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I had decided to investigate the Knisley lines in our family history and see how many ways it was spelled in the past. Many, many ways is the answer. While investigating, I came across someone who had a lot of public photos on Ancestry. Many were of a statue and plaque so I googled the name. It seems we have a distant cousin who was a war hero from the Boer War. I had no idea Canada sent troops to the Boer War. He even had a statue erected to his honour in his home town of Jarvis Ontario. Jarvis is and was a small farming community in south-western Ontario.
Our distant cousin was Corporal William A Knisley and he was a fifth cousin three times removed. This is a guy who signed up for a mop-up against guerrilla fighters after the end of the first Boer War. In the course of things he rescued an unhorsed comrade under enemy fire, while wounded, and was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal.
When his term ended he returned home to his father’s farm near Jarvis. But apparently things were very dull on the farm and when the chance came to sign up again and return to southern Africa, he leaped at the chance. (I’m inclined to quote Forrest Gump at this point, but that would be unkind, and possibly untrue. I don’t know for sure that William was un-bright.)
Knisley signed up with the 2nd Canadian Mounted Rifles. During a battle, Knisley and five others were separated from their group and tried to make it back to the British base overland. They fought off their enemy for two days and when the Boers pinned them down, managed to hold them off for a third day fighting until they had exhausted their ammunition before they surrendered. Kinsley and another were killed during the fighting.
More details with pictures here.
Our distant cousin was Corporal William A Knisley and he was a fifth cousin three times removed. This is a guy who signed up for a mop-up against guerrilla fighters after the end of the first Boer War. In the course of things he rescued an unhorsed comrade under enemy fire, while wounded, and was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal.
When his term ended he returned home to his father’s farm near Jarvis. But apparently things were very dull on the farm and when the chance came to sign up again and return to southern Africa, he leaped at the chance. (I’m inclined to quote Forrest Gump at this point, but that would be unkind, and possibly untrue. I don’t know for sure that William was un-bright.)
Knisley signed up with the 2nd Canadian Mounted Rifles. During a battle, Knisley and five others were separated from their group and tried to make it back to the British base overland. They fought off their enemy for two days and when the Boers pinned them down, managed to hold them off for a third day fighting until they had exhausted their ammunition before they surrendered. Kinsley and another were killed during the fighting.
More details with pictures here.