Years of service 1892-1899 Died November 11, 1899 Battles/wars Anglo-Boer War Service/branch Canadian Army | Awards DSO CD Rank Lieutenant Name Charles Wood Allegiance Canada | |
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Unit 1st Loyal North Lancashire Regiment Education Royal Military College of Canada | ||
Charles Carroll Wood DSO CD (b. c.1874-d. 1899) was a Canadian army officer, a lieutenant who was notable as the first Canadian to die in the Second Boer War in South Africa. He is the namesake of the Chaswood, Nova Scotia.
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Early life and education
Charles Carroll Wood was the youngest of eleven children of Captain John Taylor Wood and his wife. A former US Navy officer, John Wood had sympathized with his grandmother's southern family. After the American Civil War began, he resigned his commission and became a Captain in the Confederate Navy. He was the great-grandson of Zachary Taylor, 12th President of the United States (1849-1850).
Wood's family were based in Bedford, England for a number of years and Wood was educated at the Bedford Modern School in England (1886-89). He then enrolled at the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario. His student number at RMC Kingston was 352 and he graduated in 1896.
Military career
Wood joined the army and served with the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment. He died on 11 Nov 1899 of wounds suffered in action during the South Africa Anglo Boer War. He was the first Canadian Officer to fall in battle during the Boer War. He is commemorated on the RMC Memorial Arch.
Relatives
His oldest brother, Zachary Taylor Wood CMG (1860–1915) was acting Commissioner of the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) and Commissioner of the Yukon Territory of Canada. His nephew Stuart Taylor Wood later served as Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.