The Portraits of Honour National Tour

The Portraits of Honour National Tour, in a mural, honours 157 Canadian soldiers, sailors, and aircrew who have lost their lives in Afghanistan.

It started touring Canada on May 26th, and is slated to go right across the county from coast to coast to coast. If you want to read their Tour Diary, and see their photo gallery, go to www.portraitsofhonour.ca/index.cfm?page=blog.

The bus will be in Ottawa today and tomorrow at the following places and times -

Friday, November 11th it will be on Parliament Hill, and will be open for public viewing from 9:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m..

On Saturday, November 12th, it will be at the National War Museum at 1 Vimy Drive. The public viewing will be from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m..

Go to www.portraitsofhonour.ca for more information.

Postscript #1 - Under the title of "Remembrance Day: Lest we forget" — a day set aside to honour sacrifice — there are a number of articles available online on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's website at www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2010/11/05/f-remembrance-day.html.

As well, CBC will pay tribute to Canada's fallen soldiers today through live video, audio, and online streaming of the ceremony from the War Memorial in Ottawa, starting at 10:00 a.m. EST this morning. Go to www.cbc.ca/video/#/Radio for details.

Postscript #2 - There will be free admission to the Canadian War Museum www.warmuseum.ca and the Canadian Museum of Civilization www.civilization.ca on Friday, November 11.

Today at exactly 11 a.m., sunlight will shine through a single window to frame the headstone of Canada’s Unknown Soldier.

A limited number of free tickets will be available at 9 a.m. at the Information Desk. No reservations permitted.

This event will also be webcast live from Memorial Hall on November 11, starting at 10:45 a.m. on the Museum’s website, and broadcast within the Museum.

For more information on the programs available today, and for a link to the live webcast, go to www.warmuseum.ca/programs/remembrance-at-the-canadian-war-museum.

Tomorrow's Post: Researching Canadian WWI Records with Rick Roberts of Global Genealogy at the Quinte Branch (OGS) AGM.

New/Improved Canadian Websites and Blogs Week 10

Here are some of the websites and blogs that I have come across the week ending November 6, 2011 -

The War Graves Photographic Project http://twgpp.org Started in England, it now covers Canadian graves, with over 30 volunteers taking photos of cemeteries under the guidance of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and Canadian Veterans Affairs. You can research by surname and first name, and they have a photo gallery onsite, and News & Information. If you have a question about a Canadian grave, please email Vernon Mastman at vernon@twgpp.org.

The War of 1812 Website  www.warof1812.ca A well-rounded site that was started to commemorate the War of 1812 by listing the latest articles on the War of 1812, book reviews, videos, prints, maps, uniforms, and games.

The Birthplace of John McCrae and a National Historic Site http://guelpharts.ca/mccraehouse/index.php Read about the site and the events that are being held at the John McCrae House, the author of In Flanders Fields.

CFS Alert http://jproc.ca/rrp/alert.html Canadian Forces Station Alert in Nunavut is the most-northerly, permanently-inhabited settlement in the world of the Canadian military! The site gives a history of the place and the personnel, explanations of some of the equipment used, and contains some really good photographs of the station.

The Canadian International Military Tattoo New! www.canadianmilitarytattoo.ca The tattoo will take place in Hamilton to mark the 200th Anniversary of the War of 1812, as well as the 150th Anniversary of the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry.

Canadian Forces casualties in Afghanistan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Forces_casualties_in_Afghanistan A breakdown of the Canadian casualties in Afghanistan is given as well as a history of where these casualties occurred, and continue to occur.

Avroland www.avroland.ca Dedicated to the people and projects of AVRO Canada and Orenda Engines Limited. The Toronto Aerospace Museum has completed their full-size replica Arrow, which is onsite, as well as the people who helped design and build the Avro Arrow.

Canadian Heroes (Military Heroes) www.canada-heros.com/military.html A blog which answers the question of "Who is a Hero?" Read about the Canadian heroes of yesterday and today. It also has Ginny McIlmoyle singing the song, "The Highway of Heroes", the stretch of Hwy 401 that goes from CFB Trenton to Toronto.  The song was written to honour the people who came back to Canada after they were killed in Afghanistan.

The Heroes Remember www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/collections/hrp This website contains video interviews of Canadian Veterans of the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War, the Chinese-Canadian veterans, along with some very interesting anecdotes on their experiences.

Remembrance Day in Canada: Remembering Canadians Who Fought and Died in War http://canadaonline.about.com/cs/canadawar/a/remembranceday.htm  Lots of interesting links on this site, especially on the First World War.

Tomorrow's Post: Discover the Collection: Military and Peacekeeping

Ottawa Branch, OGS - September Meeting

The next meeting of the Ottawa Branch, OGS will be held on Tuesday, September 15th at 7:30 p.m. in Room 156 of the Library and Archives Canada building at 395 Wellington Street.

Coreen Atkins-Sheldrick will speak on her new book, "In Our Defence: The Veterans & Military Heritage of Historic Osgoode Township", about the military history of Osgoode Township, Carleton County.

She is going to talk about the stories she learned while working on this book.

I see where she has another book called, "The Yorke Families of Historic Osgoode Township, Carleton County", written in 2003.

For more information, please visit <www.ogsottawa.on.ca>.