Maple Avenue  

There are twelve streets named for trees in Stratford. Maple Avenue is one of them.There are 10 species naturally growing in the country, with at least one in each province. Although the idea of the tree as a national symbol originally hailed from the province of Quebec where the sugar maple is significant, today's arboreal emblem of Canada rather refers to a generic maple.  

A maple leaf is on the coat of arms of Canada, and is on the Canadian flag. The maple is a common symbol of strength and endurance and has been chosen as the national tree of Canada. Maple leaves are traditionally an important part of Canadian Forces military regalia; for example, the military rank insignia for generals use maple leaf symbols. 

The Maple Leaf is also in the name of the Canadian ice hockey team, the Toronto Maple Leafs. Howie Meeker played for the Leafs  beginning in 1946-47 and played for the Stratford Indians 1945-46 (see Morenz Drive) .

Maple is considered a tonewood, or a wood that carries sound waves well, and is used in numerous musical instruments. Maple is harder and has a brighter sound than mahogany, which is another major tonewood used in instrument manufacturing. The back, sides, and neck of most violins, violas, cellos, and double basses are made from maple.

And who doesn't love the annual sugaring-off and special treats that are ours with maple syrup. Only recently have the traditions of the Indigenous peoples associated with the gathering of maple syrup started to be reclaimed and shared. 

The Indigenous Origins of Maple Syrup | NMAI Magazine (americanindianmagazine.org) 

"Canada's own Flag" Commemorative Coin . 1964. 

Look closely and you'll spot the date when the new Canadian flag was officially approved: December 15, 1964. 

The vote in the House of Commons, following the Great Flag Debate, passed with 163 to 78 votes. 

Two months later, Canada raised its new national flag — with the maple leaf front and centre. 

In 1996, the government declared February 15 as Flag Day. Source: Toronto Public Library.  

Note: For a complete history of Canada's Flag, visit The history of the National Flag of Canada - Canada.ca 

Canada's New Maple Leaf Flag. Feb 15, 1965.

The design on the flag is an eleven-point stylization modeled after a sugar maple leaf (which normally bears 23 points). The new Canadian Maple Leaf flag replaced the Canadian Red Ensign atop Parliament Hill for the first time on February 15, 1965. 

The flag  design that was finally chosen was created by historian George Stanley, who at that time served as the dean of arts at the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario.  And his design is considered to be one of the best-designed flags in history. It is easy to reproduce, it has strong, clear, meaningful, symbolic connections to Canada, and it can be seen clearly and identified easily. 

On the videos below  you will see and hear speeches in this video of the ceremony held on Parliament Hill in Ottawa led by Lester Pearson, Canada's Prime Minister, and Georges Vanier, Canada's Governor General.  National Flag Day has been celebrated officially in Canada on February 15 beginning in 1996.

The decision to have a new Canadian flag was filled with controversy. Lester B. Pearson was Canada's 14th prime minister. In 1963, he made a speech to the Canadian Legion in Winnipeg: "I believe that today a flag designed around the Maple Leaf will symbolize and be a true reflection of the new Canada." They booed him. 

Pearson was taking on a prickly issue — Canada's laborious search for a flag had started in the 1920s. The PM pushed on regardless. He wanted a new flag in place for Canada's Centennial in 1967. He felt it would unite the country.

But at that time many Canadians still considered themselves loyal British subjects. They felt this young country's flag should reflect that.

The debate in the House of Commons raged for 37 days before the motion was passed. Some dismissed it as "Pearson's pennant." And Conservative leader John Diefenbaker told Pearson, "You have done more to divide this country than any other prime minister." 

Finally, on Parliament Hill at the stroke of noon, Feb. 15, 1965, the Canadian Red Ensign was lowered and the Maple Leaf was raised. Sources: Canadiana Encyclopedia; Paul Wilson: We fly Lester's flag - now let's honour his house | CBC News ; Stratford Beacon Herald, February 2025.

Canada's National Anthem ... Then and Now

The National Anthem of Canada was The Maple Leaf Forever from 1867 to 1980. 

The sheet music you see on the left is one of only 1,000 first editions of the sheet music for The Maple Leaf Forever ever printed. This popular patriotic song was written by Torontonian Alexander Muir for Canada's Confederation in 1867. It’s one of 15,000 pieces of sheet music preserved as part of the Toronto Public Library's  Special Collections in the Arts.  Hear the Maple Leaf Forever in video below that was  officially superseded by O Canada in 1980. (Hear video below.)

