LEST WE FORGET 259 NISBET, George David WWII George David Nisbet, born on November 14, 1916, was the second oldest son of Charles and Hazelina Nisbet of Conquest. He attended school in Ardath where he achieved a grade 11 standing. He enjoyed playing baseball and hockey. He did farm work for his father, followed by trucking in Ruddell, Saskatchewan, and working for Negue Mines in Yellowknife. George enlisted in Saskatoon on August 5, 1941. He served with RAF Squadron 10, based near Melbourne, Yorkshire. Tragically, during his first mission on Sunday, May 23, 1943, Air Gunner Nisbet’s Halifax II bomber was shot down over the Netherlands during a night flight. The plane and seven-man crew were reported missing on May 24. German military personnel recovered George Nisbet’s body on June 7 in IJsselmeer, a shallow lake in northwest Holland. All seven crew members died in the crash. George was 27 years old. A memorial service was held in Conquest United Church where a joint Ardath-Conquest choir led the singing. Sergeant George David Nisbet’s body was first buried near Wolf, Germany, but was later laid to rest at the Wonseradeel Makkum Protestant War Cemetery in Rheinberg, Germany. The inscription on his tombstone reads: “He died for King and Country: gone but not forgotten.” NISBET, Robert Albert WWII Robert Albert Nisbet was born near Ardath on April 11, 1922. His parents were Robert and Maggie Odella Nisbet. He attended school in Ardath until grade ten. Like many prairie boys he enjoyed playing hockey and baseball. His father had passed away and Robert was farming on his own when he enlisted in the RCAF in Saskatoon on February 1, 1943. He served with Squadron 419 of the RAF. An examiner when Robert enlisted described him as “a muscular, alert, aggressive, confident lad” who would become an excellent airman. He departed from Halifax on November 27, 1943 and joined Squadron 419 which flew Wellington, Halifax and Canadian-built Lancaster aircraft on strategic and tactical bombing operations. On a bombing mission to Weisbaden on February 3, 1945, Robert Albert Nisbet’s Lancaster bomber was hit by enemy flak and crashed. Of the seven-man crew, only tail gunner Bill McTagert survived. Robert is buried at Rheinberg War Cemetery near Duisberg, Germany. NISBET, Gordon WWII Gordon Nisbet was born in Ardath on November 26, 1921, to Charles and Hazelina Nisbet, one of five siblings who grew up in hard times. He attended school in Ardath until he was taken out by his father to assist with work. Gordon joined the Canadian Army in 1941 and participated in dangerous missions in Sicily, Italy and France. On September 22, 1945, he was mentioned in one of the King’s Dispatches in recognition of “gallant and distinguished services.” (The “Dispatches” identify a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of the enemy is described.) He returned to Canada in 1945 and graduated from a mechanics course at Technical School in Saskatoon. During his career, he worked for General Motors as a mechanic in Saskatoon, Humboldt and Regina. He married a nurse, Eleanor Beatrice McAuley in 1941, before going overseas. They had two children: Dennis and Karen. Ending his career as a mechanic, Gordon bought a farm south of White Fox where he especially enjoyed his horses. He died at home on January 27, 2016 and is buried in the White Fox Cemetery.
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