Subsérie 3 - Correspondence Regarding Stoney Creek Battlefield Monument

Subseries consists of correspondence pertaining to the building of a monument to commemorate the Battle of Stoney Creek. The series includes a letter from Sara Calder, President of the Women’s Wentworth Historical Society, to Mr. Benjamin Sulte, of the Department of Militia and Defense, acknowledging that she received the letter from the Deputy Minister of Militia and Defense accepting her offer of the Gage Homestead and property for the site of the monument to commemorate the Battle of Stoney Creek, and that she was preparing to deed that part of the property to the government for the purpose of the monument construction, dated July 18, 1899. Government correspondence requests assurances of the Women’s Wentworth Historical Society’s commitment to the project before the provision of funds is granted and Calder responds with confirmation of the commitment and with examples of how the Society has already proactively worked to preserve the house and grounds, including with the help of neighbouring farmers and residents of Stoney Creek, and with funding from the Township Council of Saltfleet. Calder’s correspondence argues against the site location put forward by the members of the Wentworth Historical Society, as inappropriate, and emphasizes that the Wentworth Historical Society has not financially contributed to any monument to the battle to date, nor has it promised any forthcoming money. The series also includes a letter to Sara Calder from E.L. Rastrick of the Frederick James Rastrick & Sons architectural firm who designed the monument, mentioning the design for the proposed monument along with a total cost estimate of $8,715.00, dated July 1, 1900, as well as correspondence from the Society to the government regarding the design proposals, and legal correspondence regarding the purchase of another 13 acres of land around the property dated February 24, 1910. There is also later correspondence from the 1940s pertaining to bronze tablets that were installed on the monument bearing the names of the men killed in action during the Battle of Stoney Creek, and unveiled in a ceremony in October of 1940. The final document in the series is a letter to Colin Gibson, Minister of National Defense from Mabel Thompson, President of the Women’s Wentworth Historical Society, regarding the history of the construction of the monument, detailing what she knows about the process including grants provided by the government, and repairs made over the years by the government. The purpose of the letter is to request ongoing support for the maintenance of the monument, dated August 13, 1946.