Personal Details | |
Date of Birth | December 15, 1894 |
Place of Birth | Horsham Sussex |
Country | England |
Marital Status | Single |
Next of Kin | Mrs Fanny Baker, 2 Rookwood, Cottage, Horsham, England, mother |
Trade / Calling | Locomotive Fireman |
Religion | Church of England |
Service Details | |
Regimental Number | 2125128 |
Service Record | Link to Service Record |
Battalion | Skilled Railway Employees |
Force | Canadian Expeditionary Force |
Branch | Canadian Railway Troops |
Enlisted / Conscripted | Enlisted |
Address at Enlistment | 437-7th Ave South kenora, On |
Date of Enlistment | February 10, 1917 |
Age at Enlistment | 22 |
Theatre of Service | Europe |
Prisoner of War | No |
Survived War | Yes |
Death Details | |
Date of Death | 11 October 1961 |
Age at Death | 67 |
Buried At | Lake of the Woods Cemetery, Kenora, Ontario |
Plot | 7BE-9-3 |
Leonard James Baker was born on 15 December 1894 in Horsham, Sussex, England. His parents were Frederick James Baker (a builder’s carpenter joiner) and Fanny Patching. Siblings included Ernest Frederick (born 1893), Albert Arthur (born 1896), Bessie Fanny (born 1899), William John (born 1904) and Eva Minnie (born 1906). Leonard was educated in England and in 1911 was working as a milk porter and a farm assistant.
Leonard immigrated to Canada in 1913 and got work as a wiper with the CPR in Kenora, Ontario. In 1915 he was promoted to fireman with the CPR. He enlisted for overseas service with the Section #1 Skilled Railway Operators on 10 February 1917 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. His unit went to England in March of 1917 and a short month later Leonard was in France. He was granted working pay of eighty cents a day. Leonard would have helped with the construction, repair, maintenance, and operation of all gauges of the railway network in France. He had a two week leave back to England in July of 1918. He was treated for venereal disease in January of 1919. In April of 1919 Leonard returned to Canada and his job with the CPR.
Leonard made at least one trip back to England after the war, because he married Kate Elizabeth Savage in Horsham, Sussex on 09 July 1927. He and Kate settled in Kenora and had two sons – Robert and Ronald. In January of 1944 Leonard was promoted to engineer on the CPR.
At age 67, Leonard passed away on 11 October 1961 and was buried in Lake of the Woods Cemetery in Kenora.
His brother, Albert, also served in WWI with the 4th Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment.