Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

"MACDIARMID" WW1 SET

Date Range From

1914

Date Range To

1919

Materials

SILVER, COPPER, SILK

No. Pieces

1

Length

10.3

Width

7

Description

TWO FIRST WORLD WAR MEDALS MOUNTED TO BLACK FELT-BOARD BACKING. LEFT MEDAL IS THE BRITISH WAR MEDAL AND DISPLAYS THE MEDAL BACK, WITH AN EMBOSSED PROFILE OF KING GEORGE V AND EMBOSSED TEXT AROUND EDGES “GEORGIVS V BRITT: OMN: REX ET IND: IMP:”. MEDAL HAS ENGRAVED TEXT ALONG LOWER RIM, “737170, SJT. J. MACDIARMID. 43-CAN. INF.” RIGHT MEDAL IS THE ALLIED VICTORY MEDAL AND DISPLAYS THE MEDAL FRONT, WITH AN EMBOSSED DEPICTION OF VICTORY AS A WINGED WOMAN; MEDAL HAS ENGRAVED TEXT AROUND LOWER RIM, “737170 SGT. J. MACDIARMID. 43-CAN. INF.” BRITISH WAR MEDAL IS FIXED TO SILK RIBBON WITH SILVER BAR; RIBBON HAS SEVEN BANDS OF COLOUR: BLUE, BLACK, WHITE, ORANGE CENTER, WHITE, BLACK, ORANGE. ALLIED VICTORY MEDAL IS FIXED TO SILK RIBBON WITH BRONZE RING; RIBBON HAS STRIPES IN RAINBOW COLOURS BEGINNING WITH VIOLET AT LEFT EDGE, PROGRESSING TO RED IN CENTER, AND PROGRESSING TO VIOLET AT RIGHT EDGE. BRITISH WAR MEDAL IS SILVER AND HEAVILY TARNISHED; ALLIED VICTORY MEDAL IS COPPER WITH BRONZE LAQUER; VICTORY MEDAL SHOWS WEAR ON FRONT AND AROUND EDGES. VICTORY MEDAL RIBBON HAS WEAR ALONG RIGHT EDGE; FELT BACKING HAS MINOR SOILING; OVERALL VERY GOOD CONDITION.

