Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object ID # |
2016.026.001 |
Object Name |
Stick, Swagger |
Title |
Corporal Mobbs' Swagger Stick |
Year Range from |
1917 |
Year Range to |
1918 |
Made |
Unknown |
Place of Origin |
England, United Kingdom |
Description |
A First World War swagger stick (knobby bamboo cane) with a silvertone bullet / cartridge casing tip and a plain, but shiny, silvertone metal grip (the tip has a maple leaf and CANADA motif re-used from something). |
Provenance |
Either made by, or obtained by Corporal James Mobbs during his service in the First World War. It likely dates to 1917-1918, as prior to then he was in Canada and England as a Private of the 147th Grey (Overseas) Battalion. He became a Corporal on ____, 191_. He was drafted to the 4th C.M.R. (A Company) in the field on April 22, 1917 and was present at Estrablanche, and several other battle areas. When his platoon went into action at the battle of Passchendaele, with 36 men, only twelve came out alive. He was the Corporal in charge of a trench raid that took place July 14, 1918. At the Arras battle, he was wounded on August 27, 1918, when an enemy sniper shot his arm. He was invalided to England, and returned home to Canada early, in December, 1918. He returned to his blacksmithing trade at Kemble, Grey County, and also worked in Owen Sound for a while, before he moved to Weston, Ontario. He was a blacksmith for 52 years, and retired in 1961. The item was last owned by one of his grand-daughters, Patricia Morrison (Pat A. Morrison). |
Collection |
Military, 20th-c Collection |
Material |
Bamboo/Metal |
Dimensions |
L-68.4 Dia-2 cm |
Found |
Toronto, Ontario |
People |
Mobbs, James (Jimmy) |
Subjects |
World War I (First World War/The Great War) Military leadership Military personnel Military parades & ceremonies Bamboo Bullets |
Search Terms |
147th Battalion Association 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles Regiment 147th Grey Battalion Keppel Township Kemble |
Function |
A swagger stick is a light-weight stick carried by a military soldier (in this case a Corporal), as a symbol of his authority. It also appears to be a "trench art" item, as the tip is fashioned from a recycled bullet/cartridge casing (is it from a machine gun bullet?). The CANADA on the tip might be recycled from something as well? It belonged to a Canadian soldier from Kemble, Grey County, who served with the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles Regiment in the First World War. |