1st Hussars and Holy Roller & Perry Kitson

[Hanno Spoelstra]

From https://www.facebook.com/vintagelond...063660/?type=3

“ "Holy Roller", a Sherman tank used by the First Hussars Regiment during WWII, was presented to the City of London in 1950 and located at Queen's Park. This was a fitting location as many of the veterans who manned the tank had trained at the Queen's Park (Western Fair) location. In May 1956 the Holy Roller was relocated to the north end of Victoria Park, and it is currently (2022) undergoing preservation work.
In this photograph we see two youngsters, Teddy(3yrs) and Henry(4yrs) Telkowski, who lived on nearby Quebec Street, playing alongside the tank.

May 9, 1956

Western University Archives, London Free Press Negative Collection, courtesy of Mike Rice.”

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“This is the Queen's Park location, so it dates from 1950 to 1956.”

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[Hanno Spoelstra]

“Holy Roller set to return to Victoria Park”
https://london.ctvnews.ca/holy-rolle...park-1.5921850

[Ed Storey]

This project can only be summed up as an immense waste of time and money. To dedicate the resources to restoring and mitigating the decades of deterioration from outdoor display only to return the vehicle back to the park shows a complete lack of vision or appreciation of the historical significance for this vehicle. Someone needs to tell the people running this project that we no longer live in the 1950s and that outdoor display is the death knell for vehicles and equipment.

I wonder what happened to the tracks and roadwheels that got replaced, nothing like stripping away the original wartime pieces for new replacements....

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

Originally Posted by Ed Storey

I wonder what happened to the tracks and roadwheels that got replaced, nothing like stripping away the original wartime pieces for new replacements....

The originals are probably on a skid headed for the scrapper. And the new replacements are, unfortunately, no longer available for a running restoration.

I agree Ed, a missed opportunity and big disappointment.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Agree with both of you. Personally I would have preferred to see this tank to be put inside or at least under cover. It seems there wasn't a lack of funds - seeing that new tracks and road wheels could be acquired from abroad. If it isn't meant to be runner, they could have re-used the old track and spent the funds on a roof over it's head?

“We have the new track on it which came from France,” Haley added. “We have new road wheels which came from Belgium. So there's been all sorts of parts that have come from all over the world to go on this tank”.

It seems the people running the show have chosen not to reconsider its location and stick it on its outside pad in the park again. A bit like the people in Westkapelle.


Added photo of Holy Roller with new track (nmp):
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[Jakko Westerbeke]

Originally Posted by Hanno Spoelstra

stick it on its outside pad in the park again. A bit like the people in Westkapelle.

I get the impression from this thread that a major difference is that the people of London, ON, have no particular love for their tank, while the people of Westkapelle, ZLD, see theirs as their tank.

[Ed Storey]

Originally Posted by Jakko Westerbeke

I get the impression from this thread that a major difference is that the people of London, ON, have no particular love for their tank, while the people of Westkapelle, ZLD, see theirs as their tank.

Yeah, the love goes as far as letting the vehicle deteriorate outside but there is indifference to embracing any other preservation strategy.

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

Originally Posted by Jakko Westerbeke

I get the impression from this thread that a major difference is that the people of London, ON, have no particular love for their tank, while the people of Westkapelle, ZLD, see theirs as their tank.

Bang on. The people who frequent the park (and, incidentally, the rest of London's once beautiful and safe downtown) are increasingly hostile drug zombies and 'progressives' who would regard the tank as symbol of privilege and oppression. Regardless of what you think of the restoration and outcome, Holly Roller will have few admirers once retuned to its concrete slab.

[GaryC]

I've read through the thread and to those of you that have could have done better, well done you. Perry's statements are accurate and his passion is correct. What many fail to grasp were the variables we were up against. We didn't own the tank, no one wanted to make it a running tank, we could have very easily we made all the moving parts move, and to the time of the one CO who asked the question why don't we...NOTHING would have been done - zip nada. HOLY ROLLER is fortunate that there was a perfect storm (to a point). The volunteer force was 95% people with no military background and they gave up every Saturday and then some. A few businesses felt they needed to help the project. Overall the city doesn't care, the Regiment doesn't care and the Association cannot maintain HOLY ROLLER. So, we could have left it there to rot or do something. The CWM knew where and what HOLY ROLLER was. A complete travesty for it going back into the park, I agree. But if nothing else it made headlines, it got the attention of a few museums that showed interest (all of a sudden). So, money wasted? An argument that isn't worth it, we stopped the degradation for awhile, which gives us the time to try to save it, to move it to an appropriate location. That in my viewpoint is the CWM. So, the hard part is keeping the pressure on to move this national icon. If people are that concerned, start writing to the mayor of the city and put the facts on paper and continue to write. Me, I'm chipping away from the inside.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by GaryC

HOLY ROLLER is fortunate that there was a perfect storm (to a point). The volunteer force was 95% people with no military background and they gave up every Saturday and then some. A few businesses felt they needed to help the project. Overall the city doesn't care, the Regiment doesn't care and the Association cannot maintain HOLY ROLLER. So, we could have left it there to rot or do something. The CWM knew where and what HOLY ROLLER was.

Hello Gary,

Thanks for chiming in and letting us hear from someone on the inside of this story. From what I read, it was a wonder anything happened to Holy Roller at all. It seems more organisations do not care than the other way around, which is a pity to hear. So hats off to the volunteers and the local businesses who stopped the detoriation of this historic tank. Here's hoping better judgement will previal and that Holy Roller will be preserved inside sometime in the future.