Lester Stoyles went overseas with his buddies, came back with his bride.
Reprinted from Downhome Magazine, September 2022
by Lester Green
At the Church of Scotland in the town of Carrbridge during the fall of 1945, Newfoundland lumberjack, Lester Stoyles, exchanges marriage vows with the Scottish lassie, Alexandria Calder, who had stolen his heart. The war had just ended and Lester, a member of the Newfoundland Overseas Forestry Unit for the previous five years, was completing his work as a scaler in the Beananach camp near Carrbridge. He would soon be sailing home to Newfoundland.
Lester was one of six children born to James and Annie Blanche (Vey) Stoyles of Hillview (formerly Northern Bight), in Southwest Arm, NL. James and Annie were living with his parents when Lester was born on February 21, 1921. James was offered a job with the Newfoundland Railway the following year at the nearby Northern Bight train station, where he became the station master and his wife became the telegraph operator. Lester and his five siblings – Leonie, Marguerite, Alfred, Ruth, and Ray – were raised at the station, which was connected to their home.
Lester Stoyles #2348 dressed in his Home Guard uniform.
In the spring of 1940, Lester joined by his friend Kenneth Churchill of Hillview and six boys from Queen’s Cove on a train from Northern Bight to Clarenville, to enlist with the Newfoundland Overseas Forestry Unit. They were examined by Dr G. B. Cross, were found fit and signed their six-month contract.
In late June 1940, they were joined by George Butt, Josh Goobie, Jonathan Gregory, Max Pinsent and the Cooper brothers, Robert and Doug, at the trains station. Other loggers form the Southwest Arm area – Hodge’s Cove, Caplin Cove and St. Jones Within – joined them, too. Their train pulled away from the small station en route to Botwood. From there, they’d begin their adventure with the Newfoundland Overseas Forestry Unit in the Scottish Highlands.
At Botwood they lined up with other loggers arriving from across Newfoundland to board RMS Antonia and join a convoy heading overseas. The vessel arrived at Liverpool, England, on July 14. The men were transported by train to the camp at Fairburn, 18 miles north of Inverness, Scotland.
Max Pinsent and Lester Stoyles entertaining at Forestry camp, Scotland.
Lester was assigned the duty of logging scaler around the time that there was a change of wages, from a set rate of $2.00 per day to a rate based on the running feet of logs cut. His duty involved measuring the trees cut by other loggers to determine the number of cords and quality of the logs cut. (His brother, Ray, still has the measuring device Lester used.)
In the spring of 1942, the German forces broke through the Western Front, which resulted in the British Government issuing an urgent call for volunteers to form Home Guard units. The units would be selected from the civilian populations and assist in the defence of the British Isles from any German forces attempting to invade.
When this request reached the Newfoundland Forestry camps, many of our loggers stepped forward. They formed a unit that became known as the 3rd Inverness Newfoundland Battalion. Nineteen men from the Southwest Arm area, including Lester, volunteered. The men of the Home Guard were required to train during their spare time on the weekends.
3rd Inverness Newfoundland Battalion representatives at London Parade on December 3, 1944.
On December 3, 1944, the National Home Guard stand down parade was held in London. The Aberdeen Weekly Journal at the time recorded that the 3rd Inverness Newfoundland Battalion was represented by three Newfoundlanders, the only Empire representatives in the parade. They were Corporal Louis Walsh, HQ Company; Corporal Lester Stoyles, “B” Company; and Lieutenant Corporal Harold Wheeler, “C” Company.
Lester was known in the camp for his ability for providing entertainment with his guitar. He and his buddy, Max, would lead in a singalong to Newfoundland favourites such as “Squid Jigging Ground,” “Star of Logy Bay,” and “Let Me fish of Cape St. Mary’s.”
Lester’s camp was near the village of Carrbridge, and occasionally he and other camp members would visit the home of James and Hughina Calder. Lester went on a few dates with their oldest daughter, but nothing serious ever became of their relationship. However, Lester’s eyes were soon fixated on the beauty of their youngest daughter, Alexandria, “Trixie” to her friends. Trixie trained in shorthand typing and was hired on at the headquarters of Newfoundland Forestry Unit camp, working in the office handling payroll for the loggers.
Lester Stoyles and Alexandria (Trixie) Calder’s wedding party, Scotland, October 25, 1945.
On October 25, 1945, they were married at the Church of Scotland, Carrbridge. The witnesses were his good friend, John Goodyear from Foster’s Point on Random Island, and her childhood friend, Elizabeth Lefresne. Elizabeth had married a Newfoundland lumberjack, Jack Lefresnse of Windsor, in 1944 and would also come to Newfoundland with her husband.
After a month of being married, both Lester and Trixie made their decision to go to Newfoundland. However, her parents were only willing to give their blessing under one condition. Lester would have to travel to Newfoundland and find employment first, before their daughter could leave home. Records show that he travelled alone onboard the ship RMS Mauretania in December 1945. He arrived home on December 15. A party was given in his honour and a presentation made.
Lester was hoping to get employment at the Northern Bight station where his dad was still employed. However, he instead found employment in Gander as a radio operator. He contacted Trixie and her family with the good news. On April 25, 1946, Trixie boarded the vessel SS Aquitania at South Hampton and sailed for the port of Halifax, NS, to begin her new life. At Halifax, arrangements were made to get her to Newfoundland.
Alexandria (Trixie) Calder taken as a young woman in Scotland.
In the book We Came from Over the Sea: British War Brides in Newfoundland (edited by Barbara B. Barrett and Eileen Dicks, 1996), Trixie gives a vivid account of her trip across the Gulf of St. Lawrence. She recalls how seasick she became and how she staggered down from her upper bunk, dressed and found her way onto the top deck. The boat was rolling and she stood all alone by the railing, being violently sick with nothing coming out of her stomach.
She boarded the train at Port aux Basques and was greeted at Northern Bight by Lester and his family. She could not get off the train at Gander because Lester was living in a building that was only for men. When Lester got their new home arranged, they established themselves in Gander and raised their four children. Lester remained as a radio operator until he retired in 1978.
On April 24, 2014, Trixie passed away. Lester followed her three years later, on December 28, 2017, at the grand age of 96.
Lumberjack Love Story – PDF – Downhome Article
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Transcribed by Wanda Garrett, June 2023.
These transcriptions may contain human errors. As always, confirm these as you would any other source material