James David Doody (1892-1918)
James David Doody
Date of Birth: 25 January 18921
Place of Birth: Carbonear, Newfoundland
Date of Death: 4 February 1918, Ayr Scotland
Burial Place: Ayr Cemetery, Ayrshire, Scotland
NRNR ID: 1624x
Service Number (Royal Newfoundland Regiment): 2651
Enlistment Date: 11 November 1914
Served at HM Wireless Station: 1-18 February 1918 or 25 February - 13 March 1916
Position: Guard
Appearance (as described in Service Record).
Height: 5’8
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Complexion: Fresh
Early Life
James David Doody was born on January 25, 18921 in Carbonear, Newfoundland. He was the fourth child of David and Mary (Pumphrey) Doody.
David, a fisherman and mariner, and Mary were married on June 2, 1883 in Carbonear. The marriage was witnessed by Anna Pumphrey and William Doody. It was officiated by Reverend R. Walsh. Following their marriage David and Mary resided on Crowdy Street in Carbonear.
James’s eldest brother, William Joseph Doody, was born on September 7, 1884. Soon after two sisters, Mary (b. 21 November 1886) and Bridget (b. 4 October 1888) joined the family.
Before James reached his first birthday one year old, his family life was turned upside down when his father perished at sea2.
On December 29, 1892, the Rosevear, a “brigantine of 153 tons”3, departed from Trapani, Italy heading for Harbour Grace. She never arrived.
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| The Rosevear set sail from Trapani (1), a port on the island of Sicily, bound for Harbour Grace (2) on December 29, 1892 but never arrived. |
After five months and a report of a major storm shortly after the Rosevear’s departure, the ship and her crew were presumed lost at sea. In May 1893, a funeral was held for the crew at St. Paul’s Church in Harbour Grace. A newspaper article detailing the funeral described David Doody as “an excellent officer and kindly companion”.3
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Photograph of a painting of the Rosevear. Image courtesy of the Maritime History Archive at Memorial Univeristy of Newfoundland from the Munn-Godden Collection, PF-343.0004 |
The following are the names of the crew lost on the Rosevear3.
Captain Moses Parsons, Master, of Harbour Grace
David Doody, mate, of Carbonear
John M. Ash, Boatswain, of Harbour Grace
Josiah Ash, cook, of Harbour Grace
Stephen French, A.B., of Harbour Grace
Archibald Bray, A.B., of Harbour Grace
Lorenzo Parsons, A.B., of Harbour Grace, S.S.
James Lane, A.B. of the Goulds
Following the death of her husband, Mary Doody was left a widow, with four small children, ranging from infancy to the age of 8.
When James was 21, his eldest sister married Stanislaus Kennedy, a local fisherman4. The following spring, in 1914, his sister Bridget also known as “Bride” married a Mr. P.J. Healy, who was a Marconi operator on the Magdalene Islands5.
James was a member of the Catholic Cadet Corps, promoted to a Corporal in 19145.
Enlistment and service in Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve
On the 11th of November 1914, only months after the declaration of war, James enlisted in the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve6.
Initially, he was engaged in service in Newfoundland, likely for training on HMS Calypso. He then transferred overseas to HMS Excellent, a shore establishment in Portsmouth, England6.
From there he served a variety of postings from HMS Victory II and armed patrol trawlers. According to a news article published in 1916, James never saw active fighting during his time with the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve7. In February 1916, he returned to Newfoundland and served briefly attached to HMS Briton (the recently renamed HMS Calypso)6.
During his service with the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve, James was assigned guard duty at HM Wireless Station in Mount Pearl6.
Enlistment in Royal Newfoundland Regiment
Barely a month after returning from service in the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve, James jumped at the chance to serve again.
On April 29, 1916, James enlisted in the First Newfoundland Regiment (it had not yet received the “Royal” designation)8. The enlistment of James and several other former naval reservists was bemoaned in the local papers as it was a loss for the sea forces9.
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| An article published in the Harbor Grace Standard on May 12, 1916, identifies the attrition of sailors to the army. Image courtesy of the Memorial University Digital Archive Initiative9. |
Before departing Newfoundland, James was punished by Captain Charles Ayre, for being absent without leave overnight from 10:30PM on June 22 1916, to 8:15 AM on June 23, 1916. His punishment? Three days confined to barracks8.
