The Maple Leaf Forever Guitars refer to two

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

s, one acoustic and one electric, made from the tree that inspired Alexander Muir (great great grandfather of

Mike Muir Michael Allen Muir (born March 14, 1963) is an American singer who is the lead vocalist and the only sole continuous member of Los Angeles-based bands Suicidal Tendencies, Los Cycos, and Infectious Grooves. He has also released several solo al ...

) to write "

The Maple Leaf Forever "The Maple Leaf Forever" is a Canadian song written by Alexander Muir (1830–1906) in 1867, the year of Canada's Confederation. He wrote the work after serving with the Queen's Own Rifles of Toronto in the Battle of Ridgeway against the Fenia ...

". The guitars are kept in a trust and are loaned to a different musician each year.

History

In 1867 Alexander Muir, a Scottish immigrant, lived on Laing Street in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, Ontario. Following Canada's confederation, a large maple tree on his street inspired Muir to write "The Maple Leaf Forever". The song was used as Canada's unofficial

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

. In July 2013, a thunder storm destroyed the tree that inspired Muir's song. The fallen tree was initially going to become

mulch A mulch is a layer of material applied to the surface of soil. Reasons for applying mulch include conservation of soil moisture, improving fertility and health of the soil, reducing weed growth and enhancing the visual appeal of the area. A mu ...

, but due to public outcry its wood was saved and used for projects that would preserve its cultural importance to Canada. Significant objects made from the tree include the gavel for the Supreme Court of Canada and the speaker's podium for

Toronto City Council Toronto City Council is the governing body of the municipal government of Toronto, Ontario. Meeting at Toronto City Hall, it comprises 25 city councillors and the mayor of Toronto. The current term began on November 15, 2022. Structure The c ...

. In 2014

Colin Cripps Colin Cripps (born January 26, 1961 in Hamilton, Ontario) is a Canadian musician and record producer. Career Colin Cripps is a Canadian guitarist and member of Blue Rodeo and the Jim Cuddy Band. He has been a member and producer of the bands ...

and Craig Scott came up with the idea of making guitars from the tree. Cripps also expressed desire for the guitars to be custodial, so that they would be passed from musician to musician instead of being owned by one person. After approval by City Council, David Fox was chosen to build the acoustic guitar while Tom Bartlett built the electric. The guitars were completed in September 2015.

Custodians of the guitars

Acoustic

* 2016 –

of Blue Rodeo * 2017 –

Jason Barry Jason Barry (born 14 December 1972) is an Irish actor best known for his portrayal of Tommy Ryan in the 1997 film '' Titanic''. He also starred in '' The Still Life'' for which he won numerous awards. Early life Jason Barry was born in Artane ...

Electric

* 2016 – Paul Langlois of

the Tragically Hip The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as the Hip, were a Canadian rock band formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, consisting of vocalist Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker (known as Bobby Baker until 1994), bassis ...

* 2017 – Sam Roberts * 2020 - Steve Sladkowski of PUP

References

{{Reflist Guitars