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Remember our history

A recent conversation about Remembrance Day and the sites of the cenotaph in New Westminster led to a discussion about locations in the city that have direct military connections.

A recent conversation about Remembrance Day and the sites of the cenotaph in New Westminster led to a discussion about locations in the city that have direct military connections.

We were not talking about individual homes of those who served, but rather places where troops gathered, marched, trained, were remembered and so on.

The following examples are from a lengthy list - some we have used in tours and talks, others are simply part of our local history.

Most residents are familiar with the cenotaph in front of city hall and its lists of names from a number of military conflicts, but not everyone knows that the cenotaph has been in two other locations.

It started in a park near McBride Boulevard at Columbia Street, was moved to the grassy triangle at the north end of the Pattullo Bridge, and then to its current location in front of the then-new city hall in 1953.

The Armoury at the corner of Queens Avenue at Sixth Street is the home of The Royal Westminster Regiment and its many antecedent groups.

Completed in the late 1890s, it has served soldiers and citizens well over the decades. An earlier drill hall at the corner of Carnarvon Street and McKenzie Street filled military and other community needs, but was lost in the city's Great Fire of 1898.

In the days and weeks following that disastrous fire, the new drill hall (today's Armoury) served as the relief centre.

Many areas of the city have seen troops and materials gather as part of a war effort. Queen's Park, Moody Park, and part of the current high school site were all used at various times for preparation for a theatre of war, and in some cases as the site for troop dismissal on their return.

There is even a Cold War connection to the high school site, as there was once a bomb shelter on display there.

The most famous war photo of our area is "Wait for me, Daddy," taken on lower Eighth Street, but training, departing and returning troops marched on many streets such as Columbia, those all around Moody Park, Queens Avenue, First Street and so on. Stories are often told of troops marching past while out on a five or 10-mile route.

Hyack Square and its adjacent train depot was both the scene of heartrending send-offs as troops boarded trains and a centre of joyous activity when the same troops arrived home on the trains.

And of course there are the cemeteries with their grave stones, many prominently marked with military affiliations in words and insignia, dedicated to those who served.

These are just a few examples. Take a moment on Nov 11 to think about those who have served and those who did not return home.

"At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them."