Subjects

PERSONAL SYMBOL

Historical Association

MILITARY

History

ACCORDING TO HIS CANADIAN MILITARY SERVICE FILE, JOHN MACDIARMID ENLISTED WITH THE 113TH OVERSEAS BATTALION (LETHBRIDGE HIGHLANDERS) ON AUGUST 22, 1916. MACDIARMID WAS TRANSFERRED TO THE 17TH BATTALION ON OCTOBER 8, 1916, AFTER SAILING FROM CANADA OVERSEAS ON SEPTEMBER 25, 1916 WITH HIS UNIT. MACDIARMID WAS TAKEN ON STRENGTH WITH THE 43RD CANADIAN RESERVE BATTALION SERVING IN FRANCE ON OCTOBER 27, 1916. MACDIARMID WAS DISCHARGED FROM SERVICE IN MAY 1919. A MEMO RECEIVED AND INCLUDED WITH HIS SERVICE FILE INDICATES THAT JOHN MACDIARMID PASSED AWAY ON NOVEMBER 26, 1968 AT THE SHAUGHNESSY HOSPITAL IN VANCOUVER, B.C. ON MARCH 28, 2019, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN KEVIN MACLEAN INTERVIEWED CAROL AND BRETT CLIFTON REGARDING THEIR DONATION OF VARIOUS LETHBRIDGE AND MILITARY MEMORABILIA. THE OBJECTS WERE COLLECTED BY CAROL’S LATE HUSBAND, CHRIS CLIFTON, AND DONATED IN HIS MEMORY. ON THE MEDALS, CAROL CLIFTON NOTED, “[CHRIS WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THE IMPORTANT OBJECTS WERE] THE THINGS WITH NAMES ATTACHED. HE WOULD LEAVE THE TRAY BECAUSE HE DIDN’T KNOW WHERE THE TRAY CAME FROM; BUT HE WOULD HAVE TAKEN THE MEDAL, BECAUSE IT HAD A NAME ATTACHED TO IT AND IT’S NOT REPLACEABLE. THINGS WITH NAMES ATTACHED LIKE THAT, IT’S NOT LIKE YOU’RE GOING TO FIND THAT GUY’S MEDAL EVER AGAIN.” ON CHRIS CLIFTON’S ACQUISITIONS OF THE OBJECTS, CAROL CLIFTON NOTED, “[CHRIS SEARCHED ON] AUCTION WEB…HE WAS A VERY EARLY USER. THESE THINGS COST MONEY. CHRIS AND I WERE ALWAYS LIKE, ‘OH WELL, ONE DAY WE’LL DONATE THEM AND IT’LL BE OUR GIFT TO CHARITY...’” “MUCH OF THE REST [OF THE COLLECTION] WAS FOUND BY CHRIS ON EBAY…IT COULD BE THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT [AND CHRIS WOULD SAY], ‘HEY, BRETT, GUESS WHAT’S ON EBAY?’” “HE DIDN’T THINK TWICE. IF [AN ITEM] WAS THERE AND HE COULD AFFORD IT, HE GOT IT...IT WAS LIKE HE FELT LIKE HE WAS SAVING IT. I SUPPOSE, AS A MUSEUM, YOU CAN’T NECESSARILY JUST BUY WITH THAT ABANDON BECAUSE YOU HAVE PEOPLE YOU HAVE TO ANSWER TO. WELL, HE DIDN’T HAVE TO ANSWER TO ANYONE...IF HE FELT IT BELONGED IN LETHBRIDGE HE BOUGHT IT...[HE WAS] BRINGING IT HOME.” ON THEIR MOTIVES FOR DONATING THE COLLECTIONS, CAROL CLIFTON NOTED, “THE FIRST REASON THAT WE DECIDED TO DONATE AT THIS TIME…IS THAT WE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE A NICE WAY TO HONOUR [CHRIS] TO MAKE SURE THAT THE COLLECTION ALWAYS STAYED IN SOUTHERN ALBERTA AND THAT IT’S AVAILABLE TO PEOPLE WITH SIMILAR INTERESTS. [THE DONATION] WOULD BE SOMETHING IN HIS MEMORY THAT WOULD KEEP HIS MEMORY ALIVE.” ON HER HUSBAND’S INTEREST IN SOUTHERN ALBERTA HISTORY, CAROL CLIFTON ELABORATED, “CHRIS PASSED AWAY…[HE] REALLY MADE US INTERESTED IN HISTORY. FOR HIM IT WAS ALL ABOUT LOCAL HISTORY, SO ANYTHING THAT HE COLLECTED HAD A LETHBRIDGE OR SOUTHERN ALBERTA CONNECTION OR HE DIDN’T COLLECT IT. HE LIKED TO RESEARCH THEM.” “[CHRIS] WAS VERY PROUD TO HAVE BEEN RAISED MORMON FROM A MORMON FAMILY THAT HAD DEEP PIONEER ROOTS INTO UTAH, AND WERE ORIGINALS TO UTAH AND ORIGINALS TO SOUTHERN ALBERTA. ALONG WITH THAT MORMONS…REALLY ENCOURAGE HISTORY IN TERMS OF COLLECTING THEIR ARTIFACTS OR RELIGIOUS ARTIFACTS, AND