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Fred ROACH

Male 1919 - 1944  (25 years)


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  • Name Fred ROACH 
    Born 18 Jan 1919  Leamington, Ont. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    Died 13 May 1944  WW11- Belgium Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Buried 1997  Belgium Cemetery Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I496  Mersea Family History
    Last Modified 30 Sep 2021 

    Father Lewis Webster ROACH
              b. 19 Apr 1877, Mersea Twsp. Find all individuals with events at this location
              d. 29 Aug 1953  (Age 76 years) 
    Mother Ruby ROBINSON
              b. 11 Aug 1879, Unknown Find all individuals with events at this location
              d. 8 Dec 1921  (Age 42 years) 
    Married 9 Dec 1896  Leamington, Ont. Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Family ID F176  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Notes 
    • RESID: unknown
      OCCUP: soldier
      RELIG: unknown
      BIOGRAPHY: plane shot down in WW11 in RCAF over Belgium. Plane and remains not found in swamp until 1997.
      Fred Roach was born to parents Lewis and Ruby on January 18, 1919 in Leamington, Ontario, and was raised there on the family's 70-acre farm. When he was 2, Fred's mother died as a result of appendicitis, leaving two other children behind. His father later remarried and had additional children. After graduating from public school, Fred worked odd jobs and then helped full-time with the family farm. He also served with the Essex Scottish Regiment of the non-permanent active militia in Chatham, Ontario. On October 20, 1942 he enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) in London, Ontario. At 5' 7" and weighing 160 pounds, he was strong and athletic, enjoying boxing, baseball, and track and field. Fred disembarked for the UK on October 16, 1943. Single, he had hopes of returning home to farm after the war. He was the tail-gunner of LW 682/M, and was posthumously awarded the Croix de Guerre 1940 with Palm (Belgium).
      CAUSE_OF_DEATH: WW11
      DEATH: Fred's plane, Halifax LW 682, went down inthe Dendre marshes at 0109 hrs at Schendelbeke, Belgium. His body was recovered on Sept 7, 1997 and buried at cemetery in Geraadsbergen on Nov 10, 1997.