02/17/2026
This event is still going ahead tonight at 7:30 p.m. We hope to see you all there! 🏴
INVITATION to a public lecture:
World War One War Brides and Newfoundland
(A Scottish Connection) & Launch of “Share Her Story Website” (shareherstory.ca)
Did you know that hundreds of women from England and Scotland came to Newfoundland and Labrador as War Brides in the 1st World War? To ensure their stories are remembered and recorded, (Trail of the Caribou) Major Michael Pretty, CD ONL (Retired) and Newfoundland WW1 historian Dr. Ean Parsons are giving a talk and launching a new initiative on Tuesday, February 17th, 7:30 pm. 2026, at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church (The Kirk) on Queen’s Road.
THE HISTORICAL TALK / PRESENTATION:
The stories of the war brides who married Newfoundland and Labrador servicemen are
poorly documented. The war brides from WW2 are better known, but telling the contribution of those women of the era of the Great War who married Newfoundlanders is important. Some women stayed with their husbands in the United Kingdom and others
emigrated and settled in rural areas of Newfoundland and Labrador ( at least 2 travelled to Labrador). Later, some of these families left the island to find work in
Canada or the United States with a few returning to Britain. These women, most of whom were literate and wrote letters to authorities on behalf of their husbands who could not read or write, added to the life of the rural communities in which they settled. “As Ayr, Scotland, was a longtime base for the Newfoundland Regiment, many of the brides therefore hailed from that area of Scotland, bringing their Scottish traditions with them. Some are stories of hardship. War brides supported their husbands who had devastating wounds, amputations, blindness and facial scarring moving with them as they came home to Newfoundland. The descendants of these families are spread throughout the Island and Labrador
and it’s their stories, the contribution they made to their adopted country that is worth documenting”, stated Dr. Ean Parson. Whether married to a soldier from the Regiment, a sailor from the Naval Reserve/
Merchant Marines or a forester from the Newfoundland Forestry Corps in WW1all these stories are valuable to document and preserve. There are also
Newfoundland nurses who married British or Canadian soldiers spreading their Newfoundland culture to other parts of the world. We hope descendants of
these intrepid women and brave soldiers come and interact with the speakers adding their stories to the talk, stated Major Michael Pretty, CD ONL (Retired).
THE LAUNCH OF THE NEW INITIATIVE:
The shareherstory.ca website will also be launched at this event. We invite family descendants to the event who know these histories and contributions. We want to record this knowledge in the Newfoundland and Labrador data base so the contributions of women who served in peace and conflict at home or
abroad, concentrating on the Great War first, and later covering all their contributions to the present day are recorded. The public is invited to attend to learn about this unknown aspect of military history. We also hope families and descendent from these war brides who know of such contributions can also attend to add to Newfoundland and Labrador’s historic databases about our war contributions and impacts. ‘The Trail of our Women’ in the First World War is part of our ‘Trail of the Caribou’ story. While some records of the contributions of Newfoundland and Labrador
women to the First World War efforts, as Nurses, Aids, Drivers and Telecommunication personnel, have been recorded we want to ensure all such contributions are not lost (including contributions made by members of the Women’s Patriotic Association)”, stated Dr Ean Parson.
This event will also be Live Streamed on the St. Andrew's YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/live/tbgcQKBtGu4
The St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church History Committee are extremely pleased to sponsor the event along with the Trail of the Caribou Research Group.
Tea and Coffee will be served in the Foyer after the event.
Tuesday, February 17th, 7:30 pm. 2026, at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church (The Kirk) on Queen’s Road.
Everyone is Welcome!
