Beaumont, Edwin Forest

Edwin Forest Beaumont was born in Hamilton, Ontario, on 1 May 1890. He was the son of William and Elizabeth Beaumont.

A painter by trade, Beaumont was a member of the Hamilton-based 13th Royal Regiment, a militia regiment, before the war. He did not join his regimental comrades who enlisted in the 4th Canadian Infantry Battalion (Central Ontario) when the First Contingent of the Canadian Expeditionary Force was formed at the start of the war. Rather, he waited until 1916 to enlist. On 22 July 1916, Beaumont joined the 205th Canadian Infantry Battalion in Hamilton. When he did so, he lied about his age, claiming to have been born in 1892 rather than 1890. It is not known why Beaumont did so, as his true age (26 years old) was well within the requirements for service (18–45 years).

Beaumont sailed to England with his unit aboard SS Carpathia, arriving on 22 April 1917. The Carpathia had achieved fame in the pre-war period for rescuing the survivors of the Titanic disaster (1912). Canadian military authorities in England broke up the 205th Battalion on 23 April 1917. As a result, Beaumont was transferred to the 2nd Canadian Reserve Battalion at East Sandling Camp, which was part of the Canadian military complex at Folkestone, Kent. While in East Sandling, Beaumont was appointed an acting lance corporal, but he did not hold this rank for very long. On 4 June 1917, he was transferred to the 164th Canadian Infantry Battalion (Halton & Dufferin) at Camp Witley, in Surrey. In early March the following year, he was once again transferred, this time to the 125th Canadian Infantry Battalion, which was also based at Camp Witley. Two months later, in May 1918, Beaumont was transferred to the 8th Canadian Reserve Battalion. Then, in early May he was shipped to France, joining the 102nd Canadian Infantry Battalion in the field on 11 May 1918. Beaumont was killed in action on 27 September 1918 near Bourlon Wood, in France, during the Hundred Days Offensive.

Edwin Forest Beaumont is buried in Triangle Cemetery, Inchy-en-Artois, France.