I’ve been working on a framework for mapping the home addresses of the 197 soldiers of The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry who died during or because of the infamous Dieppe Raid of 1942.
The goal is to map the home addresses of the dead on a map of the Hamilton area in 1942.
To make the map, I’m reaching out to the local OpenStreetMap network to see if we can build upon that platform using maps from the Hamilton Public Library Special Collections.
A decade ago, when I was attached to the RHLI, I access the regimental archives to find the addresses of Westdale High School alumni who died at Dieppe. With that information, I took a walking tour of Westdale to look at the houses they came from. It was a moving experience and helped me to understand more fully the impact of the raid upon 1942 Hamilton.
One could not avoid knowing someone that died or their family in 1942.
I hope that mapping on a 1942 map of Hamilton will convey what I felt walking in Westdale to a wider audience.
It should be an interesting project and a fun challenge.
Note: this post was somewhat inspired by seeing The Hamilton Spectator Dieppe Raid casualties front page on Jim Poling’s blog – The Newsroom Insider