He would head overseas on July 19, 1916 onboard the S.S. Sicilian8 just weeks after the tragedy at Beaumont-Hamel. The arrival of James and his cohort would be a needed boost to the Regiment.
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| The S.S. Sicilian carried members of the First Newfoundland Regiment to the United Kingdom. James Doody departed from St. John’s to Devonport on July 19, 1916. Image courtesy of Great Yarmouth Museums. |
Once James arrived in England, he would have taken the train to Scotland with his comrade to the Regimental Depot in Ayr.
James spent several weeks training in Ayr, before he and the 11th Reinforcement Draft set off for the Western Front. On October 14, 1916, James joined the 1st Battalion First Newfoundland Regiment, just outside Gueudecourt, France. He and his fellow reinforcements missed seeing action there by 2 days.
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| Soldiers of the First Newfoundland Regiment returning from the front lines in November 1916. Image courtesy of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment Museum. |
Up until Christmas, James and his fellow soldiers alternated between the front lines and support trenches along the Somme front11. They celebrated Christmas in the village of Camps-en-Amienois. James would not have been granted leave back to England, that was a treat reserve for those who had been in the field for over 6 months11.
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| The church in Camps-en-Amienois, the village where James Doody celebrated Christmas 1916. Image courtesy of Marc Roussel. |
In the new year, James and the First Newfoundland Regiment continued to be stationed in the battlefields of the Somme, seeing participating in direct infantry action at Sailly-Saillisel in March.
The First Newfoundland Regiment then moved out of the Somme region and to the Battle of Arras. They were involved in the defense of Monchy-le-preux. To learn more about these battles visit The Royal Newfoundland Regiment History site and the Newfoundland and Labrador in the First World War site.
On April 23, 1917, the Regiment was involved in a final operation at the Battle of Arras, when they defended part of the front line along the Arras-Cambrai Road at Les Fosses Farm. It was during this conflict that James Doody was wounded, shot through the left thigh8. There were 47 other soldiers wounded and 13 killed during this operation11.
James’s wound was severe enough for him to be invalided back to England, where he was sent to the 3rd London Hospital in Wandsworth8. His injury and hospitalization were reported in the papers in Newfoundland in May 191712.
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| The 3rd London General Hospital in Wandsworth. Sketched in 1916 |
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| News of James' injury reached the Newfoundland papers in May. Image courtesy of the Memorial University Digital Archive Initiative. |
James spent several months in the hospital recovering from his injury. He was discharged at the end of August 1917 and granted the customary 10-day furlough that soldiers received after a hospitalization. He was required to report for duty at the Regimental Depot in Scotland on September 3, 19178.
James spent the next several months at Depot, waiting to rejoin his comrades at the front lines. Unbeknownst to James, that would never happen.
In November, James’s mother sent letters to the War Department requesting that James be granted leave to come home to Newfoundland for Christmas8. It had been at least a year and a half since she had seen her son, and with his wound received in France, she was likely desperate to see her youngest child again.
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| The letter written by Mary Doody, mother of James Doody, appealing the War Department to allow him Christmas leave. Image courtesy of The Rooms, Provincial Archive of Newfoundland and Labrador. |
Mary’s request was denied. James was found fit for duty and ineligible for furlough to Newfoundland. He spent Christmas in Scotland at Depot8.
Sickness and Death
Just days after Christmas, on December 30, 1917, James was admitted to hospital suffering from double pneumonia. His condition was exacerbated by empyema, a buildup of pus in the pleural cavity8. Doctors at the hospital in Ayr successfully treated his empyema on January 22, 1918. He was recorded as making fair progress towards recovery but was very weak8. He would have “celebrated” his 26th birthday in hospital the same day the Newfoundland Regiment received the Royal designation.
Suddenly, on February 4, 1918, James died. The doctors at the hospital believed that his death was the result of syncope, or a sudden heart failure, likely due to the stress on his body from the double pneumonia and empyema8.
Aftermath
The day after his death, a telegram was sent to the Right Reverend Monsignor Felix McCarthy of Carbonear informing him of James’s death and asking him to inform next of kin8. A second telegram was to be sent to Mary Doody herself, once it was confirmed that Rt. Rev. Monsignor McCarthy had informed her in person8.
James was buried in the Roman Catholic section of the Ayr Cemetery with full military honours. Several other Newfoundland soldiers who were in Ayr attended his funeral8.
