33 The Royal Canadian Legion MANITOBA & NORTHWESTERN ONTARIO COMMAND www.mbnwo.ca BLACKWOOD, Robert Russell “Bob” WWI Robert Blackwood was born in 1888 in Straiton Village, Scotland, third child of nine, to Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Blackwood Sr. Bob emigrated to Canada at the age of eighteen. He farmed for a while with his brother Hugh in the Basswood area. He joined the 5th Battalion in the fall of 1914 when they were recruiting in Minnedosa, under Major Hugh Dyer. By 1915, he was overseas, and after a tour of duty in France, spent leave with his family in Straiton Village, Scotland. It was there that he met his future wife, Helen Lees Stewart Richmond, commonly known as Nellie. Bob was wounded in action in 1916 and lost his left arm. He was hospitalized in Glasgow and later returned to Canada by hospital ship. After many months of treatment in Toronto, Bob returned to his farm and received an honourable discharge on March 9, 1918. Plans were made for Nellie to join him in Canada, and she arrived with other war brides and returning soldiers in February 1919. Bob met her in Winnipeg, and they were married there on February 20, 1919. Their first farm home was southwest of Basswood, but they later moved back to the farm where Bob had begun, north of Basswood. They ran a mixed farm of grain and cattle, and even with his handicap, he managed most tasks very well. He enjoyed soccer and hockey and was a very keen curler. Bob and Nellie were blessed with a son, James Richmond, on May 15, 1922. When World War II began, James joined the Royal Canadian Air Force as a pilot on July 14, 1941. He was killed in an air crash accident at #14 Elementary Flying Training School, on October 25, 1941, at Portage la Prairie. The Blackwood’s last farming season was in 1949 when they retired into Basswood. Bob died on January 6, 1958. Nellie continued to live in Basswood until moving to Minnedosa Personal Care Home in Minnedosa in 1975. She passed away in October 1985. Both are buried in the Basswood Cemetery. BLAIR, James Hardie WWI James was born in Carnoustie, Scotland, in 1885. He joined the 127th Unit drafted to the 1st Canadian Railway Troops serving in Canada, Britain and France. He passed away in 1958.
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