Major General W.B. Lindsay CB, CMG, DSO

Major General Lindsay graduate from RMC in 1900 and was commissioned into the Canadian Engineers in 1904 as one of the original seven officers of the Corps. Prior to WWI he had a number of staff and command appointments up to the rank of Major. On the outbreak of war he volunteered for overseas service and went to England in 1914 as OC 2nd Field Company, Canadian Engineers.

He was appointed CRE 1st Canadian Division in September 1915 as a lieutenant-colonel. In March 1916 he was appointed Chief Engineer, Canadian Corp and was promoted to Brigadier the following May. On the reorganization of the Canadian Engineers in May 1918 he was designated General Officer Commanding Canadian Engineers as well as Chief Engineer Canadian Corps in the rank of Major-General. For his service during WWI he was appointed CD and CMG, was awarded the DSO and was Mentioned in Despatches six times.

Being Chief Engineer was a considerable feat in itself, but the also oversaw the major reorganization of the Canadian Engineers in WWI. Both Lindsay and Currie had recognized that the toughest problem in archieving advances on the Western Front was mobility. That was recognized as an engineer responsiblity. At the same time Lindsay was wrestling with the command relationships of engineers and work parties withing the divisions and brigades. In 1918 he received approval to combine to combine field companies, pioneer battalions and tunnelling companies, and to form brigade headquarters based on divisional engineer staffs. "The divisional engineers thus became brigades of engineers with brigade headquarters, three battalions and a bridging transport unit..."

Ffollowing the war Major-General Lindsay retired from the military and undertook several civilian ventures. His health failed and he died of a heart attack in Toronto on 27 June 1933.