Language selection


Search veterans.gc.ca

Canadian Virtual War Memorial

Alexander Callahan

In memory of:

Private Alexander Callahan

August 28, 1918

Military Service


Service Number:

902463

Age:

24

Force:

Army

Unit:

Canadian Machine Gun Corps

Division:

2nd Bn.

Additional Information


Born:

February 20, 1894

Son of Burton J. and Susan Maria Callahan, of South Manchester, Guysborough Co., Nova Scotia.

Digitized service file.

Commemorated on Page 379 of the First World War Book of Remembrance. Request a copy of this page. Download high resolution copy of this page.

Burial Information


Cemetery:

VIMY MEMORIAL
Pas de Calais, France

Grave Reference:

N/A

Location:

Canada's most impressive tribute overseas to those Canadians who fought and gave their lives in the First World War is the majestic and inspiring Vimy Memorial, which overlooks the Douai Plain from the highest point of Vimy Ridge, about eight kilometres northeast of Arras on the N17 towards Lens. The Memorial is signposted from this road to the left, just before you enter the village of Vimy from the south. The memorial itself is someway inside the memorial park, but again it is well signposted. At the base of the memorial, these words appear in French and in English:

TO THE VALOUR OF THEIR COUNTRYMEN IN THE GREAT WAR AND IN MEMORY OF THEIR SIXTY THOUSAND DEAD THIS MONUMENT IS RAISED BY THE PEOPLE OF CANADA


Inscribed on the ramparts of the Vimy Memorial are the names of over 11,000 Canadian soldiers who were posted as 'missing, presumed dead' in France. A plaque at the entrance to the memorial states that the land for the battlefield park, 91.18 hectares in extent, was 'the free gift in perpetuity of the French nation to the people of Canada'. Construction of the massive work began in 1925, and 11 years later, on July 26, 1936, the monument was unveiled by King Edward VIII. The park surrounding the Vimy Memorial was created by horticultural experts. Canadian trees and shrubs were planted in great masses to resemble the woods and forests of Canada. Wooded parklands surround the grassy slopes of the approaches around the Vimy Memorial. Trenches and tunnels have been restored and preserved and the visitor can picture the magnitude of the task that faced the Canadian Corps on that distant dawn when history was made. On April 3, 2003, the Government of Canada designated April 9th of each year as a national day of remembrance of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

Information courtesy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Digital Collection

Send us your images

  • Memorial– Vimy Memorial … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens … May 2022
  • Memorial– Inscription - Vimy Memorial … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens … May 2022
  • Memorial– Mourning Mother - Vimy Memorial … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens … May 2022
  • Photo of ALEXANDER CALLAHAN– Pte. Alexander Callahan, killed in action near Arras, France on August 28, 1918 while serving with the 1st Canadian Machine Gun Battalion.
  • Circumstances of Death Registers– Source: Library and Archives Canada.  CIRCUMSTANCES OF DEATH REGISTERS, FIRST WORLD WAR Surnames:  Cabana to Campling. Microform Sequence 17; Volume Number 31829_B016726. Reference RG150, 1992-93/314, 161.  Page 259 of 1024.
  • Memorial– His name as it is inscribed on the Vimy Memorial. Over 11,000 fallen Canadians having no known place of burial in France, are honoured on this Memorial. May they never be forgotten. (J. Stephens)

Learn more about the Canadian Virtual War Memorial

To learn more please visit our help page. If you have questions or comments regarding the information contained in this registry, email or call us. For inquiries regarding the names and information found in the RCMP Honour Roll, please email the RCMP.

Date modified: