Sunday 25 June 2017

Omemee

 

Location:   Kawartha Lakes     N 44 17.944   W 78 33.591
46 King Street East, beside Coronation Hall.
 

The Omemee District War Memorial is flanked by a German trench mortar and a cannon with no markings.  There is also a plaque dedicated to Victoria Cross award winner Harry Brown, who also has a plaque in his hometown of Gananoque.  I posted the two plaques for Pte. Brown in January, 2012.
This memorial, a carved stele of grey marble, lists the names of the war dead of the World Wars and Korea.  Found in a well-cared for memorial park, Omemee remains proud of its brave soldiers.


 
Marker text:
OMEMEE DISTRICT
WAR MEMORIAL

THEIR
SOULS
LIVE
ON

KILLED IN
ACTION
1914 - 1918

BROWN, HARRY V.C.
BESTOR, ROBERT
GALLAGHER, WM.
GOSSELIN, ALPHONSE
GREEN, ALBERT
HALIDAY, GEORGE
HOPKINS, JAMES
HOULIHAN, CYRIL
MARSH, LEONARD
McAULIFFE, VICTOR
McLAUGHLIN, JOS.
MILLS, FRED
MURTHA, JAMES
PERDUE, MICHAEL
POLLETT, GEORGE
POAST, ROY
SMITH, FRANK
TROTT, JOSEPH
WHITEHEAD, WM.


 KILLED IN
ACTION
1939 - 1945

BOATE, ARTHUR
BRENTON, EDWIN
BRENTON, KENNETH
FEE, GORDON
HANBRIDGE, RALPH
MAGEE, LEONARD
MURRAY, PETER
MURTHA, JAMES
ROADHOUSE, GEORGE
STEPHENSON, WM.
STRAIN, CLIFFORD
VEALS, CLIFFORD
WELL, ERNEST

KILLED IN
ACTION
IN KOREA

GARDINER, RUSSELL






Sunday 18 June 2017

Calabogie

 

Location:  Renfrew County     N 45 17.833   W 76 43.46
On the south side of Madawaska Street, in a small park beside the lake.


This memorial sits in a beautiful location along the shore of Calabogie Lake.  It consists of two tall granite steles flanking a smaller centre stele.  The memorial was erected in 1967 by the Bagot and Blythfield Centennial Committee, making this cenotaph now 50 years old.  It certainly does not show its age, the memorial and the grounds being well cared for.  The names of those who died in the World Wars are forever engraved in the granite.  The early crest of the Canadian Legion, the British Empire Service League is also featured above the list of names.
 

Details of those lost in World War I.
CHARLES BAILEY.  Born January 11, 1882 in Calabogie.  Enlisted with the 1st Battalion in Edmonton in May of 1915.  Killed in action near Courcelette, France, September 21, 1916.  Buried in the Vimy Memorial Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France.                                http://www.canadiangreatwarproject.com/searches/soldierDetail.asp?ID=44444

CLEVELAND CRAIG.  Born August 26, 1894 in Calabogie.  Enlisted with the 3rd Battalion in Renfrew in March of 1916.  Died of his wounds near Lapugnoy, France, August 21, 1917.  Buried in Lapugnoy Military Cemetery, France.                                                                   http://www.canadiangreatwarproject.com/searches/soldierDetail.asp?ID=2111

MILTON CHARBONNEAU.    Born January 1, 1897 in Blythfield, Renfrew County.  Enlisted with the 3rd Battalion in Arnprior in February of 1916.  Died in the Battle of Vimy Ridge, April 9, 1917.  Buried in the Bois-Carre British Cemetery, Pas de Calais, France.     http://www.canadiangreatwarproject.com/searches/soldierDetail.asp?ID=39428

JACK MARTELL.  Born February 6, 1884 in Calabogie.  Enlisted with the 38th Battalion in Renfrew in December of 1915.  Killed in action, 4 1/2 miles west of Cambrai, France, September 29, 1918.   While in charge of a Lewis Gun Section advancing on the objective during an attack West of Tilloy, he was wounded in the left arm and hand by enemy machine gun fire, when about 200 yards East of the Cambrai-Douai Road.  After dressing his wounds and proceeding further he was hit in the head and instantly killed by a machine gun bullet.  Buried in the Bourlon Wood Cemetery, France.  http://www.canadiangreatwarproject.com/searches/soldierDetail.asp?ID=38633



Marker text:
Centre:
ERECTED BY
BAGOT
AND
BLYTHFIELD
CENTENNIAL
COMMITTEE
1967
 

Left stele:
1914 - 1918

CHARLES BAILEY
CLEVELAND CRAIG
MILTON CHARBONNEAU
JACK MARTELL

WE WILL
REMEMBER THEM
 

Right stele:
1939 - 1945

JOHN ALEXANDER BOX
JOSEPH MILTON
CHARBONNEAU
WILFRID RAYMOND GAGNON
DUNCAN RAY KIPPEN
THOMAS PATRICK MULVIHILL
EARL LLOYD NICOL
HOWARD ALEXANDRA
O'HARE
GORDON KEITH WILLIS





Tuesday 13 June 2017

New Hamburg



Location:  Waterloo Region     N 43 22.686   W 80 42.751
On Huron Street, between the library and bridge over the Nith River.
 
