Remembrance Day has come and gone for this year, but there are several monuments around town that have remained standing throughout the years as silent tributes to the men and women of Sault Ste. Marie and Algoma District who died for Canada in times of war.
The best known of these monuments is the Sault Ste. Marie Cenotaph in front of the Sault Ste. Marie Courthouse at 426 Queen St. E.
It was unveiled in 1924.
‘To the glory of God, the honour of the armies of the Dominion and in proud memory of our dead who fell in the Great War 1914-1918 and whose names are here recorded. This monument was erected by the people of Sault Ste. Marie’ is carved into the cenotaph facing Queen Street East.
In the years that followed, the base of the cenotaph also listed the names of Sault and Algoma residents lost in the Second World War, Korean War and Afghanistan.
‘From little towns in a far land we came to save our honour in a world aflame. By little towns in a far land we sleep and trust those things we won to you to keep’ - words by Rudyard Kipling - are also found on the monument.
The cenotaph is topped by a sculpture that depicts ‘War’ as a man crouched under a 'Shield of Right' represented by a woman holding a sword and maple leaves. Adjacent panels depict men answering the call to arms and soldiers helping the wounded.
Remembrance Day ceremonies begin at the cenotaph every year before the annual parade marches to GFL Memorial Gardens.
A casting - located in front of the cenotaph - of the citation First World War hero William Merrifield received when he was awarded the British Empire's highest military honour went missing, presumably taken by vandals, in June 2024.
Elsewhere, plaques in the GFL Memorial Gardens main lobby list the names of Sault and area war dead from the First World War, Second World War, Korean War and Afghanistan.
The words ‘In Memory of our Fallen Heroes - Lest We Forget’ are above the plaques.
The Memorial Tower beside GFL Memorial Gardens - built along with the original Memorial Gardens in the late 1940s - stands as a continuing memorial to those who died in World War I and World War II and is a Sault landmark.
Another monument to those who died in war is located on an island between Cathcart Street and Wellington St. E.
A plaque on that monument reads ‘The Great War 1914-1918 to the memory of new Ontario’s dead, erected by their comrades August 1923. Their name liveth for evermore.’
Another monument sits at the Sault Ste. Marie Canal National Historic Site.
A plaque on that monument reads ‘They will never know the beauty of this place, see the seasons change, enjoy nature’s chorus. All we enjoy we owe to them, men and women who lie buried in the earth of foreign lands and in the seven seas. Dedicated to the memory of Canadians who died overseas in the service of their country and so preserved our heritage.’
A tall monument is located on the grounds of the Algoma Conservatory of Music at 75 Huron St.
That building was once the head office of companies who owned and operated the Sault’s large paper mill at that site.
A plaque on that monument reads ‘This plaque is erected in the memory of the men of Abitibi Power and Paper Company Limited and subsidiary companies who gave their lives in the Second World War 1939-1945. They gave their all in the cause of freedom.’
There are 40 names listed on that monument.
A plaque found just inside the front door of The Algoma Conservatory of Music reads ‘In honour of the men of the Spanish River Pulp and Paper Mills Ltd. who served with the expeditionary forces in the war of 1914-1918 and in memory of those who died in the service of their country.’
Moving forward, a local group wants to erect a large Veterans Commemorative Monument on Sault Ste. Marie’s waterfront to honour those from the Sault and surrounding area who have served with the Canadian Armed Forces, Allied Nations, Merchant Navy, RCMP, Canadian Coast Guard or police officers who have served in an area of operations.
Clyde Healey, well-known for his longtime involvement with the 155 Borden Gray Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron and the 49th Field Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery (first as its commander and now as its Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel), along with other local military figures, first raised the idea of the Veterans Commemorative Monument to city council in August 2014.
The proposed Veterans Commemorative Monument project received unanimous approval from city council in Nov. 2023 to have John Rowswell Park as its eventual location.
The cost of constructing the monument is estimated to be $1.3 million to $1.5 million. Approximately $250,000 has been raised through donations so far. A sub-committee is reaching out to corporations for funding. ‘Markers’ can be purchased to recognize and honour a service member. Those markers will be engraved and inset in the Monument's Plaza Walk.
A sign promoting the project is now outside the Sault Ste. Marie Armoury.
Donations to the Veterans Commemorative Monument project can be made through the project’s website.