Shout Out for Regatta Pictures

Its the 175th Anniversary of the 1st Regatta at Sturgeon Point.  We would love to include your pictures in the display.  Please get them to SPA or myself ASAP to include them.

We need fun ones... serious races... on land... on the water...  running... canoeing...  We want your pictures!

1999 Running Races program... looks familiar... Who remembers what the Novelty Race was?

Grab some SLSC experience in the Far North!

There are expatriate-Sturgeon Pointers living right across this fine country and interestingly there are a large number of them in Whitehorse, YT.  Perhaps its the woods... the water... or perhaps its just never having to do the Sunday evening drive to Toronto again...

 So this is a note to those Sturgeon Pointers enjoying life in the Far North.  The BC Sailing Association is running its Mobile Optimist Sailing School in Whitehorse again this summer for two weeks - July 1-5 and July 8-12.  Former SLSC instructors Samuel Benson and Sam Nyhuss are teaching the program again this year.

BC Sailing Association Mobile Optimist Sailing School - Summer 2012
image courtesy of Samuel Benson

 

BC Sailing Association Mobile Optimist Sailing School - Summer 2012
image courtesy of Samuel Benson

 

 

So while you may not be heading south to The Point this summer, here is a chance to share some SLSC magic with your kids.
 

BC Sailing Association Mobile Optimist Sailing School - Summer 2012
image courtesy of Samuel Benson

 

For more information, please contact the BC Sailing Association at www.bcsailing.bc.ca for on-line registration and e-mail Isabelle Gagnon at marcisamael@hotmail.com

 

We wish Samuel and Sam all the best for a great summer of teaching and travelling.

Bugle Call: John "Doc" Savage

It is with sadness that I report the passing of John "Doc" Savage. He was a tour de force, with and amazing capacity for life, that had been slowly silenced by Alzheimer's. 

 

John's grandparents Col. Alexander Copper and  Agnes Massie had come to Sturgeon Point in 1918 renting what is now the Phipps cottage from Lillian Grieg Stewart.  There they raised their three children, including John's mother Marjory.  About 1926, they bought the cottage at the bottom of 2nd Street from their friends William Rundell & Ada Dundas.  In turn Marjory Cooper and her husband, Reginald Savage, raised John and his sister Joan at The Point.

John Savage on Lake Avenue, 1928

He led by example.  His commitment to the community in which he had been a year round resident from the 1970s was done through public service.  As Reeve he fought long and hard for our village in the face of a Province determined to amalgamate.  He spent endless hours ensuring that our voice was heard and that we were represented on the wider stage. 

 

John was "out" at a point in time when many were still fearful of community reaction.  He paved a road of tolerance for younger generations.

 

 

As a young man...

Joe Rivard & John Savage



 

We wish for John now the dignity and peace that Alzheimer's had stripped from him and we thank his friends for ensuring that his final years were safe and secure.

 

A Celebration of his life will be held at St. James Anglican Church in Fenelon Falls on Thursday May 23rd at 7:00pm.

===

His obituary appeared as follows:

In his 87th year, passed peacefully in his sleep at Wellesley Central Place in Toronto, on Friday, May 17, 2013.

Doc had a full life. He was raised in a loving family in Toronto, where he worked as an advertising executive.

Doc had the opportunity to travel the globe extensively before retiring to the gentle shores of Sturgeon Point. Doc served this tight knit community that meant so much to him for years as it’s Reeve, a job that was very endearing to him.

Doc was very fond of the arts, and was an avid supporter of The Canadian Opera Company and The National Ballet of Canada.

Doc knew what it was to give back to the community that he lived in, and volunteered on countless community projects, to name a few... Case Manor in Bobcaygeon, Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay, The Peterborough AIDS Resource, and The Victoria and Northumberland County.

Doc was a gracious host, and valued friend and will be sadly missed by all who knew him. He has joined his closest friends, Joe Rivard and Brent Savoy who have passed a few years ago.

