Lambton Musings - Winter 2024

Lambton Musings LAMBTON’S HISTORY AND HERITAGE NEWSLETTER – WINTER 2024 www.discoveriesthatmatter.ca

The Industry That “Slips” Our Minds: Sarnia’s Ice Harvesting Past Karissa Ramsey, Lambton Heritage Museum From the early 1800s to the early 1900s, before the luxury of artificially made ice and electric refrigeration, the harvesting of natural ice was a big business. The visit from the Iceman was about as common as the visit from the Milkman. In 1923, almost 1,000 rail cars of ice were harvested off Sarnia Bay. This huge amount of ice filled the Grand Trunk ice house in Port Huron, the Northern Navigation Company ice house in Point Edward, and the Imperial Oil ice house in Sarnia. The ice varied from 12 to 20 inches thick and was considered to be some of the finest quality.

A successful year’s ice harvest would yield around 20,000 tons of ice! Founded before 1900 by William A. Brown, the Sarnia Ice Company was located Front Street.

The business switched hands multiple times throughout the years, with W.D. Ferguson purchasing the ice house in 1907. They harvested natural ice until the 1930s.

Cutting ice in Sarnia Bay for Brown’s Ice House.

Image courtesy of Lambton County Archives.

Then, they switched to making ice artificially until the mid-1960s. The business has been known by a number of names, notably Brown’s Ice House, Ferguson’s Ice House, and Sarnia Ice Company. The Sarnia Ice Company that once stood at London Road and Front Street is gone now and has been replaced by a condo building.

The Swift Ice House was located on the St. Clair River, south of the Grand Trunk Railway elevator. It was a massive structure built in 1885 by Gustavus Loading ice at Brown’s Ice House.

Franklin Swift (1839-1903) of Chicago, the founder Image courtesy of Lambton County Archives. of the largest meat packing operation in North America. The ice house was constructed using one million feet of lumber supplied by Mr. Shaw of Point Edward and the hardware was supplied by Mackenzie Milne & Co. of Sarnia. The Swift Ice House alone was capable of storing enough ice each winter to supply refrigerated railcars throughout the entire summer, which worked out to be about 10,000 tons of ice!

Harvested ice was used to transport and store perishable goods, in restaurants and the service industry, and stored in private residences in iceboxes. The iceman delivered ice directly to homes and then ice chippers were used to break pieces off for beverages and to provide relief in the warmer months. As late as the 1950s, the Sarnia Ice Company alone had 22 trucks delivering ice to homes.

Iceboxes were a common kitchen fixture. A block of ice was placed in one side of the cabinet and cold air would circulate through the food storage compartments. A basin at the bottom of the icebox caught water as the ice melted. The walls were hollow and insulated to keep the cold air in. Don’t confuse iceboxes with refrigerators, even though the name icebox was sometimes used by people for their refrigerators after the transition to newer technology.

For about a month-long period, approximately 60-120 men could gain winter employment by cutting large Icebox made by Bullock-Green Hardware Co. blocks of ice, channeling them to shore, and storing of Detroit, Michigan and ice chippers. them in the ice house or railway cars for shipping.

Lambton Heritage Museum collection.

When the ice blocks were properly packed in sawdust or straw the ice could keep frozen even throughout the summer to be sold throughout the year.

It wasn’t uncommon for the ice blocks to be shipped by rail to the United States and even by boat to England, India, and the Caribbean.

Come harvest season, men first had to prepare the ice, using scrapers and scoops to clean snow and the loose pieces of ice from the surface of a large rectangular area. A grid of ice blocks was marked out, then a worker walked behind a horse-drawn ice plow to guide and mark the ice.

The front edge made a shallow cut in the ice, then the back edge marked a shallower parallel line. At the end of a row, they flipped around and the front edge would travel the path of the parallel line drawn on the previous pass. Deep cutters would follow behind.

Blocks of ice were cut from the main grid and floated in large pieces along a channel to the ice house. At the ice house, all the blocks were separated and workers guided the cut blocks onto a sled, elevator, or lifting mechanism to transfer them into the ice house. The four-pronged fork bar and the splitting chisel were made of heavy cast iron and used to (Right to left) Fork bar, splitting chisel, small ice tongs, ice saw, large ice tongs. separate the blocks of ice.

