Beechwood Cemetery

Last updated

Beechwood Cemetery
Beechwood Cemetery War Memorial.JPG
Cross of Sacrifice erected in honour and memory of all war veterans in 1959
Location280 Beechwood Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario
K1L 8A6
Area64.7 hectares (160 acres)
ArchitectMoses Chamberlain Edey; Robertson Martin Architects
Architectural style(s) Neo-Gothic
Governing bodyThe Beechwood Cemetery Foundation; The Beechwood Cemetery Company
Website Beechwood Cemetery website
Designated2001
Beechwood Cemetery
Details
Coordinates 45°26′49.2″N75°39′36″W / 45.447000°N 75.66000°W / 45.447000; -75.66000
TypeNational cemetery
No. of gravesOver 82,000

Beechwood Cemetery is the national cemetery of Canada, located in Vanier, Ottawa, Ontario. Over 82,000 people are buried in the cemetery, including Governor General Ramon Hnatyshyn, Prime Minister Robert Borden, and several members of Parliament, premiers, Canadian Armed Forces personnel and veterans, Royal Canadian Mounted Police personnel, Canadian Security Intelligence Service intelligence officers, and Hockey Hall of Famers, alongside other notable Canadians. In addition to being Canada's national cemetery, it contains the National Military Cemetery of the Canadian Armed Forces [1] and the National Memorial Cemetery of the RCMP. [2]

Contents

Honours and designations

Beechwood has received various honours and designations because it is recognized as an example of 19th-century rural cemeteries and as a place of national significance and importance as a depository of Canadian history. It was designated as a National Historic Site of Canada in 2001. The cemetery has served as the National Military Cemetery of Canada since 2001 [3] and has served since 2004 as the RCMP National Memorial Cemetery. [4] Governor General Michaëlle Jean opened the Beechwood National Memorial Centre on 7 April 2008. [5] In 2017, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service's National Memorial Cemetery was established at Beechwood. [6]

Pipe Major Sergeant Tom Brown is the "on call" piper of the National Military Cemetery at Beechwood, where he can perform up to a dozen outdoor funerals a year. [7]

Hall of Colours

When new military colours are received or a unit is disbanded, colours are treated with utmost respect to military service and are never destroyed. After being carried on parade for the last time, the colour party presents the colours prior to the ceremony in which they are laid up for safekeeping in the Hall of Colours. Designed by Robertson Martin Architects, the Hall of Colours features a memorial stained glass window featuring an oak tree in leaf honouring Canadian military chaplains. [8] The Hall of Colours was supported by a donation of $50,000 from Dominion Command of the Royal Canadian Legion. [9]

The retired colours of Canada's army, air force, and naval regiments are mounted at ceiling level in the Hall of Colours in the National Memorial Centre. [10] They include:

History

Boy Scouts placing wreaths on the graves of William McDougall and Hewitt Bernard, Fathers of Confederation, in Beechwood Cemetery in 1927 in commemoration of the golden jubilee of Canadian Confederation Scouts placed wreaths on the graves of Macdougall and Bernard, Fathers of Confederation in Beechwood Cemetery.JPG
Boy Scouts placing wreaths on the graves of William McDougall and Hewitt Bernard, Fathers of Confederation, in Beechwood Cemetery in 1927 in commemoration of the golden jubilee of Canadian Confederation

Canadian soldiers who were killed in the line of duty and war veterans have been buried in Beechwood Cemetery since the North-West Rebellion of 1885. The cemetery contains the National Military Cemetery which consists of two sections managed by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, a Veterans Section owned by Veterans Affairs Canada, and the National Military Cemetery of the Canadian Forces, created in 2001 and owned and managed by the federal Department of National Defence.

The first monument in the cemetery was erected by members of the 2nd Ottawa Field Battery in the 1870s. The sculptured sandstone cairn is dedicated to the memory of their former commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel John B. Turner. [12] Erected in the 1870s by members of the 2nd Ottawa Field Battery, a sculptured sandstone statue on shaft is dedicated to the memory of a former commander, Captain James Forsyth. [13]

The cemetery inspired a classic Canadian poem "In Beechwood Cemetery" by Archibald Lampman with its memorable final line, "They know no season but the end of time." [14]

Moses Chamberlain Edey designed the cemetery entrance gates in 1891. [15]

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is responsible for the graves of 98 Commonwealth (mainly Canadian) service personnel of World War I and 113 of World War II. The commission also maintains the Ottawa Cremation Memorial, in a shelter adjoining the newer of the veterans' plots, which lists 26 personnel who were cremated in Canada and the US in World War II. [16]

Noted for its Neo-Gothic architecture, the mausoleum at Beechwood was built by Canada Mausoleums Ltd. in the early 1930s. After a few years of operation, in a time of depression and financial difficulties, the mausoleum became the property of the cemetery. The building features stained glass windows designed by noted stained glass artist James Blomfield.

