Rural N.B. boy born to drive
Robert Preston Monteith never saw an engine on four wheels that he did not like, and he's seen a lot of them in his day. Little did he know, however, when he drove his first car at 12-years-of-age -- a 1932 Chevrolet -- that he would someday be a champion Royal Canadian Air Force motor vehicle driver and a chauffeur to royalty.
But, let's start at the beginning of a very interesting story.
The Great Depression of the 1930s was not the best time for a young lad to grow up in rural New Brunswick. The second oldest in a family of seven siblings, Preston (also known to friends and associates in later life as Robert, Monty and R.P.) was required to start working very early in life as a help to his widowed mother. His first job was to stoke up the wood-burning stove every morning in an old one-room school house in the tiny Village of Nashwaak in west-central New Brunswick. He also worked on several farms and drove a delivery truck once he qualified for his driver's licence.
Married while still in his teens to the former Jean Estey of nearby Durham Bridge, Preston was soon the father of two daughters, Anne and Roberta, and seriously considering his vocational options after utilizing God-given carpentry skills to build a small home in Durham Bridge just down the road from his inlaws.
With mixed emotions and the welfare of his young family foremost in his mind, he enlisted in May of 1944 for a military service career that came dangerously close to being cut short just as he completed Royal Canadian Air Force basic training.
The new recruit was part of a runway maintenance crew that was laying down a temporary landing strip for ARGO aircraft training purposes in Southern Ontario. He was riding in the back of a distributing vehicle that was spreading hot tar when the heating apparatus accidentally ignited. The vehicle was instantly engulfed in flames with Preston still on the back. He escaped with his life but suffered extensive burns to his arms, legs and face and was hospitalized for a year in St. Thomas and Weston. His eyesight was initially in jeopardy and he required tedious, painstaking skin grafting to much of his body but, miraculously, he recovered and was quick to make up for lost time with avengeance once he returned to regular duty.
He spent the next 10 years at No. 2 CMU in Toronto and later at 5 SD in Moncton. In 1951, now Cpl. Monteith with his spotless service driving record, was given the honor of being a driver for the Royal Party when Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip visited the Maritimes for the first time, driving the distinguished passengers around Fredericton, Moncton and Sydney. The kid from Nashwaak had truly arrived, and in his own backyard no less.
Two years later he was selected for the elite RCAF Marching Contingent which took part in the Coronation procession for Queen Elizabeth in June, 1953 (see photo below).
Again in the fall of 1957, wearing an extra stripe on his tunic sleeve and with a couple of national RCAF Truck Driving Championships under his belt, Sgt. "Monty" was again named "Royal Chauffeur" to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth and The Duke of Edinburgh, for a portion of their second tour of Canada.
Royals just like "real folks"
Part of his assignment was to drive the Royal couple from Uplands Airport to Rideau Hall in Ottawa. "If I have any outstanding recollection of the drive to Rideau Hall it is of the great enthusiasm displayed by the Queen and Philip at the size of the crowds and the warmth of their welcome," Preston told a newspaper reporter at the time.
The Queen was no sooner in the car, he explained, than she questioned Brigadier Aird Nesbitt, a front seat passenger, about the aircraft on the field and the insignias painted on a number of them.
Asked if she would like the windows of the car closed, she said she would rather have them opened in order to see the crowds and make it easier for people to see her and the Duke. "Then Philip wanted to know what company had manufactured the car," Preston added.
"Naturally I had to keep my mind on the job at hand and my eyes on the road, but I could tell the Royal couple was enjoying the trip."
"The radio in the car was turned on and all along the way the Duke was trying to spot the announcer who happened to be speaking. He would catch sight of the announcers on a raised platform and say: "There, that's the chap who's speaking."
"As we approached the government experimental farm, Philip spotted an apple tree laden with fruit and drew it to the attention of the Queen, saying 'Look at those lovely big red apples'."
At one point, the Duke asked Preston if any members of his family would be standing in the crowd. Preston explained that his wife and daughters were back home in Summerside, PEI, and that they would no doubt be watching on television.
"The Royals talked and acted just like real folks," stated their obviously impressed driver.
As an act of appreciation for chauffeuring services rendered, the Royal couple presented Preston with an official, autographed portrait of the Royal family during a personal interview at the end of the tour. (See photo below.)
Over the years he not only piled up thousands of miles behind the wheel of various types of service vehicles, large and small, but he also amassed quite and impressive record of nautical miles with six Atlantic crossings including an extensive stint in Germany where he was attached to No. 4 Fighter Wing. He also made numerous treks to the Annual International Truck Rodeo in which he beat out all other competitors in the Tri-Service Canada-Wide Safe and Skilled Driving Championships.
Preston retired from the Air Force in 1970 with the rank of Warrant Officer 1 (WO1) and settled in London in order to be close to daughters Anne and Roberta and their families. He promptly began a second career with Thames Valley Ambulance Service as fleet maintenance supervisor, looking after ambulances and other company vehicles with his accustomed tender loving care. He retired for a second time in 1977 and worked casually for a few years thereafter as a member of the Corps of Commissionaires.
In retirement he was known to rescue bicycles and lawn mowers from curb sides and garbage bins, restoring some of them to their former glory and converting others into motorized carts and two-wheeled street machines. He even designed and built a unique bicycle-for-two that featured a side-car assembly that caught the attention of many photographers as he cruised various parks in the Forest City. He was also an avid golfer and honored when Thames Valley Ambulance employees named a tournament after him.
Ironically, Queen Elizabeth visited London a few years ago to plant several trees in Victoria Park. In a walkabout following the planting ceremony,
she spotted Preston standing with a group of veterans from the Byron Branch of the Canadian Legion. Her old chauffeur stood out from the group because he was holding the photograph of him when he drove the Royal couple on their tour of Canada in 1951. The Queen stopped to acknowledge the photo as she walked by saying: "That was sometime ago!"
A fitting lifetime highlight for a Royal Canadian Air Force veteran from rural New Brunswick who drove a 1932 Chevy for the first time when he was only 12 years old and went on to establish an impeccable record of skilled, safe-handling of military motor vehicles.
Preston's dear wife Jean passed away a short decade before daughter Anne succumbed to cancer in 2000. It was on the 24th of December, 1959, that I asked my future father-in-law for his eldest daughter's hand in marriage. He gave his blessing and we have been close ever since.
Several weeks before Anne and I were married, I purchased a four-year-old 1956 Buick and proudly took the Monteith's out for a spin. I'll never forget how nervous I was with a former championship driving expert as a passenger. It was on the way back home from our 20-minute drive that I discovered for the first time that the gas gauge on my new pride and joy was not working properly...As fate would have it, I ran out of gas.
Talk about winning friends and influencing soon-to-be inlaws!
There are only 17 years between the two of us and people used to think that I was Preston's younger brother...They don't think that any more. He now looks younger than me!
Monty celebrated his 89th birthday just a few weeks ago. God bless him!
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Special acknowledgement to sister-in-law Roberta May for her kind assistance in providing material for this story.
*MORE PHOTOS BELOW
*MORE PHOTOS BELOW
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