John Laird was born in Quebec City in 1897, and entered Appleby in September 1913 and stayed for one year. He played for the First Rugby (Football), Hockey and Cricket teams. He joined the army in 1916, and received a commission in the Eighth Royal Rifles. In June 1917, after training in England, he left for France. George L. Thompson, a machine-gunner in his platoon, said in a letter to Laird’s father, “Perhaps you heard he was wounded in the cheek, and I advised him to return to the dressing station, but was of no avail…we went along together until he made the supreme sacrifice.” Laird was killed in the attack on Hill 70. His body is buried in the Aix- Noulette Communal Cemetery in France.
24th Battalion, Canadian Infantry (Quebec Regiment) Killed in action 15 August 1917, at 19 years of age.