Old Friends May Sometimes Take Each Other For Granted, But Tangible Memorials Remind Us Of Common bonds. Polish connections with Canada are a case in point. As far back as 1917-1918, some 25,000 Poles (chiefly recruited in the United States) received military training at Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario under the direction of Canadian officers. The Poles then served in national brigades attached to the French Army (although most probably fought in the Russo-Polish War of 1920). Nearly fifty Poles died in Canada (chiefly from the influenza outbreak of 1918); the Catholic cemetery at Niagara-on-the-Lake has a Polish Army section replete with flags and special monuments that tower over modest headstones. Few Canadians are aware of its existence, much less its significance.
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