Back between 1946 and 1949, a small-time film maker produced a series of 85 films depicting towns…
Valuing Our History
Telephone operator was frightened to death in 1933
One of the more bizarre and tragic deaths in Wellington County’s history occurred in Arthur…
Joyriding railroaders narrowly avoided jail in 1913
The Canadian Pacific station at Guelph Junction, near Campbellville, about 14 miles southeast…
Spanish Flu persisted in Wellington well into 1919
My two most recent columns described the initial impact of the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic…
Danger of flooding on Grand River was acute in 1934
The construction of storage dams, combined with careful monitoring of conditions, has virtually…
Rockwood cheese factory produced cheddar for export
Economic pressures on farmers are nothing new. For agriculture, the Great Depression did not…
German immigrant Bill Geiger prospered in Fergus
Today there are few immigrants from western Europe to Wellington County, or indeed, to anywhere in…
Gang of pick-pockets stirred up excitement – and escaped – in 1898
The morning of Monday, April 11, 1898 began as a routine one at the Grand Trunk’s Mount…
Firearms were involved in three separate 1897 incidents
Today, Canadian police and courts take a dim view of the brandishing and use of firearms. That was…
James Goldie: pioneer Guelph businessman died in 1912
The Goldie family, though not well known today, was a major player in the middle part of the Grand…
Church union in 1925 caused turmoil amongst Presbyterians
In 1925, the Canadian Methodist Church amalgamated with the Congregational Church and most of the…
Palmerston railway station a victim of fire in 1909
The old Canadian National station in Palmerston is high on the list of significant landmarks from…
Couple fined $10 each for assault while seizing a child
In February of 1942 a farm family in Eramosa Township endured what today might be called a home…
First local temperance groups were organized in the 1850s
Over the years this column has dealt with the temperance movement on several occasions. Most of the…
Assisting Mount Forest industry was a divisive issue in 1923
Promoting industry with municipal loans and grants was a popular practice in Ontario during the…