Sunday – one week before Easter. The battle began in the morning and didn’t end until late that evening.  Right from the start, troops were pinned down, “…suffering heavy casualties…” per the Regiment’s war diary for that day.  Worse, in terms of communications, “….contact between platoons was next to impossible because of the murderous fire and heavy mortaring….”

The one day battle proved devastating in terms of casualties, both dead and wounded, as they fought in a deadly battle on open ground.  Less than 3 weeks after returning to active duty, Everett was in the midst of his second battle.  Around 3 pm, he received serious wounds that ended his active war service: gunshot wound with shrapnel in his chest and shrapnel wounds in his right upper arm.  A bazooka bomb that had exploded near him during the battle resulted in permanent hearing loss. He was one of 68 men wounded, but unlike so many of the soldiers, he survived.

He was initially taken to the nearby No. 3 Canadian Casualty Clearing Station. On March 30, 1945, he was transferred to No. 6 Canadian General Hospital in Sint-Michielsgestel, The Netherlands, before being evacuated to No. 19 Canadian General Hospital in Basingstoke, England on April 17, 1945.

Everett was still in hospital recovering from wounds received during the Battle of Bienen when WWII ended in Europe.  On May 22, 1945, Everett was sent to Roman Way Convalescent Hospital in Colchester, Essex, for physical rehabilitation and recovery, remaining there until June 25, 1945.

NOTE: For an idea of some of the places that the Regiment travelled through in Germany, and our visit to Bienen during our 2025 European War Memorial Tour, see https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2026/02/06/on-the-war-memorial-trail-we-follow-the-route-taken-into-germany-by-canadian-troops-in-1945/

….Everett returned to Prince Edward Island after being demobilized….

After leaving hospital, Everett remained on light duty in England until January 27, 1946, when he was repatriated back to Canada, and posted to No. 6 District Depot in Halifax, until he was demobilized from the Canadian Army on April 17, 1946.

Edna and Everett Gallant on their wedding day.  (Photo courtesy of the Gallant Family.  Photo restoration by Pieter Valkenburg)

Everett married Edna Mary Gallant at St. Anthony’s Church in Bloomfield, Prince Edward Island, on August 6, 1947, and they raised 9 children.  “…My parents both grew up in Piusville and were neighbours….”  Elaine said.

Gallant’s Scrap Iron & Metal in Summerside is run by the Gallant family.  (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

Everett worked for 14 years for the Department of Defence at the Canadian Forces Base in Summerside, before starting a scrap metal business in 1966. Gallant’s Scrap Iron & Metal is still run by the Gallant family.

A few years before his death, Everett was interviewed for a ‘Memories of D-Day’ article, published on July 27, 2001 in the Journal Pioneer newspaper. “….One of those serving was a 20 year old from Piusville, Everett J. Gallant.  For Gallant, now 77 and living in Summerside, the memories of D-Day have been left behind with time. 

Gallant says the more he talks about it, the more memories come back. He was a member of the North Nova Scotia Highlanders then and a young private in the army.  About a month after the landing he was wounded in France when a piece of shrapnel went into his right leg.  His first cousin ‘Johnny’ Gallant dressed his wound.

After spending some time in an English hospital he went out again to serve and was later wounded in Germany.  He still has a piece of shrapnel in his chest, but he says it doesn’t bother him a bit.

Once back in Canada, Gallant married a former classmate, Edna, and later became involved in the Miscouche Legion, of which he is past president...”

Elaine noted that it wasn’t until just a few years before Everett died that he learned that it was his cousin ‘Johnny’ Gallant, who also survived the war, who had dressed his wound so long ago in France!

….Everett is buried in Summerside….

Everett passed away, aged 82, at Prince County Hospital in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, on September 24, 2005, and is buried in Saint Paul’s Roman Catholic Cemetery in Summerside.

