10 28 2013 Heritage Committee AgendaPage
TOWNSHIP OF ORO- MEDONTE
HERITAGE COMMITTEE
MEETING AGENDA
Tnwnship of COUNCIL CHAMBERS
Monday, October 28, 2013
Proud Heritage, Exciting Future TIME: 6:00 p.m.
1. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
a) Motion to Adopt the Agenda.
2. DISCLOSURE OF PECUNIARY INTEREST
3. ADOPTION OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING:
2 - 6 a) Minutes of the Heritage Committee meeting held on Monday, September 30,
2013.
7
8 -11
12 - 14
15 - 16
17 -22
4. DEPUTATIONS:
a) Tim Crawford, re: National Heritage Site.
5. COMMUNICATIONS:
a) Su Murdoch, Murdoch Historical Consulting, re: Oro African Methodist
Episcopal Church.
b) Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Services, re: Heritage
Committee Work Plan — Heritage Policy and Education.
c) Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Services, re: Heritage
Committee Work Plan — Heritage Sites and Infrastructure.
d) Shawn, Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Services, re: Township
History Books.
e) The Quarterly Newsletter of the Simcoe County Historical Association, Vol.
41, No. 3.
6. NEXT MEETING DATE
Monday, November 25, 2013 at 6:00 p.m.
7. ADJOURNMENT
a) Motion to Adjourn.
Page 1 of 22
3.a) Minutes of the Heritage Committee meeting held on Monda...
7'rtrr tuir dp n
Pruxrd Heritrrrc, Exririow Frrrury
Monday, September 30, 2013
THE TOWNSHIP OF ORO- MEDONTE
HERITAGE COMMITTEE
MEETING MINUTES
Council Chambers
Present: Councillor John Crawford, Chair
Mayor H.S. Hughes
Murray Cayley
Ruth Fountain
Dorothy Moore
Regrets: Leah Burton, Bruce Malcom
Staff:
TIME: 6:03 p.m.
Councillor Mel Coutanche, Vice Chair
Suzanne Busby
Tim Crawford (arrived at 6:08 p.m.)
Wayne Lintack
,Kayla, Thibeault
Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Services; Justin
Hodgkinson, Community Recreation Coordinator; Marie Brissette, Committee
Coordinator
1. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
a) Motion to Adopt the Agenda.
Motion No. HC130930 -1
Moved by Fountain, Seconded byThibeault
It is recommended that the agenda for the Heritage Committee meeting of Monday, September
30, 2013 be received and adopted.
2. DISCLOSURE OF PECUNIARY INTEREST
None declared.
Carried.
3. ADOPTION OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING:
a) Minutes of the Heritage Committee meeting held on Monday, August 26, 2013.
Motion No. HC130930 -2
Moved by Cayley, Seconded by Lintack
It is recommended that the draft minutes of the Heritage Committee meeting held on Monday,
August 26, 2013 be adopted as printed and circulated.
Carried.
Page 2 of 22
3.a) Minutes of the Heritage Committee meeting held on Monda...
Heritage Committee Meeting Minutes — September 30, 2013
4. DEPUTATIONS:
a) Paul Marshall, re: Recognition of the Penetanguishene Road and Connected Town
Sites.
Motion No. HC130930 -3
Moved by Busby, Seconded by Cayley
It is recommended that the information presented by Paul Marshall, re: Recognition of the
Penetanguishene Road and Connected Town Sites be received.
5. COMMUNICATIONS:
Carried.
a) Report No. RC2013 -19, Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Services,
re: Oro African Church Assessment.
Motion No. HC130930 -4
Moved by Cayley, Seconded by Fountain
It is recommended that Report No. RC2013 -19, Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and
Community Services, re: Oro African Church Assessment be received.
Carried.
b) Wayne Lintack, re: Draft Flyer - Early Black Settlement Information And
Artifacts Needed.
Motion No. HC130930 -5
Moved by Moore, Seconded by Thibeault
It is recommended
1. That the information presented by Wayne Lintack, re: Draft Flyer - Early Black Settlement
Information And Artifacts Needed be received.
Carried.
Page 2 of 5
Page 3 of 22
3.a) Minutes of the Heritage Committee meeting held on Monda...
Heritage Committee Meeting Minutes — September 30, 2013
c) Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Services, re: Draft Letter of
Understanding - Oro African Methodist Episcopal Church Cultural Assessment.
Motion No. HC130930 -6
Moved by Cayley, Seconded by Lintack
It is recommended that the correspondence dated September 24, 2013 and presented by
Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Services, re: Draft Letter of
Understanding - Oro African Methodist Episcopal Church Cultural Assessment be received.
Carried.
d) Correspondence received September 26, 2013 from Bertrand (Bert) Duclos, Heritage
Outreach Consultant Culture Services Unit, Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, re:
Information for Municipal Heritage Committee.