As technology advanced, the ice harvest process became much more efficient and steam-powered saws and ice plows were introduced. This was followed later by gas and diesel engines to power the equipment. Trucks and motorized vehicles replaced horse-drawn sleds and horse-drawn ice trucks.

The work of harvesting ice wasn’t easy. It was cold and windy out on the Sarnia Bay, and workers faced constant danger of falling into the freezing water.

Lambton Heritage Museum collection.

Ferguson Ice House. Image courtesy of Lambton County Archives.

The transition from natural to artificial ice truly marked the end of an era as we shifted to a world of air conditioners, electric refrigerators, and freezers. That being said, the ice trade was lucrative while it lasted and some Ontario ice merchants quickly became millionaires. John G. Booth, the owner of an ice house in Kingston, became one of the richest men in Canada thanks to the industry in the 1800s. With today’s inflation in mind, $1,000,000 to Booth back in the day would be the equivalent of about $24,418,000 today!

Sarnia Ice Company bag.

Lambton Heritage Museum collection.

Sarnia Ice Company receipt from June 30, 1931. Image courtesy of Lambton County Archives.

The Ubiquitous Canteen Plympton-Wyoming Museum

There are words in the English language that are spelled the same and sound the same, but have a different meaning. They are called homonyms. The word canteen is an example.

One example of a canteen is a vessel used for storing a liquid, typically water, for use when required. Anyone who has hiked into the woods or on a trail knows that a canteen is an essential part of the gear used for these types of adventures. The battlefield is no exception.

The British Army originally called the water-bottle a Canteen. The liquid holding canteen dating back to the mid 18th century is described as “a small tin used for carrying water or liquor.” It became a portable vessel used to carry a liquid, usually water for use when the restorative qualities of a drink became necessary. When a soldier was preoccupied in a battle and could not obviously leave the exchange, a drink from a canteen would suffice.

Another definition of a canteen is a store outside of a military base that provided refreshments or other personal items required by camp personnel. A soldier experiencing a long pause from battle engagement could return to base and visit a canteen for some desired confection, perhaps cigarettes, or some kind of imbibement. These items would help to bolster the dispirited state and rattled nerves of a soldier. An alcoholic beverage could afford some temporary relief in this regard.

There have been many instances where individuals, private citizens or enlisted personnel who have encountered serious predicaments by not having the proper gear and supplies to sustain themselves while venturing into the woods or being engaged with another belligerent in battle.

The absence of a portable water supply, or even halozone tablets to purify stagnant water have created predicaments for those who were unprepared.

An excerpt from the Narrative of the Fenian invasion of Canada by Alexander Somerville describes the predicament and misery the 13th volunteers were met with, in the absence of fresh drinking water.

Salted herring was a common ration that the troops consumed at that time. Any soldier who had eaten salted herring would have needed a continuous reliable fresh water supply throughout the day, via a canteen. Having been unprepared with that particular portion of gear, they would have been in a precarious situation for lack of fresh water.

“They were sent out without canteens to carry water when on the line of march or on the battlefield. On the field of action and on the retreat, they drank from swampy ditches, lifting the water in their shakos and caps and shoes; many were in consequence sick —with their intolerable thirst.”

A “shakos” is a military cap in the form of a cylinder. These troops deteriorating and compromised would have not been fit for any engagement with the enemy, let alone mere survival on a hot summer’s day.

This image, “The Retreat From Petersburg,” illustrates the desperation and despair on soldiers faces as they come upon a farmers well.

They had exhausted their critical resources, that being out of fresh water. The sketch artist W.L. Sheppard does an exemplary job of creating an effective scene showing a countenance both of despair and relief written on soldiers faces.

Desperate for a drink.

Image: Century Magazine, Nov. 1887

A Khaki wool felt covered canteen has a cotton web carrier, accompanied with a shoulder brace. Troops were quite often fighting in water as would be found in trenches. Often this water would be corrupted with human remains, or befouled with other contaminants such as mustard gas. It was necessary to ensure that fresh water was supplied to the front lines.

The webbing carrier illustrated here is from a 1919 pattern naval set with a front closure.

The Mark VII was introduced in 1939 and featured green enameling.

