Sapper Archie Thompson, Canada's oldest First World War veteran, died 2 Sept 2003 at the age of 107 at his cottage at Old Woman's River, near Stokes Bay, ON.
Born in Ireland in 1857, he emigrated to Canada in 1912. Archie was drafted into the Royal Engineers and shipped to Britain as the war was winding down and did not see action. Returning to Canada after the war, he followed a career with Canadian National Rail and retired in 1962.
This summer, Archie Thompson had received the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal for his wartime service. He had gone unrecognized for years, as he had never applied for veterans' benefits. When he received the award, Thompson was the oldest of the 13 surviving Canadian veterans of the First World War.