Mervin C. Simmons

Mervin C. Simmons was a Canadian soldier whose experiences in the First World War became the basis of Three Times and Out. Project Gutenberg lists the book as "Told by Private Simmons, Written by Nellie L. McClung," showing that the memoir draws directly on his firsthand account while being shaped into book form by the well-known Canadian writer and reformer.

The memoir centers on his service, his capture by German forces, and his time as a prisoner of war. Its lasting appeal comes from the immediacy of that perspective: instead of a distant history, it presents the war through one soldier's hardship, resilience, and determination to endure.

A local history source identifies him as Mervin Cecil Simmons (1886–1964). Even though biographical details about his wider life are not easy to confirm from the sources found here, his wartime testimony has remained available to later readers through reprints and digital editions, helping preserve one personal voice from the First World War.