-
✴︎
A Canoe for His Grandfather
Ron McRae is the grandson of J. Stanley Knapp (1892-1967), the pioneering agricultural educator who started Ontario’s first Boys & Girl’s Clubs in Waterloo County in 1915. That club became the model for 4-H Ontario, an organization that supports over 6,000 youth and 1,600 volunteer leaders annually. Knapp’s work emphasized education through doing, leadership through…
-
The Alexanders: A Migrant Story
By Kellie Davenport As the agent of his excellency the Right Honourable Lord Howden, Her Majesty’s Ambassador at Madrid, I hereby certify that Mr. James Alexander has been employed as a farm manager on his Lordship’s Grimston Estate for six years. By his own desire, he will leave this country to try his fortune in…
-
From Yorkshire to Ekfrid and Back Again
By Kellie Davenport As our Uber approached the stately manor house at Grimston Park, a historic North Yorkshire estate about 25 minutes west of York, the size of the property immediately struck us. The sprawling 2,500-acre estate was a far cry from our quaint 200-acre family farm in Ekfrid Township near Melbourne, Ont. But surprisingly,…
-
✴︎
McAlpine–Smith Family Fonds
This collection of items belonged to the McAlpine and Smith families of 3528 Oil Field Road, near Glencoe, Ontario. At the center of the family story is the marriage of Rebecca Smith and Alexander McAlpine, who were married on April 12, 1899. Their illustrated marriage certificate, preserved inside Alexander’s family Bible, is one of the…
-
Historic Step Forward: County to study potential for Archives
Middlesex County Approves Feasibility Study for County Archives In a landmark and unanimous decision, Middlesex County Council has voted to move ahead with a Middlesex County Archives Feasibility Study, marking the most significant progress to date toward establishing a permanent county-wide archives. In November 2025, the motion—brought forward by Mayor McMillan and seconded by Mayor…
-
Understanding the Old Colony Mennonite Experience
Maria Moore is the author of Not My Kind of Mennonite (2023) and her new release The Silent Path. Her second book explores her sister’s life inside the former Edgar Occupational Institute in Barrie, where she faced isolation, cultural loss, and systemic mistreatment. Moore is available for public speaking engagements and book club discussions. Her books can be…
-
✴︎
A Remarkable Revival of Scots Gaelic Heritage at Tait’s Corners
June Journey / Turas an Ògmhìos A Remarkable Revival of Scots Gaelic Heritage at Tait’s Corners Written by Trevor Aitkens | Directed by Antje GilesPerformed November 15–16, 2025 The Glencoe & District Historical Society was honoured to sponsor and support June Journey / Turas an Ògmhìos, a beautifully crafted Gaelic play written by Trevor Aitkens…
-
✴︎
Gaelic Heritage
The Glencoe area was settled predominately by Scottish immigrants many of whom spoke Gaelic. Duncan Mitchell (1838-unknown) from Metcalfe Township lived on the South 1/2 of Lot 18, Conc 13. He had this book of 41 Gaelic poems published localy in Rodney, Ontario in 1887. This book was generously donated to the Historical Society from…
-
Behind the Bricks, Truth & Reconciliation and the Rebirth of the Mohawk Institute Museum
Known locally as the “Mush Hole,” the Mohawk Institute in Brantford, Ont. was Canada’s oldest and longest-running residential school. But on September 30, 2025, it officially became an interpretive historic site. On that solemn day, what was once a place of suffering, erasure and intergenerational trauma was reborn as a museum, teaching site—and a space…
-
Women in the Shadows of the War of 1812
“BONNETS AND BAYONETS” Written by Emma Stack There is never a doubt that a soldier marching obediently into a volley of musket fire is a hero. An army surgeon, his white apron stained with blood, working countless hours in the heat to save whomever he can, is also a hero. What of Generals, Lieutenants, and…
-
✴︎
Remembering Our Ancestors at Simpson Cemetery
On Sunday, July 27, 2025, the Simpson Cemetery in Southwest Middlesex came alive with memory, history, and community spirit. Over 50 descendants, neighbours, and friends gathered under the shade of the massive White Oak “heritage tree” for the annual cemetery memorial hosted by the Glencoe & District Historical Society (GDHS).
