The Lambton Park Remembrance Trees
107 years, planted 11 November 1919Silver Maple and Norway Maplepin approximate
Which one is it? Six maples in a row along the school's Bernice Crescent frontage, two silver and four Norway. No published photo distinguishes one from another; all six commemorate the same twelve names.
Twelve local men from this part of Toronto died in the First World War. Six trees went into the ground for them on 11 November 1919, the very first Remembrance Day, planted on the lawn in front of Lambton Park Community School. Two silver maples and four Norway maples went in with a silver-plated shovel, because the two men invited to turn the first sod, Princes Edward and Albert of England, could not make the crossing. The mothers of the fallen planted the trees themselves instead. For most of a century the planting sat unmarked. Bonita Nelson, a descendant of two of the twelve, Reginald Gage and Sydney Moyle, nominated the trees for heritage status in 2016, and a plaque inside the school now carries all twelve names. The register places the six trees along the school's Bernice Crescent frontage, reachable from the public sidewalk without stepping onto school grounds. The last confirmed sighting is the 2016 nomination itself, so ask at the school if you want certainty before you go, and tell us what you find. A tree planted for twelve names deserves better than an unconfirmed pin.
The button above opens directions in your maps app. TTC bus 40 (Junction-Dundas West) or 79 (Scarlett Rd) on Dundas St West at Scarlett Road, short walk to Bernice Crescent.
The pin marks the right spot roughly, not the tree itself. It stands here, but we have not confirmed the precise position on the ground yet. Know exactly where it is?
- Species
- Silver Maple and Norway Maple (Acer saccharinum and Acer platanoides)
- Age estimate
- 107 years, planted 11 November 1919
- Location
- Lambton Park Community School, 50 Bernice Crescent, Toronto (Lambton)
- Access
- Free. The six trees stand at the front of Lambton Park Community School facing Bernice Crescent, on the street-facing frontage, viewable and reachable from the public sidewalk without entering school grounds.
- Getting there
- TTC bus 40 (Junction-Dundas West) or 79 (Scarlett Rd) on Dundas St West at Scarlett Road, short walk to Bernice Crescent.
Trees nearby
Ticking this one off, walks past several more, and your collection growing city by city: that is the Ancient Trees app.
Get the appThis page was researched from a distance. If you know this tree, you know things we do not: the species, the age, the size, whether the photo shows the right tree, or that it is gone. Every field on this page can be corrected.
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