Rossland, British Columbia Constructed in memory of
WWI, WWII and Korea.
Researched by Ray Keane.
Commission from Victory Bond
salesmen paid for the cenotaph. The contractors
were Fox and Grant.
The cenotaph has been
in three locations: first, south side of Columbia
Avenue on Queen Street; second, north side of
Columbia, east side of Queen Street; and, third,
Esling Park.
"Rossland
Miner", Saturday, August 21, 1920
AN IMPRESSIVE
CEREMONY
The unveiling of the Rossland
War Memorial yesterday, erected in honour of the
heroes of the World War I who gave their lives
that the civilized nations of the world might
remain free of the iron heel of the Prussians and
their allies, was one of the most impressive
ceremonies ever witnessed in Rossland and will
long be remembered by those present.
Over five hundred pupils from
the High and MacLean schools were in the
procession and it was quite noticeable that even
the smallest tot present was impressed by the
ceremonies in honouring those who, in the part
they played in the struggle for freedom, made the
future brighter for them.
All credit is due the Rossland
Branch of the Great War Veterans
Association of Canada for the successful manner
in which they carried the work of completing the
handsome memorial to the successful conclusion
attained, a lasting tribute to those who fell in
the great war.
Credit must also be given all
who co-operated with the veterans in the huge
task, for it was, as stated by a member of the
organization last evening, "that unity of
co-operation in all undertaken that won the
day."
Rosslanders, one and all, can
feel justly proud of the lasting memento of the
Worlds Greatest War.
ROSSLAND HONOURS
MEMORY
OF HEROES WHO FELL IN WAR
PEOPLE TURN OUT
EN MASSE
AT UNVEILING OF WAR MEMORIAL
MANY VETERANS IN
LINE;
SCHOOL PUPILS PARTICIPATE
BUSINESS
GENERALLY SUSPENDED IN ORDER
TO PAY RESPECTS TO THOSE WHO
GAVE THEIR LIVES IN STRUGGLE
Our Fallen Heroes.
E.V. Bloomfield, E.H.V. Wilder,
M. Janich, J. Mellach, J. Kearney, A. Campbell,
H. Bowers, A.G. Leeson, G. Wallace, T. Talbot, J.
Trewhella, T. Cross, J. Inches, J. Cocking, T.
Wallace, A. McLean, J.A. Paull, C.E. Adams, R.
Rakovich, H. Holmes, J. Paul, A. Lindsey, Z.
Nikitovich, J. Dawson, H. Packer, R. Bowie, R.
Gun, E.J. Lee, and F.S. Oliver.
One of the most impressive
ceremonies witnessed in the history of Rossland
took place yesterday, when, under the auspices of
the local branch of the Great War Veterans of
Canada, the beautiful War Memorial, erected by
the veterans and citizens in honour of the fallen
heroes in the late World War, was unveiled.
To the credit of the veterans
and all who assisted them, it must be said that
the arrangements were, in every detail,
perfection.
Long before the hour set for
the unveiling ceremonies to begin, the space at
the intersection of south side of Columbia Avenue
and Queen was well-filled with those who wished,
as a last tribute to the dead, to pay their
respects in participating in the unveiling
ceremonies.
Promptly at 1:30, the Great War
Veterans Band left the armoury for the
scene of the unveiling ceremonies, followed by
the returned men, about 40 in number, the
veterans being followed by the children of the
MacLean school and pupils from the High School,
the procession, when the band reached the
monument extending back to Spokane Street, was
the largest turnout of those attending the
schools ever seen in the city.
The procession was headed by
Lt.-Col. C. Hungerford Pollen, O.C., the 1st
Battalion Kootenay Regiment (formerly of the 54th
Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Forces;
Sergeant Semmens and Capt. D.E.D. Robertson; late
Chaplain 7th Battalion Canadian Expeditionary
Forces; Sergeant William Turner commanding the
returned men in line.
Teachers of the various classes
of the schools were in charge of the pupils in
the procession, Principal J.C. Robson generally
supervising.
