Lambton Musings LAMBTON’S HISTORY AND HERITAGE NEWSLETTER – FALL 2026 heritagelambton.ca
This Story has a Great Hook! By David McLean, Forest Museum Anyone who runs a museum knows that every now and again you get offered an item for donation that gives you great pause; items that an inner voice advises you to politely turn down. This article is about one such item… and a cautionary tale against always taking advice from those inner voices. So what is “the item”? It is a hook… No, not a fishing hook, not a hook to hang your coat on, and not a crochet hook or a crane hook… Rather, it is a hook that once served as a prosthetic substitute for a human hand. The hook is on the end of an iron frame, flexible at the elbow, and is largely covered in leather. My guess is that a blacksmith and/or a harness maker constructed it… Yes, as happened to me when I first saw it, you just had a vision of Captain Hook from the story “Peter Pan” enter your mind. But while you now continue to see the inept swashbuckler doing battle with the Lost Boys, my thoughts at the time quickly turned to considerations of how and where in our museum we could possibly exhibit “the hook”. I was figuratively scratching my head on this one, all the while trying my best not to convey to the donor my hesitancy to accept the donation. I doubt I hid my hesitancy very well. Despite my reservations, however, I did accept “the hook” on behalf of the museum… And I am now so glad that I did!
So, where to begin? First, I’ll start with the name of the man to whom “the hook” once belonged. His name was Leonard James Dryer. I will share more about Leonard in a moment, but I should first mention that the donor was Connie Clark, whose husband Clifford was a great-grandson of Leonard. I have known the Clarks for quite some time. Unfortunately, Clifford passed away in 2020. Leonard Dryer’s prosthetic arm.
Now, a little confession…. Not long after accepting the donation of “Leonard’s prosthetic” (that does sound better than “the hook”), I happened to be at Beechwood Cemetery in Forest, where I was paying my respects to some of my ancestors. As I departed from their plot, what did I notice about the adjacent one? It belonged to Leonard and his wife Mary! Yes, there was the gravestone of the Dryers, right next to those of my ancestors. That was truly a shocker! So what do I have to confess? Well for a moment, albeit a very brief one, I actually contemplated driving to the museum, grabbing the prosthetic and a shovel, heading back to the Dryer plot, and reuniting Leonard with his missing appendage. The thought, no doubt, was borne of my wondering why, for Heaven’s sake, the family did not inter it with him in the first place. It was after Meagan Sinclair of the Oil Museum of Canada forwarded an email to all the County museums that my attitude toward the Dryer prosthetic took an about turn. Here are the first lines of that email… Hello! My name is Shaelyn Ryan, and I work as the curator of the Medical Artifact Collection at Western University in London, Ontario. I am writing to you in regards to a research project I am undertaking to create a database of amputee-related artifacts, photographs, and stories housed in Canadian museums and archives…. I am writing to you to ask whether you have any prosthetic limbs (arms, legs, fingers, toes, etc.) in your collection, and/or any photographs, documents, stories, or other artifacts related to people represented in your museum who were born with or acquired an amputation at some point in their lives. I quickly fired off an email to Shaelyn and before long we were enjoying an exchange of information and thoughts that made me realize our museum had something of considerable historical importance. According to Shaelyn, the Dryer prosthetic “is the oldest prosthetic arm I have yet come across - and arms, in my experience, are rather rare to begin with!” She was quite impressed too that, thanks to Leonard’s descendants, I was able to provide her with a photo of Leonard wearing the prosthetic.
