Historic Sites of Manitoba: Bird’s Hill War Memorial (Bird’s Hill, RM of East St. Paul)

Link to:
First World War | Second World War | Other | Sources

A monument in Bird’s Hill in the Rural Municipality of East St. Paul commemorates people who were killed during military service. The monument carved by stonemason Arthur Cox was dedicated originally on 13 September 1925 by Rev. R. W. Ridgeway of St. Thomas’ Anglican Church and Rev. J. W. McAlpine of Bird’s Hill United Church. It was unveiled before a crowd of around 100, including families of the fallen, along with East St. Paul Reeve William J. Dawson and Councillors, Police Magistrate W. G. Scott, ex-Reeve Austin Edward Sperring, municipal Secretary-Treasurer Walter Gorham and Richard Deans Waugh. Early upkeep and improvements to the monument and its immediate surroundings were initially funded by the Soldiers Monument Fund.

Names for 15 fallen local servicemen were initially carved into the monument. Due to fading and erosion, these names were later replaced with a commemorative plaque and the names of additional First World War deceased (Brown, George, and Jones) were added at that not-yet-determined time, inceasing the count to 18. A commemorative plaque for Second World War deceased also added to the monument, along with a Korean War plaque.

Between mid-July and mid-August 2018, the monuments immediate surrounding landscape was cleared and overhauled.

Bird’s Hill War Memorial (September 2013) Source: Gordon Goldsborough Bird’s Hill War Memorial (July 2018) Source: Nathan Kramer Bird’s Hill War Memorial (May 2019) Source: Rose Kuzina Bird’s Hill War Memorial (June 2022) Source: George Penner Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.97591, W97.00516 denoted by symbol on the map above

First World War

Name	Occupation	Service	Rank	Birth Date	Death Date
William Allen Bowen	Railway Foreman	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1874	9 April 1917
Herbert Gordon Bowen	Farmer	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	15 January 1894	23 October 1918
Bertie William Brown	Carpenter	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	19 April 1888	11 August 1918
Kenneth Campbell	Labourer	8th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1879	13 October 1918
Walter Starks Chudleigh	Clerk	4th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1890	12 June 1916
Alexander Gallie	Market Gardener	1st Siege Battery, Canadian Garrison Artillery	Gunner	1879	7 November 1917
Edward Garvie	Market Gardener	27th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1896	8 November 1917
James Allen George	Labourer	2nd Tunnelling Company, Canadian Engineers	Sapper	1884	24 August 1917
Henry Willmott Hoddinott	Farmer	8th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1887	22 April 1917
R. Jones	?	?	?	?	?
Albert Knowles	Gardener	?	?	August 1884	?
Andrew Anton Osipa	Farmer	5th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	13 June 1890	2 June 1916
Archibald Nellis Peters	Farmer	8th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1896	15 August 1917
James Peterson	Labourer	90th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Corporal	1873	26 March 1917
Thomas William Henry Morris Reid	Blacksmith	8th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1895	15 August 1917
Frederick John Sargent [108 Battalion]	Teamster	16th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	17 April 1888	2 September 1918
Reuben Roy Taylor	Market Gardener	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1894	31 October 1917
George Watson	Farmer	1st Armoured Regiment, Royal Canadian Dragoons	Private	1895	23 April 1918

Second World War

Name	Service	Rank	Birth Date	Death Date
Lochart Ballantyne	The Fort Garry Horse, Royal Canadian Armoured Corps	Trooper	24 October 1916	11 June 1944
Wilfred James Elcheshen	Royal Canadian Air Force	Aircraftman	1922	25 July 1943
Arthur John Hoddinott	407 Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force	Flight Officer	1918	14 August 1944
Anthony Krasnuik	Canadian Provost Corps	Lance Corporal	1920	31 May 1944
Vernon Ronald Pritchard	Royal Canadian Artillery	Gunner	1921	1 May 1944
Ralph McGowan Reid	Royal Canadian Army Service Corps	Private	22 January 1914	11 June 1944

See also:

Memorable Manitobans: Arthur Cox (1875-?)

Sources:

1911 Canada census [Albert Knowles], Automated Genealogy.

Attestation papers, Canadian Expeditionary Force [William Arthur Knowles], Library and Archives Canada.

“Birds Hill memorial monument dedicated,” Manitoba Free Press, 14 September 1925, page 7.

“East St. Paul does honor its war heroes,” Winnipeg Tribune, 14 September 1925, page 13.

“Annual memorial service at Birds Hill monument,” Winnipeg Free Press, 11 August 1934, page 15.

“East St. Paul honors war dead,” Winnipeg Tribune, 14 August 1946, page 3.

“East St. Paul holds memorial service,” Winnipeg Free Press, 28 June 1948, page 3.

For the names of First World War casualities from Manitoba who do not appear on any physical monument in the province, see the Manitoba Historical Society War Memorial. If you know of a name that is omitted from this list, please contact the MHS War Memorial Researcher Darryl Toews (darryl@mhs.mb.ca).

Soldiers of the First World War - Canadian Expeditionary Force, Library and Archives Canada.

Canadian Virtual War Memorial, Veterans Affairs Canada.

Financial support for research reported on this page was provided by the Manitoba Heritage Grants Program (2015-2016).

Heritage II, A History of East St. Paul by the RM of East St. Paul, 1991.

War Memorials of Manitoba: A Beginning Inventory compiled by Patrick Morican BA MA, Winnipeg, 1996.

Rural Municipality of East St. Paul fonds (ZZ 0086), East St. Paul Council Minutes, GR14570, Archives of Manitoba.

We thank Rose Kuzina, and George Penner for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough, Darryl Toews, and Nathan Kramer.

Page revised: 15 November 2023

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