Mar 1, 1884

Born in Cornwall, Ontario

Mar 6, 1916

Signed the Officers’ Declaration when he volunteered to serve in the 154^th Battalion CEF in Cornwall, Ontario

Ø  Rank Lieutenant

Ø  Next of kin given as Mrs. James Pendergast, mother, Cornwall, Ontario

Ø  Previous occupation given as a Master Mariner

Ø  Previous military service given as 9 months in the Victoria Rifles with the rank of Private and currently a member of the 59^th Regiment of the Canadian Militia

Ø  Religion given as Catholic

 
The battalion trained in the Barriefield Camp, Kingston, Ontario

Oct 25, 1916

Embarked the SS Mauretania in Halifax, Nova Scotia

Oct 31, 1916

Disembarked in Liverpool, England and the battalion proceeded to Bramshott to continue training

Jan 31, 1917

Transferred to the newly formed 6^th Reserve Battalion to continue training.  Shortly after the formation of the battalion, it moved to Seaford to continue training reinforcements for the front

Feb 19, 1917

Admitted to the Moore Barracks Hospital with a diagnosis that reads Varicocele.  Surgery was performed the following day to correct the problem

Mar 28, 1917

Medical Board declares him to be unfit for any service for 1 month.  He was discharged from hospital and granted 1 month sick leave

Apr 28, 1917

Declared fit for general service and returned to duty with the 6^th Reserve Battalion in Seaford

Jul 10, 1917

Proceeded on the Musketry Course at Hythe, Kent

Aug 4, 1917

Rejoined the battalion from course

Aug 11, 1917

Transferred to the 21^st Battalion

Aug 13, 1917

Arrived at the No. 2 CIBD (Canadian Infantry Base Depot) in Etaples, France as part of a draft of 515 reinforcements from England and TOS (Taken On Strength) the 21^st Battalion

Aug 17, 1917

After leaving the base depot, Lieutenant Pendergast joined the 21^st Battalion Rear Details in Bully Grenay while the battalion was heavily engaged in fighting at Hill 70.  The battalion was relieved the following day and moved into billets in Fosse 10 where Lieutenant Pendergast joined the main part of the battalion and was assigned to “A” Company

Sep 1, 1917

Proceeded on course

Sep 19, 1917

Rejoined the battalion from course in the front lines south of Vimy Ridge

Nov 3, 1917

The 21^st Battalion moved into the front-line trench at Passchendaele, north-east of Crest Farm in Belgium the previous evening.  Even though Lieutenant Pendergast had been in the front line for a couple of tours, he had no experience with an enemy attack on their lines.  When an attack began at dawn, he jumped out of the trench and began firing on the enemy with his revolver.  He was instantly killed by a rifle bullet to his heart.  He was later buried in the Tyne Cot Cemetery, Ypres, Belgium.

 
His official date of death is recorded as November 4, 1917, but a firsthand account indicates he was killed on the morning of the 3^rd.  It is likely that his body was not recovered until the following day.

 
Following the war, the British War Medal, Victory Medal, Plaque (Dead Man’s Penny), Scroll and Memorial Cross were sent to his mother, Mrs. Annie Pendergast, Cornwall, Ontario

From the January 1933 edition of the Communiqué

Francis Pendergast is honoured on the War Memorial in
Cornwall, Ontario