Soldier's Bible reunited with Canadian family more than a century after found in trenches

After spying a very old Bible on a shelf in his mother's home in Texas, Andy Carr got curious about its origins.

The family keepsake had belonged to Carr's great-uncle,who picked it up on abattlefield in Ypres, Belgium, in 1915.

Inside, there was a handwritten dedication to someone namedHerbert V. Naylor.

The inscription was dated Aug.18, 1914.

It read, "May God keep, protect and guide you throughout this one great struggle," signed by a woman named Hellena.

Intrigued, Carr, a retired U.S. army captain, started looking through archival materialfor information about Naylor. He could only find one Naylor with the middle initialV.

He believedNaylorwas Herbert Vaughn Naylor a Canadian soldier from Noyan, Que.,who had fought in World War I.

Judging from the date on the Bible, it had to have beengiven to the 24-year-old lance-corporala month before he signed up to join the Canadian Forces and was shipped overseas.

A Canadian Army war diary reports Naylorwas killed several months later in northern France while laying wire during the night of March 9, 1915.

"He was killed two months before my great-uncle found the Bible," said Carr.

It's unclear how the Bible ended up on the Ypres battlefield, but the war diary showsNaylor'sbattalion moved from northern France into Belgiumthe month after Naylor died.

Carr's great-uncle,French military officerGaston de Launay, spotted it as he crouched in a trenchduring an artillery bombardment.

The Bible remained in Carr'sfamily for more than a century, but once Carr became aware of its existence, he felt obligated to track down Naylor's descendants.

"Some people go off to war and don't come back, but sometimes their keepsakes do," said Carr."It means a lot to the family when they come home, even if the soldier doesn't."

Carr, a Gulf War veteran, doesn't like to dwell on his own war experiences, but, as he wipedtears from his eyes, it's clearhe feels a kinship with Naylor.

"I haven't lost a brother, but I have lost friends in war, so I know what it's like," said Carr.

Search for descendants in Quebec

To help in his search for Naylor's descendants, Carr reached out to half a dozen major news networks in the U.S. but never heard back from them.

Knowing Naylor was from Quebec, Carr contacted CBC Montreal Investigates.

• Read other stories from CBC Montreal Investigates

Sifting through material in the Canadian National Archives, century-old census data, obituaries and a family tree published online, we wereable to findNaylor's great-nephew, Brian Derick, a retired musicianwho lives in Ottawa.

Carr insisted on coming in person to show Derick the Bible.

Last week, Carr and his brother, Paul Carr, flewfrom Houston, Texas to Montreal.

The Carr brothers met Derick in Noyan, near the border crossing atLacolle, at the historic red brickchurch some of Herbert Vaughn Naylor'sdescendantsstill attend.

Naylor'sparents are buried in the churchyard cemetery, and the church is built on land donated by Derick's ancestors.

"Youfellasare a long way from the great state of Texas," saidDerick, as he strolled across the churchyard to greet the Carrs.

"This is very kind of you to come all this way with such an unusual artifact."

Andy Carr gingerly removedthe small Bible from the Ziploc bag it was tucked in. He read out the inscription.

"This is just amazing," said Derick. "That it survived amidst the muck and gore and mess of a World War I trench is nothing short of remarkable."

Derick had something of his own to show Carr. He'd brought along his great-uncle'swar medals, awarded to Naylor posthumously.

He also gave the Carrs a tour of the church, showing themthecommemorative plaquein Naylor's honour and aphoto of thesoldierin his military uniform mounted on the wall.

The photo reminded themof just how young Naylor had been when he was killed.

Derick saidhis great-uncle's death was a terribleloss for his family. Herbert Naylor's two older brothers also served in the warbut rarely spokeof their time in the trenches.

"It evoked all kinds of sad memories and feelings of loss and tragedy," said Derick, whosefather was named after his UncleHerbert.

Derick has been in touch withthe Canadian War Museum in Ottawa and hopes the Bible, along with Herbert V. Naylor's medals, may find a home there one day.

Extraordinary journey

The Bible has had an extraordinary journey.

It crossed the Atlantic Ocean from Canada to Europe early in the war,103 years ago. After the war, it eventually crossed the Atlantic again, winding up in the U.S.

Carr has taken the Bibleback home with himbecause he has relatives there who still want to see it.

After that, he'd like to take it to the cemetery in northern France where Herbert V. Naylor is buried.

He thinks it would be fitting to go onAug.18, the anniversary of the date thatthe Bible was given to Naylor.

"There couldn't be a better date," said Carr. If possible, he'd like Derick to accompany him.

Andy Carr also wantsthe Bible toend up in a military museum andhopes visitors will appreciate the sacrifice Naylor and his fellow soldiers made.

"We didn't want it to wind up in a drawer some day, and a grandkid didn't know what it was," said Carr.

"This was for Herbert and all the guys like him. This is to honour him and to bring a part of him home."

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