So who was Leonard Dryer? Leonard was born in Quebec in August of 1856 to English immigrants William and Agnes (Lugg) Dryer. By 1857, his family was living in Ontario, farming along the Hastings Road, north of Belleville. Leonard’s sisters, Hannah and Sarah, were born in 1857 and 1859 respectively. By the time of the 1871 census, the Dryers had moved to a farm in Victoria North (now part of Kawartha Lakes). In 1878, Leonard married Mary Wooldridge, who had emigrated from England with her parents just a few years previously. According to census records, by 1881, Leonard and Mary had moved to Forest and he was now working as a farm labourer. In other census records he is referred to as a teamster. Six daughters and one son were born to Leonard and Mary between 1879 and 1892.Tragically, two of the daughters died in childhood. How and when Leonard lost his hand was long since Leonard and Mary Dryer with their forgotten by his descendants, but during my research I children Lilly Louise (standing), Nellie discovered that he lost it in a work accident in January (Clifford Clark’s grandmother, sitting of 1889. According to a short piece in the Watford-Guide by her dad), and Minnie. Advocate that month, Leonard “had the misfortune to lose his right hand while engaged in feeding a cutting box at S.C. Mallery’s”. S.C. Mallery was an undertaker and furniture maker in Forest. Although he had passed away the year before, his name was still on the business, now run by his son John. Shaelyn was quite delighted when I informed her of my discovery. According to her, “Leonard Dryer’s story is turning into one of the most robust and interesting that I have” and she shared it in a presentation she gave in the spring at the Canadian Society for the History of Medicine conference. How wrong I had been in my initial reaction to the donation from the Clark family. I now appreciate how, in a day and age without employment insurance or workers’ compensation, it would have been critical for Leonard to continue working if there was any way he could. A manual labourer, he needed the prosthetic - “the hook” - to earn his income and support his young family. In 1928, Leonard and Mary celebrated their Golden Anniversary. As reported in the newspaper, their children, grandchildren, two great grandchildren and many friends attended and presented the couple with “many beautiful and useful gifts”. Including “a well filled purse”. Unfortunately, Mary died in Forest in 1932, at the age of 76. Leonard, after a bout with influenza and some heart issues, passed away the following year, also at the age of 76. As for Leonard Dryer’s prosthetic, this is not the end of the story. We intend to show it all the respect it is due. Stay tuned to our social media for future updates. As for my inner voices, I have learned to be careful about always taking their advice. A Weighty History
He Really Wants You to Tell Me About His Accomplishments” The Story of Thomas Sutherland By Kari Boone, Moore Museum This past July, we had the pleasure of welcoming the Paranormal Seekers to the Moore Museum for an evening of exploration. Before heading outside onto the museum grounds, we started their visit with a short tour of the main building. As we walked through the museum, one of the investigators stopped in front of the large portrait hanging on the wall. Looking up at the gentleman in the painting, she asked, “Do you know who that is?” “Yes,” we replied. “That’s Thomas Sutherland.” She looked at the portrait again and said, “He really wants you to tell me about his accomplishments.” It was an interesting way to begin the evening, but what a wonderful reminder of someone whose story deserves to be told. Whether you believe in the paranormal or not, there is no denying that Thomas Sutherland lived a remarkable life and left behind a lasting legacy.
The portrait of Thomas Sutherland, now displayed in the West Room of the Moore Museum, was painted in Edinburgh, Scotland, circa 1828.
Thomas’s story began in Scotland. After receiving his education at the Archbishop’s School, he began his career in the Royal Navy. He later changed directions and became a tailor in Edinburgh, where he built a new career before deciding to seek different opportunities across the ocean. In 1833, Thomas and his wife Grace, along with their family, set sail from Scotland aboard The European on April 25, beginning their journey to Upper Canada and a new chapter in their lives. After arriving, the Sutherlands settled on Lots 30, 31, and 32 along the St. Clair River, between present-day Mooretown and Courtright. It was here that Thomas began creating what would become known as Sutherland’s Landing. The land along the St. Clair River had originally been granted by the Crown to British soldiers, sailors, and United Empire Loyalists. Some chose not to remain in the area and sold their land holdings, often for very little. Through hard work, determination, and careful investment,