O Canada had served as a de facto national anthem since 1939, officially becoming the country's national anthem in 1980 when Canada's National Anthem Act received royal assent and became effective on July 1 as part of that year's Dominion Day (today's Canada Day) celebrations.   O Canada - Wikipedia 

For additional information on the Maple Leaf and its significance to Canada, check this article by the Toronto Public Library. Before the Flag: 10 Maple Leaf Items from Our Archives - Local History & Genealogy 

Stratford Raises new "Maple Leaf Flag" in Council Chambers for first time February 15, 1965. 

Dolores Whiteman, standard bearer for the Perth Regiment Chapter of the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire, follows Maj. Jack Skinner and Pipe-sergeant Donald Morris of the Perth Regiment Association Pipe Band into council chambers carrying the new Maple Leaf flag. Photo: Stratford-Perth Archives. 

Stratford's Official "Raising of the Maple Leaf" February 15, 1965.

February 15 has been celebrated as National Flag of Canada Day since 1996. That date marks the anniversary of the first time the iconic red and white “Maple Leaf” flag flew over public buildings, homes and businesses across our country on Feb. 15, 1965. 

How did people in Perth County and Stratford mark the arrival of Canada's new national flag? On Feb. 18, 1965, the Milverton Sun newspaper did not mention any local celebrations but described how “Canada's new maple leaf flag was officially hoisted Monday on Parliament Hill, Ottawa.”

“The red and white emblem became the country's national flag following the proclamation of the Queen declaring this design the official flag of Canada. The Red Ensign was ceremoniously lowered and delivered to the archives,” the article continued.

An editorial in the Mitchell Advocate touched on the ambivalence some Canadians felt about adopting a new flag, commenting “it is with more than a tinge of regret that we observe the Red Ensign relegated in favor of this new flag . . . . So now Canada officially has its long-sought and bitterly contested flag. Long may it wave! And may it stand for all that is noblest and best, as did the Red Ensign in all its beauty and glory.”

A Listowel Banner photographer captured the moment that past-president Elwood Smith of the Listowel Rotary Club presented the Maple Leaf to the then-current president Ed Gillin and member Whitney Grose. It was then attached to a flag pole to stand near framed pictures of Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Phillip. It was reported the new Canadian flag had been raised at the Listowel town offices, at schools and at service club halls. The public school board there made sure that each school had a new flag for the flag poles.

In Stratford, the new flag flew over city hall as of noon on Feb. 15, 1965 -- the same time that it first appeared atop the Peace Tower in Ottawa. There, the event included a 21-gun salute and cheers from a crowd of thousands of onlookers. Perhaps in a nod to the long and sometimes bitter struggle in the federal Parliament to agree on a new flag, the governor general expressed his hope that “our flag will symbolize to each of us and to the world the unity of purpose and high resolve to which destiny beckons us.” 

There was no official program in Stratford, though some dignitaries, including then-mayor C.H. Meier and Perth County Judge Harold D. Lang, attended to watch Alex Paul, city hall custodian, as he lowered the Red Ensign flag and raised the new national flag in its place. The Stratford Teacher's College had a special assembly that morning and flew the flag from the dome of their building on Queen Street. Stratford Central secondary school held a flag ceremony early in the day before classes started. At Northwestern secondary school, principal K.W. Thrasher and head custodian Harry Bilous raised the new flag at noon. The Stratford Festival reported it had ordered a new flag but was thinking of waiting to raise it until performances opened in the summer. Post office staff also quietly raised the new Maple Leaf flag at noon. 

A second Maple Leaf flag arrived for display at Stratford city council meetings with more ceremony later in the day. Seen here in this photograph from the Beacon Herald newspaper collection at the Stratford-perth Archives, Dolores Whiteman, standard bearer for the Perth Regiment Chapter of the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire, follows Maj. Jack Skinner and Pipe-sgt. Donald Morris of the Perth Regiment Association Pipe Band into council chambers carrying the new flag. It was then formally presented by Lois Mountain, also from the IODE, as “a proud symbol of a free people” to Meier. Canon Michael Griffin of St. James Anglican Church then performed a dedication ceremony. The old-style Red Ensign flag being replaced was turned over to the Perth County Historical Foundation's James Anderson to “be kept for posterity.” It had also been a gift to the city from the IODE years before. Source: Raising the Flag by Betty Jo Belton Stratford Beacon Herald, February 2025.