Summer 2008
Sesquicentennial Stirling Celebrates Sesquicentennial The Tweed Sculptor With Heart Book Shines Spotlight on Deseronto Pilots Organic Farming: As Mother Earth Intended
Covering the arts, outdoors, history, people and places Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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Congratulations
Stirling
The little village with the big heart
LOCALLY MADE PRODUCTS Amazing Crafts and Collectibles Melissa & Doug Toys Paintings and much more
Drop into see us
You’ll be pleasantly surprised
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On your 150th birthday From your friends at Royal LePage ProAlliance Realty, Brokerage Canada’s oldest and largest real estate company.
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Contents Volume 1, Issue 1 , Su m m e r 2 0 0 8
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gs county
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CO-PUBLISHER & EDITOR
Nancy Hopkins CO-PUBLISHER & EDITOR
John Hopkins ART DIRECTOR
Jozef VanVeenen SALES MANAGER
Mark Brunton
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CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER
Brandon West Brandon West Photography www.westphotography.ca HOW TO CONTACT US Telephone: 613 395-0499 Facsimile: 613 395-0903 E-mail: info@countryroadshastings.ca Website: www.countryroadshastings.ca For written enquiries you can reach us at: PenWord Communications Inc. P.O. Box 423, Stirling, ON K0K 3E0
F e at u r e s
6 - Stirling Celebrates Sesquicentennial That’s 150 Big Ones!
COUNTRY ROADS, Discovering Hasting County is published four times a year by PenWord Communications Inc. Copies are distributed to select locations throughout Hastings County including the communities of Bancroft, Belleville, Madoc, Marmora, Stirling and Tweed. Copies are also delivered to select homes within southern Ontario.
10 - Carving His Legacy Tweed artist Paul Shier attracts worldwide attention
14 - Wings of Glory New book shines spotlight on Deseronto pilots
17 - A Taste Of Hastings County One Size Fits All
18 - Organic Farming: As Mother Earth Intended Local farmers go “au naturel”
Subscription rates: 1 year: $10.50 2 years: $18.90 3 years: $27.30 All prices include G.S.T. The contents of this publication are protected by copyright. Reproduction of this publication in whole or in part without prior written permission of PenWord Communications Inc. is prohibited. The advertising deadline for the Fall 2008 issue is July 25, 2008.
D e pa r t m e n t s
9 - The Great Outdoors Quinte Conservation Areas
20 - Cross Roads What’s Happening in Hastings
22 - A La Carte Kelly’s Restaurant serves Tweed
23 - Back Roads 1800’s Butter Factory Cover photo: Baptist Church Road. Baptist Church Road runs north off Hwy. 14 just west of Hwy. 62. The picturesque road winds and turns for a few kilometres before ending at Tuftsville Road. A left turn on Tuftsville brings you into the charming village of Stirling. Photo: BrandonWest Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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discovering hastings county
Welcome to Country Roads When the idea to launch a magazine about Hastings County first emerged we started with the basics – deciding upon a name. Numerous discussions and discounted names later we had it. As the second largest county in Ontario, Hastings is overflowing with country roads – almost too many to count. Roads that travel alongside waterways, through rolling hills and rich farmland, through rock outcrops, and into many villages and towns that are the face of small town Ontario. So, Country Roads it was.
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eciding upon a subtitle was a cinch. After all, the motivation for launching this publication was to celebrate and promote the never ending opportunities that Hastings County has to offer and to be the catalyst for readers to discover the previously undiscovered. If the arts are your passion we’ve got year-round live theatre productions. Starting in the south is Belleville’s Empire Theatre, a little further north you’ll find the Stirling Festival Theatre, celebrating over 10 years of entertaining, and on up the road is the Bancroft Village Playhouse. Take one of our many Artists Studio Tours and in addition to travelling the countryside you will come face to face with exceptional artists and their creations. The sound of music is always in the air here. The choice is yours - the Marmora Jamboree, Madoc Canadian Heritage Music & Arts Festival, Westben - Concerts at The Barn, waterfront concerts in Belleville and more. If exploring the outdoors recharges your batteries you just might not want to leave our part of the world. Spend a day, or why not a week or longer? We’re home to unspoiled lakes and rivers with exceptional fishing and accommodation ranging from pampering bed and breakfast establishments to hotels, inns, waterside resorts and cottages. The 350 km Hastings Heritage Trail is a great way to see the heartland of Hastings. We’re particularly history proud. Belleville Doors Open takes you inside the most outstanding architectural sites in the city. Our agricultural heritage is celebrated at the Hastings County Museum of Agricultural Heritage in Stirling. The Tweed & Area Heritage Centre proudly tells the community’s story, both past and present. Did you know that Eldorado, north of Madoc was home to Ontario’s First Gold Mine and Bancroft is a rockhound’s paradise? But rest assured we’re not living totally in the past. Hastings County is leading the way in eco-tourism, sustainable and organic products and other earth friendly initiatives. And speaking of friendly – step into our shops and you’ll meet shopkeepers with a fine eye for items you won’t find just anywhere, many locally handcrafted and produced. Hastings County is located within easy access from the large centres of Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto and we might sound like we’re bragging but we mean it when we say, “whatever you’re looking for, you’ll find it in our county.”
We hope you enjoy the articles we have brought you in this issue and look forward to sharing more about Hastings County in issues to come. Do let us know what you discover! Nancy & John Hopkins Courtesy The County of Hastings
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Country Roads • Summer 2008
Country Roads
discovering hastings county
Funk & Grüven A-Z Have a good look... for your home, your cottage, your office, your garden! 52 Bridge Street East, “The Village”, Downtown Belleville
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CR Country Roads
discovering hastings county
P.O. Box 423, Stirling, ON K0K 3E0 P: 613 395-0499 • F: 613 395-0903 E: info@countryroadshastings.ca www.countryroadshastings.ca
discovering hastings county
A Taste of Hastings
Contest!
COUNTRY ROADS is excited to share a taste of Hastings County with one lucky reader. Readers are invited to enter to win a basket full of locally made non-perishable products (approximate value $150).
To enter visit www.countryroadshastings.ca and click on Enter to Win. The contest deadline is August 31, 2008.
Open everyday
antiques • furniture • decoratives
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Original Watercolour Artwork Art Supplies Unique Gifts Specialty Loose Tea Custom Framing Gicleé Printing
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Antiques Collectibles Unique gifts Step back in time by visiting our charming 1908 shop. 22 Mill Street, Stirling, ON K0K 3E0
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Home Tweed Home primitive gifts, collectibles & needful things
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Many unique one-of-a-kind items 324 Victoria Street, N., Box 96,Tweed, ON K0K 3J0
Phone/Fax: 613-478-5650 Toll Free: 1-888-478-5650 Email: hometweedhome@bellnet.ca Shop online@hometweedhome.ca
Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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Stirling Celebrates Sesquicentennial
Photos courtesy Stirling 150th Anniversary Committee
That’s 150 Big Ones! By Nancy Hopkins
If you haven’t been to Stirling, or even if you have, this summer’s the time to visit. And if you do live in the village, don’t go anywhere! Between Aug. 14 -24 Stirling is celebrating its 150th Anniversary in a big way. The list of festivities is long with fun from morning to night.
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t all starts with the 150th Stirling Fair Aug.1417 at the fairgrounds, where visitors will experience all they expect a small town fair to be: amusements, rides, petting zoo, home-crafts, fireworks and demolition derbies. Guest band Emerson Drive will perform the evening of Friday Aug. 15. Information is available at www.stirlingfair.com On Monday Aug. 18 the 150th Anniversary festivities shift into high gear. Over a seven-day period guests will have a lot to choose from, so plan accordingly and rest up.
they could bring their tractor,” Wells says. “We’ve got confirmation from Toronto from people we don’t even know. And Richard Dracup has put eight tractors from their family farm in. We’re not worried about getting enough people but we do need people to register so we can make all the necessary plans.” Registration is available online at www.stirling150.com or at the Stirling 150 offices at 27 West Front St., Stirling.
KIDS’ DAY, THURSDAY AUG. 21
Visitors can pick among: • 10 performances at the Stirling Festival Theatre • 6 opportunities to hear live music outdoors at the Covered Bridge • 5 parades on 4 different days: The World’s Greatest Tractor Parade, Kids Parade, Shirt Tail Parade, Main Parade and Drumhead Parade • The Stirling High School Reunion with hundreds if not thousands of alumnae • An evening of Stirling memories with guest speaker Roy Bonisteel • Homecoming Dance at the Arena & Curling Club • Multiple events at the Hastings County Museum of Agricultural Heritage • Soap Box Derby • Displays at the newly renovated Stirling Train Station
King George High School once stood on Church Street, now the site of Stirling Junior Public School.
AND MORE - Whew!
What’s a Shirt Tail Parade? “The High School Reunion is probably one of the funner nights because at 10:00 there’s a shirt tail parade,” says 150th Committee member Mike Wells. “That’s when basically everybody wears the old style long pyjamas, and they did it big time 25 years ago, and we have it all on film. It is just hilarious seeing them with their night caps and shirts parading downtown. We’re coming downtown to the Covered Bridge area where Freddy Vette and the Flames will perform and there will be a bar set up. This is a fun night parade and you will see a little bit of everything.” Registration is available online at www.stirling150.com or at the Stirling 150 offices at 27 West Front St., Stirling.
