hosted a public speakers' forum on Sunday. During the First World War, the park was used as a gathering point for soldiers of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. In 1984, Queen's Park hosted two tree planting ceremonies for the eastern white pine, after it was declared the province's official tree that year. The first tree planting ceremony took place on 25 May 1984 by Bob Welch, the deputy premier of Ontario in order to commemorate Arbour Day. The second tree planting ceremony also took place that year at the same location, with Queen Elizabeth II and the then-Duke of Edinburgh planting two eastern white pines on 29 September 1984. A plaque marks the spot of the tree plantings, and the trees that grew from it. In the early 2000s, Canadian poet Dennis Lee and poet advocate Richard Griffin led a campaign to erect a statue of Al Purdy, another Canadian poet, on the grounds of Queen's Park. The campaign specifically insisted that the statue should be located at Queen's Park, in order to demonstrate the significance of poetry and the arts in Canada's cultural life. The statue was eventually built and unveiled in 2008, making it the first statue at Queen's Park that commemorates an individual that was not a political figure or monarch. Layout The shape of Queen's Park is similar to an oval, although the southwestern edge of Queens Park "kinks in" somewhat. The "kink" in the southwestern edge formed the former bank of Taddle Creek, a waterway underground. The oval park is bounded by Queen's Park Crescent East and West. These form part of a major through route consist of University Avenue (south of College Street), Queen's Park Crescent East and West, Queen's Park, and Avenue Road (north of Bloor Street). Queen's Park Crescent East and West carry northbound and southbound traffic respectively and are linked to make a complete counterclockwise loop around the park. University Avenue, Queen's Park (with no suffix), and Avenue Road have two-way traffic and lie in essentially the same straight line. Wellesley Street bisects Queen's Park Crescent slightly north of the loop's centre. The portion of the park north of Wellesley Street is maintained by the Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation Division and includes a number of benches along paving stones, and picnic tables. The section follows the traditional British design, dominated by large trees that provide extensive cover during summer. The pathways