The late Wilf Falconer, who worked for the Brandon Sun
for a short period after WWII,
wrote a history of the batteries
that were involved in the war.
As most histories mention the artillery regiments
but not the batteries, his book "Battery Flashes,"
took several years of his retirement to write.
It also involved many trips to Ottawa and
other areas for research.
As he was writing he made a model of the Canadian Army
using cap badges and shoulder flashes.
When the book was completed he brought his model
from his home in Victoria to Brandon and
donated it to the museum.
It is used regularly for research.

We felt a need to show people what had to be
worn at different periods of time and
this seemed to be the best selection.

The cap badges in this display are all from the British Army -
each one with its own distinguished history.

Cap badges of various regiments
are represented in this photo,
each one having its own history.
Collecting cap badges was a hobby that
a lot of military men liked to pursue.

Corporal Curter, a Brandon boy, worked at the
Mental Hospital before enlisting.
He was wounded in the face, arm and leg
but was able to walk to the rear
for bandaging and transport to a hospital.
An alert photographer took his picture
as a medical officer was assisting him.
This picture, which is in the Ottawa Archives,
is often used for newspaper articles, etc.

This picture and medals are from Robert Limb.
His ribbons indicate that he served in South Africa
and had received the
Queen's South African medal
and the King Edward South African medal --
although the medals did not come with his first war medals.
He served with the Fifth Canadian Railways Troop
during the war and he is buried in Saskatoon.

The collection of hats in the museum cover
a period from the early 1800s to present.

The picture shows a pair of spatts.
A gentleman who wore oxfords found it cold around the ankles and
he would put on his spats to go out.
Army officers usually wore oxfords.
The fad died out in the thirties -- maybe the winters just weren't as cold.

Copyright 1996-2001 Bill Hillman