Reunions

Garrison Sergeants' Mess were held in St. John, New Brunswick in honour of the Sergeants of the Canadian Army.

The first annual reunion of the 2nd Canadian Divisional Ammunition Column was held at the Armouries in St. John, New Brunswick, on Saturday, September 29th, 1923. They agreed to make the reunion an annual event, and released this statement along with the program from the first reunion. 

As German aggression increased in Europe in 1938, the Canadian Corps Association took a firm stand against threats to Canadian security and opted to lead and encourage patriotism in the country.

Close to 75 000 nurses, veterans, and family members of the deceased, met at the site to commemorate the Battle of Vimy Ridge with the unveiling of the Vimy monument by his majesty King Edward VIII, on July 27th, 1936. First World War RAF veteran, Walter J. Kerley took these photos on his journey, the day after the unveiling.

This program is from the 18th annual dinner for the Canadian Cavalry Association at Hotel London in October, 1933. Programs like this would have occupied the seat of the veteran it was meant for, in this case, Captain Wellwood.

First World War veteran organizations continued to meet into the Second World War. This program was for the 10th Battalion Association’s Pacific Coast Branch annual dinner in Vancouver, British Columbia, in April, 1940.

This reunion was organized by the Originals Club, founded in 1918 to bring together men who had gone overseas with the original 1st Division. There is an unmistakeable note of nostalgia in its description of the war years and the legacies of service.

In 1919, the members of London's Women's Canadian Club held a dinner for the returning 18th Battalion, just as they had done when the unit left London in 1914. Among the celebrities on hand were Sir Adam Beck and Hume Cronyn, MP.

In this amusing souvenir program, officer of the Canadian Machine Gun Corps used their wartime experiences as a source of humour.

The 2nd Battalion drew its personnel primarily from eastern Ontario, and fought in every major Canadian battle of the First World War. By the end of the war, over 5200 officers and men had served in the unit; 1353 were killed in action or died of wounds.