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X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Glencoe & District Historical Society
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260709T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260709T200000
DTSTAMP:20260716T012125Z
CREATED:20260424T174442Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260716T012125Z
UID:4200-1783598400-1783627200@glencoehistoricalsociety.ca
SUMMARY:LEGO - Exploring the History of Small Towns Through LEGO
DESCRIPTION:On July 9\, 2026\, the Glencoe Library came alive with creativity as Steve Robson brought his LEGO scale modelling program to our community. \nJune 9\, 2026 Kids working on LEGO projects at the Glencoe Library\n30 Submisions!\nLibrary staff set up dedicated work stations throughout the day\, each stocked with large buckets of LEGO bricks sorted by colour. The response was beyond expectations — thirty young participants dropped in to give it a whirl\, and the imagination on display was nothing short of amazing. The children worked with remarkable focus and enthusiasm from the time the stations opened right through the afternoon.\n\n\nSteve’s Village\nIn the evening\, Steve Robson presented to an audience of twenty\, sharing his approach to using LEGO-style bricks to explore the history of small towns. The room was engaged and the interest genuine — a fitting close to a day that had already proven the idea’s appeal across all ages. \nHow It Started\nThe project began with a single building structure\, built simply to see how a Lego building would scale in appearance next to Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars. The test worked out well. At that point\, there was no real plan to create a full village. Over time\, plans developed into a complete village layout\, involving a number of drawings covering both the overall plan and individual building designs. The end result is a very functional-looking village. \n \nSetting up the village involved several key decisions. \nThe first major consideration was compressing the scale of both the buildings and the space between property lines. Building scale was determined by the size of the plates the Lego design team produces. A 5″ × 5″ plate in 1/64 scale measures out to 26.5 feet. A 10″ × 10″ plate measures out to 53 feet. This is based on the 1/64 scale standard of 1″ equalling 5.3 feet. \nThe smaller blocks used to create walls carry a rough cost factor of about $7.00 per square foot — approximately 10 cents per block — averaging out to 70 blocks per square foot. This is based on a standard 4-stud brick. \nBuilding height is determined by the style of the structure and its interior ceiling height. Using the 1″ = 5.3′ ratio\, divide the height of a real-world measurement (for example\, an 8-foot ceiling) to find the correct exterior wall height. Doors\, windows\, and other details follow the same method and can be made to look properly proportioned at this scale. \nSome building designs are reduced further in size to allow for a tighter layout. If every building were built to fully correct scale\, the village would contain only a fraction of the elements included in the current layout. \n\nThe Compressed Design\nThe compressed design approach allows for a modular layout that can be set up in any configuration. One of the primary reasons for this building style is to use the structures as photographic props. The slight downscaling can be minimized with this purpose in mind — a wide-angle lens creates the appearance of a larger environment than actually exists\, while the remaining space still provides a believable sense of a living space. \nThese designs can be built at various levels of detail. Fully detailed structures work well for complete display setups\, while simpler versions — recreating just home and storefront facades — make excellent display backgrounds for a die-cast car collection on a shelf\, reflecting the era of the vehicle being showcased. \n\nColour\nAn important element is the use of colour in the design. A colour-coding system developed naturally during the build. Browns and greens were used in older building designs\, while brighter colours go into newer structures. Combinations of these colours bridge the gap in between. Some business-themed models use colour patterns to create a corporate-looking feel. \nA challenge can arise when materials run short during a build. If a strong colour theme is needed\, purchase enough bricks to