Farmer, soldier.
Born at Kingston, Ireland on 28 January 1861, son of Captain H. M. Dyer (Royal Navy) and Mrs. Dyer, brother of William Alexander Dyer, he came to Canada in 1881 and established a farm in the Minnedosa district.
Long connected with Canadian Militia, he was a member of the 12th Manitoba Dragoons and, at the outbreak of the First World War, he went overseas with the first contingent of the Canadian Expeditionary Force as a Major in Command of the 5th Battalion. Known affectionately by his troops as “Daddy Dyer,” he saw much distinguished service, rising to Colonel, O.C. of the 5th Battalion and later being made Brigadier-General in June 1917. He was wounded at Ypres. He was mentioned in despatches five times and was awarded the Companion of St. Michael and St. George (CMG) and the Distinguished Service Order (DSO). He was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath by King George V.
In 1882, he married Helen May Pearson (1857-1934). They had four sons: Reginald Hugh Dyer (1883-1948), John Marshall Dyer (1885-1960), Wilfred Harry Dyer (1891-1970), and Maurice William “Bill” Dyer (1907-1986). In the 1921 federal election, he contested the Marquette constituency for the Conservative party but was defeated by Thomas Alexander Crerar. He was one of the founders of the Manitoba Agricultural College and, from 1908 to 1914, he served as the Chairman of its Board. He was also President of the Minnedosa Agricultural Society.
He died at Minnedosa on 25 December 1938 and was buried in the Minnedosa Cemetery.
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba Agricultural College War Memorial (Chancellor Matheson Road, Winnipeg)
Birth and death registrations, Manitoba Vital Statistics.
The Story of Manitoba by F. H. Schofield, Winnipeg: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1913.
Pioneers and Prominent People of Manitoba, Winnipeg: Canadian Publicity Company, 1925.
“Brig.-Gen. H. M. Dyer succumbs,” Winnipeg Free Press, 27 December 1938, page 1.
“Reginald Hugh Dyer buried at Minnedosa,” Winnipeg Free Press, 29 March 1948, page 7.
Death registrations [John Marshall Dyer, Wilfred Harry Dyer], British Columbia Vital Statistics.
Obituary [John Marshall Dyer], Victoria Daily Colonist, 28 February 1960, page 25.
Pioneers of Manitoba by Robert Harvey (1970).
CPL Maurice William “Bill” Dyer, FindAGrave.
We thank Darryl Toews for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 31 October 2024
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