A hockey trophy that has been lost for nearly 70 years has been returned to the Maritimes and placed on display in the Windsor Hockey Heritage Museum.
The Starr Shield was unveiled at the exhibition in Windsor, N.S., on Saturday after it was purchased from seller on eBay in B.C.
The shield was commissioned by Starr Manufacturing in 1924 and presented to the top senior hockey team in the Maritimes for over a decade.
But it was widely believed that the silver-and-wood plaque was destroyed in a fire sometime after it was won by the 1947 Moncton Hawks.
"We had given up on ever finding it," said Dan Boyd, director of the Windsor Hockey Heritage Society.
But historian David Carter came across the missing trophy during an eBay search this summer.
"I almost fell off my chair," said Carter. "It was my last day of vacation and I thought: 'I'm just going to do a search for Starr manufacturing tonight.'"
Carter said he "instantly sent an email" to the seller, asking a few questions to authenticate the listing.
Carter, who works for the Nova Scotia Museum, was curious about how the historic East Coast plaque ended up in B.C. Yet its journey across the country remains a mystery.
"Obviously it must have been someone who did cherish it," said Carter. "Someone rescued (it) from the fire."
While it appears to bear some scars from the fire, the plaque remains in relatively good condition.
The unveiling drew mayors from towns and cities across the Maritimes who had previously staked claim to the trophy, including Sydney, Glace Bay, Bathurst, Kentville and Truro.
While old rivalries still hold strong, everyone was glad to have the plaque back in the region.
“Hockey has always been a big deal in the Maritimes," said Truro Mayor Bill Mills.
"It was very, very passionate back then, as it is today."
With a report from CTV Atlantic’s Sarah Ritchie.