The Canadian version had a metal staple for the stopper cord on the right shoulder of the bottle. This carrier was manufactured by Zephyr Loom and Textiles Limited WWI Commonwealth issue canteen: The Mark VI enameled water bottle, shown here with fabric carrier, less felt covered jacket, cork stopper. During the service life there were several variants that were manufactured throughout the Empire. The British version of the carrier webbing and shoulder straps, absent in this image were manufactured by the Mills Equipment Company in England. There were also a variety of webbing and some leather harnesses that were incorporated into this style of water bottle. Canadian made water bottles were nearly exact copies of the British Mark VI and were fabricated in a cobalt blue format.

WWI Commonwealth issue canteen. Author’s Image, Plympton Wyoming Museum.

Author’s image, PlymptonWyoming Museum.

WWI German Feldflasche (canteen), associated with the infantry and Panzergruppe armoured and tank division. Model M15/17 is the painted steel version introduced in 1915. Originally it had a leather carrier, which then later was modified to just one strap at the top of the bottle. These canteens were originally covered with a grey corduroy fabric made from Steingrau or Feldgrau wool and in some cases an ersatz paper cloth, not shown in this example.

Manufacturer unknown.

Author’s image, Plympton-Wyoming Museum.

Any seriously wounded soldier experiencing a large amount of blood loss would be extremely thirsty from dehydration. This individual would be begging for water. A canteen full of water was welcomed and certainly well received. This shortcoming demonstrates the need for access to essential hydration.

A few years back, a documentary was aired on television commemorating our veterans on Remembrance Day. One of our aging veterans recalled some of his experiences during the war.

While in battle he had happened upon a severely wounded German soldier. This individual was begging for “wasser, wasser”. His plea was for a drink of “water, water”. Putting out of mind briefly as to why they were on the battlefield and connecting with their better angels, offering him some “wasser” would have afforded him some relief at least temporarily, notwithstanding his other injuries.

In this image, Lambton militiamen experiencing the “long pause” take advantage of an abundance of time on their hands at a makeshift canteen. They were anticipating a raid

by Colonel O’Neill’s Fenian Army from Michigan. It was a very long pause, as O’Neill’s Army ultimately never invaded Port Sarnia. There had been at the time false Buffalo newspaper accounts that Port Sarnia and Windsor had been raided and secured by the Fenians.

One has to appreciate how vulnerable we are with this essential need for proper and good quality hydration. The need for water is one of the many facets of our human condition, that can cause us to quickly deteriorate from perfect health to a state of desperation in short order.

Volunteers imbibing at an outdoor makeshift canteen during the Fenian Scare, 1866.

Image from the Lambton Heritage Museum collection.

In today’s world, it is common place to see people with a plastic bottle of water accompanying them, not sure if this is a popular culture fad or a good health practice or perhaps both. Likely it’s the later. I suppose one could view that bottle of water as a contemporary canteen, everywhere, ever present... ubiquitous.

Memories in Time: Local Tweedsmuir Histories Nicole Aszalos, Lambton County Archives

This article is inspired by the “History of Becher 1850-1950” news column from the Becher Women’s Institute Tweedsmuir History book (1969). In those columns, Laura Gibbons shared tales of winter fun.

“In winter our main pastime was skating on the Sydenham.” Gibbons exclaimed. “We would skate every night for weeks! If the water raised on the shore, we just threw a plank down and skated in the centre.”

More of her memories feature a time before telephones were widespread and when horses were the main mode of transportation.

Gibbons notes, “What was grander than a nice horse, sharp shod, an up to date cutter, or perchance one not so up to date, a string of bells, a lovely night and last but not least your best boyfriend.”

Sleigh ride parties were also commonplace where everyone would bundle up and sit on a seat made around the sleigh box.

Tweedmuir histories, compiled by local Women’s Institutes (WI), uniquely capture and preserve local community history. They range from a single scrapbook to an elaborate series of volumes bound by leather, wood, or a blue/gold cover.

The idea began in the 1920s and by the mid-1930s, Lady Tweedsmuir, wife of Lord Tweedsmuir, Governor General of Canada, took a great interest in the Women’s Institutes located in Canada.

As an active WI member in England, Lady Tweedsmuir stressed the need for preserving the history of our communities. She suggested that Ontario Women’s Institute Branches follow the example of their English counterparts and keep detailed local history books. She encouraged women’s institute branches to preserve community history in response to the rapid changes and urbanization of the landscape.