Upon arriving at the memorial,
the speakers took their places in front of the
structure housing the trophies captured by the
Canadians from the Germans and immediately back
of the shaft erected in honour of the fallen
heroes. At the right and facing the huge throng
had been erected a small platform from which the
speakers delivered their addresses, a flag pole
immediately to the right of the speakers
stand bearing a huge Union Jack and being draped
in the National colours.
In the procession, were members
of the Canadian Mounted Police, the members of
the Rossland Board of School Trustees and
Rossland City Council.
The veterans were formed along
the east on Queen Street and East to West on
Columbia Avenue, the school children and pupils
of the High School being assembled inside of the
line and around the monument, with the Boy Scouts
taking up a position immediately in front of the
veterans.
"Retreat" was sounded
by the Gordon brothers of Trail, in true military
style, and "O, Canada" was sung by all
present, with the Great War Veterans
Association Band leading.
His Worship, Mayor Pitot, then
introduced Lt.-Col. Pollen, who unveiled the
shaft which was draped in a Union Jack, releasing
the covering at the close of his address.
Major Pitot, in introducing
Lt.-Col. Pollen, said all had gathered to honour
those brave Rosslanders who fell in the war.
Lt.-Col. Pollen paid high
tribute to the honoured dead. He said all the
Allied nations were, on this occasion, paying
tribute, in some form or other, to those brave
men who had fought and died in the war; the shaft
was addressed more to the living than the dead,
and the magnificent achievements of the fallen
heroes would live forever. He then declared the
monument officially unveiled, releasing the
fastening holding the Union Jack in place.
Lt.-Col. Pollen then placed a
most beautiful wreath, presented by the Kootenay
Battalion, at the base of the shaft, with Misses
Helen Townsend, Violet Swanson and Florence
McKenzie offering a magnificent wreath on a
pedestal on behalf of the pupils of the High
School, which was also placed at the base of the
monument.
Capt. the Rev. D.E.D. Robertson
was next introduced by His Worship, Mayor Pitot,
and offered the following prayer: "O, most
Glorious Lord God, whose radiant service is peace
that passeth all understanding to the submission
of the yoke and burden of the cross of the Son.
Accept, we pray Thee, the dedication of this
monument, erected to the glory and the undying
memory of our brethren whose life, taken from
Thee, was given again for Thy service in this
world, who liveth and rulest in the unity of the
Holy World without end. Amen."
The assembly then sang the
Hymn, "O, God Our Help in Ages Past",
with the band leading, after which His Worship,
Mayor Pitot, introduced Rev. K. McIntyre of the
Sacred Heart Church.
Rev. Father McIntyre said that
November 11 would be a day that would live
forever in the history of man: it marked the end
of the terrible struggle of bloodshed; our young
men had been watched going to war; and, on
November 11, the world received the message of
victory won; Armistice Day would live in our
memory and all would recall the occasion of the
unveiling of the tablet in honour of our glorious
dead; it seemed but a short time since they went
away; they lived among us and many were his
friends; their memory was carved in granite which
should not be looked upon as cold granite but a
shaft in honour of deeds well done; their names
would live forever. Rev. McIntyre said that
Rossland felt highly honoured because of the
presence of Lt.-Col. Pollen who had the honour of
serving with distinction along with the men.
Rev. Scott of the United
Church, who was in line with the veterans, was
next introduced by His Worship, Mayor Pitot, and
said that all were present on the occasion to pay
their respects to the fallen heroes and in
gratitude for the work they had done in blocking
the pathway of the greatest tyrant the world had
ever known. He said it might be appropriate to
refer to some of the past history of the Roman
Empire and the desire of some of the rulers to
dominate the people of the world; he spoke of
Napoleons ambitions and the conquest of
Spain - but Divine Providence had ruled against
them; Germany had similar ambitions; and of the
gallant work of those who had stood by and fought
so valiantly for King and Country. Rev. Scott, in
closing, said he took great pleasure in seconding
the vote of thanks tendered Lt.-Col. Pollen by
the previous speaker.