GENEALOGY. [CHRIS DID] ALL OF HIS OWN GENEALOGY AND HE WOULD DO GENEALOGY FOR ANYONE HE KNEW. WE JUST LITERALLY HAVE REAMS OF PERSONAL HISTORY AND GENEALOGY IN THAT FORM. IT GREW FROM THERE. [CHRIS] WAS A COLLECTOR AT HEART, HE BEGAN COIN COLLECTING AND DID A LOT OF WORK FOUNDING A NUMISMATICS SOCIETY IN TOWN AND BELONGED TO SEVERAL, AND DISPLAYED ON A NATIONAL LEVEL.” “IN TERMS OF THE MILITARY ITEMS, I WOULD SAY [HIS INTEREST BEGAN] WITH HIS DAD BEING FROM THE CALGARY TANK REGIMENT IN DIEPPE AND A PRISONER OF WAR. HIS DAD’S MOTHER HAD SAVED A BUNCH OF ITEMS AND BEFORE CHRIS’ DAD PASSED AWAY, HE GAVE EVERYTHING TO CHRIS…THAT KIND OF FOSTERED [HIS INTEREST IN MILITARY COLLECTIONS] AND THEN IT JUST GREW INTO INTERESTING LOCAL THINGS.” “CHRIS LOVED SOUTHERN ALBERTA, AND NO MATTER WHAT, HE NEVER WOULD HAVE LEFT SOUTHERN ALBERTA. HE LOVED TO TRAVEL BUT HE NEVER WOULD HAVE MOVED. HE LIVED IN MAGRATH AND LETHBRIDGE HIS WHOLE LIFE AND HAD NO INTEREST IN ANY OTHER PLACE BUT HERE.” ON CHRIS’ RESEARCH EFFORTS, CAROL CLIFTON RECALLED, “CHRIS WAS METICULOUS. ANYTHING CHRIS DID, HE DID IT TEN TIMES MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE WOULD. HE WOULD NOT GIVE UP…WHEN [HIS SON] BRETT DID THE CENOTAPH WORK, CHRIS WOULD HELP HIM IDENTIFY [THE NAMES] AND IT WOULD BE A DEAD END AFTER ANOTHER DEAD END, AND THE NEXT THING YOU KNEW WAS CHRIS HAD FOUND A RELATIVE IN ENGLAND WHO WAS A GREAT GRANDDAUGHTER’S NEIGHBOR. HE WOULD LITERALLY SPEND YEARS RESEARCHING ONE THING. IT WAS JUST HIS PERSONALITY AND HIS LEVEL OF INTEREST AND HE DIDN’T STOP THERE, HE WOULD DO IT FOR ANYONE…HE WAS A VERY GIVING PERSON AND HE WAS SO FANTASTICALLY GOOD AT THAT TYPE OF RESEARCH.” “[CHRIS] AND BRETT TOGETHER WOULD DO [THE RESEARCH] AND I WOULD DO IT OUT OF INTEREST…I DON’T KNOW OF ANYONE WHO DID IT TO THE LEVEL HE DID. HE WOULD BE UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT FOLLOWING A LEAD IN EUROPE ON SOMEONE HE DIDN’T KNOW FOR SOMEONE HE BARELY KNEW…[CHRIS WAS] TOTALLY SELF-TAUGHT…OF COURSE WITH THE INTERNET IT BECAME MUCH EASIER FOR EVERYONE TO [SEARCH]. THE GENEALOGY HE DID BEFORE WAS PRE-INTERNET SO THAT INVOLVED A LOT OF ARCHIVAL THINGS…HE BEGAN RESEARCH WORK VERY EARLY IN THE INTERNET AND WE GOT OUR FIRST COMPUTER IN 1995, AND HE PRETTY MUCH DID RESEARCH FROM THEN ON. HE WAS INTERESTING IN THAT NO MATTER WHAT RESEARCH HE DID HE DIDN’T WANT CREDIT FOR IT. HE DIDN’T WANT TO BELONG TO THINGS…IN ADDITION, HE DIDN’T LIKE TO DO THE WRITING, ALTHOUGH HE COULD WRITE, BUT HE WAS THE BEST PROOF READER BECAUSE HE WAS SO METICULOUS, AND HE WOULD PROOF READ FOR ANYONE. [IF] SOMEBODY WROTE AN ARTICLE HE WOULD BE A PROOF READER OR A FACT CHECKER. IT WAS JUST HIS NATURE…[HE WAS] STUBBORN, AND COMPETITIVE, AND INTERESTED, AND METICULOUS, AND IF HE DID IT IT’S CORRECT. IF THERE’S A MISTAKE IN IT HE SURE DIDN’T KNOW IT. HE WOULD HAVE NEVER PUT ANYTHING DOWN HE WASN’T PRETTY DARN SURE OF.” FOR MORE INFORMATION INCLUDING THE FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION AND LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLES, PLEASE SEE THE PERMANENT FILE P20190007001-GA.

Catalogue Number

P20190007010

Acquisition Date

2019-03

Collection

Museum

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