A Celebration of Doc's Life will be held at St. James Anglican Church, 19 Bond Street, Fenelon Falls on Thursday evening, May 23rd at 7:00 p.m. A reception will follow in the adjoining church hall.

If desired, memorial donations to the Ross Memorial Hospital Foundation or the St. James Anglican Church would be much appreciated.

The Sturgeon Point History Project - 2013 Season

Happy Two-Four and a great start to the 2013 Season at The Point!

As mentioned several times here and in SPA newsletters, the Sturgeon Point History Project is no longer able to offer the breadth of community activities this year.  In large part that is because I no longer live in the community and live too far away to be able to be there in person.  Also there are so many volunteer hours required around the community that people's free time to give has become thin on the ground.  So I am out of Schlitz and the community is low on beer...

So, going into this 2013 season, here is what we are going to do.

 

1.  We are still collecting images of the community from any time in its history - from yesterday back to the beginning (pictures of dinosaurs welcome but the content of the cocktail glasses must be identified...).

 

Send these pictures to stptphotoproject@hotmail.com or e-mail and we'll make arrangements to get them scanned.

 

Several volunteers have offered to take photographs at community events and send them into the archive, their time and efforts will be really appreciated.

 

2.  Images for personal use, school projects, community events, etc., are available. Send an e-mail and we'll talk about what you need and how to get them to you.

 

3.  Research projects are not currently being undertaken, but if you have a great idea or question, fire away and we'll see what we can do.

 

Obviously the big event this year is that this is the Celebration of the 175th Anniversary of the First Regatta.  I have the CD of images and volunteers will be needed to print them and put them on display boards. Another group of volunteers will be needed to put the display up at the event.  Perhaps a group of students needing volunteer hours... Something for a day when golf gets washed out...  Please speak with Lisa Vehrs at SPA about this.

Have a great summer everyone. 

Liane

Bugle Call: Audrey Bradshaw Rutherford Upton

It is with deep regret that I learned of the passing of Audrey Rutherford Upton.  What an amazing lady!  She was very kind in her support of the History Project sharing her knowledge of our history from the inside view point of one of the earliest year-round residents.  To a young sailor, she was an endless source of popsicles and mail.  To our parents and grandparents, she was the source of telephone calls, milk and groceries.  All of which were neatly handled from the front porch, as she deftly managed her own family.  As a community we were blessed to have her and she will be missed.

 

Our deepest condolences go to Bernice, Elaine and Karen and their families.

Gratton & Audrey at the Point, early 1950s

Audrey with Karen & Bernice and Mr. & Mrs. Oakes at Red Rock

 

Her obituary  read:

 

On Tuesday, April 30, 2013 at Ross Memorial Hospital in Lindsay we said goodbye to our “Mom” and “Best Friend”. Audrey (nee Bradshaw) Rutherford Upton of Sturgeon Point was in her 92nd year. Beloved wife of the late Gratton Rutherford (1984) and the late Arthur Upton (2012). Loving mother of Bernice Rutherford and Stephen Hemsted, Elaine and her husband Brian Ward, Karen and her husband Paul Weightman all of Fenelon Falls. Step mother of Chris and Barry Green and Barbara Upton all of Bobcaygeon. Dear gramma of Sara, Erin, Rossie, Tyler, Tobi, Dustin, Mackenzie, Alison, Erin, Kevin, Laura, Jennifer. and great-gramma of fourteen. Pre-deceased by siblings Gordon, Kenneth and baby Bernice Bradshaw. The family will receive friends at Immanuel Baptist Church, 20 Bond Street East, Fenelon Falls, on Friday, May 3rd, from 1:00 p.m. until time of service at 3:00 p.m. If desired memorial donations to Immanual Baptist Church would be appreciated by the family. To leave on-line condolences, make a memorial donations or to light a memorial candle please visit: www.jardinefuneralhome.com

It will be 175 years...

