The Sawdust Fusiliers

 Went on a longer walk today going through  Stover Park,  near Newton Abbott.  There is a very striking and unusual memorial here to the Canadian volunteer lumberjacks who worked to provide timber for the front in World War One. Information as follows.The first group of 250 “Sawdust Fusiliers”, as they came to be called, to be sent anywhere in Britain was sent to Stover Park in 1916; they left in November 1917. The estate of Stover Park had many fine old trees which were soon providing timber of all kinds for the front. Local people welcomed the Canadians warmly. They were very curious about them and enjoyed fetes and sports days when the visitors demonstrated their skills in logging, baseball, canoeing and First Nations’ ceremonies.
Several Canadian men married local women and stayed in Devon after the war. As part of the “Devon Remembers Heritage Project”, a life-size wooden carving, commissioned by “Devon Remembers” and created by sculptor Andrew Frost, has been installed beside the Stover Heritage Trail near Newton Abbot. It depicts two members of the Canadian Forestry Corps with one of the horses they relied on to work the forest. The horse and officer are made of cedar and the forester sitting down is made of oak. The timber was sourced by the artist in northern England. The carvings were made by Andrew Frost, based in Derbyshire, and took about 6 weeks to make. The official unveiling was held on September 1, 2018. There is another photo in extra and one of the fabulous trees nearby.
Lots of birds in Stover Park, 
Gardenwatch bird of the day was a blackcap.