Rifleman Randolph Harvin
Randolph Harvin was born on 13 July 1924, in Sumter, South Carolina, USA. His father died when he was four and he was raised by his mother. He started school age 8 and from the age of 14 worked after school as a shoe shiner, at a Dry Cleaners and at his school, checking food for the cafeteria. When he was 16, Randolph and his family moved to Detroit, Michigan, where he attended Miller High School. His best subjects were bookkeeping, maths and English but he also joined the school cadet force and achieved the rank of 1st Lieutenant. He was a good sportsman and would have been selected for any number of school teams, however he could not train after school as he had work in the evenings. He washed cars at Speedy Car Wash for four months and then found a job as an usher at the Warfield Theatre, earning $35 per week. He did find time to sing in the school Glee club, where he was a baritone. A popular student, he was nominated to be president of his school student council during his last year.
RANDOLPH HARVIN © CWGC
He graduated in September 1943, and two weeks later crossed the border into Canada and enlisted into the Canadian Army. One of his older brothers was serving in the US Army and his younger brother was in the US Coast Guard but he decided to serve with the Canadians because of discrimination against black soldiers in US forces.
The officer who enlisted him described him as,
‘A negro of good neat appearance with a pleasant co-operative manner. Easy talker, seems quite self-confident and appears to be very mature for his years…Quite ambitious and appears to be self-reliant…anxious to do his best and should make a good soldier.’
Randolph trained for the next eight months and was passed as ready for overseas deployment in May 1944. He shipped out on 25 June 1944 and arrived in France on 18 July. He joined the Royal Winnipeg Rifles in Normandy but was ordered to join the Calgary Highlanders for an attack. On 1 August the Highlanders assaulted the German lines near Tilly la Campagne. Under heavy German fire the unit suffered many killed and wounded. At the end of the day hundreds were missing but by morning many had returned. Sadly, Randolph was not one of those to return. He had been in Normandy just 15 days when he was killed in action.
His body was found when Tilly la Campagne was finally secured, and he was buried by his comrades. In November 1944, he was finally laid to rest in Plot II. Row C. Grave 1. of CWGC Bretteville-Sur-Laize Canadian War Cemetery. Upon his headstone are the words chosen by his mother, ‘In thee, O Lord do I put my trust…Deliver me in thy righteousness’.
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