This summer will mark 175 years since the first regatta was held at Sturgeon Point.  We would like to do a bang-up display for the Civic Holiday Weekend.  To do that we need your photos of Regattas past.  So pull out your photo albums, boxes, slides, etc. and go hunting.  You can send your pictures by snail mail or e-mail to the History Project or SPA or drop them off in the SPA mailbox at the Park.  We know that there are gems hanging on your walls and stuck to your fridge... peel them off and send them in. 

 

In years past there were more tangible prizes than ribbons awarded.  If you have a trophy, a pennant, a pin, a paddle or some other item that was awarded and you are willing to allow them to be displayed, please drop me an e-mail and arrangements will be made.

 

We appreciate your participation and look forward to seeing how amazing we all looked in 1973... or 1942... or 1928...

Canoe Races, Sturgeon Point Civic Holiday Regatta, 1979

Bugle Call... George Ollerhead

It is with great sadness that we advise of the passing of George Ollerhead on February 28, 2013.  A lovely and charming man, he will be greatly missed.  Our sincerest condolences are extended to Susanne, Will and Rory and their families, to Robin & Maureen and the rest of the Ollerhead clan.

His obituary appeared as follows in the Toronto Star:

OLLERHEAD, George E.

George Elliott Ollerhead of London, passed away peacefully at Victoria Hospital, with his family by his side, on Thursday, February 28, 2013, in his 79th year. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Susanne (McEwen); sons William (Koo) of Toronto, and Rory (Cathy) of Newmarket; grandchildren Elliott, Cameron, Nicholas, and Jackson; and brother Robin (Maureen) of Guelph. He will be greatly missed also by his extended family, and many friends.

 

George grew up in London and earned a degree at University of Western Ontario before obtaining an MA at the University of Toronto. His lifelong passion for teaching took him from London to Texas, Petrolia, Ghana, Lakefield, and North Bay. After devoting 24 years to his craft at Canadore College and Nipissing University, he retired in 1993.

 

He will be remembered for his jovial and gregarious enjoyment of life, insatiable curiosity, and devotion to his family.

 

Cremation will be followed by private family interment arrangements. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to a charity of your choice. 

Its a small world...

Back in December 2011, I wrote a posting on Wallace Jones & his wife Marjorie Campbell, who had owned Lot 11 on Lake Avenue - http://stpthistoryproject.blogspot.ca/2011/12/lot-11-lake-avenue.html .  I was recently contacted by Michael Poplyansky at York University who is working with the historian Ged Martin to bring to light the history of Ontario's Lieutenant-Governor Sir Alexander Campbell, Post Master General, Father of Confederation and law partner of Sir John A MacDonald. (Ged Martin's initial findings will be published in the Spring 2013 of Ontario History.)

 

Michael's inquiry into the offspring of Jones & Campbell (they didn't have any) led me back to the brick wall I had in trying to find descendants to wrangle Sturgeon Point photos out of.  So instead of hunting down the Campbell side, I went hunting for Joneses.  And while I haven't located any yet, I did find one of those small world Sturgeon Point coincidences that confirm that there are only two degrees of separation at the Point.

 

Wallace Jones was the younger brother of Dr. David "Ogden" Roebuck Jones of Toronto.  Dr. Jones married to Annie Isabel Burr Plumb and they had a son Clarkson Ogden Jones.

 

Clarkson Jones, nephew of Wallace & Marjorie, married Marion Scott Denton, daughter of Judge James Herbert Denton.  They had a son Peter.  Unfortunately, Clarkson did not behave particularly well and the Judge arranged for his daughter's divorce.  Thankfully she found happiness with WWI Military Cross recipient, Capt. Leonard Proctor Chalmers.  He adopt young Peter, who became known as Peter Denton Chalmers (sadly he passed away in 1991).

 

Marion Scott Denton Chalmers was the younger sister of Samuel Bradley Gundy Denton, who was married to Mary "Mildred" Geary.  They had a son Richard "Dick" Denton who was also married twice and who found happiness the second time with a Chalmers at Sturgeon Point residing two doors down from the Jones cottage on Lake Avenue.

 

It would have been even more ironic if the two Chalmers families were related, but at his point no connection has been found.  Dick's widow M has fond memories of Aunt Marion, saying the she had been very kind.

