Fort Qu'Appelle legion members quarrel over reclaiming WW1 cannon
An argument over the rightful place of a century-old German field cannon has pitted a councillor from the RM of Weyburn against a group of legion members in Fort Qu'Appelle
Arthur White-Crummey, Regina Leader-Post
Published on: May 14, 2018 | Last Updated: May 14, 2018 7:00 AM CST
An argument over the rightful place of a century-old German field cannon has pitted a councillor for the RM of Weyburn against a group of legion members in Fort Qu’Appelle.
The 77 mm Feldkanone 96 came to Fort Qu’Appelle in 1920 as a war trophy captured from the Germans in one of the battles of Ypres during the First World War. It spent 98 years in the town, first in Treaty 4 Park and then near the local legion.
But one day a man named Jack Lowe hauled it off, with an eye to having it restored. He said there was talk of sending the historic cannon to a steel mill as scrap, and claims a former mayor — now dead — gave him permission to save it. It sat in his yard until last August, after he decided he was too old to keep caring for it.
That’s when Dan Cugnet picked up the weapon.
“My sole goal is to see it restored, ensure that it is preserved, and eventually accessible to the public, whether that’s a museum of some kind or some other institution eventually,” the RM of Weyburn councillor said. “That’s the idea.”
But some legion members in Fort Qu’Appelle say the the cannon belongs in the town. It’s a reminder of those who fought, and a rare one at that — hundreds of captured enemy field guns were melted down for scrap years later to support the Second World War effort. Harold Skaarup, an amateur historian with expertise on war trophies, can only account for 38 WW1-era Feldkanone 96’s still on display across the country.
“It’s part of our town’s heritage,” said legion member Humphrey Bartlett. “It was given to Fort Qu’Appelle, to the town, in memory of people who were in the First World War.”
Bartlett doesn’t believe Lowe, himself a legion member, ever had the right to give the weapon away.
“Just the whole bloody thing is wrong,” he said. “I’m making noises trying to get it back.”
Doug Dawson, the legion’s past president, said he was “quite disappointed” to learn that the cannon had left town. He assumed that Lowe would eventually return it to its longtime home near the legion.
“It should have stayed there,” he said.
The cannon is now in Weyburn in a secure location, said Cugnet. He has no intention of selling the weapon or of returning it to Fort Qu’Appelle.
“I feel like I’ve been entrusted to make sure that it’s restored and preserved,” he said. “I don’t think that is what was happening.”
He calls any argument that the cannon didn’t belong to Lowe “absolutely ridiculous.” Lowe agrees. He claims the town didn’t want the cannon, leaving it to suffer neglect and vandalism for years — a point Bartlett disputes.
Lowe said he cared for the weapon long before he hauled it to his home.
“I worked on it for about 10 years, piece by piece,” he said. “I put it back together again. I don’t know how many thousands of dollars I put into it — a fortune.”
He resents the recriminations coming from some of his fellow legion members.
“Everybody’s going to kill me over this,” Lowe said. “…I should have let it go to IPSCO (now Evraz) to be melted down.”
There is some talk that the town should force the cannon’s return. Administrator Larry Davidson told the Fort Qu’Appelle Times that the cannon remains Crown property. It can’t just be given away.
“It is now a question of how do we get it back,” the paper quoted him as saying.
But Fort Qu’Appelle Mayor Jerry Whiting is advising patience. He told the Leader-Post that the town will wait for the local legion to complete an inquiry before taking action.
“I think we’re jumping to conclusions here,” he said. “I’m going to rely on the legion’s response and then we can take action from there.
“It’s a matter of establishing ownership — who’s entitled to have that equipment.”
Cugnet said the cannon is now in relatively good condition, considering its age. He said it will need metal work, painting and refinishing, as well as repairs to the wheels.
“I’m still caught off guard that it’s a controversy or a story at this point,” he said. “This story should be about preserving history and honouring all of the men and women that have served our country, in the past, present and future.”
awhite-crummey@postmedia.com
This First World War cannon is caught in the middle of a dispute between some Fort Qu'Appelle legion members and Weyburn area resident Dan Cugnet. It's seen here in the yard of Jack Lowe. (Photo submitted by Dan Cugnet.)
http://thestarphoenix.com/news/saskatchewan/fort-quappelle-legion-members-quarrel-over-reclaiming-ww1-cannon/wcm/988a20ad-17b5-4569-9be5-2bc02d743298
An argument over the rightful place of a century-old German field cannon has pitted a councillor from the RM of Weyburn against a group of legion members in Fort Qu'Appelle
Arthur White-Crummey, Regina Leader-Post
Published on: May 14, 2018 | Last Updated: May 14, 2018 7:00 AM CST
An argument over the rightful place of a century-old German field cannon has pitted a councillor for the RM of Weyburn against a group of legion members in Fort Qu’Appelle.