Motion No. HC130930 -7
Moved by Lintack, Seconded by Cayley
It is recommended that the correspondence received September 26, 2013 from Bertrand
(Bert) Duclos, Heritage Outreach Consultant Culture Services Unit, Ministry of Tourism,
Culture and Sport, re: Information for Municipal Heritage Committee be received.
Carried.
e) Councillors Crawford andCoutanche, Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and
Community Services, re: Work Plan and Structure - Heritage Act [To be distributed at the
meeting].
Item 5e) was dealt in conjunction with Items 5f) and 5g).
Page 3 of 5
Page 4 of 22
3.a) Minutes of the Heritage Committee meeting held on Monda...
Heritage Committee Meeting Minutes — September 30, 2013
f) Councillors Crawford and Coutanche, Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and
Community Services, re: Work Plan and Structure - Education and Policies [To be
distributed at the meeting].
Motion No. HC130930 -8
Moved by Busby, Seconded by Thibeault
It is recommended
1. That the information presented by Councillors Crawford and Coutanche, Shawn Binns,
Director of Recreation and Community Services, and the Members of the Heritage
Committee, re: Work Plan and Structure - Heritage Act be received.
2. That the Heritage Committee Work Plan — Heritage Policy and Education be endorsed
by the Heritage Committee.
3. And it is recommended to Council that the Heritage Committee Work Plan — Heritage
Policy and Education be endorsed.
Carried.
g) Councillors Crawford and Coutanche, Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and
Community Services, re: Work Plan and. Structure - Heritage Sites and Artifacts [To be
distributed at the meeting].
Motion No. HC130930-
Moved by Fountain, Seconded by Moore
It is recommended
1. That the information presented by Councillors Crawford and Coutanche, Shawn Binns,
Director of Recreation and Community Services, and the Members of the Heritage
Committee, re: Work Plan and Structure - Heritage Sites and Artifacts be received.
2. That the Heritage Committee Work Plan — Heritage Sites and Infrastructure be endorsed
by the Heritage Committee.
3. And it is recommended to Council that the Heritage Committee Work Plan — Heritage
Sites and Infrastructure be endorsed.
Carried.
Page 4 of 5
Page 5 of 22
3.a) Minutes of the Heritage Committee meeting held on Monda...
Heritage Committee Meeting Minutes — September 30, 2013
h) Dorothy Moore, re: Fenian Raid.
Motion No. HC130930 -10
Moved by Fountain, Seconded by Cayley
It is recommended that the information presented by Dorothy Moore, re: Fenian Raid be
received.
6. NEXT MEETING DATE
Monday, October 28, 2013 at 6:00 p.m.
7. ADJOURNMENT
a) Motion to Adjourn.
Motion No. HC130930 -11
Moved by Fountain, Seconded by Moore
It is recommended that we do now adjourn at 7:49 p.m.
Carried.
Carried.
Councillor Crawford, Chair Marie Brissette, Committee Coordinator
Page 5 of 5
Page 6 of 22
4.a) Tim Crawford, re: National Heritage Site.
Township of wit
Proud Heritage, Exciting Future
Name:
Item Number /Name:
Meeting Date:
Motion No.:
Type of Meeting:
Speaking Notes:
Verbal Matters
(Section 12.3 of Township's
Procedural By -Law No. 2013 - 05411)
Mayor H.S. Hughes
4a) Tim Crawford, re: National Heritage Site.
10 28 2013
HC 131028 -3
X
Council
Committee of Adjustment
Special Council
Accessibility Advisory Committee
Recreational Technical Support Group
Heritage Committee
Mayor H.S. Hughes presented on behalf of Tim Crawford.
Mr. Crawford is requesting that he be permitted to investigate if the African Church could be
designated as a World Heritage Site.
12/6/13
Page 7 of 22
5.a) Su Murdoch, Murdoch Historical Consulting, re: Oro Afri...
ORO- MEDONTE TOWNSHIP MUNICIPAL HERITAGE COMMITTEE MEETING
MONDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2013, 6:00 P.M.
NOTES PRESENTED BY SU MURDOCH
The following information is preliminary and only intended as a work in progress outline.
MEETING OBJECTIVE
• To give the Committee a sense of the work in progress
• To get the Committee's input
• To organize for the stakeholder consultation
1.0 RESEARCH
- the documentary research is underway
- findings so far raise the possibility that the church and cemetery (or at least the congregation)
may be a few years earlier than 1849
- briefly, the property owner, Noah Morris (a Black settler) arrived in Oro in 1829, moved to the
west half of Lot 11, Concession 4 (the larger acreage of the church property), that year, and
received the Crown Patent in March 1840
- meanwhile, the American based African Methodist Episcopal Church ( "AME ") was officially
founded in 1816 (but is unofficially much older)
- "Societies" of the AME existed in Canada at least as early as 1826
- but it was 1832 when the first American AME missionary was sent to Canada
- In 1840, the AME conference was held in Toronto and a committee was shortly after formed to
officially establish AME in Canada. The outcome was the founding in 1856 of the British
Methodist Episcopal Church (BME) as the Canadian version of the American AME.
