Musgrave, Alured P.: my Navy recollections (February 9, 1984)
ABSTRACT: Capt. A.P. Musgrave O.B.E. Royal Canadian Navy (Cassette 1, Side 1) Capt. Musgrave discusses his father's time in the RN later joining the Canadian Hydrographic Service and was eventually posted to the West Coast. His son, A.P. Musgrave, joined the Royal Canadian Naval College in Halifax on Aug. 1, 1914. Life as a cadet. Comments on his Chief Petty Officer instructors and on Commander A.E. Nixon. Halifax explosion, although Musgrave was not there. Midshipman, Feb. 2, 1917. Service in the RN. Served in HMS Minotaur (cruiser) out of Scapa Flow. Convoys to Norway. Later on the Northern Patrol (to Iceland). Midshipman's duties and instruction. Present at the surrender of the German Fleet. Problems of seniority in the Gun-room with younger RN Midshipmen. Resigned from the RCN just after the war, later feeling it was a mistake. Mentions knowing Cmdr. Walter Hose in Victoria and later as Admiral Hose in Windsor. Returned to Canada in 1921 and in 1924 joined Shawnigan Lake School as a physical training instructor. In 1934, with $250, opened a coffee shop on Government St. in Victoria (coffee -- 5 cents/cup) and was soon exceeding his break-even point of $20 per day. Bank loan allowed him to expand. In September 1939 he re-joined the navy. On staff at Naden, Boom Defence Officer in Halifax then connected with officers' training. Gauvreau (Lt. Cmdr. L.J.M.), Finchey (Lt. Cmdr. E.W. Finch-Noyes), Sam Worth (Capt. G.A. Worth, Director of Signal Division). Large influx of recruits made training difficult. Over-crowding caused HMCS St. Hyacinthe at St-Hyachinthe PQ to be established in 1940. Musgrave became commanding officer. By the end of the war there were about three thousand men under training. As well as signalmen and telegraphists there were radar operators and radio artificers, coders, WRENS, Y-station operators as well as officers under training. Qualified "S" officer: signals. John Charles (later R/Adm. J.A. Charles), Scruffy O'Brien (later V/Adm. J.C. O'Brien), Murdock (later R/Adm. R.W. Murdock). Describes periods of leave, local and to Montreal (by train) which was (officially) the preferred area. VE-Day caused some concern but two special leave trains (one each to Toronto and Montreal) were ordered which resulted in a minimum of trouble in St-Hyacinthe. (Cassette 1, Side 2) The base was later used as a de-mobilization centre. Closed the base after VJ-Day and went to Ottawa as Director of Sea Cadets. Opened HMCS Cornwallis again -- as a new entry -- training base. Returned three years later. Some comments on training bases both RCN and RN and in particular the too-short war-time training time and some disorganization in preparing the seamen as well as the bases. Anecdote. Rec'd a scroll from the mayor and people of St-Hyacinthe.
Rank: Captain. Medals and Honours: Order of the British Empire
Interviewee: Musgrave, Alured P.
An interview/narrative of Alured P. Musgrave's experiences during World War I and World War II. Captain Mugrave served with the Royal Canadian Navy. Interview took place on February 9, 1984.
Interviewer: Lawrence, Hal
- In Collection:
- 2 sound recordings (MP3)
- 45.50884, -73.58781
- 48.4359, -123.35155
- Original sound recording on one audio cassette also available.
- Canadian Military Oral History Collection
- MAP_280
- Special Collections Finding Aid: https://uvic2.coppul.archivematica.org/hal-lawrence-collection
- November 13, 2014
- Digital sound recording in .wav format at 16 bits and 44 kHz. In .mp3 format at 56 kbps and 24 kHz. Digitized by JF, technical and cataloguing metadata provided by JF and JP. Interview migrated to digital format for UVic Special Collections in 2014. Migration metadata by KD and MT.
- Rights
- This interview has been posted with the understanding that it may be used for research purposes only. Should the interviewee or their heirs have any objections to this interview being accessible on the Internet, it will be removed promptly. Contact UVic Special Collections for permission if using for other than research purposes: speccoll@uvic.ca
- DOI
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