Marcus Porano

Early Life

Marcus Porano was born in Manila and was of Spanish and Filipino origin. At a young age, he was brought to Canada, where he became a house helper for the Ellerby family in Selkirk district, Manitoba. He was later employed as a farm labourer by George M. Newton, who was also one of the directors of the Selkirk Development Company. At that time, Selkirk was advertised as a growing town for farming and industrial enterprise north of Winnipeg.

Rooster Battalion

Marcus Porano enlisted for the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) on 1 December 1915 at the apparent age of 21 years. According to his attestation papers, he was five feet, three- and-a-quarter inches tall, with a dark complexion, dark brown eyes and black hair. Both his father in the Philippines and his employer George Newton were listed on this form as his next of kin.

Porano was deemed fit for overseas duty with the CEF. He was assigned the regimental number 721086 and became a soldier of the 108th “Overseas” Battalion (Selkirk and Manitoba). The battalion was one of the few infantry units raised in Manitoba and was under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel George Henry Bradbury. Since the new recruits were quartered at Red Feather Farm, the battalion soon became known as the Gamecocks and used the symbol of a rooster on its military badge.

In May 1916, Porano was among the first troops to go to Camp Hughes, a military training facility located about 10 km west of Carberry, Manitoba. In addition to rifle practice and training for trench warfare, he likely played sports like cricket, baseball, football and other camp sports with fellow members of his battalion. In September, Porano took a train to Ottawa, where the 108th Battalion was reviewed by Sir Robert Borden, eighth prime minister of Canada, and received their regimental colours from Lady Borden.

Western Front

Private Marcus Porano sailed from Halifax with his unit on 18 September 1916 aboard the S.S. Olympic. He arrived in Liverpool eight days later. On 4 January 1917, his battalion was absorbed by the 14th Battalion, which was stationed at Dibgate Camp in Shorncliffe, England. Four months later, he proceeded to France, where his unit was tasked to reinforce other units. There, he joined the 16th Canadian Infantry Battalion (The Canadian Scottish), part of the Canadian Corps. His original unit, the 108th Battalion, was depleted of all ranks and formally disbanded on 17 July 1917.

On 15 August 1917, Private Porano and the 16th Battalion fought in the Battle for Hill 70. The assault was planned in stages with the capture of two objective lines. The 16th Battalion helped secure the first of these objectives, the "Blue Line," soon after the assault began. The following day, the "Green Line" was also secured. The Canadian forces faced numerous counterattacks, however, by German troops that had survived the massive barrage launched by the Canadian artillery. As a result, the battalion suffered several casualties before Hill 70 was finally secured on 18 August.

The following day, Porano was sent to the Casualty Clearing Station, where he was listed as seriously ill. On 31 August, he was sent back sent back to England and was admitted to the 2nd Southern General Hospital in Bristol with pneumonia. He was transferred to a Canadian convalescent hospital in Bearwood Park, Wokingham, Berkshire, on 18 September 1917 and discharged a month later. After nearly a year in England recovering from bronchitis, he was sent again to the Western Front. In France on 6 September 1918, he was attached to the 27th Battalion (City of Winnipeg).

During the last hundred days of that year, Porano was part of the military action at Arras and Andenne. After the 11 November 1918 armistice, he was with the occupation force along the Rhine River in Germany. In April 1919, he began the long trip back through France to England and to Canada aboard HMT Northland.

Postwar and Personal Life

Marcus Porano arrived in Winnipeg on 26 May 1919. His name was included in the list of returning soldiers published in the local papers, so relatives and friends knew who was arriving on the special Canadian Pacific train. At noon, the train was welcomed by a large crowd gathered at the Higgins Avenue station. The soldiers were paraded in Main Street and Portage Avenue with the Depot Battalion band escorting them. Porano was discharged on the same day, with his intended address listed as Selkirk. In July, Selkirk put on a large parade with marching band and sporting events for the returned soldiers.

Battle Honours of the Great War were awarded to the 108th Battalion in which Porano originally enlisted. Porano also received the service badge Class A No. 189404, British War Medal and Victory Medal.

Porano remained in Manitoba and married Eva Marie Yvonne (de Michelle), a nurse from France who had a daughter and son from a previous marriage. In 1931, the Porano family bought a property by the old Mapleton school no. 5, where they built a homestead. They gave the name "West Grove Lodge" to their white clapboard bungalow along River Road outside the town of Selkirk. (The house was bought by Howard Pawley in 1979 before he became premier of Manitoba.)

During the Second World War, Porano’s stepson served with the Canadian Army, and Porano was a war worker. Voters lists from the 1940s indicate that Porano worked as a house caretaker and gardener in peacetime.

Porano was predeceased by his wife and spent his retirement days at Tudor House in Selkirk, Manitoba. He died on 10 October 1988 at 95 years of age. His remains were cremated and interred in the cemetery at St. Clements Church in Mapleton, which contains the graves of many of Selkirk’s founding families.