-Noah Morris mortgaged his property in June 1845 and in January 1846 he had the acre at the
northwest corner (the church and cemetery site) released from the mortgage
- the reason for the release is that he was conveying the acre to the trustees of a "Religious
Society of Colored African Episcopal Methodist Church in Canada" for use as a Chapel and
Burying Ground
Murdoch Presentation to Oro MHC October 28, 2013 1 of 4
Page 8 of 22
5.a) Su Murdoch, Murdoch Historical Consulting, re: Oro Afri...
- the acre was deeded in 1849 to the trustees
- both of these transactions are before the 1856 official founding of the BME
- MORE RESEARCH NEEDS TO BE DONE — and there may never be a conclusive answer to
the actual date of construction of the church
2.0 CEMETERY
- there is the lingering question of the number of burials and where they are within the acre
- the Ground Penetrating Radar scan done in 2008 found a few burials, but this is not conclusive
evidence that there are not more
- research indicates there were other early, Black settler associated burial grounds in Oro (this
may explain the few burials at our site)
- the Samuel Jackson property, east part lot 11, concession 6, had a burial ground. Jackson
was a Baptist lay preacher and dedicated an acre for the use of a Baptist church (primarily a
white congregation)
- the northeast corner of the Benjamin Turner property, east half of lot 12, concession 4, was
sold in 1858 to the BME as a burial ground
- if any soil is disturbed during this project, additional archaeological fieldwork will be required to
determine the location of graves
3.0 OWNERSHIP QUESTION
- research has flagged a question about the legal ownership of the acre
- the Twp took possession in 1997, arguing entitlement as it had maintained the property since
1947
- according to letters in the Township file, this was done against the advice of the Township's
legal counsel
- there could be an ownership challenge from the BME Church (or others, notably during the 30
day appeal period under s.29 of the OHA)
4.0 NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE STATUS
-the site was designated a National Historic Site in 2000
Murdoch Presentation to Oro MHC October 28, 2013 2 of 4
Page 9 of 22
5.a) Su Murdoch, Murdoch Historical Consulting, re: Oro Afri...
- NHS designation is commemorative only
- there are no restrictive covenants or governance on the property resulting from the designation
- what will come into play are the Parks Canada Standards and Guidelines for Historic Places
- Parks Canada administers a NHS cost sharing grant program
- its availability is announced on a year to year basis (there is no announcement yet that funds
are available for 2014)
- Competition is stiff — and Parks Canada will require compliance with the S &Gs
-Vic Snow's Scope of Work agreement with the Township specifically states that "his
investigations will not result in any irreversible treatment or loss of integrity to the historic fabric
of the building or site."
- the major implication for a NHS grant application is that relocating the church may not be
permitted under the S &Gs
- the initial e- response of Parks Canada to the generic idea of relocating the church within the
property is no funding and relocation could result in the removal of the NHS designation
5.0 ONTARIO HERITAGE ACT
- a legislative form of protection for the property is through the OHA
- there are 2 sections of the OHA worth pursuing
- s.29 — municipal designation — this is a township level process of determining what attributes
of the property should be protected (such as the church, cemetery, archaeological resources,
the cairn) — issuing a public Notice which launches a 30 day appeal period — presumably there
will be no objections and the Twp passes the designation bylaw
- downside for the church property is that the Twp is both the owner and the approval authority
for changes, demolition, etc.
- s.37 of the OHA provides for heritage conservation easements
- easements can be a standalone initiative or an overlay to the s.29 designation bylaw
- the easement can be held by the Ontario Heritage Trust (as a Crown agency, if it agrees) or
between the Township and an outside party (often a non profit corporation with the mandate of
Murdoch Presentation to Oro MHC October 28, 2013 3 of 4
Page 10 of 22
5.a) Su Murdoch, Murdoch Historical Consulting, re: Oro Afri...
preserving the property)
- the value is that the easement is a legally binding contract to which both parties agree to terms
and conditions that are enforced in perpetuity
6.0 Vic SNOW
- some work needs to be done on documenting past renovations
- these findings will assist Vic Snow in separating what is original from what physical changes
have been made since construction
- Vic can do the assessment even in winter
- Vic asked to remind the Twp of its responsibility for a biohazards report
7.0 PUBLIC OUTREACH
- the purpose of public outreach is to gather information that will add to the documentary and
physical research findings
- Wayne has drafted a flyer appealing for information (Update from Wayne ?)
- it's also important to direct questions to the individuals most likely know the answer
- for example, there is a question about the authenticity of the pews in the church. In the
Township file is a Memo to Clerk explaining that there was a wedding on June 21, 2003. The
father of the bride made 7 or 8 replica benches using 150 year old barnboard and donated them
to the church. He also repaired one of the original benches. Does anyone know this family?
