Mystery solved: Identity of military nurse in northern Ont. portrait found

A long-unidentified portrait of a WWI nurse has been confirmed as Callander, Ont.’s Christena Clinton Gordon. Eric Taschner reports.

For years, a portrait of a young woman in a Queen Alexandra’s Imperial Military Nursing Service uniform puzzled historians and local experts in and around North Bay, Ont. The mystery has finally been resolved – the painting depicts Christena Clinton Gordon, a nurse from Callander, Ont., who served in Western Europe during the First World War, tending to wounded soldiers.

“Whether they’re soldiers or nurses, they were people who dedicated their lives to serving our country,” said Natasha Wiatr, curator of the Callander Bay Heritage Museum.

A forgotten portrait resurfaces

The painting once hung in the Royal Canadian Legion Branch #23 on First Avenue West in North Bay before being placed in storage. It was rediscovered in poor condition during a storage room cleanup in the early 2000s.

“We never really knew where it came from or how it got to our legion,” said Sandra Harkness, First Vice-President of the Legion.

The only clue was a handwritten note on the back: “Toronto, Canada, May 1917.” No signature or name accompanied it. Despite restoration efforts in Ottawa and inquiries with the Canadian War Museum, the woman’s identity remained unknown – until a breakthrough in 2008.

A curator’s keen eye solves the mystery

Carol Pretty, then-curator at the Callander Bay Heritage Museum, recognized the uniform in the portrait matched one in the museum’s collection. Comparing historical photos, she confirmed the likeness to Christena Gordon.

“They look quite similar,” Wiatr said.

Gordon served in the Canadian Army Medical Corps from 1916 until the war’s end, working in hospitals in England and France. After the war, she married Callander’s reeve, Ken Morrison, in 1921.

A heroine’s legacy returns home

The Legion chose to donate the portrait to the museum, where it now resides alongside Gordon’s uniform and wartime photographs, preserving her story for future generations.

“It’s giving a voice and a name and a face to somebody who dedicated part of their life to serving our country overseas,” Wiatr said. “We’re able to give it a home.”

Harkness agreed, adding, “It’s only natural that it should return home.”

Public invited to honour Gordon’s memory

The Callander Bay Heritage Museum invites visitors to view the portrait and learn more about Gordon’s life and contributions. The museum is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.