complete the design before starting. That said\, budget is always a factor. Creative use of colour can fill out a design in interesting ways\, adding a unique visual character that reflects your own vision for the scene. \n\nEngineering the Structures\nEngineering Lego structures is different from real-world construction. In effect\, you are building with oversized blocks — similar in proportion to the concrete blocks used in parking lots and highway dividers. This affects the look of the finished model. Walls will be noticeably thicker\, and small details will read as larger items at real-world scale. This is one of the things to accept when working with Lego as a building material. \nFor example\, the top section of a house wall will be thicker than realistic in order to maintain structural strength. Roofs have been left off the buildings intentionally. This allows interior details to be seen and also provides a convenient pickup point when moving the buildings. The result is a slightly surreal\, dream-like quality to the structures. \nKeep in mind that although Lego is durable\, it can break when dropped. These models should be handled like eggs — carefully. \nSince these models need to travel\, there is a balance to strike between detail and durability. There are limits to what can be achieved depending on the bricks being used\, and some experimentation is required to find what works best for your build. \n\nExploring the History of Small Towns.  Through LEGO Scale Modelling.  Presented by: Steve Robson  \n\n\nReality vs. Illusion\nOne interesting question this project raises is: what is real\, and what is fake? \nTake a close-up photograph of the model village. The scene looks like a street\, complete with cars and streetlights. At first glance\, it reads as real. Only on closer inspection do the small details reveal the scale. At what point does the photo become “fake”? And yet\, it isn’t truly fake — real physical objects are being used in a real scene. \nThis kind of setup is rooted in the practical special effects techniques of older films\, and in some cases newer ones as well. It also opens a door to exploring the history of building design. An older version of a real town or city could be recreated to study its structure and character from a particular era — from a simple model to a complex and detailed layout. \n\nWhy Do This?\nThe last element worth considering is the reason to take on a project like this: it keeps the mind active. \nUnlike AI\, which is increasingly present in daily life\, the process of sorting physical pieces\, researching house designs\, and studying architectural history creates a quiet space away from the world of technology. It can help in recreating memories of the past — either personal memories or general history from before your own time. \nBuilding at a scale that must feel proportionally believable — using die-cast cars and trucks as reference — helps develop spatial thinking. Placing everything into a village setting helps in understanding how a working economy is structured: the business district versus the residential areas\, the roadways\, the flow of a community. The road of imagination is an important part of the planning process. \nHopefully\, you end up with a design you are proud of. \n— Steve Robson \nAbout Steve Robson\nBorn in London\, Ontario in 1961\, Steve has spent a lifetime pursuing strong interests in photography and model building across multiple mediums. By combining these passions\, he has found a unique way to recreate scenes full of personal memory and historical meaning — in three-dimensional\, brick-built form. This project has transformed a long-held idea into reality\, and Steve’s goal is simple: bring out the inner child in everyone as a great way to keep the mind active. \nOrganized by:  Steve Robson\, Creator  \n  \n 
URL:https://glencoehistoricalsociety.ca/event/lego/
LOCATION:Glencoe Public Library\, 123 McKellar St.\, Glencoe\, Ontario\, N0L 1M0\, Canada
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ORGANIZER;CN="Glencoe Library":MAILTO:cjoris@middlesex.ca
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260718T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260718T140000
DTSTAMP:20260623T232408Z
CREATED:20260424T185555Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260623T232408Z
UID:4209-1784368800-1784383200@glencoehistoricalsociety.ca
SUMMARY:July 18 - Tartan Days 2026
