Postcard promoting CWGC’s National Volunteer Program included a photo of Pieter (top left) that Daria took at Cape Traverse Community Cemetery.
September 28, 2025. One of the cemeteries that Pieter was assigned when he became a volunteer under the National Volunteer Program for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) was Seven Mile Bay (St Peter’s) Cemetery in Seven Mile Bay, Prince Edward Island. There are 4 CWGC war graves at this cemetery.
…3 soldiers buried in Seven Mile Bay are listed on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion…
Pieter at Seven Mile Bay (St Peter’s) Cemetery. Can you spot the Confederation Bridge in the background? (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)
Three of the WWII soldiers buried in this cemetery are listed on the Cenotaph outside the Borden-Carleton Legion in Borden-Carleton, Prince Edward Island. Their stories have been previously told on this blog….
Frank Lewis ARSENAULT of Kinkora, Prince Edward Island, was serving in the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, Home War Establishment Unit, and based at the Petawawa Military Hospital in Ontario, when he drowned accidentally in the Ottawa River on September 30, 1942, aged 29. His body wasn’t found until a month later. He left behind a wife and 4 children. (See https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2019/12/14/on-the-war-memorial-trail-the-ww2-soldier-who-drowned-in-quebec/)
Leonard Stephen AVERY of Bedeque, Prince Edward Island, died accidentally in Ontario while on guard duty at the Chippewa Power Canal in Welland County on the evening of August 23, 1943, aged 19, when he was accidentally shot through the head while examining a rifle. He was serving with the 1st Garrison Battalion of the Canadian Army, and stationed in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. (See https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2019/11/26/on-the-war-memorial-trail-the-ww2-soldier-who-was-accidentally-shot/ and https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2022/12/17/on-the-war-memorial-trail-a-photo-for-wwii-soldier-leonard-stephen-avery/)
John Daniel ‘Jack’ FERGUSON of Borden (now Borden-Carleton), Prince Edward Island, was serving in the Royal Canadian Navy Reserve, and on patrol duty out of Halifax, Nova Scotia. After becoming ill while serving aboard the patrol ship ‘Ross Norman’, he was sent to Camp Hill Hospital in Halifax on August 19, 1942. On August 30, 1942 he went into shock from peritonitis. Despite treatment, he died on September 6, 1942, aged 19. (See https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2020/03/04/the-ww2-able-seaman-who-died-of-peritonitis/)
…1 soldier buried in Seven Mile Bay did not have a CWGC headstone…
Grave of John Peter ‘JP’ White. (Photo credit: Pieter Valkenburg)
The fourth grave, that of John Peter ‘JP’ WHITE, was listed as a CWGC grave, but did not have the distinctive CWGC headstone, and the name of the soldier was unfamiliar to Pieter. Instead, the headstone listed the soldier, and his wife, Frances (nee Smith), who had died 3 years earlier.
His curiosity aroused, Pieter decided to research the soldier and look for a family member. It wasn’t long before he came in contact with JP’s niece, Alice Cash Blakeney, and we had a chance to meet her in Summerside. “….My mother was his sister Martina, and she always referred to him as JP…” Alice explained.
Pieter with Alice Cash Blakeney, who is holding a photo of her uncle, JP White. (Photo credit: Daria Valkenburg)
…JP grew up in Emerald Junction.…
The family homestead where JP White grew up. (Photo courtesy of Alice Cash Blakeney and Estate of Bernadette White Adler)
Born in Emerald Junction, Prince Edward Island, on June 2, 1912, JP was the son of John Thomas and Janie Josephine (nee Cameron) White. JP had 2 brothers and 4 sisters, and although their father was a carpenter, the family also ran a small farm.
Front row, left to right: JP, Martina, Dave, Bernadette. Back row, left to right: Matthew, Agnes, John Thomas, Janie Josephine, Mary Catherine. (Photo courtesy of Alice Cash Blakeney and Estate of Bernadette White Adler)
….JP enlisted in 1942…
After completing Grade 8, JP began working as a carpenter. On February 4, 1942, he married Frances Teresa Smith in Charlottetown. “…The Whites were noted as being great dancers, so it’s likely that JP met his wife Frances Smith at a dance….” Alice reflected.
JP originally enlisted under the National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) at the No. 6a NRMA Clearing Depot in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island on August 27, 1942 and began basic training at No. 62 Canadian Army Basic Training Centre in Charlottetown. At the time, he stated he had been a carpenter for the past 10 or 12 years, having learned the trade from his father. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Resources_Mobilization_Act)
Just as JP was completing his basic training, tragedy struck on October 1, 1942. Alice said that “…JP’s wife died in childbirth….”
On October 30, 1942, JP was sent to A1 Canadian Artillery Training Centre (CATC) in Petawawa, Ontario for infantry training as a gunner.
While in Petawawa, JP tried to enlist as ‘Active’, but was “…advised to remain…” under the NRMA, as he was considered “…unsuitable for operational duty…” due to bad knees.
In January 1943, he was granted a 2 week furlough, allowing him to return home to Prince Edward Island. The furlough was then extended by another 11 days, after which he returned to Petawawa.