Elaine Gallant by the grave of her parents.  (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

Elaine, Brenda, and I visited Everett’s grave one sunny morning in August.  Asked to describe her father as we left the cemetery, Elaine reflected that he “…was a gentle man who loved his family, was devoted to Mom, loved his animals.  He was a hard working man who would give the shirt off of his back to anyone who needed it…”

Both Elaine and Brenda explained that Everett never spoke about the war, except to express his “…profound sadness at the loss of all the young men who died, including his friends...”

Elaine Gallant with photos of her parents.  (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

Thank you to Elaine Gallant and Brenda Graves for providing photos and information, and Stolpi on WW2Talk for background on the leadup to the Battle of Bienen.  Pieter’s research efforts to find photos and families of soldiers continue. Do you have a story to tell? Email Pieter at memorialtrail@gmail.com, or comment on the blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

….Previous stories about North Novies killed during the Battle of Bienen and buried in Groesbeek….

….Want to follow our research?…

If you are reading this posting, but aren’t following our research, you are welcome to do so.  Our blog address: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/

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On The War Memorial Trail….. The WWII Soldier Born In Samburg Who Lost His Life During The Liberation Of Deventer

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Kalyna berries and leaves. (Photo source: Wikipedia, by Lestat (Jan Mehlich) – Own work)

September 8, 2026. Sometimes Pieter asks me to select a soldier for him to research from one of the photo wish lists that he receives from the Canadian War Cemeteries in The Netherlands.  Occasionally a name is picked because of the date of death and the Regiment, other times because of a surname or place of residence.

 …Jim Kosowan was of Ukrainian heritage….

When I came across the name James ‘Jim’ John George KOSOWAN, listed as being from Kalyna, Saskatchewan, I asked Pieter to choose that soldier.  Why him? he asked.  It’s a Ukrainian surname, I replied, and Kalyna, which we know in English as a viburnum shrub (Viburnum opulus, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viburnum_opulus) with red berries, is an ethnic and national symbol of Ukraine that symbolizes resilience, strength, and the fight for freedom.

Samburg, Saskatchewan is near the larger town of Prince Albert.  (Map source: Google Maps)

Ok, Pieter said, but when he began his research, he learned that the soldier was born on December 18, 1920 in Samburg, Saskatchewan, near the town of Prince Albert, the son of George and Maria (nee Pusta) Kosowan, who had both immigrated to Canada in the late 1800s from Eastern Europe. The Kalyna reference in his service file came from where his family was living at the time of his enlistment.

…Jim’s nephew contributed a photo…

Jim had 4 sisters and 6 brothers, and it was the family of Jim’s sister Rose Sanjenko that Pieter quickly got in contact with once he began his research. When we asked Jim’s nephew, Randy Sanjenko, how the photos he submitted should be attributed, his response was heartfelt.  “….Please just say they are from family who love and miss him….Thank you for keeping the story of all those brave young men alive because l am a believer in never forget….”

….Jim enlisted in 1942 under NRMA…

James ‘Jim’ John George Kosowan.  (Photo courtesy of the Kosowan Family)

On March 12, 1942, Jim enlisted under the National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) at No. 2 NRMA Clearing Depot in Newmarket, Ontario. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Resources_Mobilization_Act)

At the time of his enlistment, Jim stated he was an auto mechanic, had experience working on his family’s wheat farm near Kalyna, Saskatchewan, and was working as a packer at O’Keefe Breweries in Toronto for the past 18 months. In addition to English, he could speak Russian and Ukrainian. His brother Johnny was in the Royal Canadian Artillery.

He took his basic training at No. 23 Canadian Army (Basic) Training Centre in Newmarket, and then was sent to the A11 Canadian Infantry Training Centre at Camp Borden, Ontario on May 14, 1942.

On September 15, 1942, Jim was sent to No. 4 Aerodrome Defence Platoon, a specialized mobile defensive unit tasked with safeguarding critical military airports, airfields, and Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) installations against ground assaults, sabotage, and enemy paratrooper attacks. A few days later, on September 19, 1942, Jim was temporarily attached to the 1st Battalion, Saint John Fusiliers (Machine Gun) in Sydney, Nova Scotia.