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission erected a memorial, known as a Cross of Sacrifice, incorporating a bronze sword inlayed in a granite cross in memory of the war dead buried in the cemetery's field of honour. [17]

On 5 March 2009 Environment Minister Jim Prentice introduced legislation [18] to designate Beechwood as the National Cemetery of Canada due to "its location here in our national capital, Beechwood serves as a focal point for our national memorial events, including Remembrance Day, and it is an appropriate place to conduct state burials." This was done to "serve as an important symbol of Canadian unity and pride and a means of preserving and promoting Canada's rich history and our diversity." [19] The bill was passed on March 6. [20] The bill received royal assent on April 23, 2009. [21]

The multi-faith aspects include a monument to Our Lady of Fatima, Élisabeth Bruyère, St. Marie-Marguerite d'Youville, St. Charbel (for the Lebanese community) and a pagoda in the Chinese section of the cemetery and an Aboriginal Tribute Garden. [9] [22]

Interments

Celtic cross at Beechwood Cemetery Beechwood Cemetery 2010 (3).jpg
Celtic cross at Beechwood Cemetery

A full list of notable individuals buried at Beechwood can be found on the cemetery's website. [23]

List by death year:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Toronto</span> Cemetery in Toronto, Canada

Mount Pleasant Cemetery is a cemetery located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and is part of the Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries. It was opened in November 1876 and is located north of Moore Park, a neighbourhood of Toronto. The cemetery has kilometres of drives and walking paths interspersed with fountains, statues and botanical gardens, as well as rare and distinct trees. It was originally laid out by German-born landscape architect Henry Adolph Engelhardt, inspired by the European and American garden cemeteries of the 19th century, and with influences from Mount Auburn Cemetery in Boston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliament Hill</span> Home of the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa

Parliament Hill, colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern bank of the Ottawa River that houses the Parliament of Canada in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It accommodates a suite of Gothic revival buildings whose architectural elements were chosen to evoke the history of parliamentary democracy. Parliament Hill attracts approximately three million visitors each year. The Parliamentary Protective Service is responsible for law enforcement on Parliament Hill and in the parliamentary precinct, while the National Capital Commission is responsible for maintaining the nine-hectare (22-acre) area of the grounds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commonwealth War Graves Commission</span> Commonwealth organisation responsible for war graves

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations military service members who died in the two World Wars. The commission is also responsible for commemorating Commonwealth civilians who died as a result of enemy action during the Second World War. The commission was founded by Sir Fabian Ware and constituted through royal charter in 1917 as the Imperial War Graves Commission. The change to the present name took place in 1960.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (Canada)</span> Monument dedicated to Canadian soldiers that contains the remains of an unidentified soldier.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a tomb situated before the National War Memorial in Confederation Square, Ottawa, Ontario. The tomb is dedicated to Canadian service members, and holds the remains of an unidentified Canadian soldier who died in France during the First World War; selected from a Commonwealth War Grave near Vimy, in the vicinity where the Battle of Vimy Ridge took place. A similar memorial was installed in June of 2024 at the National War Memorial in St. John's, Newfoundland to contain the unidentified Great War remains of a soldier of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Notre-Dame Cemetery (Ottawa)</span> Cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Notre Dame Cemetery, is a Catholic cemetery in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1872, it is the most prominent Catholic cemetery in Ottawa. The cemetery's western edge is located in Vanier, just south of Beechwood Cemetery. Its eastern limit is St. Laurent Boulevard. The cemetery is the final resting place for more than 114,000 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Island (Rideau River)</span>

Green Island in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, is an island at the junction of the Rideau River, just off Sussex Drive in Ottawa at the Rideau Falls at the confluence with the Ottawa River. It is situated near the neighbourhood of New Edinburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Bartholomew's Anglican Church (Ottawa)</span> Church in Ottawa, Ontario

