In 1957, the Centennial Cairn was built to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Waterloo’s incorporation as a village in 1857. The cairn features two bronze plaques and the City of Waterloo’s coat of arms. “The names of the City Council of 1857 and 1957, as well as the General Chairman in charge” of Centennial events were printed on the plaques.⁴⁹ A metal box holding historical items, such as wooden nickels, banners and a scroll with names of citizens and centennial committee members, is buried within the cairn. The box is to be opened at the 200th anniversary, 2057.⁵⁰ The cairn was unveiled during the centennial celebrations held from June 26-July 1, 1957.⁵¹

Waterloo Chronicle, June 6, 1957.

Another commemorative feature of the park is the Victoria Jubilee Memorial Gateway. In 1901, the citizens of Waterloo collected money subscriptions for a gate to memorialize the “late beloved Queen” as a “lasting reminder of her whose reign [had] been such a glorious triumph.”⁵² Some of the early donors were the Waterloo Bicycle Club and the Waterloo Musical Society, who donated the proceeds from one of their concerts. The gate cost approximately $1,200 to construct and was located at the Young Street entrance to the park. The pillars of the gateway were made from limestone and brick. The gate and archway were made of wrought iron and featured electric globe lights. Although the gate was admired for its design, in 1957 the gate was deconstructed to allow for a wider entrance to the park.⁵³ In 1994, the original iron gates were bought back from Lou Bechtloff, a Wellesley resident who inherited the gates from the former City Hotel owner, Edmund Schmidt.⁵⁴ Over the next few years the location of the new gate was hotly debated. One of the popular options was the Erb and Caroline Street entrance of the park. In the end, the Victoria Gate was restored as part of the 1998 Capital Projects Plan for Waterloo Park, and it was put back in its original location at the Young Street entrance.⁵⁵

Colour postcard showing Memorial Gate and car (1917) Click the photo for more details.