President’s Message
They say that April showers bring May flowers, but the showers won’t go away. Oh well, we’ll be complaining soon that it’s too hot and sunny, so let’s make the best of this wet stuff and get on with our lives. As the gardens are starting to wake up, the GHS is looking for volunteers to come out to the Georgina Pioneer Village as a work crew, probably Tuesday mornings, to rehab the gardens and refinish the Quilters Cabin for use as the GHS office. Give any one of the board members a call if you are interested in getting involved. We did this when we refinished the caboose, and it’s a great way to get to know the Village, and peek behind the curtains.
And, on that note, I’d like to welcome Steve Brown as our new Village maintenance man. He’s already started on refurbishing the Mann house and repainting the washrooms. Thanks Steve, good stuff.
I also want to mention that our lineup of excellent speakers at the schoolhouse continues. Allan Morton will be speaking to us on Tuesday May 16 at 7 pm, discussing the origins of our Pioneer Village that his father Gavin Morton was heavily involved with. We’re looking forward to seeing your presentation, Allan! Please come early, if you can. We always have a great meet and greet starting at about 6:30, and it’s a great opportunity to meet your fellow members.
That’s about it for now, I’m looking forward to seeing you all at the school house on the 16th, I hope that all is well with all of you as summer approaches.
Regards,
Paul
Churches of Georgina
On my way to Timmy’s on the Queensway South, I pass by a small church near the bottom of the hill on the right and wondered about it. Searching for information on the churches of Georgina, I found an article entitled “Lake Simcoe’s Historical Churches” in an earlier issue of Lake Simcoe Living and adapted the next two pieces for our newsletter.* R. Holden, Editor
History of St. Paul’s of Jersey (Now called Hope for Today Fellowship)
St. Paul is known as the “Traveling Church”. Originally an Anglican congregation, St. Paul has been standing at its present location for the past 63 years.
In June of 1999 they celebrated St. Paul’s 50th anniversary by bringing the parish congregation and families together to share food and fun and of course stories of those who saw St. Paul’s on the move.
St. Paul’s had moved before. Its original location was at the north-west corner of Ravenshoe Road and The Queensway South. It was constructed in 1875. In the early 1900’s, St. Paul’s was moved to the corner of Boyers Road and Metro Road. This was quite the event for the early 1900’s as it was moved on the ice up Cook’s Bay. In 1949, it was moved to its present location.
In November 2014 worship services at St. Paul, Jersey were combined with and moved to Christ Church, Roche’s Point. In 2017 management of St. Paul’s of Jersey was assumed by the Diocese of Toronto and the building has since been acquired by, and is now the home of the Hope for Today Fellowship congregation.
Cottage Shul, Georgina, 21122 Dalton Road (now the Community Hebrew Centre of Jackson’s Point)
Jackson’s Point in Georgina is well known as Ontario’s first cottage country. However, very few people know is that it is also home to the first Hebrew Community Centre Synagogue in the area. Constructed at a time when people were not very tolerant toward different cultures and religious beliefs, the Jewish people in Georgina forged ahead and built a summer synagogue named Cottage Shul.
Now with its fresh makeover, this little synagogue is solid on its foundation. During improvements to the Ark, kitchen, interior doors, lighting and wood structure, carpenters took great care in keeping the original cottage charm. This simple grey stone building draws little attention in Georgina, but continues to be a valued part of the town’s history.
*originally at https://www.lakesimcoeliving.com/blog/great-days-out/lake-simcoes-historic-churches.html; please note this link is no longer available and cannot be found on the server since the story was first downloaded from the web address.
Churches of Georgina
On my way to Timmy’s on the Queensway South, I pass by a small church near the bottom of the hill on the right and wondered about it. Searching for information on the churches of Georgina, I found an article entitled “Lake Simcoe’s Historical Churches” in an earlier issue of Lake Simcoe Living and adapted the next two pieces for our newsletter.* R. Holden, Editor
Searching for the Railway by R. W. Holden
It is interesting to try and trace the original railway trackage into Georgina. During the period prior to 1915 there would have been a 45’ iron turntable and a single stall engine house located near the present-day intersection of Black River Road and Dalton Road. The original line crossed Dalton Road just north of Black River Road on an angle and continued straight on the east side of Dalton along present-day Grew Blvd. Prior to its use as a roadway, Grew Blvd. and Lorne Park provided the right of way right-of-way for the rail line into Jackson’s Point. Near the end of Lorne Park the rail line turned north east and onto a wharf that originally carried one track out over the water to load and unload passengers and freight from steamboats docking there. By 1900, the wharf had been reconstructed with two tracks. In addition, there was a small yard of three or four tracks in the area now occupied by parkland and parking. The land where the Ramada Inn sits was used for the warehouses of Lake Simcoe Ice, one of the area’s largest industries during the last decade of the nineteenth century and right through the early decades of the twentieth until the development of electrical refrigeration made ice-boxes obsolete and seriously reduced demand for ice. An additional cargo carried by the railway was timber. Giant rafts of timbers were escorted by steamboats into Jackson’s Point for transhipment to hungry lumber markets to the south.
