Niagara Falls - Legion Br. 479

 

 Location:  Niagara Region     N 43.09074   W -79.08798

5603 Spring Street, in front of the Legion.

This memorial stands proudly in front of the A.C McCallum Branch 479 of the Royal Canadian Legion.

The following history is taken from the Branch's website:   https://www.rcl479.ca/history

The present location of Branch 479 is steeped in military history

During World War 1, the 176th (Niagara Rangers) Overseas Battalion Canadian Expeditionary Forces lived and trained on the grounds before heading to Europe. When the war ended in 1918 the military buildings were removed and the land was sold to the Niagara Falls School Board.

A public school was built on the site in 1921. Following a contest the name Memorial School was chosen as it honored the Niagara Rangers and other Niagara residents who gave their lives during the war.

Due to declining enrolment, the school was closed in 1981 and the building was sold to the city of Niagara Falls. Subsequently, the property was sold to Branch 479 in 1982 and renovations were begun to transform the building into the Branch we enjoy today.

Founded in May 1948, Branch 479 did not always call Spring Street home. Members previously met at a two-storey hall on North Street and we were originally called the Stamford Legion. It was later renamed the A.C.McCallum Memorial Branch 479 in honor of the well known Niagara veteran who shot down two German planes in combat before he was shot down by the infamous Red Baron.

Branch 479 is proud of its Memorabilia Room. All articles on display have been donated to the Branch. Much of the memorabilia comes from Flanders Fields thanks to a group of volunteer archeologists called The Diggers with the Flanders Fields Museum who work near the famous battle site.

The legion’s original goal was to give assistance to returning veterans and their families and has grown to include a great deal of community service. We conduct branch related activities and sponsor sports leagues as well as providing meeting space for various unions and community groups.

We are currently home to the Royal Canadian Army Cadets 2835 Cadet Corps, the Royal Canadian Naval Association Niagara Region, the British Canadian Veterans Association, the Niagara Memorial Militaires Alumni Drum Corps and The Niagara Regional Police Pipe Band.

 

The memorial is a tall granite shaft bearing the names of those who died in the World Wars.  A beautiful memorial to the heroes of the Great Wars, Niagara Falls is lucky to have such dedicated people to honour and remember the fallen.  The military history of this area dates back to the War of 1812, where nearby battlefields played key roles in the outcome of that early war for our freedom.

 

 

 

 

Marker text:

Front:

TO

OUR

GLORIOUS

DEAD

ALL

PEACEKEEPING

MISSIONS

1914 - 1918

1939 - 1945

1950 - 1953

AFGHANISTAN

LEST WE FORGET

 

 

Right side:

1939 - 1945

 

ADAM, ROBERT C.

BOUTILIER, DOUGLAS

BOUTILIER, WILLIAM

BOWMAN, GEORGE DOUGLAS

BOWMAN, GEORGE E.

CAMPBELL, GEORGE

CHEDORE, K.H.

CHEVERS, WILLIAM

COOPER, GEORGE

COUCH, ALBERT T.

DAVIES, ROBERT E.

DELL, HARLEY J.

DELL, THOMAS E.

EIDT, REGINALD T.

GREEN, ROBERT W.

HEXIMER, HARRY P.

HIGGINS, FRED

HILL, WILLIAM G.

HOLMES, WILLIAM G.

KENNEDY, EARL G.

MACDONALD, ALEX

MARTIN, W.S.

McCOURTIE, GEORGE A.M.

McLEOD, RALPH E.

McPHERSON, M.A.

MOLNAR, JOSEPH

MUNROE, JAMES HENRY

MULHOLLAND, JAMES

 

 

 

Back:

1914 - 1918

 

AKRIGG, RUSSELL

ARROWSMITH, ERNEST

BARNETT, KENNETH D.

BOLGER, VICTOR E.J.

BOND, ROY

BYRNE, THOMAS

CAMPBELL, FRANK

EDE, ALBERT

EVELEIGH, FRANK

FORSYTHE, MONTIE

FRENCH, F.

GALLINGER, KENNETH

JONES, GILLIAM

KENNEDY, GUY

LOCKYEAR, WILFRED

LOWE, FRED

OHOU, JOSEPH

POWELL, LESLIE

POWLEY, FRED

STARR, REUBEN

WHYBRA, HAROLD

WHYBRA, WILLIAM

WILLINS, HENRY

RUPERT, K. STARR

 

 

 

 

Left side:

1939 - 1945

 

MULHERN, PETER

MURRAY, ELDEN R.

NEWTON, LLEWELLYN C.