Thomas continued to acquire land, and by 1849 he owned approximately 2,395 acres. But Thomas Sutherland was more than a landowner. He was a community builder. He opened a general store stocked with merchandise he had brought with him from Scotland, helping provide supplies for early settlers. He built a wharf along the St. Clair River, where he sold wood to the steamships travelling the river and shipped potash to England. His businesses helped connect this growing settlement to the wider world. By 1846, Sutherland’s Landing had become a thriving community. Along with the wharf, the settlement had a tavern, doctor, store, two blacksmiths, a tailor, shoemaker, school, and a church. A twostorey log building served as the first school in Moore Township, with a meeting hall and commissioner’s court located on the second floor. Thomas understood that a successful community needed more than businesses. It needed places where people could learn, worship, and come together. The first Trinity Church in Moore, commonly known as Sutherland Church, was built between Courtright and Mooretown at Sutherland’s Landing on land donated by Thomas Sutherland. Construction was delayed for seven years because of the Rebellion of 1837, but the church was finally completed in 1842. Before the church was built, Presbyterian services were held in Thomas Sutherland’s orchard by Reverend George Cheyne of Amherstburg. In 1843, while visiting England, Thomas returned to Canada with his friend from Edinburgh, Archibald Geikie. Geikie was educated in Edinburgh and studied divinity under Dr. Chalmers. As a lay minister, he served the community until he was ordained as pastor of the Congregational Church established in Mooretown on March 4, 1846. Thomas’s generosity extended throughout the community. He allowed neighbours to store their crops in his warehouse, shared books from his personal collection, and held Sunday School classes in his home before other facilities were available. His actions helped create a community where people could support one another and grow together. Over time, nearby Mooretown became the more prominent settlement, and Sutherland’s Landing slowly faded from the map. Today, the cemetery overlooking the St. Clair River remains as a reminder of the families who lived, worked, and built their lives there. Thomas and Grace Sutherland spent the rest of their lives connected to the community they helped create. Thomas passed away in 1850 at the age of 78, and Grace followed in 1853 at the age of 76. They are buried together in the cemetery that bears their name, overlooking the river at what was once known as Sutherland’s Wharf. So, when our visitor asked us to tell her about Thomas Sutherland’s accomplishments, it was a wonderful opportunity to remember a man who did far more than establish a business. Along with Grace and their family, he helped create a thriving community built on hard work, generosity, and vision. And perhaps that evening was simply a reminder that history lives on when we continue to share the stories of the people who helped shape it.
The Forgotten Fenians: The Time Canada Was Almost Held Ransom By Claire Pidduck, Oil Museum of Canada In 1865, Oil Springs was a booming town with a population of 4,000 people and Ontario’s largest wooden hotel in the making. By 1866, there were only 300 people left in the village, with that grand hotel never officially opening. So, what happened? Various interconnecting factors affected the village, including the ‘discovery’ of oil in Petrolia. But an oft-forgotten reason is the impact of the Fenian threats. Before discussing the local specifics of the raids, a brief overview of the Fenians is required. In 1858, an Irish American named John O’Mahoney founded the Fenian Brotherhood. Their objective was to end British rule in Ireland. They planned to achieve this by invading and ransoming British North America (B.N.A. - now Canada). The Fenians emphasized that these attacks were only targeted at the British government, and colony residents’ rights would be protected if the Brotherhood succeeded. After the end of the American Civil War, while more oil was being discovered in Pennsylvania, the efforts of the Fenians surged. Not all settlers opposed the Brotherhood, but this was a minority opinion. The threat of invasion loomed and reports of Fenian actions terrified the colonists. Most reports were false alarms. Fenian operations began with maritime attacks on Campobello Island (New Brunswick) and arms smuggling into B.N.A, although both actions were swiftly stopped by the British and American governments.
Map showing the locations of the Fenian raid plans. From this map, the Niagara conflict can be visualized, as well as the scrapped Quebec plan (center right). Image courtesy of Bronson, “Fenians get hint after Ridgeway they weren’t wanted in Canada,” G11.
But to achieve their vision of a free Ireland, the Fenians were committed to invading B.N.A. They plotted a threepronged attack, focusing on the Detroit/Sarnia area, Niagara, and Quebec. Only the Niagara attack occurred, beginning on May 31st, 1866, with Fort Erie being taken on June 1st. Soldiers of B.N.A fought bravely but suffered eight deaths (with two additional deaths later from injuries) and approximately 40 wounded. The local government had been unprepared for an invasion
(despite the crescendo of threats), and suffered from a lack of communication. False reports that Sarnia had fallen reached London. Despite their enemy’s weakness, a force including veteran Civil War soldiers, and success in a few battles, the Fenians returned to New York with British prisoners (who were released almost immediately). Fear was still rampant the next day in the colonies and church services were cancelled. But the terror passed quickly, and volunteers returned home by June 18th. The Fenians had not successfully captured the land we call Canada, and never managed to do so, with the movement dwindling over time.
A group of volunteer fighters in front of a canteen during the 1866 Fenian Raid. The volunteers were without cooked provisions, and so the (unprepared) government was pressured to provide food at canteens such as these. Image courtesy of the Lambton County Archives, LCA H-122.035.
