Arthur Gerald Leeson (1870 – 1916)
Arthur Leeson was born in London, England. He joined the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) and served in Whitehorse and Dawson. He took his release from the Force in October 1900 and went to live at Forty Mile. He re-joined the NWMP in May 1901 and purchased his release in June 1906. Leeson moved to Rossland, British Columbia and became a miner. He enlisted in the First World War in February 1916 and joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force, 102nd Battalion. He went with his unit to France in August 1916 and took up defensive operations at St. Eloi. The Canadians moved to the Somme two months later and Captain Leeson was killed during an attack on Regina Trench in October.1) His name is engraved into the stone base of the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in France. The memorial honours those Canadian soldiers who have no known grave.2)