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Simcoe County Archives releases region’s first WWI honour roll

This virtual memorial contains the names of 1,006 men and women who died while in service or as a result of injuries sustained during WWI
CollingwoodToday Staff

NEWS RELEASE
COUNTY OF SIMCOE
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The Simcoe County Archives is pleased to announce the launch of Simcoe County’s first consolidated First World War (WWI) honour roll to recognize fallen men and women who had connections to Simcoe County.

Entitled Simcoe County Remembers, this virtual memorial contains the names of 1,006 men and women who died while in service or as a result of injuries sustained during WWI.

The memorial is the first known WWI honour roll in Simcoe County that centralizes multiple lists and sources into one database. Following the war, many of the region’s townships, towns, and villages established their own individual forms of commemoration—Simcoe County Remembers complements these existing public memorials with one consolidated list. 

“This is a tremendously important undertaking and truly documents the significant sacrifices of our men, women and families during WWI,” said Deputy Warden Terry Dowdall. “Simcoe County has a deep military history and the Archives continues to play an important role in preserving our past so it can be illuminated for future generations.”

To establish the Simcoe County Remembers database, Archives staff conducted extensive research of public memorials, published local histories, and official military records.

Databases found on the websites of Library and Archives Canada, Veterans Affairs Canada (Books of Remembrance) and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission were also searched to find the names of the County’s war dead. Given the scope of this research, the County encourages residents to contact us about any known missing names and/or documentation errors at [email protected] or 705-726-9331.

The Simcoe County Remembers database is intended to be as inclusive as possible. Criteria used to develop the list includes:

  • Was the individual born in Simcoe County?
  • Did the individual reside in Simcoe County at the time of enlistment?
  • Did the individual’s official next-of-kin reside in Simcoe County?
  • Is the individual’s name on one of the public war memorials located in Simcoe County?
  • Did the individual die while in military service prior to Nov. 11, 1918, or soon after the Armistice of causes directly connected to his or her war service?

Although the Townships of Mara and Rama did not join the County of Simcoe until 1974, names of fallen men and women from these communities have been included.

Simcoe County Remembers can be accessed by the public here.

Open to the public, the Simcoe County Archives holds a variety of WWI and WWII resources related to Simcoe County including records, newspapers, photos, diaries and more.

County of Simcoe is composed of sixteen member municipalities and provides crucial public services to County residents in addition to providing paramedic and social services to the separated cities of Barrie and Orillia. Visit our website.

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