Although the Canadian military units were not the most organized, with food shortages commonly occurring, many men signed up to help defend the land from the Fenian invasion. Lambton County was not exempt from this, with the 27th Lambton Regiment forming on September 14th, 1866, spurred on by the volunteers and response to the Fenian invasion. This helmet is part of the Oil Museum of Canada’s collection. It was worn by Charles Fisher, who served as Lieutenant Colonel of the 27th Lambton Battalion. The power of (and support for) the militia heavily increased during the time of the Fenians, for which Lieutenant Colonel Fisher fought during the raids of 1866 and beyond.
As this company did not formally exist around the time of the invasion and given the proximity to the border, many additional army units were stationed around the region, including in Windsor, Chatham and Sarnia. Although the Fenians managed to advance into sections of (what is now) Canada, you The London Fusiliers stationed around Sarnia in may be asking what this has to do with Oil 1865-1866. They were reviewed by the famous American Union General, W.T. Sherman, who loudly Springs. Before 1866, many of the drillers praised them in his home country. This deterred the in Oil Springs were Americans. But as the Fenians, who feared the well-organized military threat of invasion (and panic) grew, the risk dispatch. Image courtesy of the of war between the United States and the Lambton County Archives, LCA H-122.001. B.N.A. increased. Given their proximity to the United States, the danger was all too real for the population of Oil Springs. Many American drillers did not want to be in the middle of this potential conflict and returned home to the emerging Pennsylvania oil fields. The grand hotel being built to accommodate the swarms of people surrounding the Oil Springs area was scheduled to open on June 1st, the day of the Fenian raid. This coincidence deterred the grand opening, as well as the flow of clientele (who never arrived), and so the hotel was left to ruin, with sections later used for parts. A “What If” of Oil Springs history is “would the population of Oil Springs have dropped so drastically without the Fenians, and what changes afterwards?” The answer is impossibly elusive, but it is crucial to ponder this question against the weight of the Fenian terror and raids. On the opposite end of the spectrum, another grand historical question to ask would be, although the Fenian raid of southwestern Ontario never came to fruition, what would Oil Springs have looked like during a conflict on nearby soil? Furthermore, the area for the southernmost attack was not clearly defined and one must wonder, would the Brotherhood have pushed into Oil Springs? The focus would likely be on larger centers such as Sarnia but a force looking for control must consider the resource sector. At this time, Oil Springs was a legendary part of resource supply and near an area considered for attack, thereby inviting modern contemplation of 1866 Oil Springs as a battleground. Looking back, the response and focus on the Fenians may seem an overreaction to (what became) an ineffective minority group. But for those who lived through the escalation the threat was a very real and terrifying possibility. John Rowe (a volunteer who registered in Vienna, Ontario) recalled that many volunteers would sleep in uniform, their rifles at the ready. Such fear would be exorbitant in places close to the border like Oil Springs. Furthermore, despite the overall lack of physical action, the legacy of the Fenians loomed large. It can be seen in the fear helping unite the nation to Confederation and the decline of interest and residents in Oil Springs, symbolized by a grand hotel never to be opened.
Putting It Back Together Again: The Canatara Cabin By Dana Thorne, Lambton Heritage Museum In July 2026, Lambton Heritage Museum celebrated the opening of a new historic building on our museum grounds, the Canatara Cabin. We have five other historic buildings on our museum grounds, but this is the only one from Sarnia. It’s also the only log structure and now the oldest historic building at our museum. Lastly, it’s the only building we have that has survived three different moves! The cabin was originally built in Huron County in the 1830s in a simple architectural style. Settler families often rushed to construct a suitable shelter. Log buildings like this one were built out of necessity and didn’t have a lot of extra features. The original builders used trees they cleared from the land. This means there are different types of wood throughout the cabin logs. It was used as a private residence in Huron County until the 1930s, when it was purchased by Margaret Spaulding’s family. The cabin was completely disassembled and loaded onto a barge on Lake Huron. It was shipped along the coast to its future home on Lakeshore Road in Sarnia, where it was rebuilt by the Spauldings. They used the cabin as a summer cottage for the next forty years. Their family built several outbuildings and an addition to the humble cabin to make it into an enviable summer retreat.
The Canatara Cabin, at its Lakeshore Road location in Sarnia.
