In Memory of
RICHARD WILLIAM FIRTH
Private
793062
87th Bn., Canadian Infantry (Quebec Regt.)
who died on
Wednesday, 15th August 1917. Age 36.
Additional Information: Son of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Firth, of Robinsonville,
Restigouche Co., New Brunswick.

Commemorative Information
Memorial: VIMY MEMORIAL, Pas de Calais, France
Location: Canada's most impressive tribute overseas to those Canadians
who fought and gave their lives in the First World War is the majestic and
inspiring Vimy Memorial, which overlooks the Douai Plain from the
highest point of Vimy Ridge, about eight kilometres northeast of Arras
on the N17 towards Lens. The Memorial is signposted from this road to the left,
just before you enter the village of Vimy from the south. The Memorial itself
is someway inside the memorial park, but again it is well signposted.
The Memorial does more than mark the site of the engagement which Canadians
were to remember with more pride than any other operation of the First World
War. It stands as a tribute to all who served their country in battle in that
four-year struggle, and particularly to those who gave their lives.
At the base of the Memorial, these words appear in French and in English:

TO THE VALOUR OF THEIR COUNTRYMEN IN THE GREAT WAR AND IN MEMORY OF THEIR SIXTY
THOUSAND DEAD THIS MONUMENT IS RAISED BY THE PEOPLE OF CANADA

Inscribed on the ramparts of the Memorial are the names of over 11,000
Canadian soldiers who were posted as "missing, presumed dead" in France.
The land for the battlefield park, 91.18 hectares in extent, was
(as stated on a plaque atthe entrance to the Memorial)
"the free gift in perpetuity of the French nation to the people of Canada".
Eleven thousand tonnes of concrete and masonry were required for the base
of the Memorial: and 5,500 tonnes of "trau" stone were brought
from Yugoslavia for the pylons and the sculptured figures.
Construction of the massive work began in 1925, and 11 years
later, on July 26, 1936, the monument was unveiled by King Edward VIII.
The park surrounding the Memorial was created by horticultural experts.
Canadian trees and shrubs were planted in great masses to resemble
the woods and forests of Canada. Around the Memorial, beyond the grassy
slopes of the approaches, are wooded parklands. Trenches and tunnels
have been restored and preserved and the visitor can picture the magnitude
of the task that faced the Canadian Corps on that distant
dawn when history was made.

http://yard.ccta.gov.uk/cwgc/register.nsf

All the people from Robinsonville who served in WWI and WWII
have their names listed in picture frames on the walls of the
St. Andrew Anglican Church in Robinsonville.
My grandfather, Alivin, put them there.
Thanks!

_______________________________________________
Dwayne R. Firth
239 Killam Drive
Moncton, N.B. E1C 3S6

Home Page: https://members.tripod.com/firthy/index.htm