8.0 STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION
- the Committee's vision for the future and use of the church site is critical
- other stakeholders may include:
-the Oro community?
- Black Community? BME church?
- other stakeholders?
- list stakeholders and schedule consultation dates?
Murdoch Presentation to Oro MHC October 28, 2013 4 of 4
Page 11 of 22
5.b) Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Servi...
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Page 12 of 22
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Page 14 of 22
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Page 15 of 22
5.c) Shawn Binns, Director of Recreation and Community Servi...
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Page 16 of 22
5.e) The Quarterly Newsletter of the Simcoe County Historica...
•
September 2013
NEWS1eWS
The Quarterly Newsletter of the Simcoe County Historical Association
In this issue...
Fall SCHA Meetings 1
SCHA 2013 Meetings 1
President's Ponderings 2
SCHA Executive 2
Innisfil Veterans Book 3
OMAH Fundraiser 3
War of 1812 4 -5
Andrew Hunter Award 5
Coming Events 6
Contact the editor, Jill Hynes
at 705- 739 -6220 or at
mark. j ill @sympatic o. ca
Visit our Website
www simcoecountyhistory.ca
SC
Preserving the Past,
in the Present,
for the Future.
October and November with the SCHA
For our regular monthly meetings, we
begin in October with Aaron
Kontkanen, the 2013 Winner of the
Andrew Hunter Award. Aaron's topic
will be his paper entitled "A case
study of the United Farmers of
Ontario in power 1919 - 1923 ", the fine
work of Premier E. C. Drury in
Simcoe County and how he misread
the wishes of Ontario voters.
In November, we partner with the
Barrie Legion and the Barrie
Historical Association to welcome Ted
Barris, well known author and military
historian. His topic will be his most
recent book, The Great Escape: A
Canadian Story.
This is the war story we all think we
know... but don't.
On the night of March 24, 1944,
eighty Commonwealth airmen
crawled through a 336 - foot -long
tunnel and slipped into the darkness of
a pine forest beyond the wire of Stalag
Luft III, a German prisoner -of -war
compound near Sagan, Poland. The
event became known as The Great
Escape. The intricate breakout, more
than a year in the making, involved as
many as 2,000 POWs, extraordinary
co- ordination and a battle of wits
inconceivable for the time. Within a
few days of the escape, however, all
but three of the escapers were
Vol. 41, No. 3
ISSN 0700-4427
recaptured; subsequently, on specific
orders from Adolf Hitler, fifty were
murdered, cremated and buried in a
remote corner of the prison
compound.
What most casual readers, history
buffs, moviegoers and even some of
the veterans themselves don't readily
acknowledge is that The Great Escape
was in many ways a "made -in -Canada
escape." As Ted Barris writes in his
new book, many of the principal
planners, task leaders and key players,
as well as some of those who actually
got away that night were Canadian
airmen, trained in Canada, serving in
RCAF bomber and fighter squadrons,
shot down over Europe, imprisoned at
Stalag Luft III and ultimately
participants in the actual Great
Escape.
As he has done in his 16 previous
books, Barris has assembled research,
based on exclusive interviews, other
unearthed recordings, transcripts, as
well as unpublished letters, diaries and
memoirs, and an assembly of photos,
maps and drawings, into a compelling
you- are -there account. The Great
Escape: A Canadian Story offers a
unique retelling of the story through
first -hand recollections of the
Canadians who experienced it. It's
more riveting than the Hollywood
movie. And it's all true!
SCHA 2013 Schedule
October 15 — Andrew Hunter Prize Winner, Aaron Kontkanen at the
Simcoe County Museum, Midhurst, at 7:30 p.m.
November 19 — Ted Barris at the Barrie Legion, at 7:30 p.m.
NEWSandViews 1
Page 17 of 22
5.e) The Quarterly Newsletter of the Simcoe County Historica...
President's Ponderings
As your new president for 2013 -2014,
I would like to welcome everyone
back for another year with the Simcoe
County Historical Association. I trust
the summer has been relaxing and
rewarding for all of you. My own
travels took me to British Columbia
for my daughter's wedding, but
historically speaking I was able to
travel through the varied interior of
Washington and down the Columbia
River. It is an area of dramatic
landscapes with the hillsides covered
in lush orchards and vineyards,
courtesy of the heat and the irrigation
waters siphoned from the Columbia.
Thirty per cent of the American apple
crop comes from Washington and as
much wheat is grown as in Manitoba,
to say nothing of the extensive timber
reserves of the coast. The Tri- Cities
area, where the Columbia turns to the
west, survives mainly on agriculture,
although it owes some of its origins to
the nearby Hanford nuclear
reservation that produced much of the
plutonium for the atomic bombs of
World War II and the early Cold War.
