RNWMP Trooper Edgar Moore – #7226

Veteran Ric Hall discovered the photograph of a Royal North West Mounted Police (RNWMP) member on the RCMP Heritage Centre website.  Only indication of who this member was  is a notation of his Force regimental number was 7226.

Based on this limited information, a quick historical research was undertaken.

From the regimental number, it was discovered that this individual was Edgar Murray Moore.  He was born on August 1, 1897 at Chatham Ontario and was employed as a rancher in 1918.

With the outbreak of World War I and the active military recruiting initiatives, thousands of young men joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force to serve on the Western Front in Europe.  With over a million Allied and German soldiers wounded or killed at the Battle of the Somme between July 1 and November 18, 1916, the number of volunteers for the Canadian Expeditionary Forces dropped off significantly.

With the high casualties rates on the Western Front, Canada needed replacements.  In an effort to provide for these replacements, the Canadian government introduced and passed the Conscription Act of 1917.  Under the Conscription Act, married men were exempted from compulsory military service.  One would suspect that the Act resulted in a flood of marriages.  As such, the Conscription Act resulted in fewer than 54,000 men being added as backfills for the Canadian Divisions in Europe.

Since the beginning of the War, Commissioner Bowen Perry repeatedly requested permission for the Canadian government to permit the RNWMP members to provide a cavalry regiment in any theatre of operations in World War I.

Finally, on May 3,  1918, the Commissioner was given approval to form a RNWMP Cavalry Draft.

With this authorization, it was decided that the officers and the senior non-commissioned officers of the RNWMP Cavalry Draft would be made up of currently serving RNWMP members and most the remaining members of the draft would be recruited from the civilian population.  The initial plan was that the cavalry draft would consist of 400 members.

Newspapers reported that the RNWMP were recruiting for a cavalry draft for service in World War I.  Based on these news reports, there was a flood of recruits.  Eventually, the recruiting was cut off and the final cavalry draft accepted 15 RNWMP officers, 243 RNWMP  members and 495 new recruits.

Edgar Murray Moore was one of those civilians who immediately applied for the draft and passed his initial medical examination.  By passing his medical,  Edgar was given transportation funds to travel to Regina.  He was

– sworn into the RNWMP on May 7, 1918;

– assigned the RNWMP regimental 7226;

– allocated sleeping accommodation in one of the bell tents set up at “Depot” Division; and

– assigned to one of four squadrons and issued his Canadian Expeditionary Force cavalry draft uniform.

On May 15, 1918, Constable Edgar Murray Moore was sworn into the Canadian Expeditionary Force and issued with his CEF number 2684394.

Extract from Edgar Murray Moore’s Canadian Expeditionary Force’s Attestation Paper (Source of image – Library Archives of Canada).

After being sworn into the Canadian Expeditionary Force, Edgar and the majority of the other RNWMP Cavalry Draft members were moved to the Saskatchewan Legislative grounds.  At the time, the Saskatchewan Legislative building was under construction.

May 1919 – Photograph of RNWMP Trooper Edgar Murray Moore – member of the RNWMP Cavalry Draft.   The new Saskatchewan Legislative building is under construction in the background. (Source of photo – RCMP Heritage Centre in Regina, Saskatchewan).

What is interesting about the above photograph is that Edgar Moore is wearing his issued Canadian Expeditionary Force cavalry uniform but the holster, ammo pouch and shoulder strap are RNWMP issued kit.

On May 30, 1918, the entire RNWMP Cavalry Draft was on parade at “Depot” Division for their final inspection.  After the inspection, the draft marched off to the CPR station in Regina where the draft would be loaded onto two trains bound for Montreal.

The complete account of the RNWMP Cavalry Draft and the eventual establishment of “A” Squadron RNWMP can be found in the following webpages:

RNWMP Cavalry Draft – Part 1

RNWMP Authorized To Form Cavalry Draft – Part 2

Departing Regina To England – Part 3

Dispersement Of The Cavalry Draft – Part 4

In England, Trooper Edgar Murray Moore was not selected for “A” Squadron RNWMP which would go on to serve in France, Belgium and Germany.  Instead, he remained in England continued with his military basic training at Camp Shorncliffe England.

With the end of the war, Edgar returned to Canada and was demobilized from the Canadian Expeditionary Force.  He agreed to stay on with the Force and was transferred to “K” Division.  However, he resigned from the Force on August 2, 1918.

Based on posting this webpage, Ric received the following message:

This man Edgar Murray Moore was my Uncle having married my Aunt Mabel Guy) Moore and bearing him 3 daughters and one son Larry. Only 2 remain. That is Lois Moore-Foster of Fort St. John, B.C. and his son Edgar Larry Moore who lives near Alcomdale, Alberta.

ELeanor Blanche Moore, Kathleen Lois Moore, Della Jean Moore and Edgar Larry Moore were his children. .

My family (Winnie Guy- Adler) who was Uncle Ed’s wife Mabel’s (Mabel Louise Guy) sister were very close and they lived near or around Ed – Frenchman Butte, Sask. (a historical site) was Ed’s and Paradise Hill (LaClair), Sask. Was where I was brought up with my family.

Mabel and Winnie (my mother) came west with their parents and homesteaded what was known as Kilronan, Sask. an area which our Grandmother Henrietta Kingston-Guy was Post Mistress. This Post Office was named after Grandma Kingston-Guy’s ancestry home in Kilronan, Ireland. Sister Vera also came west with them and lived at North Bend (across the river from Frenchman Butte) upon marrying a Kenneth Hougham. The boys Erle and Herbert also came west. Erle was also in the first world war and Herbert was an NWMP in WW one as noted in next sentence.

This information was passed on to me by the adopted (raised by)Margaret Pollock Winnie and Mabel’s brother Herbert Leonard Guy who was also in the North west Mounted Police and signed up at the same time as Uncle Ed Moore. His number one was very close to Ed’s..

In his retirement years Uncle Ed raced standard bred horses in Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta following in his father in law’s footsteps (Leonard William Guy). Ed was a rancher and raised pure breed Herford cattle. The home ranch is still owned by his son Larry and one of Larry’s son’s lives on it at Frenchman Butte, Sask. This area of Frenchman Butte is a historical site and the ranch is very close to what we call Big Hill during the Louis Riel rebellion and Big Bear.

This gives you a little more information on this great man who we loved dearly and who served our Country .

I will be forward your information on to his son Larry and daughter Lois.

Janice Adler-Pashulka
Niece of Edgar Murray Moore

Edgar Moore passed away on May 22, 1978 at Deer Creek Saskatchewan.

If you have any photographs that Ric can include in a forthcoming webpage, please email him at rshall69@shaw.ca.  Ric will scan the images and return the originals to you.