Although the 2nd Battalion of The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada arrived in Korea about nine months after the Armistice was signed, they still had six casualties attributed to their service during the Korean deployment:

1. Rifleman N.P. Ferland – 31 March 1954 – Accidentally killed by a vehicle
2. Sergeant G.W. Koch – 4 August 1954 – Drowned during recreational swimming
3. Lieutenant N.M. Anderson – 25 August 1954 – Accidentally killed in an airplane crash
4. Lieutenant M.C. Vipond – 18 March 1955 – Died in a barracks fire
5. Rifleman G.P. Reid  – 11 June 1955 – Killed in a car accident in Saskatchewan while on leave
6. Major P.E. Gower – 9 December 1956 – Airplane crash in the Rocky Mountains while returning from Korea

They are all commemorated at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Brampton, Ontario.

Below is an excerpt from “THE QUEEN’S OWN RIFLES OF CANADA 1860-1960 – ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF CANADA” by Lieutenant Colonel W.T. Barnard, ED, CD which summarizes the QOR’s deployment to Korea:

“The Korean Armistice was signed on 27 July 1953. The rotation of units on watch resulted in the selection of the 2nd Battalion for duty in Korea. The battalion came to Toronto and, on 27 February 1954, paraded with the 3rd Battalion to St. Paul’s for divine service. The same night the 2nd Battalion entrained for Seattle, Washington. The troopship [USS Marine Lynx] touched at Sacebo, Japan; then on to Inchon, Korea. The captain of the ship and his executive officer remarked, “Those men in the green berets and black belts are the ones to call on if you want a job done.”

The battalion was warmly welcomed to the Commonwealth Division by Major-General (now Lieutenant-General) Sir Horatio Murray and Brigadier (now Major-General) J. V. AlIard. All units had 100 Katcorns (Koreans attached to the Commonwealth Division). The Queen’s Own formed theirs into one company under Major R. B. Firlotte. The company didn’t last long, however. The Koreans liked everything except the rifle pace. So they transferred to the road-building gangs where the pace was easier.

Korea presented an excellent training ground for all ranks. Exercises were held up to and including Corps level. Sitting on the line between North and South Korea meant alarms and excursions at any hour of the day and night. In fact, on one occasion, the officers had to leave a Mess Dinner and take up battle positions in Greens! Certainly, the work called for a high standard of leadership; the response from all ranks was excellent.

RSM William Demmy and his crew out on a patrol in Korea in 1955

The Fall of 1954 saw the Canadian Forces in Korea reduced from a brigade group to one battalion. The Queen’s Own was chosen as the one battalion to remain even though they were not the last to arrive in the country. Quite aware of the fact that the Army considers turning in too much equipment as bad as turning in too little, The Queen’s Own fell heir to the surplus from the departing battalions. Everything turned up from two-and-a-half ton trucks to battle dress.

Now The Queen’s Own were brigaded with The Royal Australian Regiment and The Dorsets. The association was most pleasant. Training was stepped up during the winter and culminated in an exercise conducted by Brigadier Geoffrey Musson CB, Commander of the Commonwealth Division.

Finally, in the early spring of 1955, The Queen’s Own was ordered home. Now came the tremendous job of turning in the battalion’s own equipment and the surplus mentioned above. In this connection, the 2nd in Command, Major Ted Shuter; the adjutant, Captain Peter Nixon; H.Q. Company Commander, Major Ed. Price and the Quartermaster, Captain Fred Coe, deserve special mention. As the battalion sailed, a personal congratulatory letter came from Lieutenant-General Guy Simonds, the Canadian Chief of Staff.

Inchon, Korea was left on 6 April 1955. The V.S.S. General Mason arrived in Seattle, Washington on 22 April. After sixty days leave the unit reassembled at Gordon Head, Vancouver Island. ”