Here are more details on a few of the events:
WORLD’S GREATEST TRACTOR PARADE, WEDNESDAY AUG. 20, 4:00 P.M.
Stirling High School Reunion, Friday, Aug. 22, 4- 10 p.m. Followed By A Shirt Tail Parade There are hundreds already signed up but organizers want to see many more Stirling High School alumnae returning for the reunion. “We know that people want to come and visit and catch up so the evening will be set up with lots of time to do that,” say organizers. Each attendee will receive a remembrance photo of themselves and a BBQ meal will be provided with music in the background.
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Country Roads • Summer 2008
Stirling is aiming to establish a tractor parade world record. “We’re hoping to have at least three miles of tractors,” says Wells. Between 200-300 tractors participating in the Hastings County Plowing Match & Farm Show, which will be running at the same time, will join in the parade. “Thanks to Ross Carlisle and his family without whom we couldn’t do this,” credits Wells. Organizers are pleased that more are coming on board all the time. “A lady out the Ridge Road registered her tractor and then her cousin from the States heard about it and phoned her to see if
The Kids’Zone will be open from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. with games, bouncy castle, dunk tank, Homeniuk Amusements and Dr. Kaboom’s Magic Circus followed by the Kids Parade at 5:30 p.m. on Front Street. “Kids go to parades all their lives but we want the kids to make the parade and we want the adults and the grandparents to watch the kids go down the street on their bikes with their dogs, dollhouses, carriages, whatever,” Wells says. “We think it’s neat that they can do that and we hope it makes them feel really special.” The parade also features an elephant from the Bowmanville Zoo.
SOAP BOX DERBY, SATURDAY AUG. 23 8:30 A.M.-12 NOON A repeat of Stirling’s 125th Anniversary celebrations the cars will travel down Front Street from 8:30 a.m.–12 noon on Saturday Aug. 23. Drivers will be between the ages of 7-16. No time to build your own car? Kits can be purchased at www.waycoolkits.com. Registration is available online at www.stirling150.com or at the Stirling 150 offices at 27 West Front St., Stirling and the deadline is Aug. 15. THE STIRLING 150TH ANNIVERSARY office is now open Monday to Friday between 9 a.m. and 12 noon and from 1-4 p.m. Registration forms, pamphlets, merchandise and memorabilia are all available. The office will also be open throughout the 150th Anniversary celebrations. Drop in and say hi.
A DAILY LIST OF EVENTS CAN BE FOUND AT www.stirling150.com
STIRLING SESQUICENTENNIAL
Still The Same Through the years Stirling keeps small town feel
Courtesy Richard Turtle
By John Hopkins
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n 22 years as the host of the popular CBC television news program Man Alive, there weren’t many spots on the globe Roy Bonisteel didn’t see. So it says a lot that he has chosen to live much of his life in the Quinte region and that he recalls his time in Noted journalist Roy the village of Stirling Bonisteel spent a year with a great deal of and a half attending high fondness. school in Stirling. Now living on a farm in the Trenton area, Bonisteel will be back in Stirling on the evening of Monday, Aug. 18, when he shares his “Memories of Stirling” at St. Paul’s United Church as part of the village’s 150th Anniversary celebrations. It’s been almost 70 years since Bonisteel attended high school in Stirling, but for him the town has changed very little. “It’s still got that small, folksy, part town, part country quality,” he says. “Everybody knows everybody, there’s a warmth there. The names of most of the businesses have changed but the buildings are still there. The Creamery is still there, and so is the Mill Street Bridge. There are places like that all across Canada.”
Bonisteel spent Grades 4 and 5 at the Mount Pleasant elementary school and he attended the King George high school for almost two years in the early 1940’s. According to his memoir “There was a time…” his Grade 7 teacher encouraged him to continue on to high school rather than finish his education after Grade 8, which was the custom for most kids growing up on farms at the time. The Stirling high school served a wide area of Hastings County, and Bonisteel moved in with his older sister and her family, who had a house on Front Street. For his first day of Grade 9 his father bought him a suit at Bob Patterson’s Dry Goods Store. “I loved Stirling,” Bonisteel recalls. “It was a good school and it had good teachers. I got into the usual teenage problems, of course. I liked hanging out at Joe Whitehead’s Café. The people were tremendously helpful. I had a job on Saturday’s cleaning out septic tanks.” Bonisteel was also a regular visitor to the library. “I have, over the years, been in some of the finest libraries in the world and I have seen private collections that would make the Stirling offering seem meager,” he writes in his book, “but I will always have a fond memory of that small brick building that opened so many wonderful doors for me.” Unfortunately, halfway through his Grade 10 year Bonisteel had to leave Stirling for Port Colborne after one of his brothers, who ran a dairy farm there, died suddenly. Bonisteel was enlisted to fill the gap in the family business, but soon grew disillusioned with it and returned home to Quinte, eventually starting his journalism career as a reporter for the Belleville Intelligencer.
1915 Stirling Parade
When he moved back home, Bonisteel reconnected with many of his friends in the Stirling community. “I was still a teenager, and we’d go to dances in Oak Lake and Glen Ross,” he recalls. “I also spent a lot of time in the theatre. I think it’s wonderful what [artistic and managing director] Caroline [Smith] has done with that place.” Bonisteel’s journalistic pursuits eventually led him to Toronto and his groundbreaking role on the launch of Man Alive in 1967. The show quickly garnered a reputation for its news coverage and Bonisteel went on to win the Gordon Sinclair Award for Excellence in Broadcasting and an ACTRA Award as Canada’s Best Television Host. However, while Bonisteel made his living traveling the world interviewing international newsmakers, he also longed for the more sedate rural life he had enjoyed growing up. So in 1971 he bought the farm near Trenton and moved his famContinued on page 8.
Courtesy Coombes Family
DOWN ON THE COOMBES FARM
A recent photo of the Coombes children. From left: Gwen, Enid, Mavis, Sally, Roger, sitting Veva and Janice.
The story DOWN ON THE COOMBES FARM provides a glimpse of what life on the farm was like for one of the many area farm families. The article combines excerpts from a story written by Alice Coombes for the Heritage Years, A History of Stirling and District published by the Stirling Historical Book Committee, copyright 1983 and updates provided by “The Coombes Girls”, 2008. The Coombes farm of rolling hills, spring creeks, sunny meadows and boggy swamp was four miles
from Stirling on Highway 33. Reginald Coombes came from England, a nine-year-old orphan, under the direction of Barnardo Home. Two miserable years of child labour in Huntsville made him believe Canada was cold, harsh and forbidding, where hungry boys were expected to work as men. But when moved to the cheery and loving care of Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Morrow, he thought Stirling was heaven. They rewarded boyish ambition; a penny per mouse caught, a nickel a rat, and encouraged records of money earned and spent. Reginald attended River Valley School, was hired by various farmers, saved his money (1921 year’s wages of $380), bought a home in his beloved valley and married Alice Morgan, a River Valley school-marm. One by one Reg and Alice’s family grew to include six daughters: Enid, Mavis, Veva, Sally, Janice, Gwen and a son, Roger. While Roger farmed, the girls attended Stirling High School. Reg and Alice saw many changes in farming over the years. In the beginning finances depended on the cows two people could milk by hand and the cream they separated for Stirling Creamery. Electricity in 1939 brought the milking machine, 40-gallon milk cans, and trips to Shamrock Cheese Factory; 1973 introduced bulk tank and refrigerated pick up. In 1933 haying required mower, rake, fork and wagon, by the 1980’s there
was the mower-conditioner, baler-with-thrower, enclosed wagon and barn elevators. Manure handling progressed from a pitch-fork and wagon to modern machinery. After Reg’s sudden death in 1962 Alice retired from 33 years of teaching and along with her son Roger kept the farm running for another 21 years. When Alice passed away in 1983 the work of operating a dairy farm on his own became too much for Roger and it was sold in 1987. Unfortunately, in 2007 at the age of 63 Roger died of a massive heart attack, just like his father before him. Today, all of the Coombes girls live in Ontario happily enjoying retirement. The grandchildren total 25 and range in age from seven months to 16 years. Gwen’s son Derek teaches Grade 6 in Stirling Senior Public School and is the only member of the family still affiliated with Stirling. The family gets together once a year and celebrates “Christmas in July” with an old-fashioned pot luck lunch in a park. They recently learned their father was not an orphan after all. Very hard times in Bath, England had forced his family to give up their handsome little boy at the age of four to be raised by others. The Coombes family believes it was fate that brought their Dad to River Valley, where he met their Mom and the whole family story began. Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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STIRLING SESQUICENTENNIAL
Still The Same
Namely - Stirling
Continued from page 7
The origin of the name Stirling is uncertain, but folklore suggests it is derived from either a Scots or Gaelic term meaning the place of battle, struggle or strife.
Stirling, Scotland NO PLACE LIKE HOME
Stirling was created a Royal burgh (town) by King David I in 1130. Stirling was granted city status in 2002, as part of Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee. The city is clustered around a large fortress and medieval old-town. Its population of approximately 45,000 people makes it the smallest city in Scotland. In 2004 the wider Stirling Council area had a population of 86,370.
SETTLING DOWN
Stirling enjoys a lower cost of living than other cities in central Scotland. The average home price is approximately £180,000 (the equivalent of $360,000 CDN.)
