Ninety-five years ago on May 30, 1930, our first war monument was dedicated in Edmund Lyon Park. Honoring those who had served in World War I, the granite tablet and cannon have an interesting history.
In 1916, the first park in our community was dedicated. Once a heavily forested swampy area named Vanderbilt Park, the land had been purchased by Kate Gleason. Kate brought in workers from her father's company, Gleason Works, to excavate and clear out the area. The park was named after Edmund Lyon, a friend of Kate Gleason's and a founder of our village. At the top of the hill on the corner of Main and East Ivy Streets a flagpole was erected on the highest elevation in East Rochester.
During the years following World War I, community members felt a memorial was needed to honor our soldiers. The Ladies’ Auxiliary of Jules Verne Fish Post, Ame