Ladysmith War Memorial

Constructed in 1922 in memory of fallen comrades.

The first unveiling of the war memorial was in January of 1923 at 1st Avenue and Gatacre Street. Since then, the memorial has been moved to three (3) different locations. Unfortunately, during one of the moves, part of the memorial was broken to pieces and was never restored to its original state, as you will see by the pictures.

The Unveiling of the War Memorial

Ceremonies Successfully Conducted in Whirling Snowstorm
Hundreds of People in Attendance

The snowstorm on Sunday last did not prevent the citizens from turning out in large numbers when the monument erected by the Ex-Service Men's Association in memory of their fallen comrades was unveiled by Brig-General R.P. Clark, C.M.C., D.S.O., M.C.

A company of over forty returned officers and men lined up at the City Hall, and headed by the band, marched from there up Roberts St. and along First Avenue to the site of the monument.

Four Sergeants in full military equipment formed the guard of honor. They were placed one at each corner of the edifice, and during the various ceremonies, stood at "present arms."

Just below the platform erected for the ceremony, the returned men who paraded lined up under Capt. J.E. Montgomery. On the platform were assembled General Clark, Rev. F. L. Stephenson, Rev. J.G. Reid, Rev. J.F. Shaw, Rev. Thos. L. Conney, His Worship the Mayor and all the members of the City Council, Mr. T.A. Spruston, Mr. W. Wilson and Capt. C.G. Callin, who acted as Master of Ceremonies.

Before a crowd of some hundreds of people, the Ladysmith-Extension band opened the proceedings by playing the National Anthem, after which a prayer was offered up by the Rev. J.G. Reid. This was followed by a silence of two minutes.

General Clark then unveiled the memorial, and read the names inscribed thereon. In a very few well-chosen remarks the General expressed his appreciation of the honor that had been conferred upon him in asking him to unveil the monument to the men of Ladysmith and district who had given their all in the Great War for freedom and he complimented the residents of the district on erecting such a splendid edifice in their memory.

Led by the band, the old favorite hymn, "I heard the voice of Jesus say", was then sung by the assembled crowd, after which the Rev. J.F. Shaw read several verses of scripture from the Revelations, and the "Last Post" was sounded by Mr. E. Wetton.

At this point, piper W. Forsythe rendered "The Flowers of the Forest", after which the Rev. F.L. Stephenson repeated the Lord's Prayer.

Mr. T.A. Spruston, local superintendent of the Canadian Collieries (D), Ltd., gave the following address:

Gen. Clark, Ladies and Gentleman and Returned Soldiers:
On behalf of the Canadian Collieries and as one of your fellow citizens. I wish to join and share with you in the unveiling and dedication of this beautiful edifice to the comrades and heroes of our town and district, whose names it bears, who fell during the Great War of 1914 to 1918.

There is no doubt but what this occasion will revive the memories and open up the bereavement that has been smouldering in the hearts of the relatives and the comrades who knew these fathers, husbands, sons and brothers before going overseas, or on the battlefield, but, let us hope that the kindly spirit and feeling which prompted the returned soldiers and their fellow citizens to erect this memorial will more than compensate that grief, especially when they know that it will ever be a reminder of the esteem and goodwill in which they were held by their fellow men & for all generations to come, for the great sacrifices and the great and glorious deeds they accomplished in giving their lives that we may continue to live as British subjects.

Your committee is to be complimented on their foresight in the choice of such a beautiful memorial to commemorate their fallen comrades. Time and age will not destroy this rugged stone with its magnificent pillars and canopy of granite, built to stand the storms and weather conditions to which our coast is sometimes subjected. And I hope further that not only will this memorial ever remind us of the great deeds accomplished by these fallen heroes, but may it ever be a living monument to still further cement the good feeling and harmony that has existed between our company and my fellow employees during the last few years, and bind together not only the returned men but all citizens irrespective of, creed and denomination, so that we see to it that those who are left bereaved may never be forgotten until we all meet again.

Then followed the commitment of the memorial to the care of the Mayor, the Alderman and the citizens of Ladysmith, by the Rev. F.L. Stephenson, as follows:

Mr. Mayor, Worshipful Sir and Gentlemen of the Council of the City of Ladysmith:
I have been chosen by the committee representing the City of Ladysmith and adjacent districts to place today in your charge, care and keeping this memorial of love and gratitude, erected in memory of those who gave their lives in the Great War for our freedom and the freedom of the world.

It is no small charge and care we ask you and your colleagues to accept and take up.

It is a sacred trust which shall have a deep claim on each one of you individually and collectively, as our representatives. Not that we, as a body, would shift a responsibility from our shoulders to yours, but as the chief magistrate of our city, we think it befitting that such a solemn trust as we ask you to assume should rest in those who watch over our concerns.

Accepting the sacred charge, you shall use every endeavor to preserve this memorial from danger of destruction or decay, handing on this responsibility to your successors in office that it may always be in our midst not only a symbol of the stability of noble and pure example of service and sacrifice, but also of loving memory of those who, having offered the supreme sacrifice, now answer the roll call of Britain's Glorious Dead.

I ask you, worshipful sir, in the name of my fellow citizens, will you accept this sacred trust?