ALL ABOARD
The city’s railway station is the seventh busiest in Scotland, with a recorded 1.4 million passenger journeys through it in 2002/03.
BRIDGING THE GAP
The Old Stirling Bridge was built in the late 15th century but it is the site where William Wallace defeated the English army in 1297. The remains of the original 13th century wooden bridge were discovered in 1990.
BIG SHOTS
The world famous race car driver Stirling Moss was named after his mother’s birthplace. Soccer star Billy Bremner, member of Leeds United and the Scottish national team, was born in Stirling.
SAFE AT HOME
Stirling has been the place of choice to live since the 15th century when King James III abandoned his other residences because he considered it ‘maist pleasentest dwelling thair’. A safe city, Stirling boasts significantly lower crime rates than for Scotland as a whole.
MERRY MERCHANTS
Stirling is a regional shopping centre with the equivalent of 17 football pitches of retail space. The city’s heritage and amenities attract 4.5 million visitors annually.
BY THE SLICE
The local Dominoes Pizza and Pizza Hut help feed the need for pizza.
UNDER THE O…
Stirling’s Carlton Club was recently named the luckiest bingo hall in the United Kingdom, giving out the whopping equivalent of $950,000 CDN in prizes in one year according to the National Bingo Game Association.
Stirling, Ontario NO PLACE LIKE HOME
Incorporated as a village in 1858 Stirling, ON was reputedly named by early settlers because the landscape of hills and valleys reminded them of home, especially Stirlingshire, Scotland. It has a population of 2,139 (2006 census). The municipality has a population of 4,906 (2006 census). Rawdon Creek winds through Stirling and the covered bridge in the village centre connects Mill Street to Front Street. Stirling is affectionately known as, “the little village with the big heart.”
SETTLING DOWN
The average house price in the Quinte region is approximately half that of Stirling, Scotland.
ALL ABOARD
Constructed in 1879 the existing Stirling Railway Station was in operation until 1962. In 2004, after sitting empty for years, the Stirling Rotary Club, in cooperation with the Village of Stirling and the Stirling-Rawdon Historical Society began the project of relocation and restoration of the building. Scheduled for completion the summer of 2008 it will serve as an information centre, museum, art gallery and community hall.
BRIDGING THE GAP
In the late 1970’s the Stirling Rotary Club implemented a plan that included covering the original bridge and improving the banks along Rawdon Creek, thus creating the landmark that exists today.
BIG SHOTS
Stirling has produced National Hockey League players Rob Ray, Matt Cooke and Eric Manlow.
SAFE AT HOME
Stirling-Rawdon has the smallest recognized police force in Ontario, with seven police officers keeping residents safe.
MERRY MERCHANTS
Stirling’s shops offer patrons a vast array of unique and wellpriced products, first class small town service all in a quaint village setting.
BY THE SLICE
Many appetites are satisfied at Stirling’s two hometown pizzerias, Jimmy’s Special Pizza and Vito’s.
UNDER THE O…
For more than 20 years The Stirling and District Lions Club has operated bingo at the arena on Monday nights. It’s become a true community event where between 50-60 people enjoy a night of fun and the chance to win the approximate $2,000 jackpot.
ily, which at that time included three teenage kids, out to the country. “I came back for the roots, the peace, the quiet,” he explains. “My whole world at that time was hotel rooms and airports. I missed the country, I missed the Quinte area. The farm I bought I knew from when I was growing up, and I knew the neighbours. It was for therapy reasons.” It could have been difficult to convince three teenagers to leave the bright lights of Toronto behind for a more peaceful setting, but Bonisteel says it was not too great a challenge. “It was more leaving behind their friends that was a concern,” he says. “But I told them they could each get any animal they wanted, and they each chose a horse. Then came cows and then chickens… “But they all got involved in the rural aspect of live and they learned to love the farm.” Bonisteel has remained in the area ever since, and while his family roots played a role in bringing him back, he admits there were other factors in his decision. “I’ve seen most of the world and all of Canada,” he points out. “I love the Maritimes, and the Prairies. But this is a very beautiful place. Wherever you go it’s just gorgeous. You have Kingston, the 1,000 Islands, Prince Edward County is just a jewel, and if you go north you come to Algonquin Park. I can’t think of a place I’d rather live.” “There Was A Time…” was published in 1991, and two of the themes that come up in the book are the importance of environmental responsibility and a strong community. Growing up as the youngest of 10 children on a farm in the 1930’s Bonisteel quickly learned the importance of preserving the land and living frugally. “In a sense we were ahead of our time,” he says. “We didn’t know it. And especially during the war, with the [Trenton] air base nearby, nobody saved like the people around here. “But I think now people are taking the environment more seriously. There is a new awareness there.” Bonisteel also sees the selfishness of the late 20th century giving way to a more community-oriented focus, similar to that which he has always admired about Stirling. “Even with all the high tech material around now, we are returning to a more collegial type of life,” he says. “We are realizing once again that we need our neighbours to lean on.” •
Sources: www.wikipedia.org, www.stirling.gov.uk
Stirling railway station. Photo Elisha Maguire
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Stirling covered bridge. Photo Rosanna Clark
Country Roads • Summer 2008
Stirling railway station (Scotland). Photo Finlay McWalter/Wikimedia Commons
Stirling bridge (Scotland). Photo David Meisner/Wikimedia Commons
discovering hastings county
• The Great Outdoors •
Get Out! Explore Quinte Conservation areas By Nancy Hopkins
One of the historic buildings at O’Hara Mill Conservation Area
Taking a break during an interpretive hike at Sheffield Conservation Area
H
astings County has thousands of acres of conservation area open to the public from dawn to dusk where visitors can enjoy all nature has to offer. Paddle by towering granite rock; hike along the Moira River as it cascades over limestone steps; see Ontario’s only lizard, the “Five-Lined Skink”; let fragrant orchards fill your senses; drop your fishing pole in the cool clear waters or listen to the songbirds. There’s even a place where pets can roam free at the Pooch Path at the Quinte Conservation area on Old Highway 2 west of Belleville. Located northwest of Madoc the O’Hara Mill Conservation Area is an 84-acre site where nature meets history. Nine historic buildings take visitors back in time to rural Ontario life during the 1800’s and 1900’s. A dedicated group of volunteers organize many fun events for all ages throughout the summer. Homestead Heritage Day on Sunday July 27 is an afternoon of guided tours, food and entertainment. Admission is $2 for adults, $1 for children and parking is free. O’Hara Mill’s Annual Corn Boil takes place from 4 p.m. – 8 p.m. on Thursday Aug. 21. Corn on the cob will be cooked on the open fire and served with maple syrup, along with entertainment and more. Taking in one of the events is, “a great way to get to know all the conservation area has to offer,” according to Lucille Fragomeni, Quinte Conservation’s Communications Manager. The Vanderwater Conservation area on Vanderwater Road south of Tweed stretches along the Moira River. Vanderwater is a popular destination for families, hikers and skiers where visitors can expect exceptional vistas any time of the year. Beautiful wide trails me-
Map of Quinte Conservation Areas
ander through 15 km of woodlands and shoreline with picturesque waterside areas perfect for picnics. A steep ridge runs the length of the property and several spots along the trails offer scenic views to the west. On June 16 Quinte Conservation offers a guided hike of Vanderwater as part of its interpretive hikes series. The series occurs at various locations Monday and Wednesday evenings from April through August at a cost of $25 per person for the entire series or $10 per person, per hike. Many hikes are in the 2 - 3 km range and a full list can be found by visiting www.quinteconservation.ca. To register email Terry Sprague at tsprague@quinteconservation.ca. Each year over 1,500 school children experience the natural oasis that is the H.R. Frink Conservation area on Thrasher Road north of Belleville. Visitors can take in views of the Moira River, follow a boardwalk through the wetland and traverse a bridge over a silver maple swamp as they explore nearly 13 km of trail. The conservation area is also home to the environmentally friendly “green latrine,” a sustainable washroom block made from straw bales.
A guided 3 km hike will take place at 6 p.m. on Monday July 21. For the more adventurous hiker the Sheffield Conservation Area south of Kaladar offers a 4 km looped trail through some rugged terrain with spectacular expanses of rock, deciduous forests, wetlands and five interior lakes. Visitors can canoe right from the parking lot, fish in a 16-foot deep lake, and a short trip off the main trail leads to a lookout point with panoramic views of the water and surroundings. Thanks to the hard work of volunteers the trails have been cleared and marked for visitors. Volunteers make a real difference at many Hastings County conservation areas. “There are so many people that really appreciate our conservation areas and will pitch in to help,” says Fragomeni. Quinte Conservation encourages visitors to be environmentally aware and responsible for any garbage they bring to the property. Quinte Conservation is a community based environmental protection agency, one of 36 conservation authorities in Ontario. Encompassing a 6,200 square kilometre area that includes the drainage basins of the Moira, Napanee and Salmon Rivers and all of Prince Edward County, the authority owns 30,000 acres of land. This territory includes 30 areas ranging in size from small parkettes to over 1,000 hectares and parcels around water control structures, wetlands, reforested areas and other sites with significant natural features and conservation value. The conservation areas in Hastings County offer families a wonderful healthy outing, a way to enjoy the outdoors and get some healthy physical activity.
