We regret to advise of the death of Corporal Robert John “Bob” Cunningham (Ret’d) at Camp Hill Hospital in Halifax, NS on 28 January 2011 at the age of 91 years.
Robert was born in London, England and immigrated with his parents to Melbourne, QC where he grew up and finished high school. He volunteered for the Royal Canadian Engineers in 1939 and initially worked as a surveyor for artillery ranging in England and later with No. 1 Canadian Tunnelling Company in Gibraltar. He designed the Gibraltar Key, an unofficial award presented to those involved in the project. He later worked at the Artillery School in England. In 1944 he was commissioned into the Infantry and served in the Argyle & Sutherland Highlanders, seeing action in Belgium and Holland in 1944 and 1945.
After the war, Bob had a varied career working as a prospector, miner, tunnel worker, surveyor, wood carver, artist, published author and poet. These latter two activities both started after his 65th birthday. He wrote five books on Maritime history and a book of poetry about his life at Camp Hill Hospital.
Bob was a co-founder of the Dartmouth Boys Pipes & Drums. He was a Free Mason, a Life Member of the Royal Canadian Legion and the 1st Battalion Argyle and Sutherland Highlanders Veterans’ Association. Although Bob lived his later years in the Maritimes and had never lived in Northern Ontario, his obituary was also published in the Timmons Daily Press as a tribute to his service with No. 1 Tunnelling Company who were largely recruited from that region.
A celebration of Bob’s life will be held at White Family Funeral Home on 19 February at 1 p.m. followed by a reception. A private family interment will take place at the Saint John’s Anglican Church Cemetery in Wolfville, NS. Donations may be made to the Canadian Diabetes Association or Valley Regional Hospital. {dcOct2017gd} [zsp]
