This memorial was erected to commemorate the contribution of the Royal Engineers- Columbia Detachment (The Sappers), to the development of British Columbia and in paricular New Westminster.
The Columbia detachment of the Royal Engineers was a contingent created in August 1858 to assist the Governor of British Columbia in maintaining order during the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush. Commanded by Colonel Richard Moody, the 172 strong sapper contingent began arriving in BC in October and November 1858 just in time to face down a group of rebellious American miners in Yale, BC. Soon afterwards, they undertook several projects including the selection and surveying of the site for the capital- Queenborough, rechristened New Westminster by Queen Victoria in July 1859. Just a mile outside of the townsite, the Engineer's camp developed into a settlement of its own; the area is still known today as Sapperton. Moody and the Royal Engineers also built an extensive road network, including what became Kingsway, connecting New Westminster to False Creek (Vancouver), the Hope Trail and Cariboo Trail and improvements to the Dewdney Trail. As part of the surveying effort, several tracts were designated "government reserves", which included Stanley Park as a military reserve. The Columbia Detachment was disbanded in July 1863 with most of its members electing to remain in BC.