John Peter ‘JP’ White in January 1943 during his return to Prince Edward Island while on furlough. (Photo courtesy of Alice Cash Blakeney and Estate of Bernadette White Adler)
….JP was transferred to the 10th LAA for a short period in June 1943…
After qualifying as a Carpenter Group ‘B’ on April 26, 1943, JP was transferred to the 10th Light Anti-Aircraft (LAA) Regiment of the Royal Canadian Artillery (RCA) on June 15, 1943, and sent to Tracadie, New Brunswick. The 10th LAA was part of the 7th (Home Defence) Division and JP was posted to the 8th Light Anti-Aircraft Battery RCA in Saint John, New Brunswick.
He spent the next months working as a carpenter, but starting in August 1943, he had medical issues, resulting in brief hospitalizations. Health issues ended his assignment with the 10th LAA and on October 28, 1943 he was transferred to No. 6 District Depot in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
In a November 30, 1943 interview that was recorded in his Personnel Selection Record, he was described as “…a mature serious-minded soldier of steady judgement….” It went on to state that JP “…wished to remain in the service and would prefer duty in his trade…” and that his knee condition “…should not impair his efficiency as a tradesman…” It was recommended that he be transferred to a suitable Home War Establishment (HWE) for duty as a carpenter.
….JP was assigned to the Royal Canadian Engineers as a carpenter…
John Peter ‘JP’ White. (Photo courtesy of Alice Cash Blakeney and Estate of Bernadette White Adler)
On January 19, 1944, JP was transferred to No. 6 Field Company of the Royal Canadian Engineers in Debert, Nova Scotia. He remained there until May 24, 1944 when he was granted 6 weeks of spring farm leave in order to return to Prince Edward Island and work on the family farm. His father had died in 1936, meaning that JP and his brothers had to help out his mother.
Upon his return back to duty on July 29, 1944, he was assigned to No. 6 Engineer Survey and Works (ES&W) Company of the Royal Canadian Engineers in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and continued to work as a carpenter.
Unfortunately, he had another medical issue on November 28, 1944, when he was hospitalized for 3 weeks in the Military Hospital in Debert, Nova Scotia with appendicitis.
He was discharged from hospital on December 19, 1944 and sent to No. 5 Casualty Retraining Centre (CRC) in Sussex, New Brunswick for 71 days for further recovery. On January 19, 1945, he was hospitalized again, this time at the Sussex Military Hospital.
On March 8, 1945, he was deemed ‘fit for duty’. A report on his condition in the Supplement To Personnel Selection Record stated that JP was “…pleasant and straightforward….” and had “…cooperated well and followed the training in all grades at this Centre making satisfactory recovery…” He was assessed as remaining “…suitable for employment in RCE for base duties…” as a carpenter.
….JP enlisted in the Active Army in April 1945…
On March 21, 1945, JP was again sent to No. 6 District Depot in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in preparation for his change in status when he was deemed fit enough to enlist in the Active Army on April 5, 1945. He returned to No. 6 Field Company of the Royal Canadian Engineers in Halifax on April 29, 1945, where it was noted that JP requested to return to No. 6 Engineer Survey and Works (ES&W) Company of the Royal Canadian Engineers.
No sooner had JP been assigned to No. 6 Engineer Survey and Works (ES&W) Company than he requested a 3 month leave of absence without pay for compassionate farm leave. This was granted from June 28, 1945 until September 27, 1945.
When he returned back to duty, however, it was to No. 6 District Depot in Halifax. On October 2, 1945, a few days after returning to duty, he applied again for farm leave without pay, which was granted until April 1946.
….JP died following an operation in December 1945…
JP never returned to his army duties. While back on Prince Edward Island for the farm leave that had been granted to him, he was hospitalized in Charlottetown, and died following an operation on December 15, 1945, aged 33.
JP was buried alongside his wife Frances in Seven Mile Bay (St Peter’s) Cemetery in Seven Mile Bay, Prince Edward Island.
A note on his death record noted that he would not receive a separate Commonwealth War Graves Commission headstone unless the family applied for it. It further stated that ‘next of kin does not answer correspondence’.
JP’s family was overwhelmed, not only by his death, but by the death of his mother in March 1946, leaving his brother Matthew, who lived in Charlottetown and had a family of his own, in addition to managing the farm, as the next-of-kin.
Pieter now knew what happened to JP, and resolved to ensure that his service is acknowledged when the Legion in Borden-Carleton places flags by graves of veterans during Remembrance Week 2025. No flag had been placed by his grave in previous years as no one at the Legion was aware that JP had served during WWII. (See https://onthewarmemorialtrail.com/2024/11/03/on-the-war-memorial-trail-borden-carleton-legion-honours-veterans-by-placing-flags-at-their-graves/)
Thank you to Alice Cash Blakeney for providing the photos and information on her uncle. Do you have a story to tell? Email Pieter at memorialtrail@gmail.com or comment on the blog.
© Daria Valkenburg
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On The War Memorial Trail Research Project........ with Pieter and Daria Valkenburg 