Photo via City of Peterborough
Two small pairs of shoes now rest quietly in the main foyer of Peterborough City Hall—a poignant reminder of the children who never came home.
The display is part of a new Every Child Matters memorial, moved indoors after nearly four years on the front steps of City Hall. Community members first created the temporary memorial in May 2021, placing children’s shoes and symbolic items in response to the confirmation of more than 200 potential burial sites on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in British Columbia.
That moment sparked a wave of collective grief and remembrance across Canada, with similar memorials appearing on the steps of legislatures, churches, and public buildings nationwide. In Peterborough, the steps of City Hall became a place of mourning, reflection, and calls for truth and reconciliation.
Before the outdoor memorial was respectfully removed on April 24, a smudging ceremony was held—an Indigenous tradition where sacred medicines such as sage or sweetgrass are burned and the smoke is directed over items as an act of spiritual cleansing.
The shoes now on display indoors are accompanied by information acknowledging the devastating history of Canada’s residential school system and its enduring impact on Indigenous families and communities.
Other items from the original memorial are being handled with the guidance of local Indigenous voices. Tobacco ties and spiritual offerings left by visitors will be committed to a sacred fire, while stones and a wooden vessel will be returned to the land—acts meant to honour the children and uphold Indigenous cultural protocols.
The Peterborough Museum and Archives will care for the remaining shoes as the City collaborates with the urban Indigenous community on the next steps. Meanwhile, an online educational resource is being developed through the City’s Cultural Services department.
Between 1883 and 1996, an estimated 150,000 Indigenous children were taken from their families and placed in government- and church-run residential schools. Many endured abuse, cultural erasure, and neglect. Thousands never returned home.
The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation Commission has called on Canadians to learn from this history, acknowledge the harm caused, and take meaningful steps toward reconciliation.
Former residential school students in need of support can call 1-866-925-4419 for 24/7 crisis referral services. The Hope for Wellness Help Line also offers counselling to Indigenous people across Canada at 1-855-242-3310 or online at hopeforwellness.ca.