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| The Ayr Cemetery in Scotland features the graves of several members of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment, including James Doody. The plaque in front also recognizes members of the Regiment buried elsewhere in Scotland. Image courtesy of FindAGrave.com |
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| The burial site of James David Doody, Royal Newfoundland Regiment, in Ayr Cemetery, Scotland. Image courtesy of FindAGrave.com |
Mary was sent a package containing James’s personal effects, including:
1 Religious emblem
1 Religious book
Letter & cards
Photos
1 cloth title (this would have been James’ First Newfoundland Regiment shoulder patch)
Following his death Mary Doody sought to receive his separation allowance and other supports from the government. Widowed for over 25 years when James died, Mary was struggling to make ends meet. Her application for separation allowance indicated that she herself had no income, her son William had no reliable income and was unable to support her8. Mary was living in the house that belonged to her late husband.
In response to her application, she was asked if her son William had offered to serve. She responded with a letter stating that for years he had left Newfoundland to work in North Sydney and never wrote or sent her any support. She indicated that James was her sole support. A supporting medical letter was provided that stated that William suffered from syphilis with mental trouble, and that he was “so affected that he won’t stay steadily at work” and would never recover8.
In 1920, years after James’s death, and countless letters back and forth between Mary and the Regimental Paymaster, Mary received a payment of $400 from James’s allotment. A year later she received his Victory Medal. She continued to live in Carbonear until her death in the late 1940s.
Family Tree
Parents
David DOODY (d. January 1893 at sea)
Mary (Pumphrey) DOODY (b. August 1861, d. ~1947)
Siblings
William Joseph DOODY (b. 7 September 1884)
Mary (Doody) KENNEDY (b. 21 November 1886)
Married Stanislaus KENNEDY of Carbonear, January 26, 1913
Bridget (Doody) HEALY (b. 4 October 1888)
Married Patrick HEALY, Marconi Operator, of Holyrood on April 21, 1914 in Carbonear.
References
1892 Birth Registration, District of Carbonear, page 129. James Doody. Newfoundland birth records, 1891-1897 (a few to 1898), and delayed registration births, 1891-1900, Newfoundland. Vital Statistics Division; Provincial Archives of Newfoundland and Labrador. Online Copy available on ancestry.ca
1893 Death Registration, District of Carbonear, page. David Doody. Newfoundland death records, 1891-1949, Newfoundland. Vital Statistics Division; Provincial Archives of Newfoundland and Labrador, Provincial Archives (Newfoundland & Labrador), Newfoundland, Canada. Online copy available at ancestry.ca
Newspaper Clipping from the Harbor Grace Standard, (Harbour Grace, N.L.), 1893-05-16, “The Missing Vessel “Rosevear”.” Newspaper scan courtesy of the Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Digital Archive Initiative.
Marriage Register, 1913, Carbonear District. Available online at http://ngb.chebucto.org/Vstats/post-1891-vol-7-mar-1913-1916-car.shtml
Newspaper Clipping from the Harbor Grace Standard, (Harbour Grace, N.L.), 1914-05-08, “Carbonear Notes”.” Newspaper scan courtesy of the Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Digital Archive Initiative.
Service Record, James Doody. Provincial Archives of Newfoundland, and Labrador, GN 182.13, Reel 3.
Newspaper Clipping from the St. John’s Daily Star, (St. John’s, N.L.), 1916-03-13, “Reservists Return to Their Homes”. Newspaper scan courtesy of the Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Digital Archive Initiative.
Service Record, Private James Doody, Royal Newfoundland Regiment. The Roomshttps://www.therooms.ca/sites/default/files/doody_james_david_2651_1.pdf
Newspaper Clipping from the St. John’s Daily Star, (St. John’s, N.L.), 1916-04-29, “Thirty Volunteers Enlisted Yesterday”. Newspaper scan courtesy of the Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Digital Archive Initiative.
Newspaper Clipping from the Harbor Grace Standard, (Harbour Grace, N.L.), 1916-05-12, “Amongst the Naval Reservists”. Newspaper scan courtesy of the Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Digital Archive Initiative.
Royal Newfoundland Regiment History. “After Beaumont-Hamel” http://www.rnfldr.ca/history.aspx?item=14.
Newspaper Clipping from the St. John’s Daily Star, (St. John’s, N.L.), 1917-05-10, “Late List of Casualties”. Newspaper scan courtesy of the Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Digital Archive Initiative.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission. James Doody. https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/663451/JAMES%20DOODY/
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