Remains of WWI Canadian Soldier Identified : Pte Sidney Halliday

Pte. Sidney Halliday (Photo from The Department of National Defence)

The Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces have identified the remains of a soldier who fought for Canada during the First World War.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the Department of National Defence announced that it had identified the remains to be those of Pte. Sidney Halliday of the 78th Battalion, also known as the Winnipeg Grenadiers.

Born in England, Halliday moved to Manitoba in 1915 and later joined the Grenadiers. He died overseas at the young age of 22, the department said.

Halliday is among eight soldiers whose remains were discovered in 2006 and 2007 in the village of Hallu, located in the northern Somme Region of France.

The discovery of the remains was the largest find of unknown Canadian soldiers since the Canadian Forces began its Casualty Identification Program. All of the remains are believed to be of soldiers who fought with the 78th Battalion.

In September, the department announced that the remains of four of those soldiers had been identified as Lt. Clifford Neelands, Lance- Sgt. John Lindell, Pte. Lachlan McKinnon and Pte. William Simms.

The department said it will be working with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, along with the relatives of the soldiers to plan for an interment ceremony.

During the war, the Winnipeg Grenadiers were sent to relieve the 3rd Division in the Canadian lines after the first attack of the Battle of Amiens on Aug. 8, 1918.

On Aug. 10, 1918, the Grenadiers were ordered to capture the village of Hallu. During their advance, 26 soldiers from the battalion were killed and 54 soldiers went "missing." Of those 54 soldiers, thirty remain "missing" with no known grave, according to the department.

The department estimates that of the nearly 68,000 Canadian soldiers who died during the First World War, more than 19,000 have no known grave.