Ukrainian Pioneer Mass Grave

This beautifully carved black granite marker celebrates the one hundredth anniversary of Ukrainian settlement in Canada from 1891-1991.

It stands on the site of a tragic event that occurred well over a century ago near Patterson Lake, Manitoba.    

The sign reads:

"Ukrainian Settlers Mass Grave

          

"In May 1899 scarlet fever struck the first group of Slavic families who camped at this site.  Forty-two children and three adults died.

"This memorial commemorates the suffering, perseverance and courage of those pioneers who overcame tragedy. 

"They carved homesteads out of forest and made life possible for us: their descendants.

"Parkland Ukrainian Pioneer Association 1978."

The site is home to (from left to right): the large one hundredth anniversary monument, a fiftieth anniversary jubilee marker, a guest book housed in a waterproof box atop a steel pole, the carved wooden information sign, a cairn listing the names of all those buried there, a headstone for an infant and a white budded cross at the foot of the burial mound. 

The burial mound is prominent in the above two photographs.

To the south is a canola field...

...and to the north, across the road and behind the aspen trees is Patterson Lake.

The grounds are impeccably kept.  

The reflection of the sky in the large monument had me awe struck for the entiretiy of my visit...almost as if heaven came to ground and was there keeping watch. 

Photographed near Olha, Manitoba on July 27, 2022.