John "Eric" Davidson (May 10, 1915—September 9, 2009) was one of the last survivors of the

Halifax Explosion On the morning of 6 December 1917, the French cargo ship collided with the Norwegian vessel in the harbour of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. ''Mont-Blanc'', laden with Explosive material, high explosives, caught fire and exploded, devastat ...

. He was two years old when he was blinded by the Halifax Explosion on December 6, 1917. At the time of his death in 2009, Davidson was the penultimate living survivor with permanent injuries from the Halifax Explosion, which killed more than 1,600 people. Davidson was born to parents Georgina (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Williams) and John William Davidson. He was blinded by shattered glass in the explosion, which occurred due to the collision between the SS ''Mont-Blanc'' and the SS ''Imo''. At the time of the accident, Davidson was in his family's

living room In Western architecture, a living room, also called a lounge room (Australian English), lounge (British English), sitting room (British English), or drawing room, is a room for relaxing and socializing in a Dwelling, residential house or apa ...

with his mother and sister. He was playing with his toy train on the

window sill A windowsill (also written window sill or window-sill, and less frequently in British English, cill) is the horizontal structure or surface at the bottom of a window. Window sills serve to structurally support and hold the window in place. The ...

. The family was alerted to the collision by smoke rising from the harbour. Davidson was facing the glass windows when the blast occurred. The force of the explosion shattered the glass, completely blinding him. Davidson and his family moved to Halifax Commons, a makeshift camp set up for survivors of the Explosion. He attended the

Halifax School for the Blind Halifax commonly refers to: *Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada *Halifax, West Yorkshire, England * Halifax (bank), a British bank Halifax may also refer to: Places Australia *Halifax, Queensland, a coastal town in the Shire of Hinchinbrook * Halifax ...

,Mr. John "Eric" Davidson 1915-2009
(Obituary) where he studied music. However, Davidson preferred to pursue a career in

auto mechanic An auto mechanic is a mechanic who services and repairs automobiles, sometimes specializing in one or more List of car brands, automobile brands or sometimes working with any brand. In fixing cars, their main role is to Diagnosis, diagnose and ...

s, following his interests in cars. His brothers would read him auto repair manuals and he would practise on old cars in his family's backyard, using his sense of touch and memory. He later took an apprenticeship with a

car dealership A car dealership, or car dealer, is a business that sells new or used cars, at the retail level, based on a dealership contract with an automaker or its sales subsidiary. Car dealerships also often sell spare parts and automotive maintena ...

in Halifax and earned his auto mechanic's

licence A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...

. Davidson was interviewed numerous times about his experience as a key eyewitness and survivor. Documented media coverage of Davidson spans decades, including a television interview in a

CBC News CBC News is the division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC ...

piece first broadcast on December 1, 1957. Davidson also provided first person accounts of the disaster to several books and publications, including ''The Survivors: The Children of the Halifax Explosion'' and '' Shattered City: The Halifax Explosion and the Road to Recovery''. “The Blind Mechanic” written by Eric’s daughter Marilyn Davidson Elliott chronicles his life paying tribute to him as a survivor, a father and a champion of courage. Davidson, who lived in the city's north end, was employed by the City of Halifax as a mechanic until his retirement in 1980. According to

Janet Kitz Janet F. Kitz (January 12, 1930 – May 10, 2019) was a Scottish-born Canadian educator, author and historian based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She played a key role in the recognition of the 1917 Halifax Explosion, the largest man-made explosion ...

, author of the book '' Shattered City: The Halifax Explosion and the Road to Recovery'' which chronicles the disaster, Davidson's death left just one living survivor still receiving a pension for long-term injuries sustained in the explosion.

Later life and death

Davidson resided in Berwick for the last few years of his life. He died on September 9, 2009, at Grand View Manor in

Berwick, Nova Scotia Berwick is a Canadian town in Kings County, Nova Scotia. The town is located in the eastern part of the Annapolis Valley on the Cornwallis River. The town site stretches south from the river and Exit 15 of Highway 101 to Highway 1. Berwick occu ...

, at the age of 94. His funeral was held at the United Memorial Church in Halifax.

Later life and death

References

Further reading