St. Bartholomew's Anglican Church is a place of worship in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The building was constructed in the latter half of the 19th century and serves the surrounding neighbourhoods. Additionally, St. Bartholomew's is, due to its location next to Rideau Hall, the place of worship for various Governors General of Canada and some members of the Canadian Royal Family. It is also the regimental chapel of the Governor General's Foot Guards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ceremonial Guard (Canada)</span> Ceremonial military units in the Canadian Forces

The Ceremonial Guard is an ad hoc military unit in the Canadian Armed Forces that performs the changing the guard ceremony on Parliament Hill and posts sentries at Rideau Hall, with the National War Memorial being sentried by the National Sentry Program (NSP), which is carried out by different regiments and other units in order of precedence throughout the summer until mid-November.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billy Gilmour (ice hockey)</span> Canadian ice hockey player

Hamilton Livingstone "Billy" Gilmour was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. A winger, Gilmour played for the Ottawa Hockey Club in the Canadian Amateur Hockey League. Two of his brothers, Suddy Gilmour and Dave Gilmour, also played with Ottawa. He was a member of five Ottawa Stanley Cup championship teams in 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906 and 1909. He also played competitively for the McGill Redmen and Montreal Victorias. He retired from competitive ice hockey in 1909, but returned to play two games for Ottawa in the 1915–16 season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Richardson (ice hockey)</span> Canadian ice hockey player, businessman and soldier

George Taylor Richardson was a Canadian ice hockey player, businessman and soldier. Richardson played hockey for Queen's University and the 14th Regiment of Kingston, and was considered one of the finest amateurs of his time. He is enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame, and is the namesake of the George Richardson Memorial Trophy. Richardson was part of a prominent business family that owned and operated a grain processing business in Kingston, Ontario. He joined the Canadian Expeditionary Force in the First World War, and died in action in Belgium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christ Church Cathedral (Ottawa)</span> Church

Christ Church Cathedral is the Anglican cathedral in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The church is located at 414 Sparks Street in the northwest section of the city's downtown at the western end of Sparks Street on top of a promontory looking down to the Ottawa River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T. Franklin Ahearn</span> Canadian businessman and politician

Thomas Franklin "Frank" Ahearn was a Canadian businessman and politician. Ahearn is best known as an owner of the original Ottawa Senators National Hockey League (NHL) hockey club and a Canadian Member of Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian war memorials</span>

Canadian war memorials are buildings, monuments, and statues that commemorate the armed actions in the territory encompassing modern Canada, the role of the Canadian military in conflicts and peacekeeping operations, and Canadians who died or were injured in a war. Much of this military history of Canada is commemorated today with memorials across the country and around the world. Canadian memorials commemorate the sacrifices made as early as the Seven Years' War to the modern day War on Terror. As Newfoundland was a British Dominion until joining Confederation in 1949, there are several monuments in Newfoundland and Labrador and abroad which were dedicated to Newfoundland servicemen and women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Park Lawn Cemetery</span> Canadian cemetery in Toronto

Park Lawn Cemetery is a large cemetery in the Etobicoke district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It currently has around 22,000 graves. It is managed by the Park Lawn Limited Partnership, which also runs five other cemeteries in Toronto. The cemetery offers ground burials and a mausoleum for above-ground interment and cremation urns. It is located south of Bloor Street, west of the Humber River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian war cemeteries</span>

Canadian war cemeteries are sites for the burial of Canadian military personnel who died in conflicts since Canadian Confederation in 1867. Most of the graves are for the dead in the First and Second World Wars. But, some are for conflicts since 1945.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emily Warren (artist)</span> Canadian painter (1869–1956)

Emily Mary Bibbens Warren was a British Canadian artist and illustrator. She worked in ink, watercolour, oil, gouache, and graphite. Her favourite subjects included gardens, landscape, and interiors and exteriors of buildings. She is known for sunlight beaming through stained glass windows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashbury College</span> School in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Ashbury College is an independent day and boarding school located in the Rockcliffe Park area of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was originally founded in 1891 by former faculty of Bishop's College School in Quebec to accommodate BCS students living in Ottawa. Ashbury College moved to its current location in 1910. Previously, it occupied what now houses Senate of Canada offices. It is an International Baccalaureate World School, a member of the Canadian Accredited Independent Schools, and a member of Round Square. The school currently enrolls approximately 550 senior and 150 junior students. The current Head of School is Norman Southward, with Andrew Young directing the Junior School and Gary Godkin as the Head of Senior School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibraltar Cross of Sacrifice</span>