 

I love the way Sturgeon Point connects...

 

 

If you have any information on the Jones, Chalmers or Denton families, please contact the History Project.

Colouring the Nation... Where did ours flags come from?

The Sturgeon Point History Project was recently contacted by Dr. Stana Nenadic from the School of History, Classics & Archaeology at the University of Edinburgh.  Dr. Nenadic and her research assistant, Dr. Sally Tuckett, have been involved in the research of the Scottish Red Turkey textile industry in Scotland.  They have been documenting their finds in an on-line format at: http://colouringthenation.wordpress.com/

And how you might ask does this relate to Sturgeon Point? 

Well in the course of their research Dr. Nenadic came across a November 2011 posting on the blog about flags at Sturgeon Point http://stpthistoryproject.blogspot.ca/2011/11/flags.html and in particular about the 1897 Jubilee flags that were hung at the Flack cottage "Koshaqua" on 5th Street.  It would appear that the flags hung there are the product of the Red Turkey textile industry.  They requested permission to include the images of "Koshaqua" in their on-line project.  This permission was given and the image can be seen at: http://colouringthenation.wordpress.com/pattern-of-the-week/

With the snow deep and weather unappealing for sledding, skating or other winter activities, please take a hot chocolate or hot toddy break and read the fascinating work done by Drs. Nenadic and Tuckett.

It is with regret...

It is with regret that I advise that I will be stepping down from my role as Coordinator of The Sturgeon Point History Project.  For all the reasons you can imagine, as my family is no longer resident in the village, my ability to manage the position has become unworkable.

The History Project is not static.  It should grow and change and new volunteers, bringing new ideas and direction, are needed to keep it moving forward.  We have got the History Project off the ground and this is now a terrific time for new volunteers to give it legs and let it run.

As it stands, the framework is in place for this summer.  The speakers have been booked and the topics have been chosen for the heritage displays.  With your participation, these events will continue to provide the community of Sturgeon Point with a window on its past.

We would like your feedback and suggestions.  If you are interested in volunteering, please let us know by e-mailing: stptphotoproject@hotmail.com  

The Lintonia in Bobcaygeon

Over the holidays, I have been in touch with Mr. Jim Hamilton of Vancouver.

 

Jim’s generation is the 6^th since his family emigrated to Canada.  His family trace their roots to Alexander Hamilton (b. 1786 Drumhome, Co. Donegal, Ireland), who came to Canada from Ireland in 1832.  As a veteran of the British Army, having served at the Battle of Waterloo, he was one of many Chelsea pensioners who chose to commute their pensions in exchange for passage to Canada for them and their families and a grant of 100 acres land.  Two of his brothers, James Hamilton (b. 1790) and George Hamilton emigrated at the same time to Victoria County. Alexander worked his first grant, in Emily Twp, for four years before giving it up as a wasted effort (Jim advises that this land remains unused to this day), and was relocated to the Military Line in Verulam Township, just south of Bobcaygeon.

 

Alexander’s son, Robert Hamilton, married Jane Cullen.  Her brother, John Cullen married Robert’s sister, Jane Hamilton, in a double wedding ceremony at St. James Anglican Church in Fenelon Falls on Christmas Day 1845.

 

Their son, William Henry Hamilton (1857-1928), owned the stationery shop in Bobcaygeon – and appears to have done a booming business with the tourist trade.  Family correspondence indicated that 1912 was a particularly good year.  He had married Margaret “Emma” Trennum in Port Perry on 14 Sep 1885.  They raised their twelve children on Mansfield Street, Bobcaygeon, by the fairgrounds.

 



Their son, Thorne Hamilton and two of his brothers chose to seek adventures in Canada’s west about 1906. Before they departed, they took a series of pictures, amongst which were these snapshots of the Lintonia.

 

with apologies I don't seem to be able to up load the pictures... will sort it out and get them up ASAP. - JLK

 

UPDATE:  22 May 2013

We have finally been able to move pictures from the archive onto the blog again...so here are the missing pictures.  Many thanks again to Jim Hamilton.

