New Era And The Bloodshed Of War

 More views inside St. Onuphrius today as I walked around the church.

Along the wall opposite from the church on this side were photographs and artifacts showing the progress of one of our western cities, Winnipeg, as the 19th century gave way to the 20th century.

Another look at the church.

Eatons was a retail company in Canada, and much of their business during this era was through catalogues.

I went to the last gallery, which starts in 1914 and goes to the current day. This display case includes a bust of Wilfrid Laurier, the prime minister whose time in office straddled the 19th and 20th centuries.

When war broke out in Europe, Canada would be in it from the beginning, and Canadian forces would do extraordinary things over four years of brutal warfare.

The Lee-Enfield rifle became the standard weapon for Canadians in that war. The tunic here belonged to Alexander Reid, who served in the ranks from the beginning, and served with bravery.

This painting is Gas Attack, Flanders, a 1915 painting by Alfred Bastien.

Canadians did things during that war that by all rights were impossible, but did them anyway. They earned a reputation as shock troopers. This photograph shows Canadian soldiers looking happy, and rightfully so- they had just won the Battle of Vimy Ridge.