The Canatara Cabin on the far left, with the L-shaped addition built by the Spaulding family. Image courtesy of Jack Spaulding’s archives.
The Hay family purchased the cabin in the late 1960s. William Lorne Hay owned the Hay Construction Company and served several terms on Sarnia City Council. In the early 1970s, severe erosion on the beach in front of the cabin threatened to topple it into the lake. Hay approached the City of Sarnia about donating the cabin for the enjoyment of all citizens. Hay passed away unexpectedly in February 1970. But his wife, Frances, worked with the City to fulfill this vision. She noted, “We both were very fond of Canatara and thought it would be a fitting site for the buildings.” In May 1971, three buildings were moved to Canatara Park, including the cabin, a carriage shed, and a smoke house. This time, it was moved intact from Lakeshore Road to Canatara Park. The log cabin was well-loved in Canatara Park for nearly 50 years. It was a key feature in the Children’s Animal Farm. Multiple generations of Sarnians have fond memories of making Christmas cookies in this cozy cabin. In late 2020, the cabin prepared for its third move, to Lambton Heritage Museum. Unlike the previous move to Canatara Park, this time, it had to be completely disassembled – just like the move from Huron County. To The logs are reviewed at Lambton Heritage Museum. ensure that the cabin could be put back together, every log was tagged with a unique number. These inventory codes corresponded to architectural sketches of the cabin. The cabin components were trucked from Sarnia along Lakeshore Road to the museum. Once all the pieces were here, Rade Construction was recruited to oversee rebuilding the log structure. Throughout the project, we affectionately called Jim and the rest of his dedicated team the Log Cabin Boys. After all the logs were repaired, the cabin was temporarily built inside one of our display halls. It was like a giant jigsaw puzzle. It was critical to make sure all the pieces were going The cabin is temporarily built inside one of our to fit together. Pictures of the cabin from display halls. when it was still standing in Canatara Park were an invaluable resource in this process. Sometimes, details like the location of a knot on a particular log were the key to determine its exact location in the cabin rebuild.
After the Log Cabin Boys figured out how the puzzle pieces went together, it was time to build the cabin in its final location. The logs were placed row by row on a new concrete pad. They were supported by a temporary wooden frame. On a particularly exciting day for our museum team, the floor to the second storey was lifted into place, and later, the repaired roof on top of that. In the original cabin in Huron County, the fireplace and chimney were made of field stone. When the cabin was rebuilt on Lakeshore Road in the 1930s, the chimney and fireplace were brick. Since the Canatara Cabin is being interpreted as it appeared in the 1930s, brick was chosen for our project. The bricks came from a one-room school in the Town of Plympton-Wyoming, S.S. #18, built in 1924. The furnishings and artifacts our museum Some elements had to be rebuilt, like the staircase to team chose for the cabin interior evoke the carefree summer days the Spaulding family the second storey. spent there in the 1930s. It’s truly a warm and inviting space, and I’ve already had people joke that they want to rent it out for a weekend. Some easter eggs inside the cabin include a picture of Sarnia’s Front Street in about 1910, and a picture of the Rosedale neighbourhood in Toronto where the Spauldings lived when they weren’t summering in Lambton County. There are portraits of Maud Hanna and her husband William John Hanna on the fireplace mantel. Maud was Margaret Spaulding’s mother and a key donor when the City purchased the land for Canatara Park – an incredible connection to the cabin’s history.
The Canatara Cabin interior.
The Canatara Cabin interior.
Other furnishings inspired by conversations with descendants of the Spaulding family include the bell by the side door, which the elder Spauldings used to ring in the evenings to call their children home from hours spent roaming the beach and the forests; the crokinole board on the kitchen table, which was a favourite game on rainy afternoons; the sun hat on the coat rack, which belonged to the Spauldings; and the console radio in the corner, which would have been tuned to CBC radio. Margaret’s son Tom was an art director for CBC.
We hope you come visit Lambton Heritage Museum and enjoy stepping into the Cantara Cabin, circa 1930. The cabin is open to the public until mid-October, and then it will reopen at the beginning of May 2027.