Documenting local history was seen as a fitting project to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Women’s Institute movement. Thus, a campaign was launched in 1945 encouraging every WI Branch in Ontario to prepare a history of their local community before the 1947 celebrations took place. This proved a popular project, and these local histories were officially named Tweedsmuir History Books in 1947.

By 1964, the Federated Women’s Insitutes of Ontario’s (FWIO) first provincial Tweedmuir History Curator, Mrs. R. C. Walker, reported that all levels of the organization had begun to take Tweedsmuir Books seriously, with well over 1,100 branch histories recorded.

Tweedsmuir books continue to be compiled by all levels of the Women’s Institute’s structure.

While some are in the homes of the coordinators, others are housed in local archives, libraries, museums, and other locations. Many have also been digitized and are publicly available through the virtual archives of the FWIO. Over the years, Lambton County had a total of 66 active Women’s Institutes. As of 2024, only Aughrim WI in Lambton County is still active.

A Victorian Christmas Alex Rodey, Moore Museum

In Moore Museum’s Victorian room, you’ll find many of the Christmas traditions we celebrate today in their early versions. This includes traditions like decorating Christmas Trees, the Christmas feast, and gift giving. Before the Victorian period, Christmas was mostly a religious holiday with very few festive celebrations. The Victorian period was the time when Queen Victoria ruled Britain and her reign lasted from 1837 to 1901. Christmas festivities became more popular during this period as people started to have more time and money to celebrate the holidays. Today, a family might be familiar with the practice of putting up a Christmas tree or having a Christmas dinner, but these traditions took hold in the culture during the Victorian period.

The Christmas tree first became popularized during the Victorian period after the German born Prince Albert married Queen Victoria and became British royalty. Prince Albert brought the tradition of decorating a tree at Christmas from Germany. After his marriage to Queen Victoria, he brought this tradition into the royal estates. In 1850, a picture of the royal family gathered around a candle lit tree appeared in an American magazine. People were quick to imitate the royal family and soon Christmas trees were found in almost every home.

Early Victorian trees were decorated very minimally with objects found or crafted like dried fruit, nuts, pinecones, string popcorn, tin or other metal ornaments. Later Victorian trees, on the other hand, were much more extravagant featuring candles, glass blown ornaments, miniatures of furniture, musical instruments, and toys.

Some of these ornaments were crafted still but many began to be store bought. Adorning the top of the tree was a star to remind everyone of the Christmas star that led the Wise Men to Jesus.

Beyond the Christmas Tree there was another staple of the Victorian Christmas home: the Groaning Table where the Christmas feast was placed. A family would spend the weeks and months leading up to the Christmas Day dinner saving up food for what would be the best meal of the year. Christmas dinner was huge and included many special dishes such as turkey, goose, ham, corn, potatoes, yams, stuffing, cranberries, gravy, wines, cakes, candies, and plum pudding. All this food weighed the table boards down to the point that they “groaned” under the amount of food placed on top.

Plum pudding was the highlight of the Christmas feast, and a Victorian family would begin preparing this tasty treat five Sundays before Christmas, on Stir-Up Sunday. During the process of baking the plum pudding, each child in the family had an opportunity to stir the mix and make a wish.

People believed that if they made a wish while stirring the pudding that wish would come true. After the children stirred the pudding, the mother baked three items into the mixture: a penny, a thimble, and a ring. The penny symbolized wealth, the thimble symbolized thriftiness or domesticity, and the ring represented marriage. It was thought that whoever got one of these items in their pudding on Christmas day would have been likely to encounter the corresponding fate soon.

The Groaning Table and the Christmas Tree were just two of the many staples of Christmas during the Victorian period. A Victorian Christmas was the product of many of these European Christmas traditions that had been blended to form a version of Christmas similar to what we celebrate today.

The Forest Mural Project Forest Museum Staff As times have changed along with work patterns and ease of transportation, many towns have been left to wonder how to revitalize their business district. There is a need and a desire to make communities more attractive to new residents, new retail, and of course visitors. All of these elements are closely related. It is a challenge to find solutions.

With an eye to the future and a nod to the past, the Forest Mural Project was conceived. There are now thirteen murals by local artists gracing the walls of the Forest business district. Grants were obtained from the federal government‘s My Main Street Community Activation Program and the Ontario Southwest Tourism Relief Fund. The Forest BIA applied for grants in partnership with the Municipality of Lambton Shores, Communities in Bloom, and a grassroots community group including Lyn VanHaaren and Catherine Minielly, two staunch supporters of Forest.