To learn more visit www.quinteconservation.ca and get out there! Photographs courtesy Terry Sprague and Lucille Fragomeni, Quinte Conservation. Map courtesy Quinte Conservation
Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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Paul Shier Carving His Legacy Tweed artist Paul Shier attracts worldwide attention
By Nancy Hopkins
Photos by Brandon West
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carving his legacy
Canadian Vision - Carved from the newly discovered Tweed area stone Rockmanite donated to the sculptor by Lady Diamond Mining & Exploration, this sculpture reflects Shier’s belief that people hold the key to world peace.
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sk Tweed artist Paul Shier if he could have ever seen himself invited to display his sculptures at the International Biennial of Contemporary Art exhibition in Florence, Italy, and his response is emphatic. “If you’d asked me 15 or 20 years ago I would have said you were crazy,” he says. But Shier was invited to last December’s event, and his appearance in Florence was just one of a string of international achievements for the 52-year-old. In February of this year his work was on display at ARTEXPO in New York City. In 2007 his soapstone carving “The Challenge” was selected from hundreds of entries from around the world as the Best in Show at the GATES Art Project exhibition held in Chicago and San Francisco. A national fundraising initiative, money raised from the sale of “The Challenge” will go towards reducing worldwide child poverty. Also in 2007, his depiction of a howling wolf “The Guardian” was placed in Tweed Memorial Park. The sculpture pays homage to Canadian troops serving in Afghanistan and efforts are underway to classify it as a national monument. In 2005 “Thundering Silence,” an emotional response to the events of 9/11, was unveiled in New York City. A donation, the tribute is permanently displayed at the Bellevue Hospital in
New York City where many of the victims were treated. The plaque reads “Dedicated to those courageous, unselfish mortals who will be remembered forever.” And all this has taken place while Shier maintains a full-time job with D&K Heating of Belleville, where he’s worked for almost 20 years. Art has always played a major role in Shier’s life and acknowledgement of his talent is not a new thing. At 12 years of age his painting of the Toronto skyline
Thundering Silence - A tribute to the people of New York City after the events of 9/11. Paul Shier photo.
Shier looks up to his son “George,” who has pride of place in the artist’s studio.
won second place in an Ontario-wide Public School art contest. Displayed at the C.N.E. in Toronto it now hangs in his living room. But remaining an artist into adulthood can be a challenge. Pablo Picasso is quoted as saying, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” Shier nods in agreement. “You tend to get away from art as you get older and if you don’t keep using it that part of the brain fails and you lose track of it,” he claims. “I just kept doing something. I played around painting, crafts or stained glass, carving. I might have got rustier at times than other but the more you do it the better you get. “Someday I might get good. If I keep trying,” he adds with a chuckle. It was while enjoying another passion, the solitudes of nature that the carving that would become a major part of his adult life emerged. On a camping trip in his mid 20’s Shier grabbed a piece of firewood, hung a tarp, and retrieved a screwdriver, hammer and file from his tool kit. After filing down the screwdriver to a workable shape he set out chipping away at what became “Raspberry,” a comical square face with its tongue sticking out. His collection of carving tools has increased dramatically since then but there are still times when Shier has to make his own to do the job. Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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carving his legacy
The Power of Words - This sculpture protests the immortalization of criminals by the media in the belief that if their names were not publicized many lives might be saved.
Knight’s Honour - This carving stands approximately a foot high and weighs less than a pound.
Impassioned by the beauty of natural wood Shier sculpted one-of-a-kind pieces from hardwoods for the next 20 years. The process is time consuming. “Every time I do a piece it is new. If somebody does the same thing over and over again they can do it quick,” he explains. At nearly seven feet tall “George,” an Indian Chief carved from a 150-year-old local cedar tree has become a part of the family, like a “third son,” jokes Shier. George resided in Shier’s living room for years and ever the festive fellow was decorated each Christmas. These days George can be found keeping a watchful eye over the artist’s studio. According to Shier there are times he will see something in a stone that is so blatant it can’t be ignored. This was the case with “The Eagle,” and “Time Marches On” – (they) “just came out of the rock,” he explains. And The Knight’s Honour, created from ultra lightweight Tupolo wood found in the Everglades was originally destined to be a Native Woman but the wood had other plans. As Shier worked away it became obvious that the creation waiting to be revealed was actually a Knight.
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Shier’s sense of humour is evident in many of his creations: Pierre Elliot Trudeau’s “Point of View” – a solitary finger, George’s gaze, the tongue sticking out of “Raspberry,” fingers wrapped around a guitar neck of “North Bay.” He has been called the caring carver, the carver with heart and partner Sheila-Marie Youmansdonatella sums it up when she says he is “a passionate sculptor.” In the aftermath of 9/11 Shier considered travelling to New York to aid with clean-up
The Hand
but instead directed his emotions into crafting Thundering Silence, a soapstone carving of a full size pair of fireman’s boots, one standing, and one laying down alongside a helmet.
When Shier first came up with the idea he drew a sketch and laid the corresponding items out on the floor. He played around with the idea only to determine that the original image in his mind was the best. With the walls of his studio lined with articles about the September 11 attacks Shier spent nearly three years and over 1,000 hours bringing his vision to life. He imagined driving the sculpture to New York City and leaving it with city officials to choose where they would display it. But, the unveiling of Thundering Silence was nothing like that. More than 350 people – 150 from Canada - attended the emotional unveiling including numerous New York City and Canadian officials and dignitaries. As the magnitude of the event began to unfold Shier wrote and practised a speech. But when the sculptor stood on stage and the applause finally ended all he could muster was, “What more can I say? Thanks.” According to Youmansdonatella that was all that was needed. The other speeches and the sculpture had said it all. One of the last things his mother Marge said to him led to another piece that speaks of humanity. Lying in a hospital bed listening to the
carving his legacy
For more information: www.pssculptures.com www.tweedstudiotour.org www.bancroftdistrict.com/Tourism
North Bay - This carving depicts Shier’s vision of Jimmy Page playing Stairway to Heaven
An eagle sitting high atop a pole on the lawn of Shier’s home and studio on Highway 37 north of Tweed.
news surrounding the fighting overseas, “Mom looked up to me and said ’can’t you do something about that Paul, all those young people dying?’” Shier recalls. “At that time I was dumfounded, thinking what could I possibly do? Well this show is a good start and hopefully from small ripples......” He’s referring to the Bienniale Italy show last December and his creation Canadian Vision. When the application for the exhibition arrived Shier didn’t believe it would truly happen. The $15,000 plus costs it would require to attend made it seem impossible but with the support of the people of Tweed and area, where he has lived since his teens, it became a reality. Inspired by the assistance and the belief instilled in him by his father that a person can do anything, Shier worked tirelessly to complete Canadian Vision in time. Speaking with his hands as if working the rockmanite stone again he describes the people that make-up Canadian Vision, in a circle and connected to one another, and that they reflect his belief that the only way there can be world peace is through the people. Carved from the inside as well as the outside a peace dove rests inside being held at bay, looking towards the future generations for hope. Gathering with over 800 artists from around the world, sharing a dinner table with 22 people from 11 countries were memorable occasions for Shier, but walking the streets of Florence, Italy imagining how many millions of people had tread the cobble stones and standing before Michaelangelo’s “David” were truly humbling experiences. When “the wild ride” as Shier describes his international travels, gets to be too much he
finds solace in exploring the “pond,” the 600 acres of conservation land behind his Highway 37 home. “We just go back there – see deer, beaver, bear. Last year for the first time we saw wild turkeys,” he says. Now that the exhibitions are over Shier looks to the future. If he could dedicate all his time to sculpting he estimates he could “work for three to six months trying to catch up.” There are four or five commissioned works to be done including an inukshuk and a coat of arms for a co-worker. And, local MP Daryl Kramp “put a bug in my ear,” says Shier referring to the upcoming 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. There is an idea involving a maple leaf and probably a skier floating around his mind. He hopes to have enough pieces to exhibit in Montreal within the next year or so. Closer to home he will be part of the Bancroft Rockhound Gemboree between July 31-Aug. 1, and the Tweed & Area Artists Studio Tour Oct. 4-5. And there’s the matter of finding the time to “Get a sign out there, get it open,” he says, referring to his home studio. “A lot of people stop by out of the blue. I don’t mind that if I’m here,” he says. His life long dream has been to obtain a gallery, preferably in Toronto or Ottawa, to display his work. He hopes its time has finally come. “All my life – growing up I always wanted to be an artist,” he reflects. “All my life I felt that I was put here for a reason but I don’t know if I could say if it (art) is a calling. The world is a strange place.” As he ponders it some more his head shakes. “Been a pretty wild ride for a while. A lot more fun that I would have ever dreamed of.” •
Raspberry - This hardwood sculpture came to life on a camping trip over 20 years ago.
Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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New book shines spotlight on Deseronto pilots
Wings of glory By John Hopkins
First World War pilots. It does not encompass a big area – there are perhaps a dozen men buried there – and for the most part very few people are aware of the existence of the graves. Each June a quiet memorial service is held at the Cemetery to honour the men, but beyond that they rest in anonymity.
Photo courtesy Deseronto Archives
There is a private section of the Deseronto Cemetery set aside for
Photo courtesy Dundurn Press
An aerial shot of Camp Mohawk. Along with Camp Rathbun it made up the Deseronto Wing of the Royal Flying Corps.
Due out this fall, Dancing In The Sky looks back on Canada’s contributions to the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War.
