Naval leader honoured by Hometown Hero initiative
Late admiral, veteran of First World War, remembered for influence after retiring
Widely regarded as the father of Canada’s Naval Reserve, the late rear-admiral Walter Hose was honoured as a “Hometown Hero” Saturday afternoon.
The late Windsor First World War veteran was celebrated as part of Parks Canada’s “Hometown Heroes” initiative. The Royal Canadian Navy and Parks Canada honoured the admiral with a ceremony at Heavenly Rest Cemetery in Lasalle.
“A veteran of the Great War himself, Admiral Hose arrived here in 1950 during his retirement years,” Mayor Drew Dilkens told the crowd. “It wasn’t long before his navy pedigree began to have an influence here.”
Hose relocated to Windsor with his wife when their daughter and her family moved to the area.
While in Windsor, Hose continued his naval involvement, including commissioning a Sea Cadet Corps at Riverside High School in his name in 1955.
Hose’s grandson, Terry Leahey, spoke to the crowd about his grandfather on a personal level in addition to his career accomplishments.
He said his grandfather picked up the hobbies of gardening and woodworking. Both Leahey and his sister Jennifer own furniture with a navigation theme built by his grandfather and carved by his grandmother, Catherine Hose.
He recalled stories he heard when he was young of his grandfather’s accomplishments. He said the admiral never missed a chance to attend a function at the local HMCS Hunter.
“His routine involved walking or taking a city bus to Hunter to join his comrades and have a drink,” Leahey told the crowd. “One morning after attending a party at Hunter and undoubtedly did quite a bit of dancing for the evening, he didn’t appear for breakfast at the usual time.”
Leahey said he went to check on his grandfather the morning of June 22, 1965, and found he had peacefully passed away during the night. “He even had a smile on his face.”
Naval reserve divisions from across Canada were in town for the event, along with Vice-admiral Art Mcdonald. Parks Canada interpreters in historic uniform fired a vintage cannon at the start of the ceremony.
Rear-admiral Walter Hose was born aboard a steamship in the Indian Ocean in 1875. Hose joined the Royal Navy as a cadet at age 14 and served at sea around the world for the next 21 years.
Hose commanded HMCS Rainbow in 1911, one of only two warships for Canada’s brand new navy. He led the ship into the Great War and became director of the Naval Service in 1921.
Hose’s vision for a “citizen navy” led to the creation of the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve, which became an important source of recruitment and training during the Second World War.
Upon his retirement, he was promoted to the rank of rear-admiral.
His legacy includes 24 Naval Reserve divisions across the country, one of which is HMCS Hunter in Windsor.
Youth representing each of the divisions from coast to coast placed a flower at Hose’s gravesite.
The Royal Canadian Navy Band and Colour Guard with Royal Canadian Naval Colour Party marched off after the artillery fired to close the ceremony.
“At the helm of the Royal Canadian Navy during the turbulent interwar years, Hose weathered stormy times for our fledgling navy and ultimately assured its survival,” Vice-admiral Art Mcdonald, commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, told the crowd.
“In the process, he became the father of Canada’s naval reserve.”