TRACY/TRACEY
Six members of the Tracy family of Ardbeg enlisted in WWII: Don, Jean, Ted, Alec and Lou.
A composite picture of the Tracey family members who saw service in WWII prepared by the Ardbeg community for the Tracey family.
Top row, left to right: Don, Jean and Ted
Bottom row, Jack, Alec and Lou
Don Tracey was in the Algonquin Regiment
Donald, Tracey born May 17, 1919 (school 1925-1933). Donald married June Baldwin of Toronto.
Jean Tracey, was in the H.M.C.S. on the west coast
Jean Tracey, born January 19, 1926 (school 1932-1938). Jean married Armand Clarence Quesnel.
Ted Tracey, was in the Algonquin Regiment - fought in the invasion of Normandy
George ‘Teddy’ ‘Ted’ Tracey born January 20, 191 (school 1924-1931). Ted married Shirley Gardiner of Owen Sound.
Alec Tracy was in the Royal Canadian Dragoons – went from tip of Italy to Germany. Alec was a dispatch rider, until he hit a land mine in Italy and was sent back to England with shrapnel in his leg. He returned to Italy and finished the war with his regiment.
Alec signed up with his two brothers but was slightly under age. The recruiting officer noticed this. He asked his brothers if they would look after him and they agreed to. So they let him in. Alec met his wife in in England and was married there. They were married before the Italy Invasion and went upwards of 2 years without seeing each other.
Alex Tracey born May 11, 1922 (school 1925-1933). Alex married Sheila Tarrant.
Alec Tracy
Jack Tracy
Jack Tracy was a Sergeant in the Royal Canadian Dragoons.[2]
John ‘Jack’ Albert Tracey, born May 10, 1907 in Medora and Wood. Jack married Lila Mae Simpson.
Lou Tracy said that one of his worst moments was watching Alec riding his motorcycle across and field and hitting a land mine – and Alec flying through the air. He thought Alec was dead for sure.
John Tracy, son of Alec Tracy, said he asked Lou what they did when they got word that the war was over. He said that they sayt down and had a smoke because they had heard 2 or 3 times before that the war was over, but they were false. He also said that other groups fought for three or four days because they had not received word.
Lou, Alec and Jack were in Germany when the war ended.
Lou Tracy
Lewis ‘Lou’ Tracey was born in 1913 at Footes Bay, Muskoka. Lou never married.
Based upon his discharge papers it would appear that Alec and his two older brothers enlisted in July of 1941.
Alec received the 1949-1933 Star; the Italy Star; the France and Germany Star; the Defense Medal; the Canadian Volunteer Service.
Jack, Alex, Don and Lou Tracey
[1] The morning of July 25, 1944, all four companies of the Algonquin Regiment landed on Juno Beach where they learnt of their mission to support the Fourth Canadian Armored Division in closing the Falaise Gap. The Algonquin Regiment continued to fight, as they had been the entire war, under the Cnd Fourth Division crossing the Rhine with the last round up (April 16-May 4) and cease fire called just past Rastede Germany..(Source Wikipedia)
The Royal Canadian Dragoon landed in Sicily on 8 November 1943 and moved to mainland Italy on 5 January 1944. There it fought as the armoured car regiment for I Canadian Corps until being transferred to the 1st Canadian Infantry Division as the divisional armoured car regiment on 14 July 1944. Due to the mountainous terrain of Italy, the regiment fought much of its time there in a dismounted role as infantry. In March 1945 the regiment moved with the I Canadian Corps to North-West Europe as part of OPERATION GOLDFLAKE, and the regiment resumed its role as the I Canadian Corps armoured car regiment. The regiment was heavily engaged in operations in the Netherlands and Germany until the end of the war. (Wikipedia)