The Battalion was stationed in Canada on home defence duty as part of the 18th Infantry Brigade, 6th Canadian Division.  With the Battle of the Atlantic underway off of the Canadian coast, and German U-boats actively targeting shipping vessels in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and near Cape Breton, the Battalion was tasked with key security duties.  The men were on guard detail to protect vital infrastructure around the strategic industrial hub of Sydney and its heavily used wartime shipping harbour. As well, coastal defence support was provided in assisting nearby coastal batteries to deter potential enemy beach landings or sabotage. (See https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/battle-of-the-atlantic)

Military training also continued for the men.  Jim qualified as a Driver i/c Track Class III on March 3, 1943.  (The term ‘Driver i/c’ refers to ‘Driver, internal combustion’. Track Class III meant he was qualified to drive heavy trucks and armoured cars.)

….Jim enlisted in the Active Army in 1943…

James ‘Jim’ John George Kosowan playing a guitar.  (Photo courtesy of the Kosowan Family.  Photo restoration by Pieter Valkenburg)

On October 1, 1943, Jim transferred to the Active Army, enlisting in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, but remained with No. 4 Aerodrome Defence Platoon.  He was sent to No. 2 Transit Camp in Debert, Nova Scotia, where his training continued.

He qualified as a Driver i/c Class III (Wheeled) on October 19, 1943.  (The term ‘Driver i/c’ refers to ‘Driver, internal combustion’. Class III (Wheeled) meant he was qualified to drive heavy trucks and armoured cars, but not tanks.)

On July 5, 1944, Jim was given 9 days of special leave, in what turned out to be the last chance he had to see his family.  Upon returning from leave, he was transferred to No. 1 Transit Camp in Windsor, Nova Scotia.  This was a final staging, preparation, and administrative processing area before being sent overseas.

….Jim left Canada for overseas service ……

On September 1, 1944, Jim travelled by train directly from Windsor to the Halifax docks to board a troopship, which left Halifax on September 2, 1944, and arrived in the United Kingdom on September 6, 1944. Upon arrival, he was placed with No. 3 Canadian Infantry Reinforcement Unit (CIRU).

He didn’t remain long in the United Kingdom, as on October 7, 1944, he was transferred to the X-4 Reinforcement List of the 21st Army Group, and sent to France on October 8, 1944, arriving a day later.

Red coloured soldier marks location of Royal Winnipeg Rifles on October 14, 1944. (Map source: Project 44)

On October 14, 1944, he was transferred to the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, joining them in Maldegem, Belgium, near the border with The Netherlands.  The Royal Winnipeg Rifles War Diary for that day noted that “…a few reinforcements arrived and were immediately posted to their companys….”

The reinforcements were needed as on October 6, 1944, Operation Switchback, the second main operation of the Battle of the Scheldt had begun, with the goal of clearing the ‘Breskens Pocket’ – the German defences around Breskens in The Netherlands. (See https://www.canadiansoldiers.com/history/battlehonours/northwesteurope/breskenspocket.htm)

….Jim was wounded during Operation Switchback…

Blue arrow indicates Zuidzande where Jim Kosowan was wounded.  Blue circle shows location of Maldegem, where he joined the Royal Winnipeg Rifles. (Map source: Google Maps)

On October 28, 1944, during the final phase of Operation Switchback, part of the larger Battle of the Scheldt, the Regiment was clearing German strongholds and capturing prisoners of war in the area of Zuidzande, The Netherlands, near the Belgian-Dutch border.  As part of the 7th Canadian Infantry Brigade in the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, they faced heavy resistance, artillery fire, and minefields, as they tried to clear the Scheldt Estuary and open the shipping route to Antwerp, Belgium.

Jim was wounded by shrapnel from an exploding grenade and spent over a month in hospital. Three members of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles died that day and are buried in the Canadian War Cemetery in Adegem, Belgium….