 
This is the third memorial to stand on this site, since the first was erected in 1922.  The first cenotaph was erected with the plan of adding a bronze statue to the top of a stone cairn, with the names of the dead of the Great War engraved forever on a bronze plaque.  A captured German field artillery piece was also placed beside the cenotaph, but that mysteriously disappeared on Halloween night.  When promised funding sources dried up, the statue was never completed and left unfinished until 1929 when the stone cairn was replaced with a new concrete memorial with all the names of the lost heroes of New Hamburg and surrounding area engraved into the concrete.  This memorial lasted until the weather had gotten the better of it and costly repairs were needed.  It was decided by the powers that presided over the current town council and local Legion, that a third cenotaph was needed to replace the badly worn concrete version.
In May of 1991, a new light grey granite cenotaph was unveiled.  The newest version of the memorial had an additional sixteen names added to the list from the original cenotaph, this to include the names of those lost from Wilmot Township.  Erected by Shuh Memorials of Kitchener, at a cost of $28,000, the new cenotaph also contains a time capsule in its base.  The granite stone will last much longer than any previous memorial that has stood in this spot.
The cenotaph of New Hamburg has quite a history, but is is refreshing to see that the need to remember the dead of the Great Wars has overcome all obstacles to forever stand as a reminder of the sacrifices made by so many local men.




Marker text:
Front:
WORLD WAR 1
1914 - 1918

LT. RUSSELL WILLIAMS
CPL. LESLIE E. SHEPPARD  M.M.
L.C. ELGIN E. EBY
PT.E CHARLES T. DANIELLS
PTE. HERBERT E. ERBACH
GNR. ALVIN J. FORLER
PTE. GLENNIE R. GOEBEL
PTE. WILFRID C. LASCHINGER
PTE. ELMER KASTER
PTE. ALBERT E. MERNER
PTE. IVAN B. MARTY
PTE. HENRY L. McFADYEN  DCM
PTE. WALTER W. PERRY  M.M.
PTE. JOHN E. SPAHR
PTE. JOHN STRAUCH
PTE. NATHANIEL STIER
PTE. GEORGE H. SCHMITT
PTE. THEODORE SCHULER
PTE. CLINTON T. WALKER
PTE. CHARLES D.H. YOUNG



WORLD WAR II
1939 - 1945

CAPT. NILE H. BIER
F/O ROBERT W. HONDERICH
F/O CHARLES W. HOSTETLER
F/O RUSSEL A. SALTZBERRY
SGT. HUBERT L. DITNER
WOII JOHN K. ROSS
CPL. DONALD J. MILNE M.M.
L.C. SAMUEL W. FOSTER
L.C. KENNETH L. FRIED
SIG. EARL JANTZI
L.A.C. ERHARDT G. WAGNER
SPR. IRVIN INGOLD
PTE. WALTER C. KURT
PTE. ALBERT G. REINHART
PTE. JOHN HENRY STIEFELMEYER
PTE. BURKLE TOMAN
 


KOREAN WAR
1950 - 1953

SGT. GERALD W. KOCH


LEST WE FORGET
IN HONOURED MEMORY OF
THE MEN OF
WILMOT TOWNSHIP
WHO FOUGHT AND DIED IN
THE GREAT WARS
AND
1950 - KOREA - 1953

1914  -  1918

1939  -  1939






















Sunday 4 June 2017

Caledon East

 

Location:  Peel Region     N 43 52.528   W 79 51.511
6311 Old Church Road, beside the Caledon Town Hall.

The inscription on the back of this memorial tells almost all we need to know about the history behind it.  Two bronze plaques on the front list the names of the local heroes who died in the World Wars.  The area of the cenotaph is very well kept and landscaped, but this is the Town Hall, so I would expect nothing less.  A spot light in the garden indicates that the memorial is visible night and day.

 
Marker text:
Front:
Top Plaque:
IN MEMORY OF
THOSE WHO PAID
THE SUPREME SACRIFICE
IN THE GREAT WAR
1914 - 1918

MORLEY ATTWOOD
JOHN BASS
SIDNEY CORNFORTH
JOHN GROGAN
HARRY HICKEY
WILLIAM JONES
ELMER MOSS
GEORGE MUNRO
WILLIAM MUNRO
LAWRENCE MATTHEWS
WILBERT McCAFFREY
EARL McMINN
HILLIARD PERDUE
CUTHBERT PITCHFORD
JERE RIDDELL
WILLIAM WELLWOOD
ALBERT WALKER

THEY HAVE LEFT
THEIR NAMES BEHIND THEM.
 




Bottom plaque:
IN MEMORY OF
THOSE WHO PAID
THE SUPREME SACRIFICE
IN WORLD WAR II
1939 - 1945

JOHN COOPER
MICHAEL CRONIN
EDWARD GROGAN
ROBERT MOORE

THEIR BODIES ARE BURIED IN PEACE
BUT THEIR NAMES LIVETH FOR EVERMORE.
 




Engraved on stone:
DEDICATED
TO THE MEMORY OF
THOSE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES
IN KOREA
1950 - 1953

LEST WE FORGET
 



 
Back:
THIS MEMORIAL WAS UNVEILED
ON NOVEMBER 15TH, 1981
ON THE SITE OF THE FORMER
CALEDON EAST COMMUNITY HALL
WHICH WAS BUILT BY
PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION IN 1923
TO HONOUR THOSE WHO
SERVED THEIR COUNTRY
IN THE 1ST AND 2ND WORLD WARS.

THE ATTACHED BRONZE PLAQUES CAME
FROM THE ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION
BRANCH 292 CALEDON EAST
AND COMMEMORATE THE YOUNG MEN
FROM THIS COMMUNITY WHO LAID
DOWN THEIR LIVES FOR THEIR
COUNTRY IN BOTH WORLD WARS.

REDEDICATED JUNE 5, 2004
IN COMMEMORATION OF THE 60TH
ANNIVERSARY OF D-DAY JUNE 6, 1944