All that remains today is an unholy
mess of contaminated materials that
will take until 2053 to deal with as
long as Congress provides the
necessary billions. On a happier note,
the hundreds of windsurfers and
parasailers in the Columbia River
gorge, set against the back -drop of
snow covered Mount Hood, made for
a spectacular scene. And Vancouver
continues to be a city of increasing
beauty and model planning from bike
lanes to condo developments. How
can they get it so right while Toronto -
and Barrie for that matter -get it so
wrong?
And now down to business. First of all
I would like to thank our past -
president, Helen Coutts for her past
five years of service as president of the
SCHA. She more than kept things
moving in an orderly fashion and
along with the other executive
members kept the organization alive.
As has been mentioned before, we can
only remain viable if enough people
are willing to help out on our
executive, if even for a short time. At
present we need at least two more
people to sit as directors -a not onerous
position.
Partly as a result of a lack of volunteers
in both the SCHA and the Barrie
Historical Association (BHA) we have
decided on closer cooperation for
several reasons. We will have more
joint meetings so that we can improve
attendance and share the costs of
speakers. This will allow us to draw on
speakers who may have to travel some
distance and will have added travel
costs. A shared speaker list also means
less work in finding engaging and
interesting speakers which is a time
consuming task,
Our first activity for the year will be a
tour of the S.S. Keewatin on Saturday
September 14. Berthed in Port
McNicoll this retired but restored
steamship is well worth the $15 cost of
the guided tour. We can still
accommodate more people so phone
Gord Hanson (705- 721 -9401) if you
are interested. On Thursday
September 26 we will join with the
Barrie Historical Association in the Sir
Robert Barrie room at Barrie City
Hall, 7:30 p.m., to hear Brad
Rudachyk speak on "The Streets of
Barrie and the War of 1812." For
October we will have a presentation by
Aaron Kontkanen, the winner of the
Andrew Hunter prize and on
November 19 both the SCHA and the
BHA will join with the Legion to hear
well known author Ted Barris on his
latest book, The Great Escape. His
extensive research on this desperate
attempt of Canadian and British
airmen to escape from a German
prisoner of war camp is a story far
more compelling than anything dreamt
up by Steve McQueen or Hollywood.
You will not want to miss this one! So
we have a great program lined up for
the fall with more to come in the new
year. We hope to see you all there.
Simcoe County Historical Association Executive
Mark Fisher, President
Gord Harris, Treasurer
Amber Bagg, Corresponding Secretary
728 -3825 mwfisher2 @hotmail.com
739 -7649 gordon.harris67 @gmail.com
252 -7094 amberbagg @hotmail.ca
For Membership Information, contact
Earl Elliott, Membership Chair
734 -9808 earl.elliott@rogers.com
You are invited to submit
photos and articles regarding
your historical happenings in
Simcoe County. Photos will
be returned.
Mail to SCHA, Box 144,
Barrie, ON L4M 4S9.
Deadline for the
next issue is
November 25, 2013
2 NEWSandvieWS
Page 18 of 22
5.e) The Quarterly Newsletter of the Simcoe County Historica...
Innisfil Veterans Their Lives and Memories
After hundreds of interviews, stories
and pictures, the Tnnisfil Historical
Society is pleased to announce that
their amazing project, Innisfil
Veterans: Their Lives and Memories
is now complete and will be revealed
to the public on Monday November 11
from 2 -8pm at the Innisfil Town Hall,
2101 Tnnisfil Beach Rd. including the
Book Unveiling and Living Veterans
Recognition Ceremony at 2:30p.m.
Get your copy of this 500 page tribute
to Innisfil Veterans, a book focusing
on the lives of the men and
women who embarked
on the quest for peace
from early settlement
years to the present day.
This hard cover treasure is
intended to honour and
thank the men and women of
Tnnisfil who served in any of
the world's conflicts. Some
were born in Tnnisfil, some
worked here, others moved to
Tnnisfil in more recent times.
Whether part of the
Expeditionary forces, or as a
sapper, stoker, craftsman, nursing
sister, dispatch deliverer, infantry man,
airframe mechanic, or more recently a
peacekeeper, each put life on hold and
at risk to serve their country.
Read how in some cases lives were
forever changed by their experiences;
whether through physical injury or
mental stress...never to return to the
carefree days of their youth.
Featuring a complete index, this very
readable book includes stories of over
700 WWI and WWII veterans plus a
section focusing on the Memories of
those affected by war, now
living in Tnnisfil.
Ordering early helps Tnnisfil Historical
Society better determine how many
books to have printed.
Regular price as of Nov. 1 is $55
Order before Sept. 30 for $45
Order before Oct. 30 for $50
Please make cheque payable to Tnnisfil
Historical Society and mail to: Innisfil
Historical Society, P.O. Box 7176,
Innisfil, ON L9S 1A9
Pick up your book at the Nov.
11 event or at the Knock
Heritage Site, 7176 10"
Sideroad, Innisfil,
Thursdays 1-4 p.m. from
Nov. 14 to Dec. 12.