  • Elmond Joseph CHOQUETTE, born in Mariapolis (Glenora), Manitoba, aged 26
  • Richard Francis GYLES, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, aged 20
  • Leonard Andrew HEEKS, of Edmonton, Alberta, aged 20

…. Jim returned to duty in December 1944….

Jim returned to duty on December 12, 1944, rejoining the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, now stationed in the Nijmegen area of the Netherlands, near the German border, where they remained over the winter.  While based in a relatively safe area, they still were busy, conducting defence operations and sentry duties near the German border, reconnaissance patrols to monitor enemy positions.

They also tackled infrastructure tasks, such as clearing ice on the Waal River and doing road maintenance.  On the day Jim returned to the Regiment, 7 men drowned in a tragic accident when the vehicle they were in lost control on a dike, slid down the embankment and into the water.  The war diary explained that they “…were pinned down under the carrier and were drowned….” They were part of a group of 13 men sent to repair a road running from a local railway bridge back to regimental headquarters.

…. Jim was involved in the liberation of North-West Europe….

By January 1945 the Royal Winnipeg Rifles were still in The Netherlands, and spent the New Year in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.

On February 1, 1945, the war diary recorded that the Regiment was informed of the part that the men “…would play in Operation Veritable…” This would take them into Germany. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Veritable)  The Regiment arrived in Millingen, Germany on February 9, 1945.

By February 16, 1945, the Regiment was based in Essen, Germany, as they cleared German positions in flooded areas of the Rhine flood plain and the Reichswald forest, which is close to the Dutch-German border.

On March 11, 1945, the Regiment began moving back towards ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands and the greater battle towards liberating the country.

….The Liberation of Deventer involved crossing the Schipbeek ….

Movement of Canadian troops towards Deventer.  Note that all first had to cross the Schipbeek.  (Map provided by Edwin van der Wolf)

On April 7, 1945, the Royal Winnipeg Rifles were ordered to cross the Schipbeek and establish a bridgehead as preparation for an assault on the city of Deventer by the 7th Canadian Infantry Brigade.

Crossing the Schipbeek was vital to the success of the bridge operation, not an easy feat as the Bridge was strongly defended by the Germans, but the Regiment was able to meet its objective.

NOTE: For an account of our visit to Schipbeek and Bathmen during our 2025 European War Memorial Tour, see https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2025/10/26/on-the-war-memorial-trail-visit-to-bathmen-and-the-schipbeek-canal/

….Jim lost his life during the Liberation of Deventer…

On April 10, 1945, the Regiment was involved in the liberation of Deventer, a town lying on the right bank of the IJssel River.  With the approaches protected by a maze of waterways, it was necessary to attack from the east. (See https://www.canadiansoldiers.com/history/battlehonours/northwesteurope/deventer.htm)

In ‘Little Black Devils: A History Of The Royal Winnipeg Rifles’ authors Bruce Tascona and Eric Wells noted that Deventer “…was a town of 50,000, which the Germans had fortified with an anti-tank ditch.  The battle began with a night attack at 0100 by the Canadian Scottish on the enemy’s right flank, and the Rifles struck their left flank at 0700.

Over the next 10 hours, the Rifles were continuously engaged, first in pushing back the enemy’s outer positions on the open ground before the big ditch.  Casualties were heavy….”

Deventer was liberated by 5 pm, but Jim unfortunately didn’t see this outcome, as he lost his life at some point during the fight.

On our 2017 European War Memorial Tour, we’d visited Deventer and the surrounding area with Edwin van der Wolf, one of the research volunteers at the Canadian War Cemetery in Holten, The Netherlands, so we were familiar with the area where Jim and Clive Elbert Steele GEROW,  whose story was previously told, lost their lives. (See https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2023/10/07/on-the-war-memorial-trail-the-wwii-soldier-from-burks-falls-killed-during-the-liberation-of-deventer/)

Pieter and Edwin van der Wolf (right) walked along the route near Schalkhaar that Canadian troops took before  they liberated Deventer in April 1945.  (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

….Jim is buried in Holten…

Along with 45 other soldiers, Jim was initially buried beside an estate in Oxe before being reburied in the Canadian War Cemetery in Holten, The Netherlands on December 17, 1945.