His Worship, the Mayor W.W. Walkem accepted the memorial from the Ex-Service Men's Association in the following address:

To the Citizens of Ladysmith and Adjacent Districts as represented by Rev. F.L. Stephenson:
I could wish for no greater honor than that presented me at this moment, in accepting, as I do, on behalf of the Corporation of the City of Ladysmith, this very beautiful monument, which has been erected to the memory of those noble fellow citizens who died for home and country.

I can assure you, Sir, that we accept the responsibility imposed upon us, with a full appreciation of all that it means and proud indeed we will be to perpetuate the memory of our brave fellows by seeing that monument will be properly cared for from this time forward.

I wish, in closing, to extend on behalf of the people of Ladysmith our sincerest sympathy to all relatives of those whom we today honor, and our gratitude for the great sacrifice which they have borne.

We sincerely thank the Ex-Service Men of this city and district for bringing this monument into existence, and the people generally, and the Canadian Collieries (D.), Ltd., for their generous financial response.

The Rev. Thos. L. Cooney was the next speaker, and gave a rousing patriotic speech, delivered in very pleasant resonant voice. The following was his address:

Commanding Officer General Clark, Your Worship the Mayor, Members of the Council, Returned Soldiers, Fellow Canadians:
I have been called upon to say a few words on this great day - a day that will go down in the annals of Ladysmith. Why I am asked to play this role, I cannot tell; I have never seen the trenches. There are men here in our midst today who could set us afire with the eloquence of "No Man's Land." I hang my head in shame when I confess that I am not prepared to do justice to our fallen heroes. It is beyond the power of words to tell, in a few short moments, all the deeds of heroism that were crowded into those four long years and more. But I will do my best to grace this great occasion.

From far across the ocean, from far off Flanders fields, we hear the cry, "If you forget, we'll never rest in Flanders Fields, though poppies grow." Forget! My God, forget! Forget what? Forget the price they paid.

We hear the bugle call, we hear the beat of drums. They're off! We see the husband kiss his wife a last farewell, we see the weeping children - the son kneel down to receive the last blessing from the trembling hands of his dear old Father and gray haired old Mother - they say good-bye - they wave a last farewell - they're off to Flanders fields.

Now we see them in the trenches - there they stand behind their guns - we see them scale the hills and everywhere we meet them; we see their faces fixed in grim determination, and, on their brows in letters of fire are found the words, "You shall not pass." We are Canada, we are the boys from Ladysmith - a noble part and brave of that great empire. Let Vimy Ridge cry out its noble deeds; let Ypres speak and tell its stories - they have five hundred thousand tongues and all of them Canadian, and some of them speak Ladysmith. They have sounded the name of Canada to the ends of the earth; they have told the world the worth of the men from Ladysmith; they died that we may live; they fought to make this world a better one. Shall we forget! Oh, no! Today we have chiseled their names in stone - in everlasting stone, and as we write their names upon these stone pages, let us carve their names upon the pages of our hearts in honor, love and benediction, so that our tongues may speak our hearts and tell of those true heroes from good old Ladysmith. We'll meet them again, and when we do, will we be prepared to look them straight in the eyes and say, "We did not forget." Long live those heroes - brave and bold - their names are everlasting.

I thank you.

The hymn "Abide With Me" was then sung by the audience, and the ceremony closed with benediction pronounced by the Rev. Jas. G. Reid.

Capt. Callin then announced that wreaths could be placed upon the memorial, and many were the beautiful floral offering placed upon the monument.

General Clark went all round the boys on parade and spoke to each one, then they formed up in double file, and headed by Piper Forsythe, returned to the City Hall, where they were dismissed.

The names of the fallen engraved on the monument are as follows:

W. Appleby, J. Barron, J. Beauchamp, J. Bell, J. Brown, W. Cleworth, J. Davidson, R. Davidson, G. Forrest, J. Gaffney, Jr., F. Gisborne, A. Glen, J. Grant, W. Harris, H. Kemp, J. Lapsanski, G. Laurie, W.F. Luton, A. McKinnon, N. McNiven, R. McNiven, F. McRae, F.W. Miller, F.J.D. Morrison, T. Musgrave, A. Patterson, G. Patterson, M. Rae, J. Scobie, J. Sebaston, F.H. Shaw, J. Sharp, T.N. Simpson, W. Tait, D. Taylor, W. Turkko, J. Wallace, R.R. Wallace, I. Whitcombe, W. Wright, Jr.

The following is the list of floral offerings: The Ex-Service Men's Association; Mr. and Mrs. D. Davidson; Mr. and Mrs. J. Davidson and family; Mrs. J. Lapsansky; Brig-Gen. R.P. Clark; Mayor and Mrs. Walkem; City Council; St. John's Lodge, A.F. and A.M.; Laurel Rebekah Lodge; I.O.D.E.; Pythian Sisters; Court Newcastle, A.O.F.; Hospital Auxiliary; Harmony Lodge, I.O.O.F.; Sharon Chapter O.E.S.; Court Primrose, A.O.F., and several others which were unmarked.

The guard of honor was: A. Declark, F. Rumble, H. Taylor and J. Wilson.

Ladysmith Chronicle,
Ladysmith, B.C.,
Saturday, February 3, 1923