Peace Arch

Listen for a moment. Behind you, engines idle in long lines of cars, and somewhere a gull calls over the water of Semiahmoo Bay. Underfoot the grass is soft and well kept. In front of you, a white arch rises out of the lawn, plain and bright against the sky. You are standing in a park, but you are also standing on one of the most closely watched lines in the world, the border between Canada and the United States.

This is the Peace Arch. It sits right on the boundary, with one foot in British Columbia and the other in Washington State. The Canadian half of the grounds is a provincial park. The American half is a state park. The two parks meet without a fence, so the lawns, the trees and the flower beds run straight across the border. From here the line between two countries looks like nothing more than a change in the colour of the soil.

The arch was dedicated in 1921. Its purpose was to mark more than a century of peace between the two nations. That peace began with the Treaty of Ghent, signed in 1814, which ended the War of 1812. Britain, which still governed Canada then, and the young United States had fought along this continent. After the treaty, the two sides chose to settle their disputes at the table, not on the battlefield.

The idea for the monument came from Sam Hill, an American businessman and a passionate builder of roads. Hill believed good roads could bring people and nations closer together. He wanted a grand gateway on the new coastal highway that linked the two countries. He raised support on both sides of the border. Schoolchildren in Washington and British Columbia are said to have given small coins toward the later landscaping of the park.

Look closely at the structure itself. It is made of reinforced concrete, painted white, and stands about twenty metres tall. The design is simple and classical, with clean lines and very little decoration. On top, the flags of Canada and the United States fly side by side. The arch does not try to look like a fortress or a triumph of war. It looks calm, almost like a doorway into a garden.

Now walk to the side that faces north, toward Canada. Carved high on the frieze are the words: Brethren dwelling together in unity. Then walk around to the south face, toward the United States. There the inscription reads: Children of a common mother. Together the two lines describe a family relationship. The common mother in that phrase is Britain, the shared origin of both nations.

Here is a detail many visitors miss. Pass through the opening of the arch and look up. Inside, there are iron gates fixed open against the walls. Above them, an inscription asks that these gates may never be closed. The gates have no lock to turn. They are a statement, held permanently open, by design.

A second surprise is hidden inside the structure. According to the park's history, the arch contains small pieces of two famous ships. One is a fragment of the Mayflower, which carried English settlers across the Atlantic in 1620. The other comes from the SS Beaver, the first steamship to work the waters of the Pacific Northwest. One piece represents the Atlantic story, and one represents the Pacific. You cannot see them, but they are built into the monument.

Turn away from the arch and look at the roads on either side of the park. This is one of the busiest crossings on the whole border. Highway 99 on the Canadian side becomes Interstate 5 on the American side. Trucks, commuters and holiday traffic pass through the customs booths every hour of the day. The contrast is striking. A few steps away, people wait for passport checks. Here, families spread blankets and children run across the lawn.

This open ground has given the park a special human meaning. During the pandemic, when the land border closed to most travel, the park became a meeting place. Families and couples who lived on opposite sides came here to see each other. Many news reports described grandparents meeting grandchildren on the grass and friends sharing picnics across the line. For a time, this lawn was one of the few places where they could meet in person.

The gardens deserve a slow walk. Through the warmer months, gardeners on both sides plant formal flower beds in bright, careful patterns. Tall trees give shade at the edges of the lawn, and paths curve between the beds. In early summer, the park hosts an annual gathering known as Hands Across the Border. It celebrates the friendship between the two countries, and it often draws local schools and community groups.

A practical word before you wander. The park is shared, but the border is still real. Visitors can usually enjoy the grounds on both sides. However, you must return to the country you came from, unless you pass through a customs booth. Watch for signs along the edges of the park, and do not walk toward the highway lanes. The officers nearby take the boundary seriously, even in a garden.

If you have time, walk toward the western edge of the grounds. From there you can see the shallow waters of the bay and the low line of the shore. On a clear day, the light over the water can turn soft and silver in the late afternoon. The nearby city of White Rock and its long seaside promenade are only a short drive away, for anyone who wants more of the coast.

Before you leave, stand once more in the centre of the arch. Put one hand toward the north and one toward the south. For a moment you are touching two countries at once, under gates that were built to stay open. Listen again to the traffic, the gulls and the wind in the trees. Then, as you walk back across the lawn, notice how little the grass seems to care about the line beneath it.