Pieter at the entrance to the Canadian War Cemetery in Holten, The Netherlands. (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

During our 2025 European War Memorial Tour, Pieter placed a Canadian flag by his grave.  Unfortunately, on this trip, we did not have any Saskatchewan flags.

Pieter at the grave of James ‘Jim’ John George Kosowan after placing a Canadian flag. (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)

…The Colmschate Memorial commemorates 46 Canadians….

On April 8, 2015, a memorial had been placed in Colmschate to commemorate the 46 Canadians who had been temporarily buried on the Oxe estate.

Memorial in Colmschate, commemorating 46 Canadians, including James Kosowan. (Photo courtesy of Edwin van der Wolf)

Text of Memorial in Colmschate, commemorating 46 Canadians, including Philip Laforte.  (Photo courtesy of Edwin van der Wolf)

Translation of the Dutch text was prepared by Pieter Valkenburg:

They Gave Their Lives

The liberation of Colmschate

During their advance from the Achterhoek, the Royal Winnipeg Rifles, the Regina Rifle Regiment, and the Canadian Scottish Regiment, led by Brigadier General T G Gibson reached the neighborhood of Oxe on Friday April 6, 1945. Next to the house on the Oxe estate (Oxerhof), the liberators discovered the bodies of ten Dutchmen who had been murdered in cold blood by the occupiers the day before. The Canadians passed the Schipbeek via a quickly struck bailey bridge, which replaced the destroyed Swormertoren Bridge.

Despite heavy German resistance, they continued north. Many farms went up in flames and houses were badly damaged. Many families sought refuge in the already liberated Oxe. Some residents lost their lives.

On April 8, 1945, the liberators captured (a small part of) the Snippeling, Colmschate, and the Bannink. Via the Vijfhoek they reached the Crödden Bridge over the Overijssels Canal. Schalkhaar and Deventer were then liberated and with the help of the Queen’s Own Rifles the remaining part of the Snippeling.

Many Canadians lost their lives in the battle in this area. In April 1945, the bodies of 46 fallen Canadians were buried in a temporary resting place opposite the Oxerhof house. In January 1946 they were transferred to the Canadian Cemetery in Holten (Plot I and II).

Two other soldiers whose stories were previously told are listed on this monument:

….Kosowan Lake is named after Jim…

Kosowan Lake is in northern Saskatchewan. (Map source: Google Maps)

In 1952, Kosowan Lake in northern Saskatchewan, near the border with North West Territories, was named after Jim as part of the GeoMemorial Commemorative Naming Program.

Kosowan Lake is located at the coordinates 59°25′39″N 106°28′17″W.  (Map source: https://geonames.nrcan.gc.ca)

Thank you to Randy Sanjenko, Jim’s nephew, for submitting photos and memories, to Bonnie Sanjenko for contacting her brother-in-law Randy, and to Shawn Rainville for newspaper research.

The Canadian flag placed at Jim’s grave during our 2025 European War Memorial Tour was donated.  Our thanks go to Alan Waddell, Constituent Assistant, on behalf of Heath MacDonald, MP for Malpeque.

While we were at the cemetery placing flags, we met Jane Kondakova, a Ukrainian refugee from the Kyiv region, who was living in the village of Holten with her two young children.  She was placing flags at the graves of soldiers of Ukrainian descent, including James Kosowan, to honour them and her husband, who is in the Ukrainian military.

Pieter’s research efforts to find photos and families of soldiers continue. Do you have a story to tell? Email Pieter at memorialtrail@gmail.com, or comment on the blog.

© Daria Valkenburg

….Want to follow our research?…

If you are reading this posting, but aren’t following our research, you are welcome to do so.  Our blog address: https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/

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