DESCRIPTION:Join us on Saturday\, July 18th\, from 10 AM to 2 PM at two locations:  \n1. the Archives at 178 McKellar St\, Glencoe\,  \n2. the Parkette at 241A Main Street\, where we’ll have a prime spot right on Main Street with the car show. \nWe’ll be selling local history books and promoting our upcoming events. Stop by\, say hello\, buy a membership and browse our selection. \nWe’re also running two free draws during the event. Adults can enter to win a year-and-a-half membership\, running from July 2026 through December 31\, 2027.  \nFor visitors 18 and under\, we’re drawing for four of our beautiful commemorative medallions. These medallions were created by the Historical Society as a fundraiser 30 years ago\, sold for $10 each\, and have since become cherished keepsakes. \nCome find us at either location and help us celebrate Tartan Days while learning a bit more about Glencoe’s history! \nThese medallions were created by the Historical Society as a fundraiser approximately 25 to 30 years ago\, sold for $10 each in a lovely presentation case\, and have since become cherished keepsakes.\n  \n\nThe Whole Weekend features:\nFRIDAY\n• Tartan Days Sales\n• Chicken Dinner at Legion\, 5-7 pm\, hosted by Royal Canadian Legion Br. 219\n• Book Sale at Library\, 10 am-4 pm\n• Free Swim\, Glencoe Pool\, 12:30 pm-3 pm\, sponsored by Glencoe Lions Club\n• Truck and Tractor Pull\, Fairgrounds\, starts 6:30 pm\, Glencoe Ag Society\n• Free Swim\, Glencoe Pool\, 6:30-8:30 pm\, sponsored by CB Creative Concepts \nSATURDAY\n• Free Pancakes at Glencoe Legion\, Br. 219\, 156 McRae St.\, 8-11 am\, hosted by Quad County\nSupport Services\n• Glencoe Gators Swim Meet\, Glencoe Pool\, 8 am-2 pm\n• Tartan Days Yard Sales – Listings to appear on CCC Facebook Page\n• Car Show on Main St.\, 10 am-2 pm (rain date July 19 at Train Station parking lot 10-2)\n• Art in the Park\, Glencoe Train Station\, 10 am-2 pm\n• Inflatable Curling\, 10 am-2 pm\, courtesy Glencoe & District Curling Club\n• Book Sale at Library\, 8 am-12 pm\n• BBQ Lunch\, Glencoe Legion\, 11 am-1 pm\, hosted by RCL Auxiliary\, Br 219\n• Tartan Days Sales\n• Children’s Activities\, 9 am-Noon\n• Thistle Competition\, Train Station\, Judging at 11 am\, hosted by Glencoe Horticultural Society\n• Glencoe Historical Society Parkette Display and Open House\, 178 McKellar St.\, 10 am-2 pm \nSUNDAY\n• Breakfast at Fire Hall\, 8 am-1pm\, SWM Firefighters Assn.\n• Gaelic Service\, Burns Presbyterian\, 24493 Dundonald Rd.\, 10 am\n• Free Swim\, Glencoe Pool\, 1-4 pm\, sponsored by SWM Firefighters Assn.\n• Ceilidh at the Glencoe Train Station\, music\, fun and dancing\, \nLions Beef on a Bun\, 6-8 pm\n(indoors at Ag Hall in the event of rain)
URL:https://glencoehistoricalsociety.ca/event/tartandays/
LOCATION:The Archives\, 178 McKellar Street\, Glencoe (Southwest Middlesex)\, Ontario\, N0L 1M0\, Canada
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260726T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260726T160000
DTSTAMP:20260730T014719Z
CREATED:20260520T202046Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260730T014719Z
UID:4254-1785074400-1785081600@glencoehistoricalsociety.ca
SUMMARY:Willey Cemetery Commemoration Ceremony
DESCRIPTION:Willey Cemetery\, 5267 Gentleman Drive\, Ekfrid Township\, Southwest Middlesex \nWilley Cemetery Commemoration Ceremony\nSunday\, July 26\, 2026\n2:00 p.m. \nWilley Cemetery Ceremony Honours Two Centuries of Loyalist and Militia Service\nOn Sunday\, July 26\, the Glencoe & District Historical Society joined the Municipality of Southwest Middlesex\, the United Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada\, and over 60 guests at Willey Cemetery to formally designate the site as a United Empire Loyalist Burial Ground and to unveil commemorative plaques honouring Corporal John Phillips\, UEL\, and his son\, Sergeant Peter Phillips\, UE. \nThe afternoon opened with piper Rob Easton’s prelude and the singing of “O Canada\,” followed by an Indigenous land acknowledgement from GDHS President Norm McGill and welcomes from Southwest Middlesex Mayor Allan Mayhew\, Middlesex County Warden Susan Clark\, and UELAC London Branch President Carol Childs\, who brought greetings on behalf of the national Association and formally recognized Willey Cemetery as a Loyalist Burial Site. \nA Sweep Through Two Wars\nThe heart of the afternoon was a history presentation delivered by Master of Ceremonies\, Retired Major Greg Childs\, tracing the military service that brought both Phillips men to Ekfrid