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ndeed, not many people are aware of the key role Deseronto played in the development of the Allied air forces during World War I. But for a 19-month stretch between the spring of 1917 until the end of 1918 the Deseronto Wing was home to a training facility that helped churn out some 4,000 Royal Flying Corps fighter pilots, in turn paving the way for Canada’s increasing influence on the international stage. Deseronto’s impact on the nascent aviation industry forms a key part of a book titled “Dancing In The Sky,” written by Belleville author Bill Hunt and published by Dundurn Press. Due out this fall, “Dancing In The Sky” looks at the history of Canada’s first pilot training program.
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A longtime Belleville resident, Hunt has previously written extensively on the illicit rum trade during the prohibition era. Titles include “Booze, Boats and Billions,” “Dockside Democracy,” and “Rumrunners of the County.” “Dancing In The Sky” is Hunt’s first book to deal with military aviation, although he is a longtime amateur pilot. He says he never would have written “Dancing In The Sky” were he not presented with an extensive collection of material by former airman Al Smith. “He approached me in 1998,” Hunt recalls. “He said, ‘I’ve been collecting material for 20 years and I really can’t write a book, would you like this?’ The information he had was just on Deseronto, so I knew I’d have to expand it. I worked on it on and off for 10 years.” In addition to Deseronto, Hunt discusses the Borden and North Toronto Wings of the RFC in his book, but Deseronto is of particular interest because of its relative obscurity. The Deseronto Wing consisted of two airfields, Mohawk and Rathbun. Mohawk has since relocated and there is little of Rathbun left to see. Hunt knew of the Rathbun Airfield before that fateful day when Smith approached him, having come across it when he was taking flying lessons in the area. “I was flying with an old World War II Spitfire pilot,” Hunt says, “and he said, ‘Look down there, we’re flying over the Deseronto Airfield.’
And of course I couldn’t tell what it was, it was 60 years later almost, and he said, ‘Can’t you see there was an airfield there?’ And that’s when I first heard about it.” The Deseronto Wing was opened in May, 1917, about a month after Borden. The man put in charge of the Canadian training program was Brigadier-General C.G. Hoare. “Hoare was not your typical British officer,” Hunt says. “He bent the rules, he twisted the rules, he ignored the rules. He was just not your typical British officer. He was an adventurer. He went off to India and had a great time in India. And then he heard there was war breaking out in Persia, and off he went there. A real character. “So he got this thing going in just a few months. It only operated for 19 months, but they turned out around 4,000 pilots, which was quite an achievement. They trained Americans, he actually gave the Americans a head start. The Americans had virtually nothing. They had airplanes but they didn’t have a training program or anything. So they’d fly them all up here.” With the airplane still in its early stages of development, fighter pilot training was a very inexact science and the death toll at facilities like Deseronto was enormous. “These guys had an average life expectancy of four weeks at one point in 1917,” Hunt explains. “Hoare actually had fairly firm philosophies, like he believed in training these guys to
Photo courtesy Deseronto Archives
Wings of Glory
Photo courtesy Dundurn Press
Photo courtesy Deseronto Archives
The unfortunate end to a flight at Camp Rathbun. Fighter pilot training in World War I was an inexact science and accidents were all too common.
The Spartan layout of Camp Rathbun in 1917. Today there is virtually nothing left of the facility.
the ‘nth’ degree, whereas the desperateness of the British situation was that you trained them as quickly as possible and threw them at the enemy and, of course, that’s where they got slaughtered. “But even so, in the 19 months that the program operated here [in Canada], there was 140 guys killed in training. That’s a bloody lot, way more than in WWII, when we trained 176,000 air crew.” A turning point came in the fall of 1917, when the British started to refine their training tech-
Ambulance attendants at Deseronto wait for the call.
niques as they started to better understand the characteristics of flight, although the techniques didn’t filter over to Canada for six months. “This particular system didn’t get to Canada until Hoare sent Arthur Tylee, who was this brilliant Canadian guy who had been put in charge of training,” Hunt explains. “Tylee comes back and says, ‘This is what they are doing, this is the plan they’ve got.’ And Hoare moved quickly. Right away they set up a school to train all the guys on the new methods. Right away the fatality rate just dropped. They were teaching the
principles of flight, which they hadn’t known properly. “But this particular system, the British had it for six months and didn’t tell anybody over here. That’s hard to believe, isn’t it?” Indeed, the rise in prominence of the Canadian training facilities led to some tension between the British and Canadians on a number of levels. “It was a British operation,” Hunt points out. “It wasn’t subjected to any Canadian laws, and there’s a whole subchapter there on the rise Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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Wings of Glory
A tale of two letters By John Hopkins.
Photo courtesy Dundurn Press
Photo and original letter courtesy Bill Hunt and Bruce Allison
Dancing In The Sky is Belleville writer Bill Hunt’s first book dealing with aviation.
of Canadian nationalism because of this British operation that was recruiting young Canadians, putting their lives in danger, because of the high casualty rate, and wasn’t answerable to any Canadian authority. “There was a lot of resentment in some quarters and so I deal with that [in the book], and you get this demand for our own air force, which comes out of it.” Another legacy of the program was the growth of the aviation industry in Canada. “It actually gave Canada a head start over the United States,” Hunt says. “They started up the Canadian Aeronautical Company, and that was the first large scale production of airplanes in this country. They churned out quite a lot of airplanes and the standards of production were so good they beat out some American companies for the largest airplane in the world at that time. They built a number of them for the American navy. “It gave us a lot of experience with aircraft and we’ve had our own aircraft manufacturing industry ever since in Canada. It really put us into the air age along with France and Great Britain and Germany and the United States. And in many ways we were ahead of the United States. “We also learned how to master winter flying. I have a chapter called Frostbite Flying, open cockpit flying. They developed all sorts of precautions to make sure the airplane worked OK, and what they found out was the problem was the men getting frostbitten in three minutes!” After the Rathbun Airfield was shut down most of the buildings were sold off, and a keen observer driving through Deseronto may be able to spot the remnants of the facility if they knew where to look. Hunt says a couple of the old airplane hangars still exist, with one used to store public works vehicles. And there are the graves in the Deseronto Cemetery, where once a year tribute is paid to some of the men who played a pioneering role in Canadian aviation. •
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War and airplanes seem to make a delicious recipe for Hollywood, and should Bill Hunt feel he has a screenplay in him, one particular anecdote from the Deseronto Wing has the potential to be a blockbuster. It involves the tragic story of a British pilot, Cadet Wilford Alcock, and Miss J. A. Geddes, a spinster living in Shannonville. Alcock was posted to the Deseronto Wing, at Camp Mohawk, in 1917 and after being injured in a training crash was placed in the care of Miss
He was always such a happy bright boy and had everything to live for. Geddes. Shortly after his recuperation, on Nov. 7, 1917, Alcock wrote to Miss Geddes, thanking her for her care. “I don’t hardly know how to begin to thank you for your great kindness to me at the time of my accident,” Alcock begins. “You certainly Original letter from Wilford Alcock to Miss J. A. played the Good Samaritan to me and I can Geddes of Shannonville. never hope to repay you, but I do want you to know that I appreciate every little thing you did for my comfort.” Further on in the letter Alcock updates Geddes on his progress in his flight training. “I have put in my 10 hours solo flying, made 43 landings and passed all my ground tests, so I leave here, four o’clock tomorrow, hoping to go home but not being very sure of the same.” Alcock concludes the letter by saying, “I hope that some time or other I may meet you again, though under very different circumstances.” Less than three weeks later, on Nov. 24 Alcock was killed in a crash in Texas, shortly after arriving there for winter training. His plane collided with another at an altitude of 2,000 feet. On Dec. 5 his Aunt, Mrs. W. J. Mills wrote to Miss Geddes from her home in New Bedford, MA. “It is with great sorrow in our hearts that I write to you of the death of our late nephew Wilfred C. Alcock of the A Canadian JN-4, or Jenny, typical of the planes used in R.F.C.,” she begins. “It has been a great Deseronto in 1917. shock to us. Wilfred had lived with us five years from the time he left England until he joined up. We thought of him as a son. He was always such a happy bright boy and had everything to live for. “Now I must thank you my dear Miss Geddes for your kindness to my dear boy when he met with the accident in Canada. He wrote us all about it and he was so grateful to you for your hospitality. We appreciate all you did for Wilfred. We thought then how fortunate Wilfred had been.” Mrs. Mills asks Miss Geddes to write to Alcock’s parents back in England, and to his “dear little sweetheart, whom he expected to make his bride when he returned to England.” She also says she is forwarding one of Miss Geddes’ letters to Alcock to his fiancée, Ethel. “It was a beautiful letter and will comfort her, I am sure,” Mrs. Mills continues. “Ethel is like one of our own, and anything about Wilfred she will want very much.” Mrs. Mills concludes with some details of Alcock’s funeral in New Bedford and information of the crash. “Another six inches would have saved him. The other man was not hurt at all. Our poor boy.” Bruce Allison is a nephew of Miss Geddes, currently living in Picton
discovering hastings county
A Taste Of Hastings County e
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Measuring an impressive 5,964 square kilometres or 1,473,861 acres in size, Hastings is the second largest county in Ontario. This makes it larger than 28 countries of the world. It’s bigger than the City of Toronto and 5.7 times the size of Prince Edward County, its neighbour to the south. If the entire population of Canada moved to Hastings County it would still be less dense than Singapore. With so much wide open space it’s not surprising that twice as many Hastings County residents live in a rural setting compared to the Canadian average.
