St. Catharines marks Remembrance Day by looking back at the memorials that anchor the city

As Remembrance Day approaches, the City of St. Catharines is drawing attention to the war memorials scattered across the community — sites that continue to serve as gathering places for residents honouring the city's war dead.

The landmarks include the Watson Memorial at Victoria Lawn Cemetery and four cenotaphs: in Port Dalhousie, in Merritton, in downtown St. Catharines at Memorial Park, and the Grantham Cenotaph, also located at Victoria Lawn Cemetery, according to the City of St. Catharines.

A city of monuments

Victoria Lawn Cemetery's veterans precinct holds additional memorials dedicated to the 10th Field Battery, Korean War Veterans and the Royal Canadian Legion. The city also notes that memorial plaques on the front façade of City Hall recognize the City's war dead by name.

The reason so many of these monuments exist stretches back to the First World War. When the Canadian government chose to bury soldiers where they fell, rather than repatriating their remains to their home communities, cenotaphs were built in most communities across the country.

Cenotaphs are defined as empty tombs or monuments built to recognize people whose remains are buried elsewhere. For communities across Canada, they provided a tangible focus for local sacrifice — and more than a century later, they still serve that purpose.

The City says these monuments continue to provide a gathering place and focus for residents to come together and remember those who gave their lives in the cause of freedom.

Part of the STC150 series

The look back at the city's memorials is part of STC150, the city's celebration of the 150th anniversary of its official incorporation as a City. The St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre is marking the milestone with a weekly look back into the city's history from a diverse range of perspectives.

One of the historical images the museum has shared shows the Port Dalhousie cenotaph on Remembrance Day in November 1939, as the country was mobilizing for the Second World War.

For residents planning to mark Remembrance Day this year, the city's cenotaphs in Port Dalhousie, Merritton, downtown St. Catharines and Victoria Lawn Cemetery remain the traditional focal points for remembrance in each corner of the community.

Residents can follow the ongoing STC150 history series through the City's website as the anniversary year continues.