Funding also came from the County of Lambton’s Creative County Grant Program. The success of the project was largely due to the vision and commitment of these community minded partners. The theme of the murals is Then and Now, so many of the illustrations juxtapose images from the past and the present.

Walking tours to view all the murals have been well received. The Forest Museum at 8 Main St. North is fortunate to have three pieces located on its outside walls. All these paintings were done by Rick Jones, a well-known local artist and talented sign maker. The museum is fortunate to have Rick as a volunteer who is willing to share his many skills.

The mural on the south wall depicts the Forest stockyards once located near the railway station.

The yard played an important role in allowing farmers to ship their livestock to destinations near and far. Very few photos of the stockyards are available so artist Rick Jones drew upon his memory to produce this mural.

A depiction of the Forest Home Bakery is also mounted on the south wall of the museum.

This mural is based on an early photo of the Rumford’s bakery. The bakery was established in approximately 1880. It operated as a bakeshop under various owners until the Museum purchased the building in 2009.

On the north wall, two panels show the area around the bakery. The background of one shows the St. James Methodist Church built in 1882. Forty years later it was converted into an implement dealership and later apartments. It was destroyed by fire in 2010. The foreground of the same panel shows 13 James St. North, a shed built by the Methodists to house their horses and carriages during services. There is an apartment building on this site now.

The second panel shows some old landmarks, the water tower and the PUC building and smokestack.

These were located on North Jefferson between Main and James. The area is now used for parking.

The museum has been creating a calendar as a fundraiser the last three years. This year we chose to feature all the murals in town in appreciation of the talented artists and the visionaries who implemented the project. Although small in scale due to space constraints, the museum also held a successful craft sale. The fresh pots of Christmas greenery were very popular. And recently a group of model railroad enthusiasts have been meeting at the museum making plans for a layout depicting Forest. They have generated excitement and growing interest.

Over the summer and fall we have received some interesting donations including a lovely oak dining table from Steele’s Furniture, one of Forest’s early businesses. But that’s a story for another time.

Oil Springs at International Exhibitions Zoe Chevalier, Oil Museum of Canada Encased in bronze, seven Romanesque figures converse together, celebrating the power and prestige of industry and innovation. Symbols of strength, knowledge, invention, prosperity, and nation grace the back of the medals for the International Exhibition of 1862. Designed

by Leonard Charles Wyon, these medals act as a reminder of the significance of International Exhibitions on the growth of industry in the British colonies. It is during this exhibition that Canadian innovation is first recognized on the European stage. The exhibition was sponsored by the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Trade, and held from May 1 to November 1, 1862. Over 30 counties participated, filling the halls with new technology, products of industry, and works of fine art. It is at this event that James Miller Williams won a medal for creating a new industry in Canada by drilling the first commercial oil well of North America, in Oil Springs, Ontario. International Exhibitions (also known as Universal Exhibitions or in North America, World’s Fair) served as vital platforms for fostering economic development and technological advancements across various industries.

In the case of Canada’s oil industry, these exhibitions played a pivotal role in building networks, showcasing innovation, attracting investments, and facilitating knowledge exchange. During the late nineteenth century patents offered an official way to grant exclusive rights over new inventions.

However, this meant that the minute details on key mechanisms, ingredients, or configurations would become public knowledge. There was slow growth in trusting the government’s ability to enforce these patents and their ability to protect inventors.

Moreover, patents also came with a hefty price tag.

In Britain during the late nineteenth century, it cost approximately 29,000 pounds ($49,000 CAD) plus additional expenses to apply for a patent. These factors affected the number of patents being issued in Britain during the beginning of International Exhibitions. At the Crystal Palace Exhibition, 89% of British exhibits were not patented.

International Exhibitions were significant because they were the only place where proprietors and inventors could put their work on display while attaching it to their business and learn about new advancements in their specific fields of work. The Chicago World’s Fair, also known as The World’s Columbian Exposition, was a celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Columbus expedition in 1492. The primary purpose of this exhibition was showcasing the strong ties between colonialism and innovation. The secondary purpose was bolstering the host nation’s wealth and status on the European stage. Currently on display at the Oil Museum of Canada is a paraffin wax elephant which was exhibited at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair by Imperial Oil. The elephant was created at the Silver Star refinery plant in Petrolia. Silver Star had become Imperial Oil’s only refinery in Canada after the London, Ontario refinery burned down in 1883.