One Great Way to See Hastings County
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8 Big Celebrations Country fairs and exhibitions have been a staple of rural life from the earliest days of settlement. All of the eight fairs running in Hastings today have been in existence for more than 100 years. Belleville, Coe Hill, Madoc, Marmora, Mohawk Society Shannonville, Stirling & Tweed
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The Bleasdell Boulder is believed to be the largest glacial “erratic” rock in Ontario, weighing an estimated 1,000 tonnes and standing nearly nine metres high. This free standing metamorphic rock originated in Northeastern Ontario about 20,000 years ago and was moved by glaciers and deposited here. Open year round, a well-groomed wheelchair accessible trail takes you on a 15-minute hike to the boulder. From Highway 401 take exit 525 at Hwy 33 (Trenton) and drive north for 2.5 km to 292 Glenn Miller Rd.
Visit www.ontariofairs.com and click on “Fairs” for dates and other information.
A large magnetite orebody was discovered east of Marmora in 1948. The first shipment of iron ore pellets from the Marmoration Mine commenced in 1955, and the mine eventually employed 300. The pit measures over 850 meters long, 450 meters wide, and is 165 meters deep. Over time, underground streams and rainfall slowly filled two thirds of the mine with water, so much so that it is now officially classified as a lake. From Marmora, drive east on Highway 7 and follow the signs for Marmora Mine. •
The Heritage Trail is a 350 km trail which follows an old abandoned railway line. The four season trail commonly used for walking, skiing, biking, horseback riding and recreational vehicles starts at Glen Ross and heads north to Lake St. Peter. For more information visit the Eastern Ontario Trails Alliance website at www.thetrail.ca
Known as Moodie Cottage, 114 Bridge Street West in Belleville was home to pioneer author Susannah Moodie. First published in 1852 her most famous book, Roughing It in the Bush remains in print today. The book chronicled her alternately heartbreaking and humorous life homesteading with her family in the forests of Upper Canada and turned Europeans’ fairy-tale illusions of living in the Canadian wilderness upside down. Built in 1882-1883 for wealthy banker and financier J.P.C. Phillips, Glanmore reflects the tastes of the well-to-do in late 19th century Canada. Located at 257 Bridge St. E. in Belleville, the Glanmore National Historic Site of Canada is open year round for tours. Visit www.quinte.net/glanmore for details.
Orland French photo
4 Sites to See
Orland French photo
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Built in 1837 pioneer author Susanna Moodie lived in this house after 1842.
Bleasdell Boulder at Glen Miller, deposited by glacier.
A coach promoting an array of locks and door hardware at the South Hastings Agricultural Fair in Belleville.
Photo courtesy C.W. Hunt
The information in this article was obtained from the Heritage Atlas of Hastings County, published by The County of Hastings and edited by Orland French. Copies of the book are available through www.hastingscountyatlas.com or from The County of Hastings, 235 Pinnacle Street, PO Bag 4400, Belleville, Ontario K8N 3A9. Written and compiled in an entertaining and informative format the hardcover book is a friendly reference for discovering all things Hastings.
Orland French photo
10 Dates to Remember 1615 Champlain visits the Bay of Quinte area with a war party of Hurons. 1850 Hastings County is established 1866 First discovery of gold in Ontario at the Richardson Mine near Eldorado. 1878 Publication of Belden’s Illustrated Historical Atlas of the Counties of Hastings and Prince Edward. 1900 Talc mining begins near Madoc; as of 2006 the mine was still operating. 1920s Business is booming for rum runners across Lake Ontario during Prohibition. 1929 Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Station Trenton established; opened in 1931 1949 Prospector Art Shore discovers uranium near Bancroft 1967 Loyalist College opens 2003 Margaret Walsh elected first female warden of Hastings County.
Glanmore National Historic Site, Belleville. Hastings County Historical Society HC 1074
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Painted black and with a hull designed for speed the 1920s prohibition era rum-running boat Pollywog could outrun Customs Service Patrol on Lake Ontario.
Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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organic farming
As Mother Earth Intended Local farmers go “au naturel” By Nancy Hopkins
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educe your carbon footprint, the 100-mile diet, eat organic, buy local, go green. These terms have become familiar to most of us in recent times. In 1994 local farmers Didi and Willie Curry found a three-acre parcel of land in Centre Hastings where they could tread lightly on the earth - a term near and dear to their hearts. Over the last 10 years they have transformed the land through organic farming, provided healthy food to many people and educated countless individuals who have passed through their doors. But treading lightly on the earth is not a new thing for Didi. “I’ve always been environmentally conscious,” she says. “Even when I lived in Belleville I grew my small veggie patch organically. There’s never been a time that I would have put anything that was not good on the soil.”
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Organic agriculture enhances the quality of the soil with natural composts, green manure and crop rotations. Disease, weeds and pests are controlled by herbal pesticides, crop rotation and timed intervention, among other methods. The result is healthy drug-free food. Produce from the Currys’ Hilltop Pastures farm carries the symbol “Quinte Organic Certified Organic Product.” The process of becoming certified organic is in-depth, explains Didi. “When you get certified someone comes to your farm and they take a look at everything and check out boxes, bottles, the labels on them and they check your diaries, because you are supposed to keep a diary, and check your water,” she says. “You have to send in water tests and soil tests. We haven’t had a soil test for four or five years. You just have it done once in a while, they don’t insist upon it ever year. But still there is somebody that comes
Farm Intern Lanna Nisbet has a head for “Kale” at Hilltop Pastures. Photo: Willie Curry
and checks out our compost to make sure that we are composting right. “The longer we are in this the more we realize that there are certain things that we need to improve upon so now we compost quite differently, in a much better way than in the beginning which makes for a better product.” Using only organic mulch and hay is also part of the process. The Currys are members of the Quinte Organic Farmers Co-op and will be selling mesclun, a mix of young salad greens, at Toronto farmers’ markets throughout the summer and into the fall. They plan to grow them continuously through October, which requires constant transplanting. They also provide a variety of vegetables and fresh eggs to area residents. The same customers have been buying their “Happy Chicken Eggs,” as Didi affectionately calls them, for years. “They are really delicious,” she points out. Fellow Co-op members Karen and Matt Caruana of Porcupine Creek Farm near Marmora agree that farming organically is indeed an ongoing learning process. For the past three and a half years the Toronto transplants have grown a variety of herbs for use in herbal teas and body care products. It fulfills their desire to work outdoors and their interest in the properties of herbs and their use for remedies. The inconsistencies in weather conditions from year to year have taught the Caruanas the need to adapt to the restrictions imposed by Mother Nature and be prepared for everything, whether it’s using a lot of mulch when it is very wet or very dry to keep moisture in the ground or methods to keep weeds under control. According to Karen, “it takes years to maintain or improve your soil fertility. It’s not something that happens overnight. Whereas with ’conventional farming’ it is a quick fix – put fertilizier down - with organic farming you are gradually adding to the soil.” To achieve this they plant rye in the fall and plow it down in the spring and then overseed with clover and buckwheat and plow it down again. These efforts have paid off. Tests show an improvement in the soil quality on their farm.
organic farming
Quinte Organic Farmer’s Co-op members selling their produce at Toronto’s Brickworks Market. Photo: Willie Curry
Railway Creek Farms “big strong garlic” drying in the barn. Photo: Elly Blanchard
Elly Blanchard’s son Jared with his calf Utopia at Railway Creek Farms. Photo: Elly Blanchard
Quinte Organic Farmer’s Co-op vegetables, as healthy as they are colourful. Photo: Willie Curry
Farming is a labour intensive job and helping hands are always needed. The Currys and Caruanas have hosted numerous people as part of the Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOFERS) program. The guests work five or six hours per day, six days a week on the farm in exchange for room and board. The Caruanas have been home for short periods of time (two weeks on average) to people from Japan, France, South Africa and Germany. Spending time with WWOOFER’s and interns fulfills Didi’s greatest passion. “The thing that is closest to my heart is all the young people that come here to help us and helping them see how we tread lightly on the earth,” she explains. And she’s not just referring to farming. There are “all the little things, from shower reducing things to the recycling.” The Currys also offer farm vacations that they hope inspire participants to live with respect for the land. Seeing firsthand what respect for the land is all about left a lasting impression on farmer Elly Blanchard. In the 1970’s her Grandmother bought a plot in the mountains of Quebec where she grew, preserved and froze her own organic food and led
a self sufficient life. Blanchard’s memories of eating peas and raspberries fresh off the vine spawned the life she leads today. In 1989, after obtaining a Diploma in Horticulture she “started breaking up land” on her 200-acre property north of Madoc. Today, farming the Railway Creek property is a family affair. Her son and daughter are farmers in training with their own responsibilities. And the whole family could be extra busy this season. Blanchard is optimistic that “crops should be good this year, especially perennial crops will do well because we didn’t have a harsh winter and the water tables are up.” Also a member of the Quinte Organic Farmers Co-op, Railway Creek produces a wide variety of vegetables but is known for its asparagus and 15 varieties of garlic. And this is not your average garlic, Blanchard points out, but “big strong garlic.” This year she is providing customers with flash frozen organic beef available straight from her farm. She can also offer organic pork from fellow farmers. A call ahead is all that’s required. Hastings County accounts for 2.27 per cent of the total acres farmed in the province of Ontario. According to the Statistics Canada study “Organic: from niche to mainstream” farms that reported growing certified organic products increased nearly
60 per cent from 2001 to 2006. Beyond that, a large percentage of farms were transitioning to organic. Despite the large gain, the farm operations growing certified organic products represented only 1.5 per cent of all farm operations Didi Curry cautions buyers to differentiate between local and organic. “A lot of people right now are talking and the local is taking over the organic,” she says. “I’ve had somebody who has bought veggies from me in the past, and she told me the other day she was buying local vegetables, and I said, ‘Are they certified organic?’ and she said, ‘I don’t know but they’re local.‘” • To learn more about organic farming and Hastings County organic farmers visit: www.quinteorganic.ca www.hilltoppastures.com. Call ahead (613-478-6078) if you wish to visit the farm or purchase produce. www.porcupinecreekfarm.ca You can call Railway Creek Farm at (613) 473-2889 to enquire about flash frozen organic beef and pork. Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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The Community Arts Centre at the Centre Hastings Park, scheduled to be completed at the end of August, will be designed as a zero emissions structure.
