The federal government  has given $240,000 to the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust,  which plans a new $90 million memorial project  for Halifax Harbour where HMCS Sackville, a Second World War convoy escort, has served as Canada’s Naval Memorial since 1985.

The  Trust plans to raise donations for construction of a  new 1.8-hectare building housing an interpretive centre and interactive displays on the Battle of the Atlantic. The 71-year-old vessel will be the centrepiece of the memorial.

HMCS Sackville is the last of Canada’s 123 Second World War escort corvettes (Scrappy Little Corvettes, Jan/Feb. 2010).

The ship was retired in 1982 after a 40-year career during  wartime and in peace. Volunteers have returned it to wartime condition, and it  is open to the public from June to September in Halifax, the port from which many convoys sailed during the Second World War.

Some veterans remember their service in this video: