Quebec Group Presents Internment Museum Plans

By Olena Wawryshyn

The Spirit Lake Corporation, a group dedicated to ensuring that the history of the Spirit Lake internment camp is preserved, held a symposium on  November 15 in the Quebec village of La Ferme to review architectural plans for a museum.

During the First World War, people who came to Canada from lands then under the Austro-Hungarian Empire, including many Ukrainians, were  forcibly detained at the Spirit Lake camp  by the Canadian government between 1915 and 1917.

The corporation, established by local residents of La Ferme, consists of seven Board of Directors and seven members from tourism and cultural  organizations and others. They had wanted to erect a building to house the museum, but, had to scale down their plans due to financial considerations, says James Slobodian, a Spirit Lake Corporation member. The revised design plans, presented at the symposium by a consultancy firm, would see the museum incorporated into the second floor of the St-Viateur Church in La Ferme.

The symposium, attended by about 75 people, was also an opportunity for the corporation to strengthen its partnerships with interested groups, including the Ukrainian Canadian community, Representatives of the community at the event included Shevchenko Foundation President Andrew Hladyshevsky, Dr Lubomyr Luciuk, director of research for the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association, and Zorianna Luhovy of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, Montreal Branch. Members of the Pawliw family, whose ancestors were interned at Spirit Lake, also attended.

The guests also visited a small Ukrainian Catholic cemetery nearby, where many internees were buried. Commenting on its state, Dr. Luciuk said:  “We are alarmed at the lack of any care being shown for the cemetery. For years now we have been asking Ottawa to step in and protect the site. They have ignored our requests.”