“And the youth have been involved along the way,” he added. Indeed, kids in the community met with the park’s designer, Jim Barnum, to give their input and raised $27,000 towards the construction of the skatepark. One handicapped student raised $4,000 by taking part in a 10-mile walk. Those efforts were recognized on April 21 when Donato, Reeve Tom Deline and students Jordan Melvin and Tyler Peck, who initiated funding for the Park, received a Youth Initiative Award from the Community Futures Development Corporation in Stratford.
of displays and is open from 10:00am to 4:00pm seven days a week from Victoria Day Weekend to Labour Day. • For more information on the Heritage Village and the Hastings County Museum of Agricultural Heritage, visit www.agmuseum.ca or call (613) 395-0015.
Photo courtesy Don Hughes/Laugh Lines Theatre
Photo courtesy Carman Donato
• cross roads •
A splash pad described as the first of its kind in Ontario is scheduled to be completed in the first week of July as the Centre Hastings recreation complex begins $800,000 worth of projects this summer. The 4,000 square foot splash pad, which will use a recyclable-reusable water system, is just one of several improvements on tap for the park that has already become a popular destination for tourists and Hastings County residents. The projects include a 2,000 square foot Community Arts Centre designed and built by the Sustainable Building Program of Fleming College, a new tourist booth with a digital community events sign, a 36-foot by 28-foot picnic shelter and a new straw bale washroom and change room facility. “We’re moving toward a totally green facility,” said Carman Donato, the supervisor of park development. Work began on the Arts Centre in late April, and is slated to be completed at the end of August. The tourist booth was due to open at the start of June, with the picnic shelter installed before July 1 and the washrooms and change rooms finished in the fall, according to Donato. The splash pad and its recyclable water system will feature a UV disinfection system, and is described in project notes as “the first such splash pad in the province.” The Community Arts Centre will be constructed of straw bales and will have a goal of zero emissions. The project is led by Madoc Township resident Chris Magwood, an instructor in the sustainable building program at Fleming. Magwood is internationally recognized for his work in environmentally friendly designs, and was named one of Canada’s “Eco All-Stars” by Harrowsmith magazine. The washroom and change room facility will also feature straw bale construction. The Park, situated at Durham and Seymour Streets in Madoc, has already garnered national attention with its 12,700 square foot cement skatepark, a 4,000 square foot bunny skatepark and mega tower playground. “They come from all over,” Donato said, “and have turned this small town into a tourist destination.”
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Country Roads • Summer 2008
Photo by John Hopkins
Work on Madoc complex hits top gear
The Streetscape in the Heritage Village consists of over 18 store fronts.
Dramatic opening at Agricultural Museum On the evening of May 7 the Hastings County Museum of Agricultural Heritage opened its Heritage Village, a spectacular 180 foot long and 60 foot wide streetscape. Situated in one of the eight buildings that dot the museum property, the Heritage Village features over 18 store fronts designed to take visitors back in time. The display includes a fire station, pharmacy, doctor’s office and shoe store, meant to represent the period between 1920 and 1950. A chapel has been built at the far west end of the building, making the Heritage Village an ideal venue for weddings. According to the Museum’s Ron Reid, the project took two and a half years to complete at a cost of $140,000. “It was almost entirely put together by volunteers,” he said. “There were guys working here 40 hours a week.” Reid said the idea for the Streetscape came from a visit to the Western Development Museum in Saskatoon. In addition to hosting special events the facility is designed as an educational venue, and $40,000 has been invested in audio devices that can lead visitors on a guided tour of the Heritage Village. The building can accommodate 375 people, Reid said. There are reportedly three weddings already booked for the building, which will also play a key role in hosting some of the events around Stirling’s 150th birthday. The Hastings County Museum of Agricultural Heritage features more than 28,000 square feet
Laugh Lines Theatre opens its second season at the Village Playhouse on July 2.
Three for the summer in Bancroft Laugh Lines Theatre will offer its second full season of entertainment at The Village Playhouse in Bancroft this summer. The season opens July 2 with Jasper Station, a musical comedy by Norm Foster and Steve Thomas. That is followed by That Darn Plot! by David Belke, which opens July 24. The season concludes with another Foster hit, The Love List, which opens Aug. 14. “Norm Foster is someone we’re very familiar with and we like quite a few of his plays,” said Don Hughes, who along with his wife Margaret formed Laugh Lines Theatre in 2004. “A lot of our audience members know his work. It’s very accessible material and he paints a realistic picture that people can identify with.” Jasper Station involves the lives of six people who happen to meet one night in a train station. Howard Bear will act as musical director for the season opener. “A musical is a little more demanding, but it’s a great way to open the season,” Hughes said. That Darn Plot! is a comedy that looks at a playwright’s struggles with personal relationships. It will be staged at The Village Playhouse in collaboration with Blackfly Theatre, which traditionally performs in Apsley but is waiting for a new venue to be built. The Love List is a comedy that follows the matchmaking adventures of Bill, a lonely workaholic divorcé. “It’s more classical Norm Foster,” Hughes said. Laugh Lines took over the summer theatre program at The Village Playhouse last year after a 15 year run by Theatrics. Margaret and Don Hughes have been involved with shows at the theatre since 1996. • For more details and a full summer schedule go to www.bancroftvillageplayhouse.ca/laughlines.
discovering hastings county
• cross roads • Man Of La Mancha will run at the Stirling Festival Theatre through the village’s 150th celebrations.
who helps organize the show for the Stirling District Lions Club, the focus on women truckers is a first for Canada, although it is growing in the U.S. The show will also launch the Memorial Highway, a fund for families in need in the trucking industry, and introduce a section for old historical trucks. A highlight will be the Canadian Big Rig BuildOff, while special guests will be the winners of the recent Mid-America Build Off held in Kentucky in May. “We always try to get the best of the best,” said Potts in explaining the show’s rapid growth. “And we like to project a quality image. It’s very educational and very family oriented. “And since it’s sponsored by the Lions Club, all the proceeds go right back into the community.” Potts said visitors to the show always enjoy the farewell parade through downtown Stirling, which takes place as the show closes on Sunday afternoon. • For more information on the Stirling Truck Show go to www.stirlingtruckshow.com or call (613) 395-3119.
Les Voix humaines, “trapeze artists of the viola da gamba”; an evening of classical piano with Westben’s Brian Finley; and Canada’s internationally acclaimed pianist Louis Lortie with France’s violinist Augustin Dumay. • For a complete schedule of concerts, ticket subscriptions and travel packages log on to www.westben.on.ca
Photo courtesy Marmora Country Jamboree
The timeless musical Man Of La Mancha highlights the Stirling Festival Theatre’s summer season. Written by Dale Wasserman and directed by artistic and managing director Caroline Smith, the play runs from Aug. 6-23, encompassing Stirling’s 150th birthday celebrations. Also featured this summer is Steel Magnolias, a comedy set in the early 1980s that explores the lives of six women, which runs from July 9-19. Kids of all ages will enjoy Garbage Delight, a one-hour play based on the poems of Dennis Lee that will be performed by the theatre’s Young Company in the Upper Hall. The show also runs during the 150th celebrations, from Aug. 12-22, and the ice cream parlour will be open. September brings a third helping of Old Mixed Bags, the extremely popular variety show that is scheduled to include Don Harron as Charlie Farqhuarson, comedienne Diane Fabian and 85-year-old Charleston dancer Marion Green, among others. The show runs Sept. 24-25. That is followed by The Bebop Cowboys on Sept. 27. Often featured on Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Café radio program, the Cowboys offer a unique brand of Western Swing. As usual, the Stirling Festival Theatre will offer its summer theatre classes July 14-18 and Aug. 25-29. The Stirling Festival Theatre was built as a “community service building” in 1927 and for a time the box office housed the Stirling Police Office and the current dressing rooms under the stage were jail cells. In 1939 the 436-seat auditorium began showing movies, a function it served into the 1950’s. The building was almost torn down in the early 1980’s, but in 1984 the Stirling Performing Arts Council was formed and played a key role in saving the historic building. Smith was hired as artistic and managing director in 1996 and the theatre underwent major renovations. • For more details on the Stirling Festival Theatre and information on all the upcoming shows visit www. stirlingfestivaltheatre.com.
