An artist's conception of the Yorkton Memorial Boulevard as it appears when completed. The proposed Memorial of Yorkton's heroic dead at the point shown by the circle in the sketch, which will be at the intersection of Second Avenue and Darlington Street. The Boulevard will be 118 feet in width, and will extend for two blocks, from First to Third Avenue. The cost of the boulevard, estimated at $12,000 will be borne by the Town of Yorkton. The proposed monument will cost about $25,000 and funds for the purpose will be raised by popular subscription. The Boulevard and Memorial, when completed, will be one of Yorkton's most valued assets. (From the caption with the sketch.) There had been talk at the time, that the memorial site should be on Broadway Street, but perhaps for lack of space, it was decided to erect the proposed, impressive monument at the intersection of Second Avenue North and Darlington Street. After 10 years of planning and fund raising-and no federal government funding, the boulevard was completed in 1929, and the memorial erected in 1930. The plan had also been to erect a statue of a Canadian Infantryman in an "attitude expressive of victory."
We can only surmise that the Committee had not been able to raise enough funds for the statue. It was after all the beginning of the Depression in 1929.
Comment: There is space on the Darlington Boulevard to complete the project started in 1920-to erect a statue. A benevolent organization or a philanthropist could possibly finance the establishment of statues representative of the Army, Navy and Air Force.
The City of Yorkton Archives is looking for histories of Yorkton businesses.
Contact Terri Lefebvre Prince, Heritage Researcher, City of Yorkton, Box 400 37 Third Avenue North, Yorkton, Sask. S3N 2W3306-786-1722 [email protected]
