Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

GRAVENHURST — Today’s war stories are live by the hour on TV — gruesome and graphic as ever.

In 1944, during the battle of Normandy, news from the French front was slower returning home than progress marching forward.

Eighty-two years later, a heroic and tragic story has surfaced in a personalized tale written and published — in comic book form — by Jim Dolmage, a former gym teacher at Gravenhurst High School.

Tilly’s Field is a graphic novel about his uncle Lt. Ernie Phair and “the men I interviewed who were on the battlefield and witnessed his death.”

The intended audience is teenagers to inform them specifically about the Second World War; but also about wars in general, he says.

You don’t need to buy the book “I’m offering it free on line,” Dolmage says.

It’s part of his series Real War Canada: True Stories Told by the Men on the Firing Line.

He plans to use Gravenhurst archivist and historian Judy Humphries’ presentation on Gravenhurst’s POW camp as a resource for an educational package he’s putting together for teachers who might like to use the book as a teaching tool. It would include a discussion of both internment and POW camps in Canada.

Dolmage say he wrote the book “as a tribute to my mother, Marguerite, who lost Ernie twice.

“First when he was born and my grandmother died. Ernie was placed with another family. And then in the war after they had reunited.”

Dolmage said: “My mother was Marguerite Dolmage (b. Sharp). Her mother died in childbirth when Ernie was born. My grandfather already had my mother who was aged 4 and Alvin aged 2.

“In the winter, my grandfather was a blacksmith/carpenter/fiddler in northern lumber camps. He was able to get his siblings to look after mom and Alvin, but Ernie was given to a childless couple (the Phairs) to raise.”

Four years later Dolmage’s grandfather remarried and moved from Watford to Seaforth and lost touch with the Phairs. So Ernie was raised not knowing his real family.

“My grandfather, though, hadn’t allowed Ernie to be adopted, so when Ernie enlisted he discovered his birth name and reconnected with his sibling.”

Dolmage got Ernie’s war records (which his family had never done) and they were invaluable in telling the story. He says it is easy for children/grandchildren/great-grandchildren to access war records of any Canadian soldier.

He learned more about the story after placing an ad in the Legion magazine asking if anyone had served with Ernie Phairs. He received four replies including three from PoWs.

The writing journey began in the fall of 2000, “when I was approached by a man at my mother’s funeral who had only just learned that she was the sister of Lt. Ernie Phair.

John Martin — a Lieutenant in charge of his own platoon — was ordered to follow Ernie’s men into the wheat field at Tilly.

“I heard a story he’d never told anyone before.

“The soldiers under his command were close enough to witness the debacle that ensued when Ernie’s men were caught in that deadly crossfire with no ability to fight back.

“They knew then that none of those men would be able to return to their own lines. The commanding officer came to Martin and told him to proceed into that horror.

“Martin replied: “Be my guest!”

And by refusing to advance, “thus likely saved his life and the lives of his men.”

Martin went on to engage in many subsequent battles, successfully leading the soldiers of the Lincoln and Welland Regiment. And coming home a war hero and receiving the DSO medal.

His tale of the “slaughter” stirred difficult memormies for the veteran, who clearly suffered from PTSD long after and following the loss of his own brother weeks before in the same campaign.

The novel’s artwork was mostly done by Alaire Racicot a professional comic book artist.

A few panels were redrawn by his brother Tom’s daughter, Emma Dolmage.

Here’s an excerpt:

The Night in Tilly’s Field

On June 6, 1944, 14,000 Canadian troops landed at Juno Beach in France, a contingent of the D-Day invasion. By August 2 the Canadian forces had successfully advanced further inland than the American army.

The Canadians were the tip of the spear and met the most resistance, resulting in a long stalemate. The Canadians successfully progressed to Bourguébus, but further advance was difficult. On July 31, the Lincoln and Welland Regiment arrived in Bourguébus.

Seizing Tilly was the next objective, but the Germans fought hard to keep it. Tilly was defended by the 1st Panzer Division Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler — a group of battle-hardened and vicious German soldiers.

The heavy defences, however, did not deter attempts to capture the village. The North Nova Scotia Highlanders made multiple attempts throughout late July, but some were captured and murdered. On August 1, the Calgary Highlanders breached Tilly, but they were repelled.

This story recounts the attempt that the Lincoln and Welland Regiment made on August 2, specifically the platoon led by Lieutenant Ernie Phair.

Tilly was eventually captured on August 8, after a concerted effort by British, Polish, and Canadian forces. Taking Tilly was part of the turning point for Canadian troops. Their advance after the battle at Tilly was rapid.”

Get it free online:

Dolmage says: “Our primary goal in creating The Night in Tilly’s Field was to share the story of Lieutenant Ernie Phair, the men under his command, and their largely forgotten attempt to capture the village of Tilley-la-Campagne, during the battle of Normandy in 1944.

To read it download the complete PDF version for free. No sign-up, no tricks — just the full story to read on your tablet, laptop, or phone.

Download the free PDF.

“Read it for free and own it forever,” he says.

Though, if you enjoy the comic book, he says a hard copy printed version is also available with saddled-stitched binding and 32 high-definition, grey-scale pages on 70-pound satin text stock. And a full-colour cover, with gloss lamination, on 100- pound stock.

He’s charging $10 a copy and will mail it anywhere in Canada. Postage is $4 for the first book and $2 for each additional copy in the same order.

If you’re a teacher or member of the Canadian Legion, he offers a special rate on bulk purchases.

“We’ll even include a free teacher’s companion sheet to help guide students through the story.”

To order e-mail him at realwarcanada@icloud.com

“We know this all looks kind of simple, right now, but we aren’t a fancy publishing house.

“All we really want is to get this story out.”

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