User:SkyGazer 512/Sergeant Bill

Sergeant Bill was a war goat who served for the Canadian Expeditionary Force in World War I.

Early life
Bill was raised near Broadview, Saskatchewan. In 1914, Canadian soldiers were traveling from western Canada to Valcartier Camp, Quebec, and they noticed Bill pulling a cart as they passed through Broadview. They asked the owner, Daisey Curwain, if they could take the goat to an Ontario training camp and use him as their mascot in World War I, and Curwain approved. However, although mascots were not supposed to be up-close with fighters in the military, the soldiers secretly took Bill to England in a crate on the ship SS Lapland, due to being so attached to him. After arrival, they were able to smuggle him to Lark Hill camp without a quarantine. He became nicknamed "Billy" by the soldiers.

World War I
Bill first fought the war in England. In February 1915, his owners secretly took him to fight in France, and was given the sergeant rank the same month. Soon after, he was discovered to have eaten the Battalion Nominal Roll, which caused him to be placed under arrest. He was arrested again for charging an officer, which caused soldiers to believe that he was a traitor; some even believed him to be a German spy.

Bill was discovered guarding a Prussian fighter, despite having a shrapnel shell wound, during the Second Battle of Ypres. During this battle, he disappeared and the soldiers worried that he was captured by the Bengal Lancers; however, he was later found safe. In one instance during his time serving, Bill drove three enemy soldiers into the corner of a trench. Bill was able to hear shrapnel shells and warn the soldiers about them before they exploded. He saved three Canadian soldiers from a shell explosion by pushing them into a mud-filled trench, seconds before the explosion. According to Ken Bell, a researcher for the Broadview Historical Museum, "No matter how bad things got, Bill was a rallying point for (the soldiers)."

Throughout Bill's time serving in WWI, he received multiple injuries. In December 1915, he was infected with trench foot. He was wounded by shrapnel shells several times, such as in 1917 during the Battle of Vimy Ridge. During the Second Battle of Ypres, he was gassed. Bill served for a total of four and a half years, primarily in France but also several other countries. He was given three medals for "bravery for feats of heroism on the battlefields of Europe".

Post-war life and honors
When the war ended, the soldiers took Bill to England, but struggled as the commanding officers wanted him to stay. He was then returned to Canada in April 1919, although again the soldiers had a hard time getting him in as the immigration officers initially would not let him enter. After returning, a parade celebrating the war victory was led by Bill. After the parade, he was reunited with Curwain in Winnipeg, Canada, where he stayed until his death. His death date is unknown.

Bill's body was taxidermied upon Curwain's request. He was first placed in Saskatchewan's Museum of Natural History, but then moved to the Library of the Saskatchewan Legislative Buildings. He was next transported to Plains Historical Museum, where he was damaged by moths. As of August 2017, he is currently displayed in the Broadview Historical Museum, having been brought there in 1980, and has been cleaned up from the moth damage. After Bill's death, films and books were created inspired by him, including a short romantic-comedy film displayed at the Yorkton Film Festival. He was featured in Season 17, Episode 11 on Mysteries at the Museum, which aired on January 18, 2018.

Possible future refs

 * https://esask.uregina.ca/entry/sergeant_bill.jsp
 * https://books.google.com/books?id=Waq3LXSgyGYC&dq=Sergeant+Bill+goat&q=sergeant+bill#v=snippet&q=sergeant%20bill&f=false