Manitoba's WWI Fallen: Private George McLean of Douglas

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, I am working on a series of blog posts and radio shows that will look at some of the Manitobans who died in action. For more about this project and links to other posts, follow this link.

George McLean was born November 8th, 1894 at Dauphin, Manitoba to Charles and Bella McLean. The family eventually farmed near Douglas, Manitoba. 

He was working on the family farm and listed his occupation as teamster when he came to Winnipeg to enlist with the 44th Battalion in August 1915.

Mclean was single but was given permission by the military to get married on January 26, 1918 to Winifred. She lived on Manor Street in Chelsea, London and became his next of kin.

According to his military file, in June 1916 McLean spent six weeks in hospital recovering from a  broken ankle, something that happened while playing and not on military duty. 

He was killed in action on August 20, 1918. There are no details in his file about the circumstances of his death.

McLean's remains were never found. He is commemorated on the Vimy Memorial in France and the Douglas, Manitoba war memorial.

A brother, William McLean, survived the war.

Related:
Virtual War Memorial Entry
Attestation papers and Military File* (If you are interested in how extensive one's military file could be, this is by far the most detailed one I have come across.)