This week, in 1936, the Canadian National Vimy Memorial was officially opened. King Edward VIII opened the monument in France, which stands as a memorial to the thousands of Canadian lives lost in the first World War, in particular the over 3,000 dead and 7,000 injured at Vimy Ridge itself, which is still remembered as one of the pivotal moments in Canada’s history.
The Vimy Memorial itself was restored for the 90th anniversary of Vimy Ridge in 2007, and was re-dedicated by Queen Elizabeth II at the same time.
French President Albert Lebrun, in a speech at the event, dedicated the monument to soldiers who were willing “to sacrifice their lives not for the satisfaction of material interests but the beauty of an ideal and the nobility of a memory.”
Yorkton residents were present for the monument’s unveiling, and the Yorkton Enterprise ran the biographies of four of the men from the region in attendance. Those were Brigadier-General Alexander Ross, Major G. H. Gilbert, Lt.-Col. Thos. Jenkins and Lt. Col. J. C. deBalinhard.
Ross was later interviewed by the Enterprise about his experience in France at the memorial, and he spoke about meeting King Edward VIII and taking the trip to France for the event. Ross praised everyone, but especially the King himself and the people of France.
“The whole pilgrimage was full of highlights. Of course the actual unveiling ceremony was the outstanding event. It was a spectacle which may never be equalled again. The monument itself is a wonderful piece of work and the setting lends itself to a spectacle that few other sites do.”
In Yorkton itself, the major controversy of the day was challenges to the early closing bylaw. At the time, all businesses were expected to close at 6:00 p.m., but petitions by three of the four pharmacies in town at the time pushed to have an exception to that law. Other businesses in the city which carried products similar to those in the pharmacies proposed that if the pharmacy could stay open, so should they. The predicted end result at the time, going by the reporting by the Enterprise, was bedlam.
“The peaceful little city of Yorkton, where businessmen closed their doors at six o’clock and hurried off to their homes is liable to be transformed to a city where all shops have their merchandise for sale fifteen hours a day. Almost any time now good citizens of Yorkton may find their tranquilly resplendent Broadway become energetically incandescent after the hour of eighteen o’clock,” said the Enterprise.
Don Hood, one of the pharmacists who made the petition before city council of the day to grant an exception, even described a sting operation by local police to catch him in the act of conducting business after six.
“The other evening a boy of nineteen came into my store with a dollar. I made the sale of the articles he desired and told him he could have delivery of the goods next morning. Fifteen minutes later he returned and wanted his money back as he had been sent in by a policeman and was promised good pay for his work. Later he came back and apologized for trying to catch me. He told me that the policeman, when he sent him back for the money, said to tell Mr. Hood that his father no longer needed the stuff.”
Also before the day’s council was the matter of parallel vs. angular parking, with the decision to go with parallel parking on city streets. “No longer will city streets be Mecca for Saturday night non-pay curb hogs,” said the Enterprise.
In sports, the Enterprise promised the greatest baseball the city had ever seen, with the House of David was preparing to meet the Kansas City Monarchs for a purse of $500. The Enterprise described the Monarchs as “without a doubt, the greatest colored baseball teams on the road today.” House of David, meanwhile, would team up with local players to represent Yorkton and district in the game.
In order to meet the needs of the game, Jubilee park received “many changes,” including enough seating to accomodate 2,500 fans.
In retail, Maytag washers were on sale, ranging in price from $99 to $189, depending on whether you wanted an electric or gas motor.