His Worship, Mayor Pitot,
introduced, as the next speaker, Ensign Houghton
of the Salvation Army who said he felt it a great
privilege to stand before those present on the
occasion of the unveiling of so beautiful a
memorial to the gallant men who fought and died
in the war. The shaft would, in his opinion,
stand, in future, more for the living than for
the dead and that "We will fight again
against those things that would hinder and for
the things that would help us." He spoke of
the presence in the audience of Brig. Coombes of
the Salvation Army who was also introduced by
Mayor Pitot.
Brigadier Coombes also
expressed great pleasure at being privileged to
be present on so memorable an occasion and said,
if it had not been for the men who volunteered
and went to the front, conditions would be vastly
different with us today. He referred to the
loyalty to those who were compelled to remain at
home and work for the cause of four years of war.
An old lady, quite feeble, had told him of her
desire to do something. She had gone to a rag bag
and, from its contents, made small mats from
which she realized $1.00. With this dollar, she
made more and accumulated $54.00; $50.00 was sent
to the starving children in Belgium and, with the
four dollars remaining, she went to work again
and, in time, was able to send along another
$50.00, making another $100.00 in all! This noble
work was only one of the many hundreds. In
closing, he paid a glowing tribute to the great
accomplishments of the valour of those who made
the supreme sacrifice.
The "Last Post" was
sounded, the National Anthem was sung with the
accompaniment of the band, and the curtain was
rung down on an event in Rosslands history
that will long be remembered by all present.
Appropriately designed programs were supplied to
all in attendance.
Veterans in Line: Trail
Veterans G.F. Reiman, C.A. Phillips, H. Adair,
J.P. Schofield, F. Dean, W.J. Williams, J.W.
McKay, Cor. H.J.E. Williams, Ray Jones, J.H.
Harrison, Sergeant Taylor, Buglers S. and R.
Gordon.
Rossland Veterans: C.E. Head,
Wm. Turner, Edw. W. Hall, Samuel Hanna, Lt.
Semmens, Rev. W.M. Scott, M. Nikitovich, E.E.
Hunt, Warren Crowe, Gerald Ham, W.E. Jewell, R.
Kirk, M. Hampton, Louis Rowe, Alonzo Rowe, J.G.
Hadfield, A. Ogg, Rev. D.E.D. Robertson, A.
McLaren, A. Ingram, A.G. Cleeton, F. Warburton,
E. Malcolm, P. Bloomer, W. Laughton, T. Johnson,
T. Cohen.
THE MEMORIAL
SHAFT
Rosslands Memorial Shaft
to our fallen heroes in the Great War was
originally erected from funds derived from the
commissions of the Victory Bond Campaign
Committee, aided by the City of Rossland but,
later, when captured German trophies were
presented to Rossland by Dominion War Department,
the veterans decided upon a plan to enlarge the
memorial and held a celebration on May 24th last,
realizing sufficient funds to go on with the
work, which was completed during the autumn
months.
Aside from the building housing
the trophies, a marble shaft, about seven feet
high on a massive granite base, makes up the
lasting testimonial of Rosslands
appreciation of the gallant deeds of her war
heroes.
The shaft is surrounded by four
ornamental standards of metal, adorned on top of
each with frosted electric light globes. When
illuminated at night, it presents a very
attractive appearance.
Inscribed on the shaft is the
following:
"In Memory
of Those Who Gave Their Lives for Humanity"
1914 - Great War
- 1918
"He That
Giveth His Life for a Principle deemed by Him to
be Just, is a Hero"
Notes of the
Occasion
All the service men wore their
service uniforms.
The manner in which the school
children (especially the little tots) sang
"O, Canada" made all present feel the
thrill of patriotism.
The Boy Scouts presented a most
pleasing appearance.
Few were in the gathering that
did not have a "poppy".
All flags on public buildings
were at half mast.
City Foreman Hanna did his part
well in preparing the grounds surrounding the
grounds for the occasion.
The mines closed for the day in
order to give all those who desired to attend the
ceremonies an opportunity to do so.
Lt.-Col. Pollen, while here,
was a guest at the home of Mr. and Mrs. E.E.L.
Dewney while in the city, departing for his home
in Cranbrook on Friday evening's train.