The International Exhibition of 1862 and the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair were part of a boom of these types of exhibitions organized across Europe and North America during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Not only were these exhibitions good for exhibitors but the popularity of these exhibitions acted as a measuring device of the success, knowledge, and wealth of the nation hosting them. All of the exhibitions during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries hosted approximately five million guests and become the benchmark of modernity and advancement in the West.

Did Lambton County Men and Women Succumb?

By Alan Campbell, Facilitator and Newsletter Editor, Lambton County Branch of The Ontario Genealogical Society I just completed a story about my mother and father’s experiences working in munitions and aircraft plants in Toronto during World War II. Neither was a resident of Lambton County, although my mother visited us in Sarnia after our move to Lambton County.

My mother and father both worked at Small Arms Limited, she in the rifle barrel department and he in tool and part inspection. He had moved to Victory Aircraft by 1943 and probably had a hand in making sure that the parts that went into Lancaster bombers were accurate.

The factory newsletter, “Fore Sight,” was published at Small Arms Limited containing information about the workers including sports competition reviews, safety campaigns, reports of births, deaths, and marriages, and enlistments in military service. In reading through a selection of them it was apparent women and men had come from all over Canada to work in the plant. Winnipeg, Regina, Dundalk, Sudbury, Timmins, Esquimault [British Columbia], and Port Credit are a few of the places from which employees came.

Ads were placed in newspapers across Canada by Small Arms Limited.

The Windsor Daily Star carried ads looking for male employees as per the accompanying image from the November 15, 1940 issue.

Noticeable was the lack of ads for females in the issues of the Windsor Daily Star that I checked. On the other hand, The Toronto Daily Star advertised for both male and female employees. The accompanying ad from the May 4, 1942 issue of The Toronto Daily Star offered three week training courses in machine shop practice at local technical schools for interested females with employment guaranteed at the completion of training. I have not yet checked the Sarnia Observer for ads since it is not online.

I am curious as to whether any Lambton County residents answered the ads. If you are aware of any Lambton County residents who did answer an ad and worked in the war effort plants in Toronto and wish to share that information, please contact me at lambtonnewsletters@ogs.on.ca or call (519) 542-3554.

Lambton County Branch Website Do check out the landing page of our website at https://lambton.ogs.on.ca/ Lots of interesting information can be found there.

Lambton County Branch Facebook Group Check out our Facebook group as well at https:// www.facebook.com/ groups/918188561527694 Upcoming Lambton County Branch Events Our last Monday of the month Drop In Sessions restart in January. The sessions run from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Contact Jane Teskey at lambton@ ogs.on.ca for a link to the meeting. You do not have to be a member to attend.

These sessions are a chance to ask about research in Lambton County or to share good sources of information which you have found.

Our monthly webinars will restart in February 2024.

The speaker and topic for February is not confirmed yet. See the ad for our March 2024 speaker.

Heritage Sarnia-Lambton Members Moore Museum

94 Moore Line, Mooretown, ON N0N 1M0 519-867-2020 Facebook Page

Plympton-Wyoming Museum 6745 Camlachie Road, Camlachie, ON N0N 1E0 Facebook Page

Lambton Heritage Museum 10035 Museum Road, Grand Bend, ON N0M 1T0 519-243-2600 Facebook Page

Oil Museum of Canada

2423 Kelly Road, Oil Springs, ON N0N 1P0 519-834-2840 Facebook Page

Arkona Lions Museum and Information Centre

8685 Rock Glen Road, Arkona, ON N0M 1B0 519-828-3071 Facebook Page

Sombra Museum

3476 St. Clair Parkway, Sombra, ON N0P 2H0 519-892-3982 Facebook Page

Lambton County Archives

787 Broadway Street, Wyoming, ON N0N 1T0 519-845-5426 Facebook Page

Forest-Lambton Museum

8 Main St. North, Forest, ON N0N 1J0 Facebook Page

Additional Contributors The Ontario Genealogical Society, Lambton Branch Facebook Page