Related Photos

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  L-R: (back row) Uxbridge SS students Ashlyn McKinney, Emma Webb, Taylor Trent, (front row) Maya Burgess-Stansfield, Jasmine Robinson, and Heath Niemi pose with a bust of Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel S. Sharpe at the Durham Region Courthouse renaming ceremony in Oshawa.
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  Members of the Ontario Regiment attended the Durham Region Courthouse renaming ceremony in Oshawa in recognition of Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel S. Sharpe.

The Durham Region courthouse will now be called the Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Simpson Sharpe, DSO, MP Courthouse

On September 12^th, local government officials, Ontario Regiment members, family of Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Simpson Sharpe, and Uxbridge Secondary School teachers and students gathered at the Durham Region Courthouse in Oshawa.

Tish MacDonald, Teacher at Uxbridge SS, brought six students with her to the renaming ceremony. These six had previously been a part of the school’s Vimy 2019 Remembrance Tour last April. To commemorate the occasion, each student wore a t-shirt bearing the likeness of Lieutenant-Colonel Sharpe.

They were there to honour and continue the legacy of Lieutenant-Colonel Sharpe, who was a prominent military leader, lawyer, and parliamentarian. Lieutenant-Colonel Sharpe was born in Zephyr, Ontario and attended both Uxbridge PS and Uxbridge SS.

Among many things, he was known in Uxbridge as a prominent barrister and solicitor, and was elected twice to the House of Commons as a Member of Parliament (MP).

At the start of the First World War, he recruited men from Ontario County (now known as Durham Region) to enlist in the 116^th Overseas Battalion, and trained with them in Uxbridge from October 1915 to May 1916.  

Lieutenant-Colonel Sharpe served almost two years on the front lines with his men, and fought bravely in the battles of Vimy Ridge, Avion, Cambrai, and Passchendaele.

He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), but unfortunately the tolls of war were far too much for him to bear, and he ended his life in May of 1918.  

At the renaming ceremony, many spoke about the importance of opening the discussion on mental health and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

“His legacy lives on,” says Emma Webb, a Grade 11 student at Uxbridge SS. Webb adds, “Having a courthouse named after him is such an important event because he was a lawyer, and he was so brave in the war. His story cannot be forgotten. It needs to be remembered.”

On the Vimy Remembrance Tour last April, Webb and 52 other Uxbridge SS students travelled to France and Belgium to learn the stories of First World War veterans, listen to the stories of Second World War veterans, and then traced their footsteps through the beaches and battlefields of Europe.

MacDonald was one of six chaperones that accompanied students on the school trip. She says it’s important to continue sharing Canada’s military history with students, “Through engaging students in remembrance-related activities, and encouraging our students to learn the stories of service of our veterans, we can ensure that the sacrifices of those that served will not be forgotten, and that the torch of remembrance will get passed on to future generations.”