The Crest - Vol. 20 No. 2 SUMMER 2019

VOLUME 20 NUMBER 2 SUMMER 2019

THE CREST

NEWS AND VIEWS OF THE SALVATIONS ARMY
ARCHIVES CANADA AND BERMUDA TERRITORY

THE SALVATION ARMY ARCHIVES, CANADA AND BERMUDA TERRITORY
26 HOWDEN ROAD, TORONTO ON M1R 3E4

THE ORDER OF THE FOUNDER

Canada and Bermuda Territory General Bramwell Booth instituted The Or-
Order of the Founder Recipients der of the Founder in 1917, five years after
the death of his father, the Founder William
Sister Elizabeth Jane Stickells 1923 Booth.
CSM Ralph C. Braund 1941 The Order of The Founder is the highest Sal-
CSM George Dinsdale 1943 vation Army recognition granted to Salva-
Sister Polly Fitch 1943 tionists for distinguished and outstanding
Field-Adjutant Charles Newton 1945 service.
Envoy Edwin C. Pedlar 1945
Brigadier Nora Brokenshire 1964 The first awards were made in 1920 to 15
Senior Field-Captain Mary Moore 1971 officers and one soldier. Three years later,
Major Leonard Andrew Kirby 1972 seven officers and one soldier were hon-
CSM James McFarlane 1975 oured . To date, 170 officers and 103 sol-
Divisional BM Jack Green 1978 diers have been recognized with the Army’s
Envoy Mrs. Jean Brown 1978 highest honour — a total of 273.
CSM Cyril James Simmons 1981
Colonel Leonard Kirby 1982 The Salvation Armry Year Book 2019—page 42.
Mrs. Major Ruth Benjamin 1982 Proposals are submitted to the Territorial
CSM Donald G.McBride 1988 Commander, who drafts a detailed brief of
Mrs. Joan H. McBride 1988 the merits of the candidate for International
Major Jean Brown 1988 Headquarters. A committee of international
Lt. Col. Levina Kroeker 1990 Commissioners called the Order’s “Chapter”
Mary Saulnier 2000 convene and submit recommendations to the
Brigadier Elizabeth Peacocke 2000 General, who makes the final decision.
Robert (Bob) McArthur 2010 Those who are admitted to the Order of the
Shirley McArthur 2010 Founder receive a Certificate of Member-
Major Anette Vardy 2019 ship (above right), and a Medal (below
right) on which the name of the recipient,
THE WAR CRY the General who granted it, and the date are Medal presented to
August 25, 1917 inscribed on the reverse side. Mrs. Envoy Jean Brown

A Salvation Army Order of Merit Twenty-four salvationists
“THE FOUNDER’S ORDER” from the Canada and Ber-
muda Territory have been
The order will be granted by spe- granted the Order of the
cial Minute of the General to soldiers Founder. In his book,
and officers who may, in his judge- “Fighting For His Glory”,
ment, render distinguished and memo- General Arnold Brown re-
rable service, such as, either in spirit lates the stories and impact
or achievement, would have specially of the first fifteen inductees.
commended itself to our beloved The first Canadian inductee,
Founder. That service may have rela- Elizabeth Stickells, was admitted in 1923.
tion to any department of our work. The most recent is Major Annette Vardy,
Members of the Founder’s Order will whose story is reported in the April 2019
receive the badge of the Order when issue of The Salvationist (p.5).
gazetted.

T. Henry Howard
CHIEF OF THE STAFF

THE CREST Page 2
Descendants of victims
Empress of Ireland Memorial and survivors of the
Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Empresss of Ireland
May 28, 2019
Major Cathy Bruce June
Early in the morning of May 29, 1914, the Canadian David Koehnen Ivany (Delamont) John
Pacific ocean liner Empress of Ireland was struck by Ivany Ivany Humphries
a Norwegian coal boat and in less than fifteen Laura
minutes the huge vessel disappeared beneath the cold Humphries
waters of the St. Lawrence River. Of the 1,477 pas-
sengers and crew members,1,207 perished, 33 more
than the number of passengers who had died on the
ill-fated Titanic a little more than 25 months earlier.
Of the 192 Salvationists on board the Empress of
Ireland on their way to the International Congress in
London, England, 167 were lost.
On June 6, 1914, multitudes gathered in the old Mu-
tual Street Arena for a moving memorial service.
Following the meeting, a massive funeral procession
weaved through crowded streets to Mount Pleasant
Cemetery where 16 Salvationists who lost their lives
in the tragedy are buried. In the next few weeks, 6
more victims were recovered, and are now buried
there, brining the total number of graves to 22.
Every year since then, for the past 105 years, a me-
morial service is held at that same location, where an
impressive monument designed by Major Gideon
Miller, sculpted by Emanuel Hahn, and erected in
1916, now rises above the graves.
Descendants of those who lost their lives laid wreaths
at the monument during a moving and sacred service
led by Territorial Commander Commissioner Susan
MacMillan and Lt. Col. Lynn Armstrong.

