The City of Peterborough has a long history of honouring its veterans and maintains many memorials to those who served in the Canadian Armed Forces. The two most prominent are the Peterborough Citizens' War Memorial and the Veterans Wall of Honour, both located in Confederation Square in downtown Peterborough across from City Hall.
A Book of Remembrance is located in the lobby of City Hall. Ashburnham Memorial Park was given to the City of Peterborough in 1937 by the Women's Patriotic League of Ashburnham in memory of those lost in World War I.
Peterborough Citizens' War Memorial
The Peterborough Citizens' War Memorial was officially unveiled in 1929 to honour those from Peterborough City and County who gave their lives during the First World War. The memorial was designed by renowned Canadian sculptor Walter Seymour Allward who designed a number of important war memorials, including the Canadian National Vimy Memorial. By the 1970s, the granite base had eroded badly and the names originally inscribed on the memorial were nearly illegible. In 1978, bronze plaques were installed with the names of the First World War dead as well as those who died in the Second World War and the Korean War.
| Events and demonstrations at the Citizens' War Memorial |
| Please respect the sanctity of the Citizens' War Memorial. Do not use memorials for political events or demonstrations. The Citizens' War Memorial and the Wall of Honour pay tribute to those who served and those who lost their lives in the Canadian Armed Forces or the Merchant Navy. Permission is required from the City of Peterborough (By-law 19-031) to use this space in Confederation Square for events. |
War memorial plaques
Images of the plaques on the Citizens' War Memorial can be found below.
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Plaques |
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World War I: Last Names S-Y and World War II: Last Names A-B |
Veterans Wall of Honour
The Veterans Wall of Honour was installed in Confederation Square in October 2010 to honour returning veterans from Peterborough City and County. The design includes twelve monumental granite stones arranged in a semi-circle around the Peterborough Citizens' War Memorial, inscribed with the names of 10,382 men and women who served Canada in the First and Second World Wars and the Korean War. The dedication ceremony took place on October 9, 2010.
The criteria for inclusion on the Wall of Honour were as follows (veterans must have met the first and any one of the second, third, and fourth criteria):
- The person must have enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces or the Merchant Navy during the time periods of 1914-1918, 1939-1945, and/or 1950-1954 and been assigned a Canadian service number of Officer's rank; and,
- The enlisted person must have been born in the City of Peterborough or Peterborough County; or
- The person must have enlisted in the armed forces in the City or County, including those who came from other communities and enlisted in the City or County; or
- After discharge, the person must have moved to the City or the County prior to December 31, 1970 and remained a permanent resident of the City or County from that date forward.
The City is currently in the process of updating the Wall of Honour to add a number of names which were missed in the original lists.
Wall of Honour panels
PDF versions of the final panels can be found below.
The Book of Remembrance
The Book of Remembrance was formally dedicated on November 11, 1962 and lists the names of the 842 men and women from Peterborough City and County “who were killed in action, died of wounds, illness or injury” in the First World War (1914-1918), the Second World War (1939-1945), and the Korean War (1950-1954). The Book forms part of the permanent collection of the Peterborough Museum and Archives.
A replica of the Book of Remembrance is on display in the City Hall lobby. A new Scroll of Remembrance has also been installed in City Hall to commemorate all those who lost their lives while serving on active duty in the Canadian Forces since the Korean War.
Ashburnham Memorial Park
The Women’s Patriotic League had purchased the park from the John D. Armour estate in 1923. Over the next 14 years, they raised funds by holding teas, bazaars and other fundraisers to pay for the construction of what is now Museum Drive and to replant the hill with 10,000 tree saplings. In 1937, the park was given to the City of Peterborough.
On June 24, 1959, Patriotic League member, Mrs. G.R. Hayes unveiled the plaque during a ceremony under driving rain. About fifty people were in attendance including several City officials, members of the Canadian Legion and various members of the clergy.
Peterborough County Judge John de Navarre Kennedy declared that “there can be no more fitting memory to the dead than a park which the living can use.” City Mayor, Donald Loucks added: “I feel sure those who made the supreme sacrifice would prefer to be remembered by practical means such as these rather than by only cold stone.”
The plaque on the monument located on Armour Hill reads as follows:
This Park was given to the City of Peterborough by the Women's Patriotic League of Ashburnham in memory of the men of Peterborough who fell in the Great War, 1914-1918.
Information provided by the Peterborough Museum and Archives.
