Major General Harry Farnham Germain Letson, CB,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

, MC, ED, CD (September 26, 1896 – April 10, 1992) was an engineer, educator and

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

officer who served in both

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Early life

Letson was born in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

in 1896. He was the son of James Moore Letson, a founder of the engineering firm Letson & Burpee, and Mary Barbara McIntosh,

World War I military service

Letson joined the

Canadian Militia The Canadian Militia is a historical title for military units raised for the defence of Canada. The term has been used to describe sedentary militia units raised from local communities in Canada; as well as the regular army for the Province of Ca ...

in 1910. He was serving with the Western Universities Battalion at the start of

, soon afterwards became a

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a Commission (document), commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority b ...

and went with them to France in 1916. In 1917, he became a lieutenant in the 54th Battalion. He was severely wounded by machine gun fire during a raid near

Vimy Ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of ...

and was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

Interwar period

Following the war, he returned to Vancouver. He received an engineering degree from the Vancouver campus of

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

(later the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

) where he was the first ever graduate in mechanical engineering. He went on to earn a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in Mechanical Engineering from

London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

. From 1923 to 1935, Letson was an associate professor of

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

at the University of British Columbia. He was president of the Professional Engineers Association of British Columbia from 1935 to 1936. He later took over the management of Letson & Burpee, one of the largest engineering firms in Western Canada. In 1926, he married Sally McKee Lang.

World War II and later military service

In 1927, he became commanding officer of the militia unit The British Columbia Regiment. From 1930 to 1935, he was commanding officer of the Officer Training Corps at the University of British Columbia. In 1940, during

, he was posted to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

as military attaché to the Canadian joint staff mission. Letson helped conceive the CANLOAN scheme while visiting Canadian Military Headquarters in London in October 1943. He was named adjutant general in Ottawa in 1942. In 1944, he returned to Washington as chairman of the Canadian joint staff mission. He served as secretary to

Governor General of Canada The governor general of Canada () is the federal representative of the . The monarch of Canada is also sovereign and head of state of 14 other Commonwealth realms and resides in the United Kingdom. The monarch, on the Advice (constitutional la ...

Sir Harold Alexander from 1946 to 1952. He was advisor to the army on militia from 1954 to 1958. In 1963, Letson was named honorary colonel for the British Columbia Regiment. Letson excelled at shooting and attended the Army Operational Shooting Competition at Bisley five times, once as captain of the Canadian team. He served as president of the

Dominion of Canada Rifle Association The Dominion of Canada Rifle Association (DCRA; ) is a Canadian shooting sports organization governing fullbore target rifle disciplines. The Association was founded in 1868 and incorporated by an Act of Parliament 63-64 Victoria Chapter 99, as ...

and of the British Columbia Rifle Association. The Letson Trophy is awarded to the winning team in the Canadian Forces Small Arms Concentration. Letson was invested as a Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in January 1944, and, in April that year, was conferred with the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

by the United States, and invested as a Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

in 1946. He was also awarded the

Efficiency Decoration The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the British Colonial Auxiliary Forces, Auxiliary Military Forces, ...

and the

Canadian Forces' Decoration The Canadian Forces' Decoration (post-nominal letters "CD") is a Canadian award bestowed upon members of the Canadian Armed Forces who have completed twelve years of military service, with certain conditions. By convention, it is also given to t ...

. He was nominated for the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

but died before the appointment could have been made.

Legacy

Letson died in Ottawa at the age of 95. Letson and his wife Sally helped establish the annual Sally Letson Symposium for the field of

ophthalmology Ophthalmology (, ) is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and surgery of eye diseases and disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a ...

, first held in 1967. Letson Hall at the CNIB in Ottawa was also named in honour of Harry Letson. Letson endowed an award to the

department of mechanical engineering. The Letson Prize is awarded annually in equal amounts to the head of the graduating class in each option of the undergraduate mechanical engineering program.

References

External links

Generals of World War II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Letson, Harry 1896 births 1992 deaths Academic staff of the University of British Columbia University of British Columbia alumni Alumni of the University of London Canadian mechanical engineers Canadian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Canadian Companions of the Order of the Bath Canadian recipients of the Military Cross Canadian Expeditionary Force officers Canadian Army generals of World War II Military attachés Canadian Militia officers Foreign recipients of the Legion of Merit Canadian generals Canadian military personnel from British Columbia British Columbia Regiment (Duke of Connaught's Own) Commanders of the Legion of Merit