Vermilion War Monument

Ever since the formation of the Vermilion Branch of the Great War Veterans' Association (later the Canadian Legion, Post 11), it had been the ambition of the organization to have a monument erected in the town as a permanent memorial of the part taken by the men and women of Vermilion and district.

With this object in view, a special Memorial Fund was started by the veterans in the hope that, at some time, it would expand into a sum sufficient to make the project an accomplished fact. The fund lay dormant until, at a meeting in early 1930, it was decided that an effort should be made to raise the balance necessary to erect a fitting memorial. A Memorial Committee was set up and a study was made of a number of plans submitted from a number of sources. It was decided that a stone monument of the "lighthouse" type would best embody the wishes of the community in its desires to remember those who had served. Permission was sought from the town council to erect the memorial in the Town Park.

The approximate cost of the memorial was estimated to be about $750 and, of that amount, Post 11 already had $450 in hand. A Memorial Fund Committee consisting of S.G. Brass (chairman), F.G. Harrington, H. Reid and T. Watts was set up to raise the balance of $300. News items began to appear in the Vermilion Standard as donations came in from the town, the district and interested persons from as far away as Montreal.

Meanwhile, the contract for the actual erection of the Memorial was given to William "Scotty" Swanson, who had learned his stone masonry in Scotland and examples of whose work could be found in the Banff Springs Hotel and in Jasper National Park. A call was made for volunteers to transport local rock from here and there in the district.

In early July, the Memorial was reported by The Standard as "rapidly taking form" and the Legion was making plans for its unveiling on August 4th, the 16th anniversary of the outbreak of hostilities in 1914. Invited groups included the Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, Cubs and Brownies, the Legion Ladies Auxiliary, the I.O.D.E. and the Vermilion Board of Trade. In addition, General Griesbach and Colonel Jamieson were expected to take part. An invitation was also sent to Rev. H.A. Edwards, then at Jasper, Alberta. The Vermilion Band had agreed to take part.

Collections for the fund continued and the Ladies of the Auxiliary put on a Tag Day, August 1st and 2nd, Vermilion Fair days. It was announced that further contributions could be left at The Standard office or at Long's Drug Store.

The Legion members met at 10 a.m. on August 3rd for the purpose of laying the names of their fallen comrades in the Memorial before it was sealed up and made ready for the unveiling the following day.

The committee in charge of the actual unveiling ceremony had some anxious moments on the day of the event. Delayed by a train wreck on his journey, Rev. H.A. Edwards was forced to drive by taxi from Edmonton and made a dramatic arrival exactly at 3:30 p.m. when the parade was assembled at the Memorial Hall.

In his dedicatory address, Rev. Edwards took his texts from Joshua and Genesis. The first scripture, Edwards said, was "What mean ye by these stones?" and the second was "The place whereon thou standest is holy ground." The monument before them was about to be solemnly dedicated to the memory of all the men - 83 in number - who went away from this town and surrounding districts and laid down their lives. The meaning was clear and ought to be remembered, and the place itself, for that reason, ought to be kept clean and cherished as a sacred place.

Tibbit, the photographer, took a photograph at this point in the service. The singing of the hymn, "O God Our Help in Ages Past", was followed by the sounding of "Reveille", after which the president, Mr. George Maxwell, formally requested Gen. Griesbach to unveil the memorial.

Wreaths and other floral offerings were placed on the monument by representatives of organizations as well as by individual sympathizers.

"An Instinct of Comradeship," Branch 11 History,
75th Anniversary, Royal Canadian Legion,
Branch 11, Vermilion, Alberta; 1994.

Today, the memorial still sits in the town park just a short distance away from the Town Hall. It has been in use every November 11th since its dedication and on a few other occasions, as well.

The numbers of veterans who march in the annual parade have dropped considerably in recent years. Only about two dozen actually march but another 40 or 50 watch from the sidelines not up to a march in the bitter cold of November.

The Rev. Edwards mentioned in the article was the person who, more than anyone, was responsible for the formation of a veterans' support organization. It was through his efforts that the Memorial Hall was purchased from the Bank of Commerce. The Pipe Band mentioned was a Legion band which continued to function until about 1980.