Township. \nChilds began well before the American Revolution\, with the French and Indian War — the North American front of the global Seven Years’ War between Britain and France. He walked guests through the chain of consequence that followed: France’s push into the Ohio Territory\, Britain’s costly victory (including the 1760 battle on the Plains of Abraham)\, and the war debt that led King George III to tax Britain’s thirteen colonies. That taxation\, Childs explained\, was a principal spark of the Revolution — a war many colonists refused to support\, instead forming militia regiments loyal to the Crown. Corporal John Phillips served in one of these\, the New Jersey Volunteers\, seeing action at Staten Island\, Charleston\, King’s Mountain\, and numerous smaller engagements. \nChilds placed the Phillips family’s story inside the larger Loyalist migration: some 50\,000 refugees\, of Indigenous\, Black\, white\, and mixed backgrounds\, driven from the thirteen colonies for their loyalty to the Crown during the nine years of the Revolutionary War\, many suffering incarceration and the loss of land and wealth. Those who resettled in what became Canada were granted 200 acres of uncleared land\, often in strategically sensitive areas\, and Lord Dorchester’s grant of the hereditary “U.E.” designation to their descendants — Canada’s only hereditary post-nominal honour — marked their commitment to the “Unity of the Empire.” \nFrom there\, Childs turned to the War of 1812\, describing how Britain’s blockade of Napoleonic France\, and the Royal Navy’s practice of seizing sailors from American ships\, prompted President Madison to invade Canada with three armies — forces that\, on paper\, outnumbered the British and Canadian militia eightfold. He credited the discipline of commanders like General Brock\, and the effectiveness of First Nations allies such as Tecumseh\, with a defence that held. Sergeant Peter Phillips\, serving with the Oxford Militia\, fought at the Siege of Detroit\, the Battle of Frenchman’s Creek\, the Battle of Nanticoke Creek\, the Battle of Lundy’s Lane\, and the Battle of Malcolm’s Mills. Childs noted\, too\, the war’s cost to Canada’s First Nations allies\, whose promised territory in Michigan and points west was abandoned by British negotiators at the Treaty of Ghent. \nHarold Carruthers\, UE\, and his daughter Natasha Carruthers Kalita followed with a closer look at the combat service of both Phillips men\, grounding Childs’ broader history in the specific record of the two soldiers being honoured that day. \nRemembrance and Recognition\nThe ceremony moved into its most solemn portion with the Act of Remembrance: the Last Post\, two minutes of silence\, a piper’s lament of “The Flowers of the Forest\,” the Rouse\, and a three-volley salute fired by re-enactors from the Royal Scots. A moment of silence was also held for the late GDHS member Ken Willis. \nWreaths were laid on behalf of Middlesex County\, the Municipality of Southwest Middlesex\, the Royal Canadian Regiment (which holds the Right of Perpetuation for both the 1812 Oxford Militia and the Middlesex Militia)\, Chippewa of the Thames First Nation\, three Royal Canadian Legion branches (Reg Lovell #219\, Melbourne #510\, and Newbury #583)\, the Phillips family itself\, the UELAC\, the Historical Society\, and the Royal Scots re-enactors. The ceremony closed with “God Save the King” and an invitation to fellowship at the Reg Lovell Legion Branch in Glencoe. \nSpecial recognition was given to Harold Carruthers for his research and physical preparation work at the cemetery\, to genealogist Vanessa Warner\, UE\, for establishing the martial record of both Phillips men\, to Piper Rob Easton\, to the Royal Scots re-enactors\, and to the War of 1812 Gravesite Project\, which funded the granite plaques placed at the site. \nThe ceremony fulfills the goal set out in the Society’s original call to attend the event: securing Willey Cemetery’s designation and beginning the work of stabilizing a site whose concrete surround has cracked and shifted with age. The Society continues to steward Willey Cemetery on behalf of families whose descendants are no longer able to maintain it directly.
URL:https://glencoehistoricalsociety.ca/event/willey/
LOCATION:Ontario
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ORGANIZER;CN="Glencoe & District Historical Society":MAILTO:contactus@glencoehistoricalsociety.ca
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