& CRAFT FESTIVAL October 17 & 18, 2026 | 10 A.M. to 4 P.M. $5 Cash Admission | 12 and Under Free Hwy 21, South of Grand Bend | 10035 Museum Road
lambtonmuseums.ca/fall-colour
A Father Looking After His Daughter Land Registry Records and Assessment Records Tell the Tale By Alan Campbell, Lambton County Branch OGS Newsletter Editor Ten years. A lot of things can happen in ten years. In 1871, my great grandfather, John Pratt Campbell, was farming in London Township, Middlesex County. By 1881, he was homesteading the east half of section 33, Township 14, Range 20 West of the Prime Meridian, Manitoba. Had I not come across an indexed entry placing Pratt on lot 16, concession 7 of Bosanquet Township, I would have lost a whole ten years of events. Instead, I was introduced to the world of land records, both legal instruments of purchase and sale of property and to land assessment records. Some background first, before telling the story of property. John Pratt Campbell married Margaret Fitzgerald, daughter of Frederick and Ann (Colbert) Fitzgerald September 14, 1852. At the time of the marriage Pratt was farming the North ½ lot 1, concession 15, London Township, Middlesex County. Margaret was about 20 years of age and Pratt was closer to 40 years of age. Family lore claims that Pratt and Margaret eloped. February 28, 1859 Frederick sold the North ½ lot 1, concession 15 to his son John after convincing Pratt, who did not have a title for the property, to yield his possession to John. The Indenture detailing the sale indicated that then property was being placed into a trust for Margaret to be managed by her brother John. The indenture created for this trust stated that “… after the payments of all taxes and assessments all the rents and profits accruing from the said hereditaments and premises and every part thereof…” were to go to Margaret via John. This trust was to be “…wholly free
John Pratt Campbell is seated beside his wife, Margaret (Fitzgerald) Campbell
from debts engagements contracts and liabilities of her said husband or any future husband.” In other words, Pratt was not to get have any ownership in the property. John sold the North ½ lot 1, concession 15 to his brother Frederick C. Fitzgerald December 11, 1871. Then he started the process to buy lot 16, concession 7 in Bosanquet Township from the Canada Company for the purpose of continuing the trust arrangement. Unfortunately, he died September 30, 1876 during the process and William Weir Fitzgerald, another of Margaret’s siblings, became the person responsible for handling the trust. There was a flurry of land registry documents registered in 1879 related to this property, but the land assessment records are necessary in order to know when Margaret and Pratt farmed this property. The assessment rolls record that they paid an assessment beginning in 1872.
Portrait of Pratt and Margaret Campbell.
Margaret took out a mortgage for $350 on the property with Francis Wayland Glew of Oshawa September 5, 1879. This was unusual because normally at this time a married woman did not have the right to do that. On the mortgage document is a statement written by a judge who “… order [ed] that the said Margaret Campbell may in the same manner and with the same effect, as if she were a femme sole bargain sell and convey all or any part of her estate, title and interest into or out of Margaret Campbell’s mortgage all and singular lot number sixteen in the dated September 5, 1879. seventh concession of the said Township of Bosanquet.” Because the property was held in trust for her and Pratt held no ownership, it did not matter that he was already in Manitoba attempting to get a homestead there. A summons dated October 11, 1879, and signed by county judge, Charles Robinson, and
listing complainants Morris Lyman and Allen Kennedy, ordered Margaret, Pratt, Edward Campbell and W. Fitzgerald to attend at his chambers November 12, 1879 to “… show cause why lot sixteen, in the seventh concession should not be sold…” to pay debts. This initiated the flurry of documents mentioned earlier. On October 16, 1879, William Weir Fitzgerald filed an indenture similar to the one filed in 1859. This one included Frederick, Pratt and Margaret’s eldest son and deeded the property to him for the sum of one dollar. The same day, Frederick sold lot 16, concession 7 to David Shephard of the Township of York, York County for the sum of $3,800.00. This Deed of Land indenture recorded that Pratt was in High Bluff, Manitoba at the time. Attached to this Deed of Land was a testament by Daniel M. J. Hagerty, medical doctor, Parish of Portage la Prairie, province of Manitoba that he had witnessed Pratt signing the Deed of Land. Margaret paid off the mortgage with interest, $357.80, December 10, 1879, according to a notation on the mortgage indenture. An Order dated December 14, 1879, created by county judge C. Robinson noted that the “… said execution and expenses incurred thereon...” have “… been satisfied…” He ordered that the summons be discharged and that copies of the summons and the discharge be registered in the registry office of the County of Lambton. Had he not done that, the context of the sale of the property would have been lost. The 1881 Canada Census for the Manitoba Extension, District 7, Little Saskatchewan captured Pratt and Margaret’s household. A Memorandum compiled by James A. Smart, Department of the Interior, recorded the information that Pratt had made homestead and pre-emption for the East half of Section 33, Township 14, Range 20, West of the First Meridian on March 15, 1879. He had sufficient time to build a house before the property in Lambton County was sold. No family story that details the arrival of his family in Manitoba has been found to date. Not content there, Pratt sold the property and took up a homestead the N ½ Section 24, Township 21, Range 2, West of the Second Meridian, Assiniboia District, North West Territories [now Saskatchewan]. Margaret died December 1, 1884, after having survived three geographical moves and the birthing of nine children. I was pleased to have found records about her, even one that included her signature. Margaret Campbell’s signature.
