"Detroit's Own" Polar Bear Memorial Association

INTRODUCTION | CEREMONIES & EVENTS | HONOR ROLL | MILITARY DECORATIONS | ENGAGEMENTS

Ceremonies & Events

Polar Bear Monument at White Chapel Cemetery, Troy, MI
The Polar Bear Monument (above) is located within White Chapel Cemetery, Troy, MI. (map)
The Monument is the work of sculptor Leon Hermant and was dedicated on May 30, 1930.
Here is a diagram showing the names and locations of those whose remains were re-buried that day and
here is another diagram showing the names and locations of all 56 men who are now buried there.
Here is the "Find-a-Grave" virtual cemetery created by Katie Neal.
It includes the memorials for all 56 men who are buried at the Polar Bear Monument.
(View additional photos of the full monument in color or black & white).

Association members and the public are invited to attend the next Memorial Day Service that will be held at White Chapel Cemetery to honor the "Polar Bears".

Date:	Monday, May 29, 2023
Time:	11:00 AM
Location:	In front of the Polar Bear Monument, which is located within the White Chapel Memorial Cemetery, Troy, Michigan The cemetery is located at the southeast corner of Crooks and Long Lake Roads; the entrance is on Long Lake Rd. (18 Mile Rd.) This map shows the location of the Monument within the Cemetery.

"The soil of the United States is almost spoiled for choice when it comes to commemorative sites. They range from Gettysburg itself -- still one of the most staggering places of memory in the world -- to the Confederate statue of Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest,.......... and extend from the Polar Bear monument in Detroit (honoring those Michiganders who helped invade Russia in 1919: a forgotten war if ever there was one) to Maya Lin's masterpiece of Vietnam understatement on the National Mall."

The late Christopher Hitchens, from his article, "Memorial Day - Reflections on those who made the ultimate sacrifice", originally published in the "Wall Street Journal" on May 26, 2006.

Photos from previous "Polar Bear" Memorial Day Services at White Chapel Cemetery:

28 May 2018	30 May 2011	25 May 2009	28 May 2007	30 May 2005	26 May 2003	28 May 2001	30 May 1958
28 May 2012	31 May 2010	26 May 2008	29 May 2006	31 May 2004	27 May 2002	29 May 2000	30 May 1937

WXYZ-TV coverage - Memorial Day 2018

Text of speech given by LTC Raymond Stemitz, MI Army National Guard - Memorial Day 2018

Detroit News Photo Gallery - Memorial Day 2012

Plaque Dedication Ceremony honoring the "Polar Bears"
photos taken at the Detroit Zoo Arctic Ring of Life Exhibit on 10 Nov 2001

"The Dedication of the Polar Bear Historical Marker", White Chapel Cemetery, 30 May 1988
Souvenir Program including Obverse and Reverse Marker Inscriptions

"Virtual Cemeteries" created by "Find-a-Grave" contributor Katie Neal :
Polar Bears buried in Michigan
Polar Bears buried elsewhere

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INTRODUCTION | CEREMONIES & EVENTS | HONOR ROLL | MILITARY DECORATIONS | ENGAGEMENTS

This page created and maintained by Mike Grobbel.
Created: 04 July 2002; Last Revised: 30 Oct 2022

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