A must read even if you are new
to Innisfil...the stories of Innisfil
people are fascinating! Please spread
the word to family, friends and
neighbours.
If you cannot pick up
your copy, shipping and
handling costs are as
follows:
In Ontario: $15/book,
2nd book $7.50
Other Canadian
Provinces:$18/book, 2nd book $9
S &H
Outside Canada: phone Donna Wice at
(705) 436 -2578
or email mdwice @sympatico.ca for
individual pricing.
OMAH Fundraiser
1000 Brushstrokes Raffle Fundraiser
SUPPORT OMAN BY HELPING
TO CREATE A PAINTING!
Tickets on sale until Saturday
September 28 at 4pm!
DRAW: Monday September 30, 3pm
The Orillia Museum of Art and
History (OMAH) is asking the
community to help create a painting
by buying a brushstroke. Each
brushstroke supports OMAHDs recent
renovation!
Tickets are available for purchase at
the museum until Saturday,
September 28, the day of OMAH's
grand re- launch, part of the City of
Orillia's Culture Days celebration of
the arts.
Local artist Paul Shilling has
generously agreed to work with us by
creating one of his amazing paintings
with 1,000 brushstrokes. Each
brushstroke purchased entitles the
supporter to a ticket that will be
entered into a draw for the painting
on Sep. 30 at 3pm. One lucky
supporter will win the painting with
an estimated value of $2,500.
Tickets are $20 each or 3 for $50. All
proceeds from ticket sales will be
used to purchase furniture for our
newly renovated and expanded
Museum.
Be a part of creating this painting and
support OMAH in its mission to
"inspire creativity + celebrate
history" in our community.
NEWSandVleWS 3
Page 19 of 22
5.e) The Quarterly Newsletter of the Simcoe County Historica...
The War of 1812: reminiscences and recollections
by Jill Hynes
The following notes were compiled by
the author for a presentation to the
SCHA in October, 2011. This is the
fourth installment of the series and
publication will continue in upcoming
issues of this newsletter.
As a background story to Tecumseh's
life, I want to include this piece: In
1786 the Kentucky militia destroyed
several Shawnee villages, including
Tecumseh's. The tribe moved to the
Maumee River, where they
coordinated intertribal resistance to
the white settlement of the
Northwest. It was during these forays
that Tecumseh, under the leadership
of his oldest brother, Cheeseekau,
earned a reputation as a brave and
energetic warrior.
Tecumseh did not attend the signing
of the Treaty of Greenville in 1795,
in which the American Indians ceded
most of Ohio to the United States. In
1797 he led his following to the west
fork of the White River, below
present -day Anderson, Indiana.
During the years that followed, the
American Indian communities were
troubled by alcoholism, disease,
faltering economies, and after 1802,
the renewal of American land hunger.
Tecumseh spent several years
traveling among the northwestern
tribes, attempting to build a united
front against the Americans. He
contended that the American Indians
held land in common and that no
individual or tribe had the right to
cede territory without the consent of
the others. These ideas had been part
of the rhetoric of pan - Indianism
since 1783, and intertribal unity had
been a mainstay of Shawnee
diplomacy as early as 1746.
Tecumseh was distinguished not by
the originality of his ideas, but by the
energy and vitality he brought to the
flagging cause.
Shortly after the outbreak of the War
of 1812, Tecumseh joined the British
at Fort Malden. He was instrumental
in securing a band of warriors from
various tribes that enabled the
overextended British forces to defeat
an invasion from across the Detroit
River by an American army under
Brigadier General William Hull.
After Hull's forces occupied the
Canadian town of Sandwich on July
13, Tecumseh's warriors skirmished
with his advance troops.
He returned in April and participated
in a campaign led by Procter to
invade Ohio in an effort to forestall
further attacks by the United States.
Between April 28 and May 9,
Tecumseh and a British- Indian army
of 2,200 besieged Fort Meigs on the
Maumee River. They failed to
capture the fort but on May 5
severely defeated an American relief
army.
Tecumseh's protection of prisoners
after this battle increased his
reputation for humanity. After the
failure of a second attempt to take
Fort Meigs, the destruction of British
naval supremacy on Lake Erie in
September restored the initiative to
the United States. With
communications to the St. Lawrence
River threatened, Procter decided to
retreat to the head of Lake Ontario.
Successive misadventures and
evidence of bad faith on the part of
Procter intensified the American
Indians' distrust, and by October 5, at
the Battle of the Thames, the British -
Indian army was reduced to about
1,000 troops and was heavily
outnumbered by the American army
under William Henry Harrison. The
British quickly gave way in the fight,
but the American Indians resisted
bravely until Tecumseh was killed. In
succeeding years many of his foes
sought political capital out of
Tecumseh's defeat and death,
including Richard Mentor Johnson,
whose election to the vice presidency
in 1837 was assisted by a claim that
he had personally killed the chief in
the battle.