PENLEY, WALTER

PERROTTI, FRANK

POTENZA, THOMAS

REID, STANLEY

RILEY, HENRY

SABO, ANDREW

SHRINER, CHARLES

SMITH, HAROLD

SMITH, KENNETH DOUGLAS

SNYDER, CLARENCE

SOLOSE, JOHN J.

STAATS, JAMES

STALEY, JOSEPH S.

STAROSTIC, W.

STEVENS, ALBERT

THOMPSON, GEORGE S.

THORNE, WILLIAM A.

UPPER, BEDFORD

WALKER, JAMES D.

WEST, HERMAN

WHITE, WILLIAM G.

WHITTY, JACK W.

WING, ROBERT

WOOLNOUGH, CLIFFORD E.

YOUNG, ROBERT ALLEN

 

 

 

Stella

 

Location:  Lennox and Addington County     N 44.16916   W -76.70354

In front of Amherst Island Public School, 5955 Front Road.

 

 

This memorial on Amherst Island, honours the men from this island who died fighting for our country in the World Wars and the Boer War.  To visit this scenic island, you must take a ferry from Millhaven to Stella, operated by Loyalist Township.  The area surrounding the memorial was overgrown at the time of my visit, this was most likely due to the Covid-19 crisis which had many services suspended during the summer of 2020.  Perhaps when the school is allowed to open once again, the grounds will be better tended.  The island is inhabited by 450 year round residents and that figure will double during the summer months when the cottagers move in around the shoreline.  Inland the island is mostly rural, with farms taking up most of the land use.  It is also home to extensive wildlife areas for migratory birds.  This island is well worth visiting to get away from the crowds of the mainland, the roads here tend to be almost deserted and there is lots to see for the intrepid explorer.  Please stop to visit this humble cenotaph and pay your respects to those who gave their lives for freedom.

 

Marker text:

THEY DIED

THAT WE MIGHT LIVE

BOER WAR 

1902

EDWARD FILSON

1st  WORLD WAR 1914 - 1918

JAMES BELL

EARNEST DENNER

MAURICE GLASS

THOMAS McFERN

STIRLING POLLEY

ROSS PRINGLE

OSWALD WEMP

FREDERICK WILLARD

 

2nd WORLD WAR  1939 - 1945

JOHN KEARNEY

WALLACE KEARNEY

FREDERICK WEMP

 

 

 

Newbury

 

Location:  Middlesex County      N 42 41.058   W -81 47.928

In front of the Newbury Library, 22894 Hagerty Road.

This memorial is found in front of the town library.  The red granite cross lists the names of the dead from the two World Wars, brave men from this community who went to fight for the greater good, but never to return.  This is a small farming town, their loss was felt across the region, as well as those who returned broken and battered from years of fighting across the sea.

Market text:

Front:

SACRED

TO THE MEMORY OF

OUR GLORIOUS DEAD

LEST WE FORGET

1914 - 1918

WESLEY ATFIELD

GILBERT FLETCHER

GEORGE GRAY

KENNETH HURDLE

THEODORE TYLER

PHILIP McRAE

JAMES McCONNELL

1939 - 1945

CHARLES MILLER

ROBERT TESTER

HARRY ARMSTRONG

 

 

 

Back:

ERECTED BY

ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION

& AUXILIARY

BRANCH NO. 583

 

Berwick

 

Location:  United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry  

N 45.17574   W -75.10940

At the north-west corner of Cockburn Street (Cty. Rd. 12) and Union Street (Cty. Rd. 9)

This memorial represents the community of Finch Township and pays tribute to the local heroes lost in the World Wars.  A second memorial sits beside this cenotaph, dedicated to the memory of St. Paul's United Church.

The cenotaph was originally erected in 1935 with the names of those who died in WWI engraved in stone.  In 1947, an additional stone plaque was added to honour those lost in WWII.  The Berwick Women's Institute was largely responsible for creation of the memorial, although almost everyone in town helped out in some way.  Unfortunately, the cobblestone cairn was situated very close to the busy corner of the roadway, so the decision was made in 1986 to erect the new cenotaph across the road in its present home.  The two plaques with the names of those lost in the wars were removed from the original memorial and use in the new cenotaph.

A full description of the history of the memorial can be found on the Veterans Affairs website:  https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/memorials/national-inventory-canadian-memorials/details/5383

At the bottom of the page, the last few photos are from the Cornwall Museum, they show the original cobblestone memorial from 1935.

**Thank you to fellow researchers Louise Bellec and Christine Arbic for providing photos and details of this memorial.  As you can see from the list of names, Christine has a personal connection to this cenotaph.  Lest We Forget.

