J. R. Vicars Armoury - Kamloops, BC - Military Installations on Waymarking.com

Rocky Mountain Rangers

Who We Are

The Rocky Mountain Rangers is an Army Reserve infantry regiment of 39 Canadian Brigade Group garrisoned in Kamloops, B.C. at the J.R. Vicars Armoury, with a Company in Prince George. 39 CBG is the largest Army formation in British Columbia with 11 Units throughout the province.

History

THE 1885 Rocky Mountain Rangers

The name "Rocky Mountain Rangers" first emerged in 1885 as the name taken by a militia of one hundred and fourteen men from British Columbia and Alberta who joined to fight in the Northwest Rebellion. The rebellion itself was the culmination of tensions between the Metis and the white population in the Red River area of Manitoba.

When examining the brief experiences of the 1885 Rocky Mountain Rangers it is important to note that there is no connection between this militia and the Rocky Mountain Rangers regiment created in 1898 and existing into the present in Kamloops, British Columbia. The connection is in name only.

1898 - The Creation of the Rocky Mountain Rangers

When the 1885 Rocky Mountain Rangers disbanded its members returned home to resume their civilian lives as cowboys and ranchers. Many returned to the interior of British Columbia . In the decade that followed there was no active militia in this area, although in 1885 Captain Edward A. Nash held a meeting in Kamloops and sent forward a petition to Ottawa proposing the creation of a local rifle corps. However, no action was made on this proposal until 1898.

On 29th April 1898 Captain Nash announced that the Canadian government planned to create six militia companies in the interior of British Columbia. These companies would be in Vernon , Rossland, Nelson, Kamloops, Kaslo and Revelstoke. Captain Nash had been asked to form the infantry company in Kamloops . Given the importance of the railway as a line of communication at this time, the primary function of the company would be to protect the Canadian Pacific Railway (C.P.R.) line. The creation of this company marked the beginning of the Rocky Mountain Rangers that exist up to the present in Kamloops.

This Reserve Force regiment originated in Nelson, British Columbia on 1 April 1908, when the '102nd Regiment' was authorized to be formed. It was redesignated: '102nd Regiment, Rocky Mountain Rangers' on 1 June 1909; 'The Rocky Mountain Rangers' on 12 March 1920; '2nd (Reserve) Battalion, The Rocky Mountain Rangers' on 1 January 1941; and 'The Rocky Mountain Rangers' on 28 January 1946.

OPERATIONAL HISTORY
The First World War

The 102nd Regiment, Rocky Mountain Rangers was placed on active service on 6 August 1914 for local protection duties.

The 172nd Battalion, which was authorized on 15 July 1916 as the '172nd "Overseas" Battalion, CEF', embarked for Britain on 25 October 1916. Its personnel were absorbed by the '24th Reserve Battalion, CEF' on 1 January 1917 to provide reinforcements for the Canadian Corps in the field. The battalion was disbanded on 17 July 1917.

The Second World War

The regiment was called out on service on 26 August 1939. Details of the regiment were placed on active service on 1 September 1939, under the designation 'The Rocky Mountain Rangers, CASF (Details)', for local protection duties. The details called out on active service were disbanded on 31 December 1940.

The regiment subsequently mobilized the '1st Battalion, The Rocky Mountain Rangers, CASF' for active service on 1 January 1941. It was redesignated: '1st Canadian Infantry Training Battalion, Type A (Rocky Mountain Rangers), CASF' on 1 November 1944; and 'No. 9 Canadian Repatriation Depot, Type "T"' on 5 July 1945. It served in Canada in a home defence role as part of the 18th Infantry Brigade, 6th Canadian Division and took part in the expedition to Kiska, Alaska as a component of the 13th Canadian Infantry Brigade Group, serving there from 16 August 1943 to 12 January 1944. It embarked for Britain on 25 May 1944. The overseas battalion was disbanded on 28 January 1946.
From the Rocky Mountain Rangers