And now, we return to the story of
Amelia Ryerse Harris.
During the summer of 1813, Captain
Barclay used to have private
information (not very reliable, as the
result proved) of what progress the
ships were making on the stocks. He
used occasionally to leave the
blockade and go to Amherstburg and
come to Port Ryerse which was still
Amelia's home. The Americans took
note of this, and made their plans and
preparations for his doing so. There
was a pretty widow of an officer of
some rank in Amherstburg, who was
very anxious to go to Toronto.
Captain Barclay offered her a
passage in his ship and brought her to
Ryerse, and then escorted her to Dr.
Rolph's, where he and some of his
officers remained to dinner the
following day. When they came in
sight of Eric, they saw all the
American fleet riding safely at
anchor outside the bar. The
Americans had everything in
readiness; and as soon as the
watched -for opportunity came, and
the British fleet left the station, they
got their own ships over the bar, their
guns in, and all things ready for
defence or attack. They far
outnumbered the British fleet, and
were of heavier tonnage.
4 NEWS.ndVieWS
Page 20 of 22
5.e) The Quarterly Newsletter of the Simcoe County Historica...
Captain Barclay consulted his senior
officers whether it would be best to come
into Long Point Bay to winter, where they
could get supplies across the country
from Burlington Bay of all the munitions
of war, and leave the ship on the stocks at
Amherstburg (the Detroit) to her fate, as
neither the guns to arm nor the men to
man her had yet been forwarded, and now
could not unless by land, which for heavy
guns and the munitions of war was the
next thing to an impossibility. It was with
great difficulty that food and clothing
could be forwarded, where there was
little more than an Indian path and no
bridges. The wisdom of the fleet decided
upon going to Amherstburg and trusting
to arming the ships with the guns from
the fort, and manning them with sailors
from the fleet, and with soldiers and
volunteers. They landed Captain
O'Keefe, of the 4V Regiment, who was
doing marine duty near Otter Creek, to
find his way to Ryerse, to tell the militia
commandant that the whole frontier on
Lake Erie was now open to American
invasion. The new ship was launched,
imperfectly armed and manned; and
without a sufficient supply of
ammunition for the fleet, and with little
more than a day's rations for his men,
Commodore Barclay was necessitated to
risk an action.
The result is too well known. Nearly all
the officers were killed or severely
wounded. Captain Barclay, who had
already lost one arm, was disabled in the
other arm; but they did not strike their
colours to Commodore Perry's superior
force until their ammunition in some
ships was all exhausted and in others
nearly so. No one could have fought more
bravely than Captain Barclay. At the
same time, those who knew of his leaving
the blockade could not help feeling that
all the disasters of the upper part of the
province lay at his door.
to be continued
The Andrew Hunter Award 2014
The Andrew Hunter Award is offered annually for historical research on Simcoe
County, Ontario, written by an undergraduate student for a course in any
university or college. In this seventh year of competition, we look forward to
receiving many worthy entries for each of the two awards being offered.
Conditions: The entry shall be an essay between 3,000 and 5,000 words in length
or a fourth year undergraduate thesis paper (no length restriction) on some aspect
of the history of Simcoe County, Ontario, written in English or in French. The
author must have been a part-time or full -time undergraduate student in a degree
program at an accredited university or college at the time of writing. The essay
must have been written to meet the requirement of an undergraduate credit course
during the 2013 -2014 academic year. The thesis paper must have been submitted
for grading in the 2012 -2013 academic year. Entries become the property of the
Simcoe County Historical Association and may
be published as part of an essay collection.
Submissions: Essay entries shall be
postmarked by April 21, 2014 and
undergraduate theses shall be postmarked by
July 31, 2013. Submissions will not be returned
to the contestants. Papers must be typed in
Times New Roman 12 point font, double
spaced, and should not bear the instructor's
comments or grade. Three copies must be
provided. A cover sheet must list the author's
name, address, phone number, year of study,
school affiliation and department, and the name
of the instructor for whom the paper was
written.
•
Andrew Hunter 1883 - 1
Entries should be sent to:
The Corresponding Secretary
Simcoe County Historical Association
P.O. Box 144
Barrie, ON L4M 4S9
Adjudication: Entries will be judged by a distinguished panel appointed by the
Simcoe County Historical Association. The winners will be announced in early
May 2014 with the presentation of the awards to take place at the Annual
General Meeting of the Association.
Award: There will be two awards offered in Canadian funds, one for $500 for
the best undergraduate essay and one for $500 for the best undergraduate thesis.
The Simcoe County Historical Association may edit the winning entries for the
purpose of publication.
The Simcoe County Historical Association is under no obligation to grant the
awards. For more information, see www simcoecountyhistory.ca
Ontario
The SCHA acknowledges the financial
support of the County of Simcoe and of the
Government of Ontario through the
Ministry of Culture.
