"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Thursday 23 August 2012

A Shocking Revelation

To discover how quickly information and knowledge can get  lost.
Two weeks ago Council received a staff report recommending  a name be added to the Aurora War Memorial
An  ancestor of a soldier killed in the First World War, had done some research and decided his name  had inadvertently been left off the  Aurora Memorial. 
Staff accepted the contention, consulted with the Aurora Legion,. noted there was space for an additional name and recommended to Council  it be added.
My mother's brother , my grandmother's first born child, twenty-two  year old James Diamond's name  was chiselled into   the War Memorial of  our  home town.
After the  Second World War, my twenty-one year old brother, Patrick Finnigan's name was chiseled  into the same memorial.
For  eighty years ,War  Memorials have been sacred to the memory of  the names carved into history for the ultimate  sacrifice.
It is little enough.
In Aurora the Cenotaph is surrounded by green and  pleasant space.
A tree is planted for every name.Replaced immediately if it dies.
At  time of  planning a group  formed representing. King Whitchurch. and Aurora to create  the most  fitting memorial. Sir William Mulock at its head.
Funds were raised, land acquired and several years  later
the project  was  completed and pledged to the memory of sons who failed to  return.
It was a small community.
Names numbered in the twenties. 
Hardly likely a family would be slighted. A name overlooked.
Until almost the end of the century, a Board governed and cared for the Memorial. Norm Weller, town  parks keeper. in his time , provided care and  maintenance. 
Memorial Board Members grew  old.
They asked the Town  to accept responsibility.
The Town accepted. 
Ownership and assets were transferred.
Aurora Legion members, as veterans, are  committed  to keep the memory alive. They organize the annual parade and  service.
Aurora Legion does not own the Memorial. 
No jurisdiction or responsibility for its care and protection  falls on their shoulders.
The question  of adding a name to the  Aurora.,King and Whitchurch War Memorial  could not simply be a matter of adding a name  on the basis of  an  assumption of entitlement.
I have  received information, the fallen soldier's name appears  on the Memorial of Warkworth, Ontario.
I will provide  additional details  to those who should be concerned
 I thank the person who provided them to me.  

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wouldn't want to honour the person twice. Good work!

Anonymous said...

Well done, Evelyn.

Anonymous said...

What is the "Shocking" part of this story?

Anonymous said...

Did anyone think to ask the Historical Society? They are supposed to be keeping track of records for the Museum - if they haven't forgotten about it again.

Anonymous said...

That is slightly weird. I lived in a large city & with the schools & churches, I'm pretty sure we all knew who had lost a family member & where they should be honoured. But there were family splits before divorce became so common & maybe one side simply claimed the name? An interesting story for the new generation to learn but odd that there is no paperwork left with them. Sad.

Anonymous said...

Oops!

Anonymous said...

Census records? Tax rolls? The descendant might have skipped a few obvious steps in his/her research. No excuse for that with the internet. Good that you caught it.

Tim the Enchanter said...

A little work on Ancestry.com solves a bit of this.
Mr. Garbutt was born in Aurora but the family moved away as indicated by the census records of 1901 and 1911.
Mr. Garbutt's mother was an Auroran from the Cosford family
who had a farm on what looks like the Willow Farm/ St Andrews College property at Yonge and St John's sideroad.

More importantly - it is good to know that Mr. Garbutt's name has been deservedly inscribed on a memorial.

For those armchair military historians among us here is a bit of "nuts and bolts".
Earl Cosford Garbutt was a Lance Corporal in the 44th Battalion/ 4th Canadian Division
After the Vimy Ridge attack in April 1917, the Canadian Corp moved northward towards the Hindenburg Line. Lcpl Garbutt fell on the 3rd of JUne 1917 as the battalion attacked the German lines near the village of La Coulotte (now located in the suburbs of present day Lens)

There's a detailed unit diary report of the events that day but the short hand written summary states:

Battalion heavily engaged during day

2 officers and 27 Other Ranks Killed (Garbutt would be an Other Rank)
7 officers and 138 ORs wounded
3 officers and 75 ORs missing

(officers were mentioned by name - ORs were not)

Perhaps the Garbutt family can add some more to the story.

Anonymous said...

Super, Tim. Thank you. I have an Irish sword in my family which only goes to the males - not me or my sister - which supposedly belonged to someone fighting for Ireland. Somehow the individual landed in the Bond Head Cemetery. Can you explain how that was possible unless he came back & died of the wounds later? I do not want any monuments. Just felt left out.

Tim the Enchanter said...

On further investigation it turns out that our Mr Garbutt was indeed the grandson of Mr Thomas Cosford as in Willow Farm.
Nice writeup on Willow Farm and the Cosfords on the Town website under the Heritage section.
So while Mr. Garbutt had a strong Aurora connection it appears he did live and work in the Belleville area prior to enlisting.

Anonymous said...

Gotta do your research before you stake your claim.