HMCS York
Encyclopedia
HMCS York is a Canadian Forces
Canadian Forces
The Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...

 Naval Reserve Division located in Toronto, Ontario. Before the move to its current location on Lake Shore Boulevard West, it had been situated on the grounds of the Canadian National Exhibition
Canadian National Exhibition
Canadian National Exhibition , also known as The Ex, is an annual event that takes place at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the 18 days leading up to and including Labour Day Monday. With an attendance of approximately 1.3 million visitors each season, it is Canada’s largest...

. Today, it serves as a training unit to 200 full-time and part-time naval personnel.

History

The base was established in 1942 to replace the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserve Half created in 1923. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, it was a premiere naval recruiting depot in the British Commonwealth and home to 17,000 personnel.

The base is home to the Canadian Forces Sailing Association.

Facilities

Although located on the Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south by the American state of New York. Ontario, Canada's most populous province, was named for the lake. In the Wyandot language, ontarío means...

 shoreline, the base has no docking facilities for naval ships. RHIB are deployed a the base, but the docking facilities to the south of the HMCS York belong to the National Yacht Club of Toronto for private vessels.

Prior to 1947 the base was located at two other locations:
  • 1395 Lake Shore Boulevard West: ? - 1942
  • Canadian National Exhibition
    Canadian National Exhibition
    Canadian National Exhibition , also known as The Ex, is an annual event that takes place at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the 18 days leading up to and including Labour Day Monday. With an attendance of approximately 1.3 million visitors each season, it is Canada’s largest...

     Automotive Building: 1942 - 1947.


It moved to the current base at 659 Lake Shore Boulevard West in 1947.

Personnel

Current commanding Officer at the base is Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...

 Timothy O'Leary, CD.
  • Naval Reserve air squadron, VC 920: 1953 - 1963.


Lodger units at HMCS York:

Notable former members

  • Leading Seaman
    Leading Seaman
    Leading seaman is a junior non-commissioned rank or rate in navies, particularly those of the Commonwealth. When it is used by NATO nations, leading seaman has the rank code of OR-4. It is often equivalent to the army and air force rank of corporal and some navies use corporal rather than...

     Robert Binder
    Robert Binder
    Leading Seaman Robert Teodor Binder , of Mississauga, Ontario, was a member of the Canadian Forces Naval Reserve who was awarded the Medal of Bravery on 26 November 2010...

     , recipient of the Medal of Bravery.
  • Lieutenant
    Lieutenant
    A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

     Gordon B. Jackson - first commander

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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