Which Canadian province observes Memorial Day on July 1?

Newfoundland and Labrador observes Memorial Day on July 1, alongside Canada Day. The provincial observance honors Newfoundland’s war dead, especially the soldiers of the Newfoundland Regiment who suffered devastating losses at Beaumont-Hamel during the First World War.

Memorial Day began on July 1, 1917, exactly one year after the Battle of the Somme opened. Nearly 700 members of the regiment were killed, wounded, or missing on the first day of the battle, and the unit was effectively destroyed as a fighting force.

Newfoundland was a separate Dominion during the First World War and did not join Canadian Confederation until 1949. After union, Memorial Day continued as a provincial morning observance, while Canada Day celebrations generally take place later in the day.

This holiday is easy to confuse with Canada’s national Remembrance Day on November 11. Memorial Day is distinctive to Newfoundland and Labrador and is tied particularly closely to the province’s military history and Beaumont-Hamel.