Red Deer Cenotaph
Municipality/Province: Red Deer, AB
Memorial number: 48022-008
Type: Shaft
Address: 4900 50 Street
Location: Veterans' Park
GPS coordinates: Lat: 52.2689597 Long: -113.8121355
Submitted by: Roy Frisken; Shelley Respondek; Victoria Edwards
Of the 850 young men and women from Red Deer and district who served in the Great War, 118 were killed. On December 18, 1918, five weeks after the end of the War, the Central Alberta local of the Great War Veterans Association (forerunner of the Royal Canadian Legion) organized a large public meeting to discuss a memorial. On May 20, 1920, the Memorial and Community Building Committee met to discuss the need for a memorial monument.
At the suggestion of Lochlan MacLean, it was decided that the monument be a statue of a soldier mounted on a pedestal, rather than a cobblestone pyramid or obelisk. The Unknown Soldier, the iconic statue standing atop the Red Deer Cenotaph depicts a soldier statue facing towards the location of the C.P.R. station where many of the soldiers departed for the battlefield. The sculpture accurately represents the dress kit of a Canadian soldier during the First World War. The soldier looks west over his shoulder away from the ravages of European battlefields and towards home and peace.
Major Frank Norbury, a sculptor in Edmonton, was chosen to sculpt the Unknown Soldier. It is carved from Tyndall limestone. The Red Deer Cenotaph is one of the earliest and best known works of Norbury, a skilled sculptor, decorated Veteran, and major contributor to artistic culture in Alberta. Born in Liverpool in 1871, Norbury trained as a stonemason and worked on many buildings in his home city as a young man. He emigrated to Canada after serving in the First World War, settling in Edmonton.
Local architect, C.A. Julian Sharman designed the base for the cenotaph and it was built by Lachlan MacLean of MacLean Granite. In the early 1920s, over $5,000 in donations were raised to cover the entire cost of the project. The cenotaph was unveiled September 15, 1922 by Lord Byng of Vimy, Governor General of Canada.
Parchment rolls with the names of those killed in the First World War were placed in a copper tube in the pedestal. Another roll lists the names of all those from Red Deer and district who served in the First World War. In 1949, the bronze plaque on the cenotaph was updated to include those who died during service in the Second World War. In 1988, the plaque was updated to include those who died in the Korean War.
In 2009, the Cenotaph was designated as a Municipal Historic Resource. In 2012, it was designated as a Provincial Historic Resource. In 2011, the area surrounding the Cenotaph was enhanced to create Veterans' Park, a place for people to relax, while learning about the Red Deerians and Central Albertans that have served in wars and peace-keeping missions.
Inscription found on memorial
[right plaque/plaque droite]
IN PROUD AND GRATEFUL
REMEMBRANCE OF THOSE
WHO MADE THE SUPREME
SACRIFICE IN THE WARS
1914 - 1918
1939 - 1945
1950 - 1953
[left plaque/plaque gauche]
IF YE BREAK FAITH
WITH US WHO DIE
WE SHALL NOT SLEEP
THOUGH POPPIES GROW
IN FLANDERS FIELDS
Street view
Note
This information is provided by contributors and Veterans Affairs Canada makes it available as a service to the public. Veterans Affairs Canada is not responsible for the accuracy, currency or reliability of the information.
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