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by Richard Haynes Site Coordinator, Fort York Anyone looking for an intimate and unique way to observe Remembrance Day can do no better than attend Fort York’s annual ceremony at the Strachan Avenue cemetery, just west of the fort. Every year a processional parade, led by members of the fife and drum corps, makes its way from the entrance to Fort York to the military cemetery which served as the final resting place for soldiers and their families from shortly after the Crimean War and into the twentieth century. Established in 1863, the cemetery was used until 1911 before falling into neglect. Few people today, however, know the origins of this ceremony, which began over eighty years ago with efforts to restore the grounds to their former condition. It was followed , of course, by the restoration of the Fort itself just a decade later to preserve the last vestiges of what once was a huge tract of military land. An article from The Globe, 13 November 1922, chronicled the first Remembrance Day ceremony at the newly-restored burial ground: “With the calling to Remembrance on Armistice Day in Toronto of those brave men who laid down their lives in the great war, the soldiers of older days, of generations which are gone, were not forgotten. During the afternoon a commemorative service was conducted in the recently restored old Military Cemetery at the foot of Strachan avenue, where for a century back, officers and men of the Toronto garrison were laid for their long, last sleep. Despite the inclemency of the weather, a great number of representative men and women were in attendance on the occasion, which marked the determination of the city to preserve alike the memory and the graves of those men and to make of that historic and holy ground, which had long been left neglected, a place worthy of pilgrimage.” The service, attended by a former commander of the garrison General Sir William Otter, was conducted by Rev. Russell MacLean, Rector of St. John’s Garrison Church. A Guard of honour, composed of the Royal Canadian
of Toronto from the Staff at the Fort Burial Ground Dragoons, the 12th York Rangers and the Army and Navy Veterans, presented arms. The flag was unfurled by a detachment of the Boys’ Naval Brigade, followed by the York Rangers Regimental Band playing the “Dead March.” A wreath was laid at the cemetery by Mrs. W.R. Jackson and Miss Lucy Doyle on behalf of the military chapters of the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire. “At the conclusion of the responsive service…the party walked slowly to the gateway at the cemetery on Strachan avenue. Here Mayor Maguire unveiled a tablet, the gift of the Toronto chapters of the Daughters of the Empire to the memory of all the ranks of the forces of the empire buried there from 1829-1913.” The years just cited may have been the newspaper’s error: burials at Strachan Avenue occurred from 1863 to 1911. Addresses were later delivered by Mayor Maguire, Dr. J.T. Fotheringham, Rev. MacLean and Mr. Maitland, President of the St. George’s Society. In introducing the Mayor, General Otter expressed his gratitude to the city in assuming the restoration of the cemetery, and also paid tribute “to the interest and efforts of the Daughters of the Empire and other patriotic societies in bringing about what he termed the consummation of the long-deferred hopes of the military and others interested in the preservation of the old cemetery.” The IODE, as it is now known, was founded in 1900 by a Montreal woman, Mrs. Clark Murray (nee Margaret Polson), and was designed to be a bond between the women and children of the various parts of the British Empire, particularly the overseas dominions. Mrs. A.W. McDougald, organizing secretary, wrote in 1914, “this splendid conception has borne abundant fruit, and though many of those who gave themselves to the perfecting of the links of the chain have passed on, it is a matter of greatest satisfaction that we in Montreal are able to enjoy the visits of the Foundress of the Order, who always has a word of inspiration for her ‘Daughters,’ whose numbers are being wonderfully augmented daily.” As a women’s charitable organization, the IODE’s mission 5 The Fife and Drum
was (and still is) to improve the quality of life for children, youth and those in need through educational, social service and citizenship programmes. As WW I ended, the IODE initiated a living memorial to the 60,000 Canadians whose lives were sacrificed. This memorial, approved at the 1918 annual meeting in Montreal, provided bursaries for university studies in Canada to children of men killed or permanently disabled in the Great War. It was in this spirit that the IODE delivered its support to one of Toronto’s most important military landmarks, and helped to preserve the cemetery for future generations. But it was not until 1952 that a regular Remembrance Day ceremony was held at the burial ground. Again the IODE was involved and has remained a partner through to the present day. The continuing presence of the IODE at our Remembrance Day event is a testament to the perseverance of those involved daily with the preservation of Fort York. But what of the tablet that was installed on 11 November 1922? No evidence of such a marker is evident to anyone walking past the Strachan Avenue entrance to the cemetery today. Apparently the plaque was on one of the brick gateposts until someone stole it in the 1990s. Soon after, an eagle-eyed city employee found it in a sewer and returned it to the Toronto Historical Board. It reads: TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN SACRED MEMORY OF ALL RANKS OF THE FORCES OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE WHO DIED WHILST IN THE SERVICE OF THEIR COUNTRY AND WERE INTERRED IN THIS CEMETERY THIS TABLET WAS ERECTED BY THE TORONTO CHAPTERS OF THE IMPERIAL ORDER OF THE DAUGHTERS OF THE EMPIRE A.D. 1922
was (and still is) to improve the quality of life for children, youth and those in need through educational, social service and citizenship programmes. As WW I ended, the IODE initiated a living memorial to the 60,000 Canadians whose lives were sacrificed. This memorial, approved at the 1918 annual meeting in Montreal, provided bursaries for university studies in Canada to children of men killed or permanently disabled in the Great War. It was in this spirit that the IODE delivered its support to one of Toronto’s most important military landmarks, and helped to preserve the cemetery for future generations. But it was not until 1952 that a regular Remembrance Day ceremony was held at the burial ground. Again the IODE was involved and has remained a partner through to the present day. The continuing presence of the IODE at our Remembrance Day event is a testament to the perseverance of those involved daily with the preservation of Fort York.
The plaque is in temporary storage at the City’s Atlantic Avenue conservation facility and will be re-installed as part of future planned improvements to the cemetery and Garrison Common. 6 The Fife and Drum
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