The Gibraltar Cross of Sacrifice is a war memorial in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. It is located west of North Front Cemetery, at the junction of Winston Churchill Avenue and Devil's Tower Road. The Cross of Sacrifice was designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield in 1917, and his monument is found in numerous Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries. The cross in Gibraltar was erected by the Royal Engineers for the commission, and unveiled on Armistice Day 1922. The British Pathé film recorded at the dedication ceremony that day represents the first motion picture made in Gibraltar. The Gibraltar Cross of Sacrifice served as the focus of Remembrance Sunday ceremonies in Gibraltar until 2009, at which time the location was changed to the Gibraltar War Memorial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Governor General's Foot Guards Band</span> Band of the Canadian Forces

The Governor General's Foot Guards Band is an authorized Canadian Forces 35-piece brass and reed band. It consists of serving members of the CAF who parade on a part-time basis. It serves as the regimental band of the Governor General's Foot Guards (GGFG) and is the most senior band of the Canadian Army Primary Reserve.

André M. Levesque is a historian, geographer, former public servant and retired Canadian military officer. He is currently the Chancellor of the Priory of Canada of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem, and also holds volunteer leadership roles for a number of other organizations including association Monument Amicitia France-Canada, Société nationale d'Entraide de la Médaille militaire, and Souvenir français au Canada.

References

  1. Hamel, Yanick (20 July 2023). "Get to Know the National Military Cemetery". Canada.ca. Government of Canada. Archived from the original on 30 June 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  2. "The RCMP National Memorial Cemetery at Beechwood". Beechwood Cemetery. Archived from the original on 14 May 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  3. 1 2 "Old Queen's Colour laid to rest". Archived from the original on 30 June 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2018. Archived 30 June 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  4. RCMP National Memorial Cemetery: Beloved Canadians of a World-Renowned Uniform, Beechwood Cemetery Archived July 2, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  5. "The National Military Cemetery". Archived from the original on 28 May 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  6. "A History of the CSIS National Memorial Cemetery". 8 March 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  7. "Airman serves Canada with musical excellence". Archived from the original on 12 June 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  8. "Canadian Military Chaplains' Association window: Beechwood Cemetery: Memorial 35061-021 Ottawa, ON". National Inventory of Canadian Military Memorials. Veterans Affairs Canada . Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  9. 1 2 "National Cemetery Designated By Federal Government – Legion Magazine". legionmagazine.com. 14 May 2009. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  10. "The Governor General Opens the Beechwood National Memorial Centre: 'A National Place of Tribute'". Archived from the original on 11 October 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  11. "Sacred ceremony lays up 412 Squadron's retired colours". Archived from the original on 22 June 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  12. "Turner memorial: Beechwood Cemetery: Memorial 35061-001 Ottawa, ON". National Inventory of Canadian Military Memorials. Veterans Affairs Canada . Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  13. "Forsyth memorial: Beechwood Cemetery: Memorial 35061-002 Ottawa, ON". National Inventory of Canadian Military Memorials. Veterans Affairs Canada . Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  14. "Library & Archives Canada Canadian Poetry Archives". 4 March 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  15. "Moses Chamberlain Edey (Ottawa Free Press, 13 Oct. 1891, 1)". Archived from the original on 31 July 2012. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  16. CWGC Cemetery Report.
  17. "Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cross of Sacrifice: Beechwood Cemetery: Memorial 35061-004 Ottawa, ON". National Inventory of Canadian Military Memorials. Veterans Affairs Canada . Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  18. "Bill C-17 First Reading". Parliament of Canada. Parliament of Canada. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  19. "CTV.ca | Prentice designates Beechwood a 'national' cemetery". 5 March 2009. Archived from the original on 13 March 2009. Retrieved 6 March 2009.
  20. "Debates (Hansard) No. 272A – June 19, 2013 (41–1) – House of Commons of Canada". www.ourcommons.ca. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  21. "Government Bill (House of Commons) C-17 (40-2) – Royal Assent – National Cemetery of Canada Act – Parliament of Canada". www.parl.ca. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  22. "Lebanese Community | Beechwood".
  23. Archived 2013-10-02 at the Wayback Machine [1] Historical Portraits
  24. "Louis Lefaive". Ottawa Citizen. 2 May 2012. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
Bibliography

45°26′49″N75°39′36″W / 45.447°N 75.660°W / 45.447; -75.660