Errol Winterbotham, son of Hammond and
Sarah Plimpton Winterbotham, was born in Portland, Oregon, on April 13, 1891.
Errol received his education at the Holladay Grade School in Portland and
graduated from there in June, 1907. In his home neighborhood and at Holladay, he
also learned to pitch baseball. After graduation, he studied at the Portland
Business College and pitched for the Portland Maroons. As a member of numerous
semi-pro teams in the area, Errol played baseball with other Portlanders, such
as, Porter Yett, Alex Donaldson, Paul Deuber, Bennie Briggs, Mike Harris,
Chauncey Mullen, Rudy Kallio, Red Rupert, Frank Turk, Joe and Charley Van
Hoomissen, and Billie Stepp. George Grayson, father of Bobby and Buck Grayson,
was his coach for several years.
In addition to playing baseball, Errol
worked for the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company, a subsidiary of the
Union Pacific Railroad from 1909 to 1911. His baseball career progressed quite
well, and Errol soon caught the attention of Walter McCredie, who signed him to
a contract. He played for Portland of the Northwest League for three months
before his arm got sore. Errol did not play baseball in 1912, but in 1913
through 1915 played for Rainier and Camas, where he was quite successful. Once
again, his arm began giving him trouble, and when finding himself not able to
play the game he loved so much, he decided to cast his lot with the Canadians
in World War I.
At this time he was working for the J. R.
Smith Cigar Company as a salesman. Reportedly, he walked and caught rides to
Vancouver, British Columbia, where he enlisted in the 211th Battalion of
Engineers on May 16, 1916. This was not unusual for that time; most of the
211th was composed of Americans.
Errol received Canadian infantry
training and graduated from the Provincial School of Infantry in Calgary,
Alberta. Food was so important to the war effort in 1916 that the Canadian Army
assigned soldiers to harvest wheat in the Alberta wheat fields.
Letters written by Errol to Sarah and
Hammond Winterbotham, who at that time were living in Seaview, Washington,
provide a picture of his World War I experiences from September, 1916 through
April, 1919. The information in brackets [ ] has been added to enhance and
further explain what Errol wrote in his letters. The locations in brackets next
to the dates were taken from the war
diaries of the 8th Battalion C.R.T. (Canadian Railroad
Troops). There are links throughout this blog which will take you to
additional resources for further information.
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