The 77 mm Feldkanone 96 came to Fort Qu’Appelle in 1920 as a war trophy captured from the Germans in one of the battles of Ypres during the First World War. It spent 98 years in the town, first in Treaty 4 Park and then near the local legion.
But one day a man named Jack Lowe hauled it off, with an eye to having it restored. He said there was talk of sending the historic cannon to a steel mill as scrap, and claims a former mayor — now dead — gave him permission to save it. It sat in his yard until last August, after he decided he was too old to keep caring for it.
That’s when Dan Cugnet picked up the weapon.
“My sole goal is to see it restored, ensure that it is preserved, and eventually accessible to the public, whether that’s a museum of some kind or some other institution eventually,” the RM of Weyburn councillor said. “That’s the idea.”
But some legion members in Fort Qu’Appelle say the the cannon belongs in the town. It’s a reminder of those who fought, and a rare one at that — hundreds of captured enemy field guns were melted down for scrap years later to support the Second World War effort. Harold Skaarup, an amateur historian with expertise on war trophies, can only account for 38 WW1-era Feldkanone 96’s still on display across the country.
“It’s part of our town’s heritage,” said legion member Humphrey Bartlett. “It was given to Fort Qu’Appelle, to the town, in memory of people who were in the First World War.”
Bartlett doesn’t believe Lowe, himself a legion member, ever had the right to give the weapon away.
“Just the whole bloody thing is wrong,” he said. “I’m making noises trying to get it back.”
Doug Dawson, the legion’s past president, said he was “quite disappointed” to learn that the cannon had left town. He assumed that Lowe would eventually return it to its longtime home near the legion.
“It should have stayed there,” he said.
The cannon is now in Weyburn in a secure location, said Cugnet. He has no intention of selling the weapon or of returning it to Fort Qu’Appelle.
“I feel like I’ve been entrusted to make sure that it’s restored and preserved,” he said. “I don’t think that is what was happening.”
He calls any argument that the cannon didn’t belong to Lowe “absolutely ridiculous.” Lowe agrees. He claims the town didn’t want the cannon, leaving it to suffer neglect and vandalism for years — a point Bartlett disputes.
Lowe said he cared for the weapon long before he hauled it to his home.
“I worked on it for about 10 years, piece by piece,” he said. “I put it back together again. I don’t know how many thousands of dollars I put into it — a fortune.”
He resents the recriminations coming from some of his fellow legion members.
“Everybody’s going to kill me over this,” Lowe said. “…I should have let it go to IPSCO (now Evraz) to be melted down.”
There is some talk that the town should force the cannon’s return. Administrator Larry Davidson told the Fort Qu’Appelle Times that the cannon remains Crown property. It can’t just be given away.
“It is now a question of how do we get it back,” the paper quoted him as saying.
But Fort Qu’Appelle Mayor Jerry Whiting is advising patience. He told the Leader-Post that the town will wait for the local legion to complete an inquiry before taking action.
“I think we’re jumping to conclusions here,” he said. “I’m going to rely on the legion’s response and then we can take action from there.
“It’s a matter of establishing ownership — who’s entitled to have that equipment.”
Cugnet said the cannon is now in relatively good condition, considering its age. He said it will need metal work, painting and refinishing, as well as repairs to the wheels.
“I’m still caught off guard that it’s a controversy or a story at this point,” he said. “This story should be about preserving history and honouring all of the men and women that have served our country, in the past, present and future.”
awhite-crummey@postmedia.com
This First World War cannon is caught in the middle of a dispute between some Fort Qu'Appelle legion members and Weyburn area resident Dan Cugnet. It's seen here in the yard of Jack Lowe. (Photo submitted by Dan Cugnet.)
http://thestarphoenix.com/news/saskatchewan/fort-quappelle-legion-members-quarrel-over-reclaiming-ww1-cannon/wcm/988a20ad-17b5-4569-9be5-2bc02d743298
both recently restored and painted the correct colour. 
