Description of Historic Place

The Battalion Numbers site is situated on 0.265 hectares of land located on a high ridge in Calgary's Signal Hill community. The site includes a series of white-painted stones arranged in the form of the numerals "113". Each numeral is about 36.5 metres in length and 1.8 to 3.7 metres wide. Additional rock formations in the shape of the numbers "51", "137", and "151" are located nearby, but are not included in the designation.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Battalion Numbers site lies in its commemoration of the heroic efforts of Albertan soldiers in World War One.

In the summer of 1914, the Canadian militia leased a part of the Sarcee Indian Reserve as a prospective training site for military personnel. Sarcee Camp, as the site came to be known, was the only area in Alberta set aside to train soldiers for battle during World War One. More than 45,000 men from 30 units across the province trained at the camp over the course of the war. It was one of the largest military training areas in Canada at the time. Stones were used by soldiers to outline various sections of Sarcee Camp and also to depict their unit badges in front of their assigned areas of the "tent city". A number of military units also created more monumental rock constructions, assembling thousands of stones to form the serif-type numerals of their battalion numbers. Among those who did so were the 137th Infantry Battalion of Calgary, the 151st Central Alberta Battalion, and the 51st Canadian Infantry Battalion, all of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (C.E.F.). These battalion numbers remain on the site, though they have been moved from their original locations. The stone monument created by the 113th Lethbridge Highlands Infantry Battalion of the C.E.F. remains in situ. The site remains a stirring reminder of the training of Alberta's soldiers during World War One and the heroic sacrifices they made during the Great War.

Source: Alberta Culture and Community Spirit, Historic Resources Management Branch (File: Des. 1384)

Character-Defining Elements

The character-defining elements of the Battalion Numbers include such features as:
- location;
- form and serif-type style of numerals "113";
- placement and concentration of stones;
- whitewash on stones;
- sight lines to the site from the south.