Richmond Memorial Park Cenotaph

The Richmond Memorial Park Cenotaph is dedicated to all those who served their country.

Richmond is the second oldest military settlement in Ontario. The first settlers were soldiers and their families from British Army regiments that were disbanded in Canada in the late 1800s. The Richmond War Monuments Project was started at the beginning of September in 1988. The dedication and unveiling ceremony was held on November 6^th, 1988, and was attended by the Right Honorable George Hees. The Cenotaph consists of an eight-foot cross, made of dark polished Barre granite from Quebec, and supported by a Stanstead grey base. Behind the cross is a three-foot fieldstone wall that contains two bronze plaques. The inscriptions on the plaques read: "In memory of those who served" and "We will remember them".

The Cenotaph and flower beds alongside it have been maintained by the Cenotaph Committee of The Royal Canadian Legion Branch and, as of last summer, the flowers have been planted and maintained by a class of school children from St. Philip's Catholic School in Richmond. The cross is illuminated with floodlights year round, and Christmas lights are added during the Christmas season. The Branch also maintains a wreath at the Cenotaph year round.

The erection of the Cenotaph had been sponsored by the Richmond and District Branch 625 of The Royal Canadian Legion as a community project. A Patriotic Trust Fund, which had been started at the end of WWII to build a suitable Memorial, was turned over to the Legion Branch at the time of the amalgamation of Goulbourn township. When the decision was made to build a Cenotaph, the Branch started an intensive fund-raising campaign to supplement the Trust Fund, which met with great success.