Old City Hall Cenotaph, Toronto
Canadian war memorial
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Old City Hall Cenotaph is a cenotaph located at the front steps of Old City Hall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.[2]
(Old City Hall Cenotaph) | |
The cenotaph outside of Old City Hall | |
 Interactive map of Toronto Cenotaph | |
| Location | Toronto, Ontario |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 43°39′07.70″N 079°22′54.21″W |
| Designer | W.M. Ferguson and T.C. Pomphrey[1] |
| Type | War memorial |
| Material | Granite |
| Beginning date | 1924 |
| Completion date | 1925 |
| Opening date | November 11, 1925 |
| Dedicated to | Those who served in World War I, World War II and the Korean War |
Originally built after World War I to commemorate Torontonians who lost their lives in services for Canada, the memorial also commemorates those who died in World War II and the Korean War.[3] It was modelled on The Cenotaph at Whitehall in London, England, constructed using granite cut from the Canadian Shield, and unveiled on November 11, 1925.[4] The City of Toronto lists the artists as "Ferguson/Pomphrey",[5] which were an architectural firm located at 282 St. Clements Ave. in north Toronto. Their design was selected from among 50 designed submitted after City Council's request to replace a temporary wooden structure that had been used each Remembrance Day since 1919. The two Toronto architects received a fee of $2,500 for the work; this was 10% of the cost of the $25,000 project. The work was completed within budget and on time. There was some controversy before the monument was unveiled; "the only wording on the Cenotaph would be a simple four word statement “TO ALL WHO SERVED.” Then someone realized that this monument was in fact a cenotaph, a structure that by the very definition of that word (from the Greek kenotaphion – kenos, empty + taphos, tomb) signified an “empty tomb.” " As a memorial to those who had died and are buried elsewhere, it was felt that TO ALL WHO SERVED was inappropriate in such a case. After much discussion, the original inscription was removed and replaced with the current TO OUR GLORIOUS DEAD.[6]
The memorial features a stone laid by Field Marshal Haig on July 24, 1925.[7]
The site is one of several locations used for Remembrance Day commemorations in Toronto.[2]
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