Crowe, Ivan Lee

Normandy Massacres

Date of birth:: November 17th, 1921 (New Glasgow/Nova Scotia, Canada)
Date of death:: June 7th, 1944 (Saint-Germain-la-Blanche-Herbe, France)
Buried on:: Canadian War Cemetery Bretteville-sur-Laize
Plot: XIV. Row: E. Grave: 12.
Service number:: F/56043
Nationality:: Canadian

Biography

Ivan Lee Crowe grew up in a modest household and was raised in the Church of England. His formal education ended after seven years, having completed Grade 7, and he soon entered the workforce to support his family. Ivan worked primarily as a farmer and laborer, with experience in construction and lumbering. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, reading pulp magazines, playing cards, and participating in sports. He was described as sociable, courteous, cooperative, and dependable, though he had no specialized technical skills.

Ivan enlisted in the Canadian Army on February 1, 1943, in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He was assigned the service number F56043 and joined the North Nova Scotia Highlanders, part of the Canadian Active Service Force. His training included time at No. 6 District Depot, the 60 Canadian Army Basic Training Centre, and the 14 Infantry Training Centre in Aldershot. He was categorized as A-1, fit for full duty, and recommended for infantry service, specifically in machine gun operations.

He was deployed overseas on July 19, 1943, and served in the Western European campaign. On June 7, 1944, during the Normandy invasion, Ivan was killed in action near Caen, France. His death was later confirmed through eyewitness accounts.

His mother, Mrs. Clara Bentley of Stewiacke, Nova Scotia, received the Memorial Cross in recognition of his sacrifice.

In the aftermath of his death, Ivan’s name surfaced in war crimes investigations, as one of the Canadian soldiers murdered by German forces during the Normandy campaign.

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