British Columbia

Tipperary Park, identified in 1859 to 1863, along with many other areas in the City, was identified by the Columbia Detachment of Royal Engineers, as park and government reserves. The residents in the vicinity of the reserve named the camp ‘New Tipperary’ from the fact that a few immigrants from the ‘ould dart’ were among its inhabitants. Tipperary Park was originally one of three government reserves upon which Colonel Moody and the Royal Engineers planned to build the government buildings for the capital city of the Colony of British Columbia. These sites were laid out in the extension to the original city above Royal Avenue in 1862. The central square (now city hall and Friendship Gardens) was flanked by two minor squares; the western square located across Sixth Street became home to the city’s first public school, and the eastern square - now Tipperary Park - was always used as a park square. Tipperary Park was formally conveyed to the city’s ownership from the province in 1908, and vested forever in trust “for the recreation and enjoyment of the public.” Tipperary Park was developed in 1911 following landscape architect G.L.K. MacLean’s vision. Today it offers a quiet place with picnic tables, benches, pathways, and is the home of the New Westminster Tennis Club. The area of Friendship Garden was also once known as a part of Tipperary Park. Tipperary Park, established in 1963, is 3.79 acres, offers visitors with tranquillity, monuments, public art and unique ponds. The Peace Marker is a memorial for Peace in four languages English, French, Spanish, Chinese. There are a number of commemorative trees throughout the park.

In 1962, the Friendship Park area was a forested grove behind City Hall. That year a typhoon blew through the area and uprooted many large trees leaving huge holes where their roots had been torn up. A member of the Parks and Recretion Department's gardening staff knew and loved Japanese water gardens, and so the holes on the newly damaged landscape, gently sloping across the property, were redeveloped into a beautiful garden. The Friendship Gardens were built in 1963 as a tribute to New Westminster's sister city - Moriguchi, Japan. This area is now a favourite place for those seeking quiet contemplation and picturesque views, and for those looking for a special place for wedding photos.

This plaque represents the coat of arms of the Royal Engineers who founded and surveyed the city from 1859 - 1863.

This commemorative trilingual (English, French, Ukranian) marker notes the two Victoria Cross winners who served with the Regiment or an antecedent group: Jack Mahony (Westminster Regiment) and Filip Konowal (47th Canadian Infantry Battalion).

This monument identifies the home of the Royal Westminster Regiment and the Regimental Museum.

Opened in 1896, the Armoury has served military and community needs, in war and in peace, throughout its life. The home of the Royal Westminster Regiment, the Armoury has been the site of such varied events as early city basketball games, vegetable exhibitions, a dinner for Winston Churchill, gala celebrations, and an emergency supply centre after the City's Great Fire of 1898. Its military obligations encompass conflicts from the Boer War to the present including peacekeeping throughout the world.

This sixty-four pounder muzzle-loader was once mounted in the Gun Room of the Armoury to be used in the defence of the City. It is a Sea-Service weapon from the lower gundeck of a line-of-battleship. For Land-Service, apart from static use in a fort, it would need a very heavy wheeled carriage for mobility.

This remarkably resilient wooden building is referred to as "The Armouries" by members of the Royal Westminster Regiment. The Armoury proudly served as the headquarters for the Regiment through the first and second World Wars and continues to do so today. In addition, the building houses the Regimental Museum. In 1895 contractor David Bain, using plans drawn up by Dominion Government Engineer F.C. Gamble, began work on this building. The building was completed in 1896 but the finishing touch was the construction of the Gun Room in 1898. The building's Richardsonian Romanesque architectural style is thought to be based on the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition Building of 1876. The founding of the Regiment dates back to 1863. During the Second World War the men of the Westminster Regiment saw more combat than any other Canadian fighting unit. In recognition of outstanding service Queen Elizabeth bestowed the title "Royal" upon the Regiment in 1966.

A 32-foot high “Tin Man” statue weighing 5 tons stands guard at Westminster Quay in New Westminster, BC in tribute to the Royal Engineers. Unveiled at a public ceremony in November 2000, this stylized Royal Engineer figure recognizes the work of the Royal Engineers in founding the first city built in western Canada as well as their laying the foundations for law and order, communication routes, communities and government services in the new colony of British Columbia.

There are several Canadian geographical names that honour the ‘sapper’. Sapperton is a neighbourhood of New Westminister, BC that owes its name to the original Royal Engineers’ camp when they were occupied with the early mapping and development of this part of Canada in the 1860s.

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The Blue Mountain Cenotaph, located in Blue Mountain Park, was unveiled on October 21, 1972, in memory of the men and women of the Armed Forces who served their Country.