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A poppy engraved road sign of Carter Court.
Screen grab from Google Maps
In honour of our soldiers: Ralph Carter
By Samuel Cheng
Published 11:25 PDT, Fri June 9, 2023
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In a series of Richmond’s ‘poppy’ street signs in memory of our fallen soldiers, we share the story of Carter Drive and Carter Court.
Lieutenant Ralph Barr Carter was merely 22 years old when he was first enlisted into the 11th Battalion of the Canadian Mounted Rifles as a private. Carter was born on January 6, 1893 in Vancouver.
There were little to no records about Carter’s life before his enlistment other than the fact that he was single at the time of his death and that his mother, Emily Waddell, resided in Steveston.
Upon enlisting in the 11th Battalion of the Canadian Mounted Rifles, Carter was quickly promoted to corporal during his training in Canada. After travelling to Liverpool, England on July 25, 1916 on a steam ocean liner, SS Lapland, he was promoted again to acting sergeant.
Carter’s journey of promotion does not end there. Within a month, Carter was made the temporary lieutenant of the battalion. After an extended absence due to bronchitis and personal reasons, he was transferred to the 31st Battalion stationed in France in the April of 1917.
While Carter was with the 31st Battalion, he was attached to the Royal Flying Corps before becoming a flying officer two months later. On August 19, 1917, General Headquarter (GHQ) reported Carter’s status to be missing. GHQ was the organization that commanded all of the British and Indian troop forces during World War I.
Four months later, Carter was officially denounced as deceased by the German sources. Carter was memorialized in Arras Flying Services Memorial located in Arras, France.
Carter’s mother, Emily Lavinia (née Barr), received a plaque, a scroll, and a cross of sacrifice in 1921 from the Canadian government as a way to commemorate the valiant sacrifices made by Lieutenant Ralph Carter.
Today, Carter Court and Carter Drive run between No. 4 Road and Shell Road, to the north of Alderbridge Way.
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