The Georgina Historical Society, as a not-for-profit organization, collects, preserves, promotes and interprets the rich history and heritage of all communities now known as the Town of Georgina.

History of Georgina Historical Society

The history of the Georgina Historical Society and the Georgina Pioneer Village and Archives have been closely linked. A local woman named Nena Marsden identified the need for an historic site in this community in 1968, forming the Lake Simcoe South Shore Historical Society; this group later changed their name to the Georgina Historical Society in 1974. If you want to read about the people who were present at the first meeting of the Georgina Historical Society, you can read the minutes of the first meeting here.

In order to raise money to purchase artifacts and historical buildings, a number of fundraising campaigns were mounted by the society. In 1975, they managed to raise enough money to purchase its first two buildings – the Smallwood Log Cabin and the Baldwin Free Methodist Church. After petitioning the town to give them land on which to place these buildings, the municipal government decided to set aside 10 acres of land for the historical society to use as a community museum. After this bylaw was enacted, a local First Nations chief named Lorenzo Big Canoe officially opened the Georgina Pioneer Village & Archives to the public in Thanksgiving of 1975.
Over the years, the Georgina Pioneer Village grew in size. This was due to the efforts of the Georgina Historical Society, who were instrumental in moving of all of the buildings that currently populate the property of the Pioneer Village. These buildings include: a general store, a blacksmith shop, a barn, a train station, a one-room schoolhouse, a doctor’s house, a middle-class dwelling, and, lastly, a reproduction trapper’s cabin. One more log cabin is in the process of being built, and another log cabin is due to be moved there in the near future. Since there are so many buildings on the Pioneer Village property, objects that were collected by members of the Georgina Historical Society over a fifty- year period now furnish each of the houses on the property of the Georgina Pioneer Village & Archives.

News

Volunteers Needed for 2 Upcoming Events!

Volunteers will be needed to man our refreshment booth at Music in the Streets and for our booth at the opening of the Village; details to follow on times and dates.  Volunteers will also be needed to staff the buildings for the 50th anniversary celebrations on May...

Mann Cemetery Sign

We have not seen any written description about the Mann Cemetery.  Courtney Rennie of the Town will be contacted by Paul Brady regarding a review of a draft of the proposed signage wording to ensure the information on the draft is correct.  As we are covering signage...

Pioneer Village 50th Anniversary

The Pioneer Village is undergoing an image refresh for its 50th anniversary celebration on May 31st.  The name is to be changed to the Georgina Village Museum to better reflect the work of preserving our past which goes beyond just what the pioneers did.  Along with...

Newsletters

Newsletter #4, Volume 8, April 2025

President’s Message Spring has finally sprung, but Mother Nature is reluctant to let us enjoy the warmth that usually comes with the change of season. As I am writing this, a week after the big ice storm, some people are still struggling with no power and continue to...

Newsletter #3, Volume 8, March 2025

President’s Message As the snowiest, coldest winter in recent memory draws to a close, brighter days are coming and we will soon replace snow shovels with gardening tools. As far as world events are concerned, events spinning both close to home and around the world...

Newsletter #2, Volume 8, February 2025

President’s Message Welcome to the second newsletter of 2025. We’re now in the depths of the winter, and this one is just like the good ol’ days, with lots of snow, ice and cold. Lake Simcoe is frozen right across now, and the Jackson’s Point harbour is buzzing with...

Furthermore, the Georgina Historical Society has been instrumental in the management and operation of the Georgina Pioneer Village & Archives. We still maintain a close partnership with the Town of Georgina, who currently maintains the Village on a day-to-day basis. We also participate in historical events of all kinds around Georgina, such as at Festival on High and the Sutton Fair and Horse Show. We also strive to educate the public through our general meetings, held on a monthly basis, in the sharing and dissemination of topics of historical interest relating to the communities that make up the Township of Georgina. Most recently, we have been engaged in drawing public awareness of the need to preserve many aspects of our local heritage, such as cemeteries, heritage houses, and other topics of historic interest. One of our other projects at the present time is to raise money to restore an old railway caboose, which resides onsite at the Georgina Pioneer Village & Archives.

Finally, we recognize that we would not be where we are today without the heroic efforts of Nena Marsden to establish the society in the first place. Sadly, she passed away recently at the age of 92 years. A stone commemorating Nena Marsden, in honor of the founder of the Georgina Historical Society, was laid in the village in the front gardens of the Noble House after her passing in 2018. Additionally, the Georgina Historical Society gives out a bursary on an annual basis, named after her as the “Nena Marsden Memorial Bursary”; this $500 bursary is given to a graduating high school student pursuing a post-secondary education who has demonstrated critical thinking skills by writing an essay on a topic set by the Georgina Historical Society.
Lastly, we would encourage anyone with an interest in history to contribute to the Georgina Historical Society’s newsletter, thereby adding to the body of local knowledge about the history of Georgina