Last year’s Marmora Country Jamboree attracted over 900 campers.
Brian Finley will be among the performers featured at Westben’s Music of the Night series.
Wide range at Westben Westben – Concerts at The Barn presents its ninth season of world class music in wide open countryside with a performance lineup ranging from international soloists to full orchestra in classical, Broadway, jazz and world music. Westben’s ninth season includes Symphony and Operetta, featuring the UBC Opera Ensemble performing in the opening orchestral Symphonic Serenade as well as Johann Strauss’ Die Fledermaus. Spectacular Saturday Nights includes a five-hour Schubertiad where Viennese food compliments favourite music of Franz Schubert; the return of renowned tenor Michael Burgess; and Classical 96.3FM’s Alexa Petrenko hosts Saturday Night at the Opera featuring four acclaimed Canadian opera singers. The Tuesday evening Music of the Night series welcomes Quebec guitarist Patrick Kearney;
Jamboree ready to draw crowds Photo courtesy Stirling Truck Show
Photo by Richard Goldthorpe/courtesy Westben Theatre
Photo courtesy Stirling Festival Theatre
Musical adventure comes to Stirling
The builders of this truck, which won the Big Rig Build Off at May’s Mid-America show in Kentucky, will be special guests at the Stirling Truck Show.
Truck show growing at top speed In only its third year of existence the Stirling Truck Show has turned into one of Canada’s premier events of its kind. The 2008 edition of the show runs June 13-15 at the Stirling Fair Grounds. New for this year is a Ladies Pit Stop, which will include seminars and demonstrations geared to women in trucking. According to Ruth Potts,
Almost 1,000 campers are expected to descend on this summer’s seventh edition of the Marmora Country Jamboree, which runs from Sept. 11-14 at 6666 Stirling-Marmora Road, about a mile and a half south of the village of Marmora. The event will feature 27 performers over the four days, including David Church on the Friday and Grand Ole Opry legend Whisperin’ Bill Anderson on the Saturday. There will also be open mic sessions Thursday and Saturday, and other highlights of the weekend include vendors, a barbeque and a shuttle service to Marmora. Originally staged at the Marmora Fairgrounds, this will be the Jamboree’s third year on the 80 acres of land just off the Stirling-Marmora Road. “We just outgrew the fairgrounds,” said Brenda Warren, who along with her husband Randy, and his parents Boyd and Helen Warren organizes the event. “We had 360 campers at the fairgrounds, Continued on page 22. Summer 2008 • Country Roads
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• A la Carte •
Home Made Charm Tweed landmark serves up memorable fare
Photo by Vern McGrath. McGrath Photography
Lorna and Tom Voisey’s love affair with Kelly’s Restaurant on Highway 37 north of Tweed began over three years ago. The Toronto residents were arranging to meet their Ottawa Valley granddaughters on St. Patrick’s Day at a halfway point between the two homes. They had passed the sign for Kelly’s many times and thought it could be a great meeting spot, especially considering their Irish heritage. Lorna spoke with co-owner Jennifer Logan and things were set. But when they arrived they were greeted with an unexpected surprise. Logan had decorated their table with shamrocks, party hats and all things green and Irish. It’s no wonder the girls rate Kelly’s as their “favourite restaurant.” Since then the Voiseys and their granddaughters have returned numerous times and also introduced friends from Belleville and Trenton to the spot. Kelly’s has been a restaurant since 1973 when a group of families constructed the Pan Abode home on the property and it opened as Supper of the Lamb. A walkway from the parking lot connects to the second floor of the building nestled in the birch trees. Jennifer Logan serves the homemade soup of the Below is a large grassy lawn ideal for letting children day while co-owner Glen Crowley prepares the (and adults) burn off steam and a spot where patrons main course at Kelly’s Restaurant near Tweed. often tie up their four legged family members while they dine. The children’s menu reaches beyond the norm and includes soup and salad. Logan believes that “families are comfortable bringing kids” and is happy they provide an experience different from the eateries that line the major highways. The restaurant business is known for high turnover but in 35 years there have been only a handful of owners. And according to Logan and co-owner Glen Crowley the majority of their patrons have been coming for years. Local vacationers and cottagers often say “my parents brought me here when I was young and now I bring my children.” Each May 24 weekend Logan counts on seeing the same two gentlemen waiting for her when she opens in the morning before they head off on their fishing trip. They’ve been stopping to eat since the late 1970’s. The summer brings the return of familiar families and groups from as far away as Cincinnati, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Kelly’s is a popular meeting spot for Christmas get-togethers, special celebrations, and the destination for groups from both Ottawa and Toronto. Friday afternoons often include local business people looking for a quiet meeting space. There’s more to Kelly’s than the staff and quaint location. The menu is extensive – everything from soups, salads, and pasta to seafood dishes. They’re known for their Pecan Chicken, large stuffed potatoes, and home made burgers on home made buns. The dairy free caesar dressing is so popular they’ve been known to make take-away batches for customers. Local born Logan’s connection to Kelly’s started in 1994 when in her teens she worked as a dishwasher. Her business partner Glen’s parents John and Philippa Crowley operated the restaurant from 1991-2001 when their son and Logan took over. The Crowleys still live on the property and John comes by each day and makes the homemade soup. Logan rates his beef barley the best. Crowley says that Logan is the face of the restaurant. He spends most of his time creating in the kitchen. Fully licensed, Kelly’s Restaurant offers daily lunch and dinner specials and take-out. Catering, including platters and lunch delivery is available as are gift certificates. They also offer a bring your own wine service on LCBO purchased wines with a $5.00 corking fee. Bottles of wine purchased at the restaurant can be re-corked at no charge.
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Starting May 24 weekend Kelly’s is open at 11:30 a.m. for lunch and dinner. Their patio opens in June. Tel. 613 478-2113. www.ruralroutes.com/369.html Comfortable dining in a quaint country setting makes Kelly’s a place to remember.
Country Roads • Summer 2008
• cross roads • and that doubled the first year we switched locations. We had 900 campers last year.” • Four-day camping passes are available for $50 per person until Aug. 18, when they go up to $55 per person, and weekend walk-in passes sell for $40, but go up to $45 after Aug. 18. Single day passes are also available for all four days. For advance tickets and more details call (613) 395-0774 or go to www.marmorajamboree.com. • A traffic jam of a different sort is tying up Front Street in Marmora on Thursday nights this summer. From May 15 until Sept. 25 Classic Cruiser Nights will draw around 100 cars of various vintage to the centre of town. Festivities get underway at 5:00 p.m. and run until 9:00 p.m. As well as classic cars the Thursday night events feature live music, prizes for kids and 50/50 draws. Crowds of between 2,000-3,000 are expected to jam Front St. from Highway 7 north. For more information go to www.marmora.info.ca. • The 45th annual Rockhound Gemboree runs in Bancroft from July 31-Aug. 3. Details are available at www.bancroftdistrict.com or by calling 1-888443-9999. • The Madoc Canadian Heritage Music & Arts Festival is scheduled for July 3-6. The event will be held on a multi-acre recreational/agricultural centre near the town of Madoc. Profits from the festival will go to next year’s event, as well as local community projects. More info can be found at www.madocfestival.com. • The Hastings County Plowing Match & Farm Show celebrates its 20th anniversary Aug. 20-21 at Lysle View Farms in Stirling. In conjunction with Stirling’s 150th Anniversary the event will help coordinate the “World’s Greatest Tractor Parade” on Aug. 20. General information is available at (613) 395-5177, Tractor Parade information can be found by calling (613) 395-2963 or go to www. hastingsfarmshow.ca. • Stirling will hold its Festival of the Arts over the Canada Day Weekend. The event will include arts and crafts displays, kids’ events, bands, a street dance and a fireworks display. Get more info at www.stirling-rawdon.com. • Marmora will hold its Canada Day Boat Parade July 1 on the Crowe Lake Waterway. For details go to www.marmora.info.ca. • Some of the biggest names in music will be part of Empire Rockfest at Empire Square Live in Belleville July 24-26. The festival opens July 24 with Tom Cochrane & Red Rider with special guests David Wilcox and sled dogs. Bachman Cummings perform July 25 along with Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad. And on July 26 Steve Winwood headlines with special guests Colin James and Clifton David. For more details and tickets call (613) 969-0099 or go to www.empiresquarelive.com.
discovering hastings county
Photo courtesy: Hastings County Museum of Agricultural Heritage
Back R oad s
Country Roa
d i s c o v e r i n g h a s t i n g s c ou n
Country Roads
Bringing Butter To The Table In The 1800’s
discovering hastings county
Country Roads
Cheese and butter factories were once a common sight in Hastings County. According to the Heritage Atlas of Hastings County more than 80 existed, although they may not have all been in operation at any one time. This wood frame building on James McComb’s farm on St. Mark’s Road south of Marmora operated as a butter and cheese factory in the mid-to-late 1800’s. McComb’s parents had immigrated to Canada from Ireland following the potato famine of the 1840’s anddiscovering settled an acrehastings of land in county nearby Bonarlaw. Like all cheese and butter factories its location was chosen because it had a water supply nearby. According to Larry McComb, a descendant of James McComb this photo was taken sometime during the 1860’s or 70’s. When the butter factory closed down the building was gutted and turned into a sheep barn. The building no longer stands.
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