 

 

 

 

Happy New Year!

happy new year!

The Sturgeon Point Union Church in winter...

 

Cross-country skiing on Lake Avenue 1966-67

 

Playing in the old Park

 

Its a new year at Sturgeon Point. 

May we all be happy and healthy.

A toast to absent friends and to new ones.

A toast to good winds and sunny skies.

May your shots go straight down the fairway.

May your porches be filled with good friends, good books and a cold drink...or two.

We look forward to new pictures and displays.

So dig out those photos and send them in!

 

The Harris brothers in 1995

Jack Fee giving the kids a ride on his Skidoo

Winter on 3rd Street - path to the Fees

 

best wishes for 2013!



Glad tidings approach...

As Christmas fast approaches, I know that many will have already headed to The Point. 

 

With family and friends there is so much to celebrate... We are all so blessed.  As we gather around our respective trees, we will remember those who are celebrating their first Christmas - be they newly born or new to the community, and we will remember those who have moved on - whether they have moved or passed on.

As my own family is one who has moved - and we are missing being a part of the Point at this time of year - I am going to be challenged to maintain this blog and the History Project at the same level.  So I am asking the Sturgeon Point Santa for some elves who might be available to lend me a hand...  I've put the scotch by my tree... and perhaps I might get some "Christmas at The Point" photos in my in-box.

Have fun with the last minute details and Merry Christmas everyone!

Bugle Call: Flora Agnew 1927-2012

It is with great sadness that we report the passing of Flora Agnew.  A wonderfully involved member of the Sturgeon Point community, from the Golf Club to the Sailing Club.  She was an early supporter of the History Project, endlessly willing to answer questions and sort through photographs and steer us through the politics of previous generations.  Flora's contributions to the project have been invaluable and she will be sorely missed by us all.

We have some wonderful pictures of Flora - they will follow.

Her obituary, as follows, appeared in the Globe & Mail:

AGNEW, Flora
Born August 2, 1927 in Lindsay, Ontario. Died peacefully November 11, 2012 in Toronto surrounded by family. Wife for 60 years of Arnold Agnew. Beloved mother of John (Jodi Woollam), Sarah (Stephen Zeifman), David (Sheila Kirouac) and Elizabeth (Bruce Lourie) and proud grandmother to George, Jane, Emmett, Clancy, Michelle, Nick, Ellen and Claire. Also Jesse Zeifman and Michelle Chan, Jack and Olivia. Predeceased by parents Dr. C. V. and Isobel Mulligan and sister Mary Prendergast. Graduate of University of Toronto. A tireless and committed volunteer, Flora was at both the front lines and the board table for many local and national organizations. She started her volunteer work in the Red Cross Canteen on Adelaide Street as a teenager during WWII. She ended it at a place she was devoted to, as past president of the Association of Volunteers for Women's College Hospital where she worked at the information desk. Flora was a volunteer for more than 50 years at the Art Gallery of Ontario, including serving as the President of the Volunteer Association. It was at the AGO that her interest in the Arctic and Inuit art was born, and she made more than a dozen trips by air and water to various parts of the Canadian far north and Greenland. She was also active in the Canadian Federation of Friends of Museums and was the first female chair of the Board at Bishop Strachan School. On her retirement as President of the Sturgeon Point Golf Club she was made an honourary life member. Her broad and varied service was recognized by the Toronto Community Service Volunteer Award in 2000. Flora spent her 85th summer at Sturgeon Point this year, happily presiding at a large gathering of family and friends celebrating her 85th birthday, her and Arnold's 60th wedding anniversary and the cottage's 100th year (and George's 8th birthday!). Visitation at Morley-Bedford, 159 Eglinton Avenue West, Toronto on Tuesday, November 13 from 5 pm to 8 pm. Funeral services will be held at Timothy Eaton Memorial Church at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, November 14. A special thank you to the caring and compassionate doctors, nurses and staff of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. Please make a donation in her memory to a charity of your choice.

