WW2 Canadian Named RCAMC Tam O'Shanter Regimental Medical Officer John W.B. Barr

Khaki material Tam, with ribbons to the reverse, and badge baking of the same material to the front side, with a brass WW2 RCAMC cap badge in place. British made, with manufactures label in place to the interior, Wm, Anderson & Sons Ltd,. Edinburgh and Glasgow. Period, hand applied naming to John W.B. Barr, RCAMC. SKU: 65791

Barr joined the COTC while attending medical school, in 1934. In 1940, after a brief period of employment at the Ottawa Civic Hospital, "he joined the RCAMC in the rank of Lieutenant and was posted to the 23rd Field Ambulance^] as a medical officer. At the time he joined, the 23rd was stationed on Porter's Island in Ottawa, Ontario. Shortly after Barr joined the 23rd, the unit was moved to Camp Derbert, in Nova Scotia and the following year, was sent overseas to England.

Over the course of the next two years, he was posted to different units to temporarily replace their Regimental Medical Officers. One such unit was the North Nova Scotia Highlanders, then stationed in Aldershot England (several different periods in 1941). Another, in 1942, was 9 Canadian Infantry Brigade, where he was attached to the Highland Light Infantry Of Canada,  which was stationed in Loch Ailort, Scotland at the time.

In the fall of 1943, Barr received his first permanent posting as Regimental Medical Officer with the Highland Light Infantry of Canada. Though, the following year, he was posted to "Headquarters, 3 Canadian Infantry Division, as the Staff Learner in the Office of the [Assistant Director of Medical Services (Army), That summer, after visiting the 23rd and seeing the number of casualties (largely from the Highland Light Infantry of Canada) that his former colleagues were dealing with, he asked his superiors to be sent to a field ambulance unit; his request was granted and he was sent to 22nd Field Ambulance. Barr contextualizes his reasoning for this decision within his autobiography, From Barnyard to Battlefield and Beyond: The Story of a Military Medical Officer, when he states that: "If I stayed [in the position at the office of the Assistant Director of Medical Services (Army) I would never know [what went on at the front], and the war might end without my ever experiencing the task for which I had joined the Army – to aid the soldiers directly.

In February 1945, Barr was promoted to major and posted back to the 23rd Field Ambulance as a company commander; and was quickly placed in the position of Second-in-Command (2/IC) of the unit. Three months later, the war was over and he married Nursing Matron Marion Sarah Crawford, who he had met during his final years of medical school while working at the Kingston Psychiatric Hospital where Marion was the Superintendent of Nurses. Marion had also joined the RCAMC though in 1942, in the rank of lieutenant, and she served with several units during the war, including the 12th Canadian General Hospital. Shortly after their wedding, Barr returned to his unit, which was then stationed in the Netherlands, as the commanding officer. He remained in the position for several months until he was posted to 6 Canadian Field Dressing Station as the commanding officer.

Upon returning to Canada in 1946, Barr was posted to the headquarters of the Prairie Command as a deputy commander and medical officer in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The following year, he was posted to the RCAMC School at Borden, in Barrie, Ontario as Chief Instructor. He remained in the position until 1951; at which time, he was sent to England on a Senior Officers' course. The following year, he was posted as commanding officer to 79 Field Ambulance, stationed in Hanover Germany, "in support of the Canadian Brigade with the NATO force in Germany.

After returning to Canada in 1954, Barr was appointed assistant director of Medical Services (Army); remaining in the position until 1957, when he returned to university for a brief period. In 1959, newly promoted to colonel, Barr was posted as commanding officer to the Kingston Military Hospital. Two years later, he was posted back to the staff of the Surgeon General as Assistant Surgeon General (Personnel). He remained in the position until 1964; at which time, he was posted to the National Defence College in Kingston, Ontario as a student. Following this posting, Barr was promoted to brigadier-general in 1966 and appointed Deputy Surgeon General (Administration). He held his position until 1970, when he was promoted to major-general and appointed Surgeon General