The “Drive” by which this money was raised took place during the week of August 19–24, 1918. The whole of the amount raised was intended for work in England and France but, with the signing of the Armistice, the returned soldier problem demanded the attention of the Knights, and Huts were opened in Halifax and the other dispersal areas in Canada. The work in Canada and Overseas was under the supervision of Lieut.-Col. Clarence F. Smith, of Montreal, Comptroller. Large sums of the money were sent Overseas and the balance was devoted to the work of serving the returned men.
Following are the names on the Executive Committee of the Knights of Columbus War Activities:—Messrs. John A. Neville, John F. O’Connell, Jas. D. O’Connor, Walter M. Godsoe, Thos. W. Murphy, Frank A. Gillis, Dan. T. Lynagh, Wm. A. Hallisey, Jno. P. Quinn, Hon. Judge Chisholm, and Mr. William R. Wakely.
The Knights of Columbus Catholic Army Hut, at No. 372 Barrington Street, was opened December 1, 1918, and Halifax may be regarded as the birth-place of the work of the Knights of Columbus Catholic Army Huts in Canada. All men of the Allied Armies and Navies were welcome, irrespective of race, creed or color. The Knights of Columbus’ slogan, “Everybody Welcome, Everything Free,” was carried out to the letter, with the exception that a charge of 25c. was made for beds, although of the total number of beds used about half were donated, inasmuch as many of the guests were in need of funds. Men arriving in transports were also given a bed free of charge. Mr. J. D. O’Connor was Chairman of the Hut Committee, and associated with him were Mr. John F. O’Connell, Mr. D. T. Lynagh, the late W. A. Monoghan, Mr. W. J. Williams, Mr. E. J. Scanlon, Mr. W. A. Hallisey, Mr. W. T. Murphy, Mr. W. E. Donovan, Mr. J. K. Kelleher, and Mr. W. R. Wakely. There was an average daily attendance at the Hut during December, 1918, January, February and March, 1919, of 1,300 to 1,500, and a total attendance of 177,060 from December 1, 1918, until the Hut closed on September 13, 1919.
Mr. W. E. Donovan, Chairman of the Entertainment Committee, arranged for weekly entertainments. The men in uniform were always most appreciative of the class of entertainment given at the Hut under the direction of the Chairman. He had the happy faculty of selecting the very best artists, and had the Columbus Musical Club to draw from as well as other local clubs.
Refreshments were always served. Mr. W. E. Donovan never failed to have a number of young ladies in attendance, and they saw that every guest was generously supplied. The Hut was open daily from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m., and on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 11 p.m., and the men had free use of the reading, writing and billiard rooms. Canadian and American newspapers and magazines were supplied; writing paper and envelopes and all billiard and pool games were free. 12,983 games of billiards and pool were played from December, 1918, to September 13, 1919. May 10, 1919, a dormitory of fifty beds was opened, and from that date to September 13, 1919, 2,725 beds were used. Of that number 1,279 were supplied free of charge.
Space in the building would not permit of the Knights of Columbus War Activities having a cafeteria, but there was a canteen from which the following supplies were given away free, from December 1, 1918, to September 13, 1919:—
| Soft Drinks (bottles) | 6,684 |
| Apples (barrels) | 32 |
| Cigarettes (packages) | 27,872 |
| Cigars | 2,000 |
| Tobacco (pounds) | 830 |
| Gum (packages) | 1,605 |
| Coffee (cups) | 55,175 |
| Oxo (cubes) | 3,783 |
| Biscuits (pounds) | 2,389 |
| Chocolate Bars | 7,668 |
| Matches (boxes) | 8,304 |
| LETTERS MAILED. | |
|---|---|
| Canadian | 27,121 |
| British and Foreign | 6,042 |
| American | 8,067 |
It was not until after the Armistice was signed that a Pier Committee was organized under the able leadership of Mr. John P. Quinn as Chairman. His associates were Messrs. John Neville, Henry T. Kline, Harry C. Murphy, John D. Campbell, E. J. Murphy, John Fry, J. J. Penny, P. J. Hanifen, R. J. Flinn, Geo. A. Gauvin, and W. E. Donovan.
The Returned Soldiers’ Reception Committee, made up of twenty-five men selected from the various clubs and organizations of Halifax City, with an Auxiliary Committee of five ladies, was organized in November, 1916. From that date the Committee received troop and hospital ships, and raised by voluntary subscription $9,178.96. It also received $3,000.00 from the Halifax Victory Loan canvassers. Mr. John P. Quinn waited upon Mr. W. S. Davidson, Chairman of the Returned Soldiers’ Reception Committee, and informed Mr. Davidson that the Knights of Columbus were prepared to spend an amount of their funds toward the reception of the troops returning from Overseas, either in conjunction with the Returned Soldiers’ Reception Committee, or alone. This brought in the Red Cross and the Y.M.C.A., and an agreement was made by each of the three organizations to contribute to the funds of the Returned Soldiers’ Reception Committee to the extent of one-third each of the amount required by the Returned Soldiers’ Committee. From January 1, 1919, until the last troopship arrived, $9,000.00 was contributed from each of the three organizations—a total of $27,000.00. These funds were used for the purpose of purchasing cigarettes, fruit, chocolate bars, matches, flowers, newspapers, welcome cards, and for postage and telegrams.
From the time the work began, one hundred and thirty-eight troopships disembarked about 305,655 men. In the distribution of supplies at the pier, the work was divided among seven teams of twelve each, each team having a captain and an equal number of representatives from the Knights of Columbus, the Red Cross, Y.M.C.A., and the Returned Soldiers’ Reception Committee. Mr. Felix P. Quinn, of the Knights of Columbus, was a captain of one of the teams.