We will remember them...

As another Remembrance Day rolls around, we would like to pay tribute to the members of the Sturgeon Point community who have served.  From the Battle of Batoche to Afghanistan & Iraq, members of our community have served on the front lines and on the home front to preserve those values that we as Canadians and our allies hold as sacred.

We ask you to share their stories with us so that their sacrifice is not in vain.  It is 127-years since a young Major General Dr. Sterling Ryerson served in the medical tents at Batoche patching up Canadians of Metis, English and French origin.  It is 102-years since that August morning, the day after the Regatta, that young men got on to the ferry at the Upper Wharf and left to enlist.  It is 73-years since a September morning at the end of summer, when the next generation picked up the torch thrown and took up the quarrel.  

Since then we have seen action in Korea and Afghanistan.  Served as peacekeepers in the Cyprus, Israel, Bosnia... A roll call of places in which our soldiers have served. 

For their sacrifice, we thank them.

2013 Events being planned

We are currently in the midst of planning our 2013 schedule and we would appreciate your thought, comments, photographs...

2013 Canada Day BBQ
Heritage Display theme:  Sturgeon Point Streets - 1st Street and Sandy Point Road
I have contact information for most of the 1st Street residents and hope to speak with them through the winter so that we can pull this together.

Sandy Point Road is a tricky one.  At some point the cottages are no longer in Sturgeon Point and become part of Hickory Beach.  But I think that I will leave this to the individual cottagers who live on that road to decide where that line is.  Historically, Hickory Beach was a marshy area were the guests from the Sturgeon Point Hotel went to hunt ducks and the like.  I don't know very much about the history of our neighbouring community (available guest blog topic for any interested writers) and so am not able to judge where they see their boundaries. Again I will be in touch with the families along the road to learn about their road's history.

2013 Civic Holiday Regatta
Heritage Display theme:  175th Anniversary of the 1st Sturgeon Point Regatta
This is a great one for participation - with all the cameras that are at all of this event, we should be able to get some great images. I will be looking for images of races, prizes, flyers, stories...

Civic Holiday Regatta - Running Races, 1960
courtesy of the Agnew family

2013 Speakers Series
We have already booked two speakers for next summer - and yes, John Summers, GM at the Canadian Canoe Museum will be returning!  We still have a third speaker to book. If there is a topic that is of particular interest to you, then drop me a line.

Bugle Call: Justin Wallis 1983-2012

It is with great sadness that we advise our fellow Sturgeon Pointers of the far to early passing of Justin Wallis.  A former year round resident, a cottager and an SLSC alum, Justin will be deeply missed by his family and friends.  Our condolences to Liz, Richard, Ryan & Krista and Ella, and Dani.

Justin Wallis

His obituary appears below:
 
WALLIS, Justin Michael -
November 13^th, 1983 - October 14^th, 2012
It is with profound sadness that Justin's family announce his sudden passing on Sunday October 14^th, 2012.
Justin, loving son of Richard and Elizabeth Wallis, beloved brother to Ryan, his wife Krista, daughter Ella and sister Danielle. Grandson of Leon and Aneila Wallis (deceased) and Ron and Rita (Mickey) Belton. Beloved nephew of Edward Wallis, Lynn and Marc Adams, Chris Belton, Colleen and Kevin Clynch, Susan Belton, John and Penny Belton and their families as well as fourteen loving cousins and friends too numerous to mention.
Justin came into this world with a great deal of difficulty and left nearly 29 years later in much the same way.
However, while here and despite having to weather more than his fair share of adversity, Justin brought joy, wonder, laughter and love into the lives of everyone who knew him.
Justin lived with enormous spirit that could never last, though while it did, it was truly a sight to behold.
He will forever be sadly missed.
Without the help and support of Sick Kids Hospital, Justin would never have enjoyed the life he had.
Visitation will be held at the Oshawa Funeral Home, 847 King Street West (905 721-1234) on Thursday October 18^th from 2 - 4 and 7 – 9 p.m.
Memorial Mass will be held on Friday October 19^th at 10 a.m. from St. Gertrude’s Catholic Church (690 King St. E.).
Donations to the Sick Kids Foundation would be appreciated.
Online condolences may be made at www.oshawafuneralhome.com.

