The process of building Centennial Park began in 1965 after homes in the area were relocated due to flooding. It was dedicated as a park in 1967 with the Commemoration of the Centennial of Canadian Confederation. 2017 marked the park’s 50th Anniversary, for which a plaque was placed, we believe, in 2017. This park has many amenities that are utilized by residents and visitors, including Baseball/Softball Diamonds, a Campground, T-ball Diamonds, a Children's Playground, washrooms and a concession at the ball diamonds. A plan to include an outdoor fitness park has not yet, to our knowledge, come to fruition.
Near the centre of the south edge of the park is a large silhouette sculpture, created as a
memorial to area ranchers. It was erected in 2001 by local welder, and craftsperson William Erdman. Along with the silhouette sculpture are two other sculptures, one of a large hand holding an equally large cowboy hat aloft, and a final one depicting cattle brands of Southern Alberta. Elsewhere in the park are a sundial and a time capsule, placed in 1999, to be opened on Canada Day, 2050.
The centerpiece of the park, at the southwest corner, is a memorial, a Harvard Mark 4 advanced training airplane, mounted on a pylon and displayed in bright yellow paint, the same colour it wore to work as an advanced trainer both during and after World War II. Powered by a 600 HP Pratt & Whitney Wasp R-1340-AN-1 single row radial engine, this Harvard trainer (along with its 20,109 sisters) was the stepping stone from primary trainers such as the Fleet Finch or the de Havilland Tiger Moth to high performance fighters like the legendary Spitfire, training thousands of pilots for the Allied Forces. The plane, designed by
North American Aviation, was built in great numbers under license, 3,370 of them in Canada. This example was built by
Canadian Car & Foundry, probably in 1943 or 44.
This Harvard Memorial is a tribute to the men and women who planned, built, maintained and operated the Claresholm Airport, as well as the pilots, mechanics and aircrew who trained at
#15 Service Flight Training School, part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Program, which was based in Claresholm for many years. As well as a memorial plaque, another relating the history of the Claresholm Industrial Airport will be found mounted on the plane's pylon.