This memorial pays tribute to the 407 former Owen Sound Collegiate Institute students who served in the First World War. It includes 56 war dead and 18 nursing sisters. Allied flags are draped in the arch at the top of the tablet which was built by Ryrie Brothers Limited of Toronto. It was erected by funds from students, ex-students and the public.
The Great War Tablet was unveiled on 15 October 1902. On two sides of the tablet were large Canadian Ensigns and directly over the tablet was a Union Jack. James McLauchlan unveiled the tablet and James H. Packham delivered the address. Packham was on the Owen Sound Collegiate Institute staff for many years and McLauchlan was a member of the Board of Education for 40 years. Both McLauchlan and Packham were present at the unveiling of the South African War Plaque.
In 1924, a new vocational wing was built and the school was renamed Owen Sound Collegiate and Vocational Institute. By 1951, the original building was in poor condition and the third floor assembly hall was condemned. The older part of the school was destroyed by a fire in May of 1952. The vocational wing was repaired and the rest of the school was rebuilt on the same site, with a further addition completed in 1970. In 1997, construction began on a new site on 8th Street East, and this was opened in the autumn of 1999. At the end of the 2015-2016 school year, Owen Sound Collegiate and Vocational Institute was amalgamated with West Hill Secondary School to form Owen Sound District Secondary School while the physical building was converted into an elementary school (East Ridge Community School).
