Although familiar to some, many West Central residents only became aware of the historical Grill Lake WWII Memorial site earlier this year after a brand-new road sign was erected 20 minutes south of Unity, pointing people towards the historical location for the first time.
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While more people may now know about the memorial just off Highway 21, the tale behind it remains unknown to many, and that's why West Central Online reached out to member and treasurer of the Unity Legion No.90, Ken Dresser, to try and get the full story.
Instead of sharing himself, Dresser put the newsroom in contact with Grill Lake historian, Ray Herzog, who was able to give a first-hand account of the 1945 event that led to a special cairn being erected in memory of two fallen pilots.
"Basically, (this comes from my dad) in 1945 these two planes flew through our yard, and my aunt's yard, which was half a mile north. They were so low to the ground it was unbelievable," said Herzog, the plane so low that his father recalled seeing the cockpit controls from the hayloft.
As the story goes, it was a foggy February morning when two planes passed through at the same altitude, but one eventually crashed into the embankment hill at Grill Lake roughly 16 miles south of Unity. The incident was impossible to miss for anyone in the area as Herzog recalled an alarming phone call from a neighbour.
"Gave a general ring... six long rings then everyone goes on the phone and listens... he said, 'there is a plane down here, and there are two guys that are dead'."
Herzog then described how his father arrived at the scene on horseback to try and assess the situation that did in fact leave the two pilots, Australian student Peter Haley, and Toronto based pilot instructor John David Douglas, dead at the scene.
They were training out of North Battleford, the spot that ended up being Haley's final resting place.
"Just before the war quit, and they got killed... Haley was from Australia, and they never took his body back because of costs and stuff, so he is buried in North Battleford," said Herzog, also mentioning he has paid multiple visits to the grave site.
As for the second plane, Herzog says it made a return trip to no avail.
"The other plane went back and tried to look for help. But nobody knew what (the pilot) was doing, they were flying around circles in people's yards."
While Herzog was too young to recall the events himself, he still remembers the event vividly thanks to the stories from his father who saw the pilots in their final moments.
Holding that memory close to his chest throughout his entire life, Herzog then shared the story of the Grill Lake Memorial that came together over 10 years ago with the help of retired RCAF member Aubrey Woods.
It wasn't an organic idea, rather something sparked out of conversation.
"How it got started, we went to Luseland to pick up a puppy, and (I was asked), 'do you know anything about that plane crash?' I said, 'yes, I know very well, I used to play in that plane when I was a kid!'
"What Aubrey Woods wanted was a number on the wing... I thought it was still there in the government pasture. Went and looked and the plane was gone, but I found the fuel cover and a few things in the dirt.
"We got a picture of the plane on the cairn, and a picture of those two that vanished in the crash. That's how it got started... I said you know what I am going to do, put a cairn up," said Herzog going back to his school days when he learned the creative art method.
With the help of Woods, the two installed the special cairn with all of the items available to them.
"We took a day and put a flag up. The cairn is sitting up there, and we put the plaque on," said Herzog, giving credit to a Unity resident for some of the other finishing touches.
Remnants of the plane and more are located at the site on the grid road towards Revenue, sitting just up against a government pasture as Herzog and company got permission.
"I put it on top of the hill deliberately so that they can build an approach in there and park."
The memorial might be just off the highway, but the actual crash site was further east.
"Not exactly the place, it crashed to the east... (the neighbour) pulled the plane into his yard with the horses, and it stayed there as long as I could remember," said Herzog as the grand return to that site upon building the memorial only unveiled small pieces from the crash.
Herzog recalled the Grill Lake story making the newspaper back in the day, but that was about it as a quick Google search didn't exactly bring up any new information.
That's why Herzog was happy to share the Grill Lake story for a new generation, with those around in 1945 still talking about it today.
"There are a lot of people here that still remember. I got a cousin in Unity by the name of Jack Kraft, and he remembers another plane flying through their yard. Maybe half a mile from where this one flew through."
While these clothesline level flyers were a common sight during wartime training, the story at Grill Lake was an example of a training mission gone wrong.
"They would come in the morning as daylight comes and fly through the yards. And low! Looking for trouble sooner or later."
Thanks to Herzog and his team, the lives and missions of Haley and Douglas have been immortalized for history, and now the new green highway sign will point interested West Central Saskatchewan residents to the historic site for years to come.
More on the lives of Haley and Douglas are available below:
