| Rank | Private |
| Service # | 213601 |
| Unit # | 99th Bn., 19th Bn. |
| Resident | Jeanettes Crk. |
99th / 19th. Born in Jeanette’s Creek, Kent Co., ON. Next of Kin: W. Brusseau (father). Leo was a single farmer.
Apparent Age: 18 yrs. Height: 5’2”, Girth: 35”, Complexion: Dark, Eyes: Blue, Hair: Dark. Scar from operation 5 years ago. Medical: 17/01/16. Enlisted at Tilbury.
After going overseas with the 99th Bn. 31/05/16 he was hospitalized in England (condition unknown). He did go to France with the draft of re-enforcements for the 19th Bn. and was gassed during the Battle at Lens and hospitalized as a result of that. He was reported returned to service as a dispatch rider with the Machine Gun Bn. – Transport section, dates unknown. He returned to France and joined the 2nd Machine Gun Battalion Transport and remained with that unit until he embarked for Canada.
An article in the Tilbury Times, 13 September, 1917 must have caused some concerns for family and friends.
“TILBURY EAST SOLDER KILLED IN ACTION.”
“According to the casualty list in the papers, Pte. Leo Brusseau who enlisted here with the Tilbury Platoon of the 99th Battalion, had made the supreme sacrifice in France. He is the son of Wm. Brusseau of Tilbury East, and was about 25 years of age. The young hero was a general favorite in Tilbury when the soldiers were quartered here, and the news of his death came as a shock to his many warm friends.”
The Battle for Lens would begin for the Canadians on August 16, 1917 and petered out about the 27th of August and ten men from Chatham-Kent would be killed in action or died of wounds as a result of this campaign. Happily for Leo’s family and friends he was not one of those who paid the “supreme sacrifice”. It is likely that being gasses he might have been reported as missing in action – presumed dead when in fact he had been evacuated from the battle field on his way to hospital as noted above from the IODE Books of Remembrance.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
| Sources | IODE |
| Height | 5'23" |
| Eye Colour | Blue |
| Age | 18 yrs. |
| Complexion | Dark |
| Hair | Dark |
| Race | White |
| Birthplace | Jeanette's Creek, Ontario |
| Religion | Catholic |
| Last Place of Employment | Farmer |
| Average Earnings | $2.00 per day |
| Marital Status | Single |
| When Enlisted | January 15th, 1916 |
| Where Enlisted | Tilbury, Ontario |
| Next of Kin | Father- William Brusseau, Jeanettes Creek, Ontario. |
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