Immediately in front of the
staff at its base could be seen a pure white
cross with clusters of "poppies" at its
base - a replica of the graves of our fallen
heroes in Flanders.
Rosslands War Memorial is
admitted by all who have seen other memorials
throughout the province in the smaller cities to
be the most appropriate in design of any yet
erected.
The fact that Rossland
possesses such a good musical organization in the
Great War Veterans' Association Band is
appreciated the more, for, without the band, the
unveiling ceremonies would not have attained the
success noted.
The weather looked threatening
for a time but the heavy clouds overhanging the
city withheld any moisture they might have
contained during the ceremonial exercises.
Many present, especially
strangers in the city, took advantage of the
occasion to view the German trophies housed in
the place erected for their preservation
adjoining the tablet, the trophies consisting of
a large German field piece, two machine guns,
cartridge belts, ammunition boxes and other
equipment.
P.S. Mr. Ernie Glover,
who was a painter, kept the lettering on
the cenotaph, which was in goldleaf, in
good repair until he passed away in the
early thirties.
The cenotaph was moved from the
northeast corner of Columbia Avenue and Queen
Street to Esling park in October 1948. Alderman
Cyril Bacon was in charge of the committee which
arranged the transfer of the cenotaph. He praised
the Royal Canadian Legion for their help.
As a point of interest,
November 11 was declared a National of
Remembrance by the Canadian Parliament in 1931.
ROSSLAND
CENTENNIAL CELEBRATIONS
REDEDICATION OF CENOTAPH
JULY 1, 1997
Crowds huddled together in the
light rain of Tuesday morning for the
rededication of the Cenotaph Memorial by Royal
Canadian Legion Branch No. 14.
President Vernon Schneider of
Rossland Br. 14 Royal Canadian Legion introduced
Rev. Bob McDowell who offered a scripture reading
and prayer of dedication at the unveiling, and
Zone Commander, Allan Stinson, addressed those
gathered.
Mayor Bill Profili extended the
best wishes from the City of Rossland and thanked
the Legion for their co-operation in changing the
location of the cenotaph.
Address by Zone Commander,
Allan Stinson:
It gives me a great deal of
pleasure, not only as the representative of
Pacific Command of the Royal Canadian Legion but
having a great Grandfather Keating who came to
Rossland in 1987, and a wonderful mother, Dorothy
Stinson, and myself, who were both born in
Rossland, to speak to you today.
The cenotaph was first
dedicated on November 11, 1921, at its original
location on Queen Street south of Columbia
Avenue. It has since been moved to the north side
of Columbia Avenue on Queen and, again, to the
location most familiar to you, in Esling Park.
Now, thanks to the City of Rossland and our
hard-working chairman of the legion cenotaph
committee, Bernie Fourt, it rests here at Library
Square.
This cenotaph serves as a
symbol, not only of those World War I and II
soldiers, sailors and airmen who died and are
listed on it but also as a symbol that should act
as a reminder of those other veterans who served
their country in its time of need and then came
home. We can honour and respect their sacrifices
simply by remembering.
We hope it will never be
necessary to add any names to this cenotaph but
it is a fact of life that Canadian Forces
personnel continue to serve, and some die doing
Peacekeeping duty in places like Bosnia, Haiti,
Somalia and Cyprus. This cenotaph should act as a
reminder that peace does not come without a price
and that our present-day Armed Forces personnel
still need our support and respect.
In closing, I would simply use
the last line of the Legion Act of Remembrance:
"We will remember them."
Wreaths were placed on the
cenotaph by the West Kootenay Zone Commander,
Ladies Auxiliary, Donna Price; Vernon
Schneider for Rossland Branch of Royal Canadian
Legion; Gary Moulton Junior Vice District 9
Veterans of Foreign Wars; and Opal Moulton,
Ladies Auxiliary President, Post 3067, of
Deer Park, Wa.
William Richardson was the
Parade Marshall, and the Trail Pipe Band provided
the music when the Legion members marched from
the Rossland Legion to the cenotaph and, after
the service, returned to the Rossland Legion.
"Rossland
Miner", Saturday, November 12, 1921
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