Jeremiah Alvin Jones

Stormed a Vimy machine gun nest and captured the German crew

At Vimy Ridge in April 1917, Private Jeremiah “Jerry” Jones volunteered to silence a German machine gun that was holding up Canadian troops. Serving with The Royal Canadian Regiment, he approached the enemy emplacement and threw a grenade into it. Several German soldiers were killed, and the survivors surrendered. Jones made his prisoners carry the captured machine gun back to the Canadian lines and place it before his commanding officer.

An African Nova Scotian born in East Mountain in 1858, Jones enlisted with the 106th Battalion in 1916. He was already 58 but gave his age as 39 to qualify. Despite racial prejudice that restricted opportunities for Black volunteers, he went overseas and served as a frontline infantryman.

Wounded at Vimy, Jones was evacuated to England and did not return to frontline service in France. He returned to Canada in 1917 and was discharged as medically unfit in early 1918. His courage was reportedly recommended for the Distinguished Conduct Medal, but he never received that decoration. He received the British War Medal and Victory Medal.

Jones died in 1950. His family and supporters continued seeking recognition for his courage. In 2010, he was posthumously honoured with the Canadian Forces Medallion for Distinguished Service. His story was later featured by Parks Canada at the Halifax Citadel. His legacy combines battlefield courage with the long struggle to secure proper recognition for Black Canadian soldiers.