William Frederick Gilbert
Fred Gilbert was born and raised in
Wiarton, Ontario.
As a young man he worked on
Great Lakes freighters. In
1942, thinking he'd be a prime candidate for the navy, he tried to join. But the
Canadian Navy wouldn't take him, saying they preferred untrained seaman they could mold from scratch. So he joined the
R.C.A.F.
Mr. Gilbert was assigned to ground crew and was trained in airplane electrical systems. He went overseas and served in
England and
Scotland for a time before spending a year in
Northern Ireland maintaining electrical systems in
Sunderland aircraft. When the war ended he was working in
South Wales.
After the war he worked in a furniture store in
Wiarton for four years then opened
Gilbert's shoes in
1950 which he operated until his retirement in
1990.
Fred Gilbert ma
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