Marker text:

Top plaque:

WORLD WAR I 1914 -18

WORLD WAR II 1939 - 45

KOREA WAR 1950 - 53

LEST WE FORGET

 

 

 

Middle:

ERECTED BY BERWICK W.I
IN MEMORY OF THOSE
FROM FINCH TOWNSHIP
WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES IN
THE GREAT WAR 1914 - 1918

WILLIAM ALGUIRE
VICTOR ARBIC
HAROLD COCKBURN
ALFRED ERRETT
JAMES HUNT
EARL McDERMID
DOUGALL McGILLIVRAY
MALCOLM MacINNES

DANIEL MacMILLAN
JOHN MacMILLAN
PETER McMILLAN
ROY McMILLAN
THOMAS McPHERSON
CECIL OUDERKIRK
LLOYD OUDERKIRK

 

 

 

Bottom:

1939 - 1945

HAROLD CASSELMAN
WILLIAM FOLEY
FORD BENNING
JAMES REDMOND
JACK HUTCHINSON

GLENN SMIRL
DARYL McLEAN

ALLAN HOOPLE
KENNETH DEWAR
JOHN MacMILLAN
HORACE STARK
JOHN McPHERSON
GARNET SMITH
JOHN GRADY
EARL OUDERKIRK

 

 

Glanbrook

 

Location:  City of Hamilton     N 43 07.743   W -79 50.305

In front of the Glanbrook Township Offices, 4280 Binbrook Road.

Glanbrook Township was formed in 1974 with the amalgamation of Mount Hope, Binbrook and Glanbrook.  In 2001, the township was dissolved into the expanding City of Hamilton.  The memorial sits in front of the Glanbrook Township offices, sport fields and arena, about 2 kilometres west of the village of Binbrook.  

The memorial represents the old Glanbrook Township and features not only the names of those who died in the World Wars, but also those who died in training during WWII at the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) airfield at Mount Hope.  The training school opened in 1940, home of the Nos. 10 Elementary Flying Training School, 33 Air Navigation School and 1 Wireless School.  The graves of 14 men lost at the school are found at a nearby church graveyard, although 16 names appear on this stone.  The school later became a civilian airfield and is now known as John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport, which is also home to the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum.  I highly recommend a visit to this amazing museum if you are in the area, and watch the skies for their famous Lancaster Bomber flying overhead.

The memorial consist of three large pieces of red granite, each with its own inscriptions.  A very attractive display, it also mentions wars dating back to the War of 1812, which was actually fought on battlefields within this jurisdiction.  The history of this area is incredible, with many displays and museums and statues.

Marker text:

Centre stone:

Township

of

Glanbrook

In Lasting Memory of Those who made the

Supreme sacrifice for Human Liberty

1812 - 1814

1899 - 1902

1914 - 1918

1939 - 1945

1950 - 1953

Peacekeeping

And in grateful recognition of those

who were sparred to return.

 

 

Left stone:

Names Of The Fallen Comrades 

From

The Township Of Glanbrook

1914 - 1918

Albert Bell

Elvis Bell

Linnell Bliss

Alexander Bull

John Cleghorn

Angus Fletcher

Reginald Fowler

Roy Gowland

Gordon Hildreth

Norman Krick

Arthur Switzer

Harold Switzer

William Thomas

 

1939 - 1945

Donald Bates

Malcolm Carver

Roy Clausen 

David Crozier D.F.M.

Harley Duff

Robert Fletcher

Roy Hillgartner

Orville J. Jerome

Ivan Kelly

Laverne Oliphant

Grant Simpson

Arthur Switzer

At The Going Down Of The Sun And In The

Morning We Will Remember Them

 

Right stone:

Names Of The Fallen Comrades

From The Commonwealth Air Training Base

At Mt. Hope

 

1939 - 1945

L.A.C.  Dennis Donahue

L.A.C.  Dennis A. Drayton

L.A.C.  Reginald A. Gillam

L.A.C.  Ernest Johnson

L.A.C.  James Watson

L.A.C.  Tauton O.C. Pauyat

A.C.I.  Stephen Proudly

L.A.C.  Charles G. Chadwick

F/L   John O.D. Kellow

F/O  Peter Scott A.F.C.

Sgt.  Richard G. Board

Sgt.  Edward Doughty

Cpl.  Colin J. Campbell

Cpl.  Michael Joseph Quinn

L.A.C.   Sidney L. Bressloff

I've Trod The High Untrespassed Sanctity Of Space

Put Out My Hand And Touched The Face Of God