Remember This? How we whooped it up in 1923

From the Sault Ste. Marie Public Library archive:

In 1923, the city put on a party to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the discovery of Lake Superior and the rapids of St. Mary’s.

Etienne Brule and Grenolle, the daring adventurers who first visited this area were celebrated. 

Included with all of the historical commemorations, the city decided to hold a reunion of the soldiers who went overseas from Northern Ontario during the Great War, marking the fifth anniversary of the ending of the war and the return of the soldiers.   

The excitement built on the morning of August 4 as crowds of people started to descend on the city. 

The local newspaper reported that an estimated 2,000 people had already arrived with 500 people coming in at noon on the opening day. 

By the end of the celebration more than 10,000 visitors had come to the Sault, of these 3,000 people came by train, between 2,000 to 2,500 came by boat, with the rest coming from the American side of the river and the surrounding townships.  

Ferry traffic almost doubled for the duration of the week. 

It is estimated that around 600 motor cars travelled to the city as well. 

Bunting and flags decorated almost every building on the main streets as well as some of the side streets and “the whole city has a very festive appearance," according to the newspaper account on the first day.

Camp sites were set up at Bellevue Park for people to stay and residents opened their homes to visitors with more people staying on the American side of the river in the motor campsite. 

Battalions of soldiers arrived from Sudbury and other regions of Northern Ontario and set up campsites in order to be a part of the festivities.

Each day had a theme with a list of activities related to its theme for the day. 

The first day, Saturday August 4, was Mobilization Day and featured sports programs, a concert and street dancing. 

On Memorial Sunday, there was a memorial parade and special memorial services at area churches. 

On Amiens Day, reunions of overseas units were held and a special regatta was held with boat and canoe races and the evening finished with a great military spectacle at the Agricultural Grounds. 

August 7 was Discovery and American Day and a number of historical depictions of our early history were highlighted, including a Brule Pageant at the Ship Canal Grounds, the unveiling of both the Brule Memorial at the Ship Canal grounds, and the memorial at the site of the North West Company’s Lock, and a staging of the Hiawatha Play (based on Longfellow’s poem) at Bellevue Park, by the Ojibway Indians of Garden River Reserve. 

A street carnival and parade in costume entertained the crowds. 

Our neighbours from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan were invited to be special guests at the day’s events.  

The final day was Hiawatha Day and began with a Pilgrimage of the Tablets in which historical tablets (or plaques) were unveiled throughout the city to commemorate historical events in the history of the city. 

The day was rounded out with two more showings of the Hiawatha Play, horse races at the Agricultural Grounds and street dancing in the evening.  

The Hiawatha Play was viewed by about 3,000 people during the last two days of the celebration.  

It was a full week of events and visitors left with wonderful memories of their time spent visiting in the city, learning about the early history of the area and re-connecting with the many soldiers who had gone to war just a few short years earlier.  

Find out more of what the Public Library has to offer at www.ssmpl.ca and look for more Remember This? columns here.