war memorial monument

The war memorial monument that now stands proudly in front of our legion hall on Church Street, was originally located on State Street between the Masonic Temple and the bank and looked across tot he Civil War monument standing at the cross roads of our village.

Erected in 1948, this beautiful slab of Barre, Vermont granite was three feet wide, one a half feet in thickness and ten feet high. The slab, with its base, weighed eight tons. The setting, with urns and benches, occupied a space of eighteen by twenty-four feet. Allen Monument company of Mt. Morris furnished the slab. Mr. Allen went to Barre, Vermont and selected it himself. A Barre truck took the stone to Williamsville, where the lettering was done. It was then brought to Caledonia where the Mt. Morris company supervised the setting. The benches and urns were furnished by the Ribstone Company of LeRoy and the plantings were done by Burson Nursery of Clifton. The village workmen put in the sub-base. The design at the top of the monument was the creation of John L. Strohl.

This monument was made possible by the gifts of local people to the Community Chest during the war. Thirty-five hundred dollars had been set aside for some type of homecoming event. This money had not been used so it was divided between the local legion and the Gold Star Fathers and Mothers. With this $1,750 and a substantial addition by a local party, the Gold Star organizations arranged for the purchase and erection of the beautiful and justly fitting memorial as a reminder of the debt we owe to those of our community who paid such a high price for the preservation of our liberties.

The lettering on the shaft is as follows: Erected in memory to those of the Town of Caledonia, New York, who gave their all in defense of our country. World War I – 1917-1918, World War II – 1941-1945.

In 1965, the Gold Star Parents gave their permission on November 11, to the Matthew Cleary Post #255 of the American Legion, to move the memorial, benches, urns and shrubbery form between the Masonic Temple and the bank to its present location on Church Street, in front of the legion hall. An extra section has been added to accommodate the additional names of our community that paid the ultimate price for the preservation of our freedom. These were added: Korean War – 1950-1953 and Viet Nam War – 1964-1973.

The community, on Memorial Day, comes to this proud monument to honor our fallen men. Maybe November 11 should be a day that we stop and read the names of those who gave us the freedoms that we now enjoy. This monument isn’t just a piece of hard, cold granite, but generates the warmth our community has for its fallen comrades. We also should thank the veterans that are still residing in our community. Hopefully, within the next 50 years there will be no more additions.

Source material: Caledonia Advertiser, December 9,1948, author unknown; Caledonia, Town and Village By Esther Hayward, 1991.