Roderick Bissett
In September Neiliann McIntyre told the Group how she had used the internet to find out about her relative, William, who won a VC while serving with the Canadian Army in World War One. During her talk she showed us examples of the sort of records available, on line, from the Canadian Archives.
Noting that Roderick Bissett, from Deans Road, had served with the Manitoba Regiment Neiliann and the WW1 Research Group started to trawl through the Canadian Army Records and found Roderick's Discharge Papers and the record of his death in September 1916.
Born in Fortrose Roderick appears, from the Passenger Records held at Kew, to have emmigrated to Canada in 1907, eventually becoming a fireman. Joining the Canadian Expeditionary Force in 1915 he landed in France in the August of that year The following spring his battalion joined Gough's Reserve Army which attacked Thiepval Ridge in late September, as an integral part of the Battle of the Somme.
Injured during the attack on the German Lines, Roderick died of his wounds on the 28th September 1916 and was burried in Contay Military Cemetry.