Happy 1st Anniversary

The Tuesday after the 2011 Thanksgiving was our first posting for the Sturgeon Point History Project Blog.  Its been a pretty impressive first year with 105 postings and 8,764 views.  We have learned some amazing things about the history of our community and collected some amazing images.

Our thanks to everyone who contributed.  We look forward to a terrific second year.

The Cottage of Elizabeth Homes Hopkins (1816-1917)
built for her in 1886 by her son Judge Hopkins next door to the main cottage
courtesy of the Hopkins-Roberts family

Thanksgiving at the Point - Season's End

Thanksgiving is upon us...  The traditional end of season for the community... a time of rolled up rugs, mothballs and closed up cottages... of football games and big turkey dinners. 

 

The Thanksgiving Football Game has a long history at the Point.  Through the 1950s and 1960s many of the young bucks had played football on their high school teams. They played a friendly and spirited game against each other around the Point. By the early 1970s, Chip Barrett had gone pro, playing for the Toronto Argonauts.  Aided and abetted by a group of Aussies who had played rugger back home, and who had made Ian Kennedy's cottage their Canadian hangout, and a whole lot of beer, the impromptu games became an annual event.

Courtesy of Annie Gray

Ian Kennedy said: "it was at Culzean for several years until there was one to many take-outs by trees and Chows. Then moved to the lower field (Robertsons). One classic game was the teens against the twenty plus... They said tackle so Dennis, Angus, several rugger playing Aussies and self said sure... With the oldies dominating, the Teens asked the second half be touch. Lost track for the next few years and by then it had become more civilized with girls now part of the scrums..."

 

The game moved from the Kennedys, to the Robertsons, to the Driving Range to the Barretts and a few spots in between.  For much of the past decade it has been played at the Wiseners.

 



Football melee at the Wiseners, 2011

However you spend the weekend, we hope that you have a great one and we'll see you at Sunday's game.

A Second Golf Course at Sturgeon Point?

Gavin Lucas' Historical Sketch of the Village of Sturgeon Point 1640-1940 has the most fascinating nuggets of information about the Village.  In putting together the Heritage Boards for the Golf Course for Doors Open, I came across one of those nuggets on page 18:

Some members incuding Messrs. Barr, Grace and Wood feeling doubtful of the possibilities of such a stoney course developed another Golf Links called "Merryland" on the open fields north of Irene Avenue and also built an excellent tennis court on this land at the head of First Street.  This area was abandoned after a few years as the other course was gradually improved.

 

Merryland?  This was a brand new one for me.  In all the discussions I've had with Village residents, this one never came up. In speaking with the Barr, Phipps, Graham and Roberts families, I learned that the golf course was on the Graham Farm between the Leaf Dump and the original road* into the Village.   All agreed that there were 3 or 4 holes and that they went up and down the hill.  Babe has some memories of the course but the others all say that it was no longer in use by the mid-1920s.  Butchie said that use of the tennis court continued after the the golf course fell out of favour.

Have you any information or pictures about Merryland or about the Sturgeon Point Golf Course?  We would love to learn more about the early history of our golf courses.

Golf at Sturgeon Point
courtsesy of the Hopkins family

 

 

 * Note: The original road into Sturgeon Point ran from the corner of the Graham & Rutherford farms, through the woods, past the Shea's log house, across Irene Avenue - which originally only ran from the Upper Wharf to 1st Street - through the woods, past the Crightons, across the back of the Swan, between the buldings of The Sturgeon Point Hotel, coming out between the Lower Warf and the Sandbar. This road appears on the 1871 and 1877 maps.  The current road is dotted in on the 1884 subdivision map done to show the Village lots.  A good portion of the road can still be walked but please remember that it is private property and permission to walk it is required.