S1McoE
For the GamlcrGnad ,
NEWSandV1eWS 5
Page 21 of 22
5.e) The Quarterly Newsletter of the Simcoe County Historica...
C O M I N G
of our Member Societies
Alliston Historical Society — contact
Jackie Baillie
705- 435 -5626 or
cknowles @rogers.com
Meet at Museum on the Boyne,
Fletcher Cres., Alliston 2:00 p.m.
Second Wednesday of the month Feb. -
June and October - November
Barrie Historical Association —
contact Doug Hamilton
Meet at Barrie City Hall — 7:30 p.m.
www.barriehi storical. com
Sept. 26 — Brad Rudachyk — Early
historic streetnames and their
connection to the war of 1812
Oct. 15 and Nov. 19 — Joint Meetings
with SCHA - see page 1
Collingwood District Historical
Society — contact Joan Miller
705 -445 -1119
Meet at Leisure Time Club, 100
Minnesota Street, Collingwood — 7:00
p.m. www.historicallyspeakingcdhs.ca
Oct. 7 — Paul Carroll, author and
historian — The Sinking of the
Wexford, the Great Storm of Nov. 1913
Essa Historical Society — contact
Olive Lee
705- 458 -9971
Meet at Thomton Library fourth
Saturday of the month except July,
Aug. & Dec. — 1:30 p.m.
Sept. 14 — Plaque unveiling for the
Commemoration of the Founding of
Utopia
Friends of Historic Fort Willow —
contact Gord Hanson fortwillow.com
Sept. 14 — Festival at Fort Willow
Genealogical Society — contact Linda
Mitchell
Meet at Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter -Day Saints79 Ferris Lane, Barrie
— 2:00 p.m.
www.simcoebogs.com
Oct. 5 — Jane MacNamara —
Inheritance in Ontario: Estate Files and
Beyond
6 NEWSandVieWS
E V E N T S
Nov. 2 — Marion Press — Google for
Genealogy
Huronia Museum Huron
Ouendat Village — contact Jamie
Hunter
549 Little Lake Park Road, Midland —
705 -526 -2844
www.huroniamuseum.com
Innisfil Historical Society — contact
Donna Wice
Meet at Knock Community Centre,
10th SR at 9th Line, Innisfil — 2:00
p.m. www.innisfilhistorical.ca
Sept. 21— Innisfil Veterans Book
Committee — The inside story of the
many sources of their research
Oct. 19 — Clint Lovell — Eastview
Collegiate
Nov. 15 — AGM and banquet at Stroud
Presbyterian Church
Museum on the Boyne — contact
Katie Huddleston -Naieb
250 Fletcher Crescent in Riverdale
Park, Alliston — 705- 435 -0167
Orillia History Speaker Series —
contact Daniel Byers
Meet on the 3rd floor of the Orillia
Museum of Art & History, 30 Peter
Street South. — 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 16 — Marcel Rousseau — Postcards
of Orillia
Nov.20 — Jim Watt — Orillia's War
Dead
Orillia Museum of Art and History
30 Peter Street South, Orillia —
705- 326 -2159 www.orilliamuseum.org
Sept. 10 to Oct. 19 — Carmichael
Canadian Landscape Exhibition
Se-pt. 27 -28 — Orillia Culture Days —
various events at the museum including
soapstone carving, and grand re-
opening events throughout both days
to Sept. 28 —1000 Brushstrokes
Fundraiser — see page 3
Penetanguishene Centennial
Museum and Archives — contact
Nicole Jackson
13 Burke St. at Beck Blvd.
Call 705 -549 -2150
www.pencenmuseum.com
Ramara Historical Society — contact
Cathy Westcott
westcott.cathy963@gmail.com
Meet at Udney Community Centre,
2347 Concession Road 10 (east of
Orillia)
7:00 p.m. Third Thursday of the month
(except July and August)
Simcoe County Museum — contact
Kelley Swift -Jones
1151 Highway 26, Midhurst —
705- 728 -3721 museum.simcoe.ca
Sept. 20 -22 — Quilt, Rug and Craft Fair
Oct. 19 — Last Blast Equipment Event
Nov. 16 -17 — Artisans' Christmas Show
Dec. 6 -7 — Christmas Past and Present
Stayner Heritage Society — contact
Dorothy Millsap
www.staynerheritagesociety.com
705 -428 -2540
Tecumseth & West Gwillimbury
Historical Society — contact June
Chambers
Meet at Tec We Gwill Hall, Newton
Robinson, 7:30 p.m.
Third Monday of the month January-
May and September- November Call
905 - 775 -7144 or 905- 936 -4086
Sept. 16 — Ken Purvis, the
Programmes Co- ordinator and
Interpreter at Montgomery's Inn —
Music of the 1812 Era
Oct. 21— Tony Bellisimo, Barb Love
and Marj Mossman — Lake Simcoe
designation as a Heritage Lake
Nov. 18 — Tribute to the veterans of
World War II
Page 22 of 22