A Canadian soldier’s recount of seeing a horse bearing a familiar brand while serving in war overseas is one of many stories being shared at a popular historic site this weekend. The Bar U Ranch National Historic Site brings back its Hometown Heroes celebration this Father’s Day weekend, dedicating June 16 and 17 to honour the men, women and animals that served in the First World War. Although one wouldn’t expect a southern Alberta ranch to have much of a connection to war, Bar U Ranch acting site manager Mike McLean said not only did men who worked at the ranch go overseas to fight but horses at the ranch were purchased for the army in France and Britain to be used in war efforts. “Horses were important for transportation and support,” McLean said. “They were the real engines of the army at that time.” A poem published in a Blue Cross manual in 1916, written by a Canadian soldier, tells of seeing a horse with the Bar U brand and the memories it brought of home. Other war stories will be told by Longview author Susan Raby-Dunne in a presentation at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday called The Real McCrae inspired by her research on Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, as written in her books Bonfire - The Chestnut Gentleman and John McCrae - Beyond Flanders Fields. The latter was among eight novels nominated for a Golden Oak Awards through the Ontario Libraries Association. “It’s a fairly intimate portrait of John McCrae’s life and service before World War I,” said Raby-Dunne of her presentation. “A lot of people don’t know that he was also in the South African War. There are interesting details about him that people don’t know.” Raby-Dunne made a similar presentation at the Bar U last year, featuring 55 historic photographs she dug up. The Foothills war buff is working on a new book she’s calling Burning Soldier in honour of Regina architect Frederick Chapman Clemesha, whose monument, Brooding Soldier, in Belgium commemorating Canadians in the First World War, unveiled in 1923, is one of Canada’s most recognized war memorials, second only to the Vimy Monument. Chapman Clemesha, originally from England before immigrating to Saskatchewan in the early 1900s, fought with the South Saskatchewan 46th Battalion, which was nicknamed the Suicide Battalion because it had so many casualties, said Raby-Dunne. Raby-Dunne sees Hometown Heroes as not only commemorating the First World War, but also marking the last 100th anniversary First World War events. In The Battle of Amiens in August 1918, the Canadian corp. chased the Germans back to Germany, making it the biggest defeat the Germans had in the war. “August 8 was the black day for the German army,” she said. “It’s an important year for the last of the war.” Throughout the weekend, the historic ranch will feature a display of heroes and military saddles in the visitors’ centre, vintage war films and a Halifax bomber engine in the parking lot. “We will fire it up and let people have an experience of what those big powerful units were like,” said McLean. “You can climb into the Lancaster fuselage in the upper turret and see what it was like to man the machine guns.” Visitors looking for more hands-on experiences at the Bar U this weekend can try their aim at the airsoft rifle range. “They can get behind some sandbags and snipe away at a target to experience maybe what some of our people from the Foothills had to experience when they went overseas,” he said. “People really enjoy seeing the displays and the hands-on activities that they can do when they come out and visit the Bar U. It’s something a little bit different than what we usually have to offer.” On Sunday, the Millarville Musical Ride has a demonstration in the arena and a parade throughout the historic site. Throughout the weekend, visitors can explore the Strathcona Regiment Historical Vehicle Troop’s vintage operational World War One Sherman Tank, Catherine. “It’s a remarkable thing to be able to clamber upon it and experience a little bit of what a lot of our Foothills area residents have experienced in the past,” McLean said. “It’s just a wonderful way to celebrate the Fathers Day weekend.” The Bar U Ranch National Historic Site is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $7.80 for adults, $6.55 for seniors and youth ages 17 and under are free.