-
✴︎
Letter of Support for the Upper Thames Military Re-enactment Society (UTMRS)
On behalf of the Glencoe & District Historical Society, I am honoured to write this letter in support of the Upper Thames Military Re-enactment Society’s application for the Governor General’s History Award for Community Programming. The UTMRS— the Royal Scots —are more than skilled re-enactors; they are devoted stewards of local memory and dedicated community…
-
St. Mary’s Napier, Oldest Church in Middlesex
Normally, if you want to see the pioneer buildings constructed by our ancestors, you have to visit a museum like Fanshawe Pioneer Village. That’s because most of our early buildings were torn down and replaced with larger, grander ones as soon as it was practical to do so. If not demolished, the earliest buildings were usually…
-
✴︎
George Ward & the St John’s Anglican Glencoe
Altar table and reredos George Ward – the founder of Wardsville and for whom the town is named – had an impressively interesting life that took him from his native Ireland and, as part of his military service, to many parts of the burgeoning British Empire. He ended up in Southwest Ontario, retired from the…
-
✴︎
St James Anglican Church, Wardsville
Windows on the past Part 3 St James Anglican Church, Wardsville by Bill Simpson St James Wardsville was torn down in 1942 after the foundations were fatally undermined by improvements to the adjoining Hagerty Road. Sadly, there are no known pictures of the interior of the church, and we have only an image of the…
-
St James Anglican Church & Cemetery, by Ken Wilis
By Ken Willis, Wardsville Historian, July 2023 It was in the year 1839 that John Strachan became the first Bishop of Toronto. When he received this appointment, his diocese covered the land area now known as Southern Ontario. The Rev John Gunne was licensed ‘To perform the office of Travelling Missionary’ by the Bishop, for…
-
Bandit of Skunk’s Misery: The Life and Times of Orval Shaw
Orval Shaw, a name that once echoed through over 40 cities, towns and countryside of Ontario, was more than just a petty criminal. He was a symbol of defiance, a master of evasion, and a figure who captured the public’s imagination. I have drawn his story from historical accounts and newspaper reports, revealing the life…
-
Stained glass, St. John’s Anglican, Glencoe
Windows on the past Part 2 by Bill Simpson In part 1 of this series, I described the altar window in St John’s Anglican Church, Glencoe. There is another fine stained glass window in St John’s, which is found at the rear of the church to the left of the main door: The image is…
-
April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025 in review
Prepared by the Executive members for the members of G&DHS. For the AGM April 16, 2025. Preserving Our Family Histories for Future Generations Our ancestors—whether Indigenous, settler descendants, newer generations, or recent Canadians—have all contributed to the rich history of our communities. Each of us carries important stories that deserve to be told. Historians seek…
-
Capturing Living Oral Histories – Carrie Jeffery
Personal storytelling can be both fun and provide new perspectives on how we came to be. These stories can challenge our understanding of the past and give a voice to people who are often left out of traditional historical records: the everyday people that played a role not just in our own lives but also…
-
St. John’s Anglican Church
Mrs Moss was in her usual good health on Sunday forenoon when she taught her class in Sunday Schools and attended services in St John’s Church. In fact she had remarked to her friends how well she was feeling. After service Mrs Moss was with the choir practicing the anthem “Jesus, Lover of My Soul”…
-
✴︎
Burns Presbyterian Church Mosa Celebrates 190 Years
The poster for events celebrating 190 years.
-
We need County support for a Total Archives
Call to Action for A Middlesex County Archives The Canadian Government created the Public Archives of Canada in 1872. In Europe, archives retained government records only with personal papers going to libraries as manuscripts. The Dominion Archivist of Canada determined that all personal records of historical and cultural value should be collected as well as…
-
Daniel Perry researches Thomas Gardiner
Marie Williams: A large crowd packed into the Glencoe and District Historical Society Archives on Wednesday evening, March 12, 2025. Following announcements, a brief membership report and some unfortunate technical difficulties, Society president Mary Simpson introduced the evening’s guest speaker, Glencoe native and author Daniel Perry. Perry spoke about his newest work, a non-fiction memoir…
-
✴︎
How the Chatham Coloured All-Stars defied race barriers in baseball
Thanks to the Chatham-Kent Black Historical Society and the University of Windsor’s Centre for Digital Scholarship, with the help of the Harding family, the legacy of the Chatham Coloured All-Stars lives on. They reconstructed the 1934 season, and the team’s history through newspaper clippings, scrapbooks and interviews with the players and their descendants.
research@glencoehistoricalsociety.ca
519-287-3897
Glencoe & District
Historical Society
research@glencoehistoricalsociety.ca
519-287-3897