475 Christina Street North, Sarnia By Nicole Aszalos, Lambton County Archives Did you know the historic building at 475 Christina Street North in Sarnia has stood as a witness to more than a century of Sarnia’s story? This magnificent property was designed by David S. Hopkins, a well-known architect from Grand Rapids, Michigan. Construction began in 1888 and was completed mid-March 1889 for Charles M. Garvey, a prominent Sarnia lawyer. The beautiful historic home at 475 Christina Street North, Sarnia. The home is a beautiful example of Queen Anne style architecture as characterized by decorative gables, textured shingles, and a wraparound veranda. In 1910, George Parsons bought the mansion. He sold it in 1953 to Lewis and Laurette Gordon, who kept it as their family home for over 35 years. During later renovations, original Victorian details like fish-scale shingles, ornate railings, and carved wood fireplaces were uncovered and preserved. On October 15, 1989 after acquiring the property, Ron Gordon (66th Mayor of City of Sarnia) officially opened the home as a restaurant called “My Mother’s House”. This fine dining restaurant featured individual dining spaces and the building’s original Victorian charm.
Leaflet for My Mother’s House restaurant, c. 1990.
In 1992, the restaurant closed and shortly after became the Discovery House Museum, helping visitors connect with local history. It housed local history, including items related to Sarnia’s prominent families and figures, like Alexander Mackenzie. It closed in the mid-2000s and its collection was dispersed to other local museums.
Brochure for the Discovery House Museum.
Since 2005, this historic property has been the home of St. Joseph’s Hospice of Sarnia Lambton, a vital community organization offering compassionate end-of-life care, grief support, and a welcoming space for families and caregivers. Then: Built to shelter a family. Now: A home for comfort, dignity, and care.
Heritage Sarnia-Lambton Members Moore Museum 94 Moore Line, Mooretown, ON N0N 1M0 226-784-3340 mooremuseum.ca Facebook @mooremuseum
Plympton-Wyoming Museum 6745 Camlachie Road, Camlachie, ON N0N 1E0 plymptonwyomingmuseum.ca Facebook @plympton-wyomingmuseum
Lambton Heritage Museum 10035 Museum Road, Grand Bend, ON N0M 1T0 519-243-2600 heritagemuseum.ca Facebook @lambtonheritagemuseum
Oil Museum of Canada 2423 Kelly Road, Oil Springs, ON N0N 1P0 519-834-2840 oilmuseum.ca Facebook @oilmuseumofcanada
Arkona Lions Museum and Information Centre 8685 Rock Glen Road, Arkona, ON N0M 1B0 519-828-3071 abca.ca/conservationareas/rockglen Facebook @arkonalionsmuseum
Sombra Museum 3476 St. Clair Parkway, Sombra, ON N0P 2H0 519-892-3982 sombramuseum.webs.com Facebook @sombramuseum
Lambton County Archives 787 Broadway Street, Wyoming, ON N0N 1T0 519-845-5426 lambtonarchives.ca Facebook @lambtoncountyarchives
Forest-Lambton Museum 8 Main St. North, Forest, ON N0N 1J0 forestlambtonmuseum.ca Facebook @forestlambtonmuseum
Additional Contributors The Ontario Genealogical Society, Lambton Branch lambton.ogs.on.ca Facebook @lambtoncountybranch-ontariogenealogical