Did Canada make its own stretchers?

[derk derin]

Going through all of them made me realize while the construction is basically similar in appearance they all seem to be manufactured in a different way.
The folding framework & feet are similar in design but differ slightly;

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[derk derin]

The straps that hold the stretchers closed while folded also differ between straps and snap buttons or buckles;

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[derk derin]

Then there’s the Airborne variant folding stretcher. I have a green painted one that has seen some action and a brown painted one that seems to have sat on a shelf its whole life!
The only markings I could find on either stretcher is the end of the handles on the green stretcher. The brown stretcher I could find no markings on.

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[derk derin]

No markings on the brown stretcher.

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[derk derin]

I did find a lot of post war markings on the stretchers that found their way to civilian infirmaries like the one from the Hudson Bay Company infirmary, businesses like the CBC and municipalities for civil defence stock.

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[derk derin]

I have a stretcher that probably dates back to the era of WWI by looking at period photos of stretchers used in that era. No military markings but a brass plate of the manufacturer. The metal legs also identify it as an earlier stretcher.

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[derk derin]

And out of all the stretchers in my collection I could only find 2 promising markings that identify them as Canadian military issue.
The one marked RCASC is most likely Royal Canadian Army Service Corps issued by the painted abbreviations under the wooden rail ( unless there’s a business out there with the same abbreviations???).
And this stretcher is the only one that has 37 pattern style web straps & buckles sewn to the canvas.

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