First Memorial service Held at Mount Pleasant Cemetery June 6, 1914

The Toronto Sunday World, June 14, 1914

The scene at the graveside in Mount Pleasant cemetery, where caskets of the sixteen victims of the Empress,
the banks of flowers and evergreens that formed the background, the quiet colors of the Army mourners, and

the soft glow of twilight stealing over all, formed a picture those present will not easily forget.

Page 3 VOLUME 20 NUMBER 2

CHIEF SECRETARY VISITS ARCHIVES

Chief Secretary Colonel Edward Hill, accompanied by
Territorial Secretary for Program, Lt. Col. Lynn Arm-
strong, made a welcome visit to the Archives.
Following a time of introduction and discussion of pre-
sent and future plans for the Archives, Colonel Hill un-
dertook a guided tour of the facility.
The first stop was one of the most important collections in the archives -
the original shipping logs and placement records of almost 250,00 people
who came to Canada through the immigration program during the era be-
tween the two World Wars. These fragile records, some of which are over
a century old now, reflect an incredible time of significant innovation and
growth not only for the Army in our territory, but for the country of Cana-
da as well.
While reflecting on the explanations about the immigration program, an-
other treasured artifact caught the Colonel’s eye. Installed just beside
where the immigration records are stored, is a wall clock designed as a
memorial to the ‘boys’ of West Toronto Corps who lost their lives in the
two World Wars. Originally unveiled one hundred years ago on Good
Friday, 1919, this plaque was prominently displayed in West Toronto
Corps building for almost 75 years until the corps closed in 2003. The
Colonel paused in reflective silence as he gazed at the names listed on the
plaque, and honored the sacrifice of those lives. It was a sacred and spe-
cial moment for us all, especially in light of the recent D-Day anniversary
commemorating the significant role of Canadian troops in WWII.
The Colonel is a fine euphonium player as well, so one
interesting item noted is a double bell euphonium, made
by C.G.Conn in the USA circa 1912/13. Initial produc-
tion of these instruments began in the 1880s. Though
peak production and popularity occurred from the 1890s
to the 1920s, it was never considered one of the more
popular brass band instruments and its use and sales de-
clined over time until production of the instrument
ceased in the early 1960s. Colonel Hill was aware of
these instruments, which were prominent in John Philip
Sousa and other US Brass bands, including some Salva-
tion Army ensembles. It is now a valued feature of the
new Archives foyer display area.
The Archives team expresses sincere appreciation to Colonel Hill for his
ongoing interest and support of the Archives and its mission. His personal
interest in Army history, his words of encouragement to the Archive team,
and his warm assurance of the value he places in the efforts to preserve our
heritage was truly a blessing.

Empress of Ireland Memorial Service
May 28, 2019- Mount Pleasant Cemetery

THE SALVATION ARMY ARCHIVES, CANADA AND BERMUDA TERRITORY Page 4
26 HOWDEN ROAD, TORONTO ON M1R 3E4

New Leaders of the Archives and Museum WE ARE ON THE WEB:

Majors Ron and Donna Millar WWW. H ERITA G E. SA LVAT IONARMY. CA

Majors Ron and Donna Millar, after entering retirement in 2017, have recently
been assigned to the team of the Archives. Ron is the Director, and Donna is the
Accessionist/Researcher.

The Millars were commissioned over 40 years ago in the Disciples of Jesus Ses-
sion (1978). Since then, they have held a wide variety of appointments, serving
in Corps, Training College, Youth Work, Divisional Leadership, and Territorial
Headquarters. They have also had a taste of the global Army, with appointments
in Bermuda, Australia, and Jamaica.

THEN Since he was young, Ron has had a
Cadet Sgts. keen interest in history. It was his
Ron and Donna Millar 1978 NOW
Disciples of Jesus Session favorite subject in school and he Majors Ron
pursued this interest in university and Donna
by completing his first undergradu-
ate degree with a history major. Prior to entering Training College, he Millar
spent several years teaching high school history. He continued to pursue 2019

this passion as an officer, teaching Salvation Army History and Mission in
various Training College appointments.

Donna is an avid student who loves doing research and is a skilled writer.
Over the years, she has written and produced “Old Army Nights” that fea-
ture real life testimonies of early day salvationists presented in authentic
music and uniforms of the time. These scripted testimonies reflect the
unique personalities, methods, passion, and boldness of Army pioneers
around the world. She is also an accomplished musician and composer
who has a number of songster pieces published in Army journals.

Their large framed sessional photo, which once hung in a prominent place
in the College and weaved its way through classroom walls through the
years, has now found a home on the back wall of the Archives. Their ses-
sional flag, once taking its place of honour on the platform of the Training
College Chapel, is now a valued artifact in the archives. Majors Ron and
Donna are delighted to reunite with their sessional photo and sessional flag
as fixtures of the archives! They are pleased as well, to join fellow session
mate, Major Randy Hicks, as members of the archive team.

New Look Foyer - Archive Display

With the help of volunteer Ian Millar, the archive team went about the task of redesigning the foyer of-
fice area to reclaim space in order to display interesting unique artifacts stored in the Archives. Filing
cabinets were relocated, furniture was moved, and space re-allocated. Some representative items of
interest, each of which has its own wonderful story, are now featured in the new display area. These
are not permanent displays, but will be rearranged to include other archive treasures over time.