Yesterday was Dad's birthday and he would have been 112.
Dad was born in a clay house 7 years after the family came to Saskatchewan to homestead. They had dirt floors. He liked the little clay house that was warm in winter and cool in summer. These were the same clay houses which were built in Russia and the Ukraine.
Of course, what better name to give a little baby born in August but August. So Dad was Emil August. The e in German was pronounced as long a. His mother in law who was English tormented him that it should pronounced with a long e.
Birth registrations in Saskatchewan from 1910 to 1912 were some how lost. When Dad applied for a passport in the 1960's the reply was, Mr Kline, we have never heard of you. That meant that he had to go through a procedure to prove has age. Dad was a little miffed as he had been paying income tax for close to 30 years.
He had never received a call to join the forces in the Second world war. So this explained why the army didn't find him.
Probably just as well that he wasn't traced during the Second World War. A man with a German name and no proof of identity would have raised a certain amount of suspicion, I would think.
ReplyDeleteBy this time they had all become Canadian citizens except the ones who weren't registered at birth. Dad's cousins were in the war and one was killed and is buried at Royston
DeleteI wonder what the occasion was for the photo?
ReplyDeleteIn a suit, but with a nice relaxed and happy face
He was probably on his way to church.
DeleteGreat tribute and photo of your Dad!
ReplyDeleteTake care, enjoy your day and have a great new week!
We don't forget them just because they're gone.
DeleteGreat history, Red. I enjoy how you share your heritage.
ReplyDeleteI'm a family history buff. I remember sitting and listening to adults when I was a little kid.
DeleteWhat a great story! Happy birthday to him, and thank you for sharing his life with me, Red.
ReplyDeleteWe all have great stories in our lives.
DeleteWouldn't your Dad be amazed at all the crazy things we have in our homes these day compared to his house of clay?!
ReplyDeleteIt's big change. He was able to build a nice house on the farm. He did always talk about the clay house.
DeleteI had to get out the calculator. My Dad was born in 1909. That's 115 years ago. I should put together a post like this for my Dad next birthday. And, yes, I do have a picture. :-) Neat post Red.
ReplyDeleteIt's a way to remember people by writing a little post.
DeleteGreat story, Red. I guess you could say, he fell through the cracks.
ReplyDeleteGood one!
DeleteYou tell wonderful stories!
ReplyDeleteThanks. there are good stories in our lives and some people choose to ignore them.
DeleteCool story about your Dad; handsome guy too. Linda in Kanss
ReplyDeleteMy father's birthday was in August, too; August 28, 1907. When he applied for social security, he had to find the midwife who was at his birth to write a letter attesting to his birth. The good old days.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jenn - you do tell wonderful stories. That's a great photo to go with it.
ReplyDeleteSo interesting to learn of your dad. Happy Birthday Emil August with an a. I like that! I know a little bit of what he must have gone through. People have pronounced my name with the c sound for years. It is pronounced with a z at the end. I got tired of correcting people, so I just let them get on with it. Loved learning about your dad. Great story!
ReplyDeleteHa-ha! I wonder how many other men have not been called up for war service because of bureaucratic blunders?
ReplyDeleteMy dad was born only a year earlier. He never got conscripted either, but I don't recall an issue getting a birth certificate in the 50s.
ReplyDeleteMy dad was born in 1903 but somehow avoided WWII also, probably because he had a family by that time. His older brother, who lived in San Francisco, voluntarily signed up and spent several years in Burma (Myanmar) and India.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday Dad Emil!
ReplyDeleteHe was roughly the same age as my husbands Father. They grew upo in a different sometimes difficult time. Dirt floor...I can only imagine it was hard on the women:)
ReplyDeleteI guess it was good that he didn't officially exist, until in the modern era it became a problem.
ReplyDelete