Sutton station was located north of Baseline Road on the west side of McDonough Avenue. Next to it was the Stationmaster’s residence and beyond, a grain elevator. Two tracks served the station area. Later, when the engine house and turntable were removed, a turning wye was constructed to turn engines and trains coming into Sutton in readiness for their return south. By then trackage into Jackson’s Point had been abandoned. Turning wyes consisted of three switches or turnouts connected in the shape of the letter “Y”. Scars of the former roadbed are easily seen on satellite images provided by Google Maps of the former station area. The wye began a little north of the station and its lower arm curved towards the northwest linking with its upper arm curving northeast to rejoin the main line south of Black River Road.
By 1907, a second set of trackage was laid east of Dalton Road leading south towards High Street to carry trolleys of the Metropolitan Railway system into Sutton. From Keswick the right of way followed the route of present day Metro Road and entered Jackson’s Point where today’s Metro Road and Dalton Road intersect. The station was located on the north side of the tracks and included a small turning wye just to the east before the tracks veered south towards Sutton roughly parallel to Dalton Road on the east side. (see air photo) It would have crossed Lake Simcoe Junction trackage a little north of Black River Road. North of Jackson’s Point station, the Trolleyrest (now the Lake Simcoe Arms Pub) served overnight travellers and tourists arriving from Toronto. The line’s original Sutton station building is still in use repurposed for other uses on the northeast corner of Dalton Road and High Street at the traffic lights. The last trolley rode into Sutton station in 1930 and the line was abandoned soon after. The old right of way entering Jackson’s Point from Keswick was repurposed for road traffic and is today’s Metro Road.
Where in Georgina?
Can you identify the location and name of the mystery location to the above? We’ve had no response as yet on this one…it’s still a mystery!
News
There’s a lot happening at the village. New and exciting programs and workshops are being offered all year long. Save this link to your desktop and check back regularly for updates. or email Melissa Matt at curator@georgina.ca. We give a hearty welcome to Steve Brown, the new maintenance and handyman in the Pioneer Village.
Volunteers wanted!!! Volunteers are needed to come out to the Georgina Pioneer Village as a work crew, probably Tuesday mornings, to rehab the gardens and refinish the Quilters Cabin for use as the GHS office. Give any one of the board members a call if you are interested in getting involved. We did this when refinishing the caboose and it’s a great way to get to know the Village, and peek behind the curtains.
On May 16th Allan Morton will be our guest speaker. Gavin Morton will be the subject of this talk about the origins of the Georgina Pioneer Village. Gavin Morton worked with Nena Marsden and others in the early 1970’s to bring some historic structures – destined for demolition – to the Civic Centre in order to preserve them. The talk will explain why the Pioneer Village was born partly due to the death of his mother, Clara Pringle Morton. Gavin was a descendent of United Empire Loyalists and among the first people to settle in North Gwillimbury.
The talk will also include examples of how preserving heritage benefits a community and how we can do even better in Georgina. Included as well may be anecdotes about Allan’s own experiences as an archaeologist, including the most recent excavation of an extinct “underground railway” village of escaped slaves called ‘Fraserville’ near Windsor, Ontario.
Events
Tuesday, May 16th – Members meeting, our guest speaker Allan Morton will present a talk about the Pioneer Village in the schoolhouse at Georgina Pioneer Village 6:30PM meet & greet, 7:00PM meeting.
Monday, June 5th , Board Meeting, schoolhouse GPV 2:00PM.
Tuesday, June 20th , General Meeting, schoolhouse Georgina Pioneer Village 7:00PM. Meet and greet 6:30PM.
Saturday, June 24th, Music in the Streets, Georgina Pioneer Village.
Saturday, July 1st , Canada Day celebrations Georgina Pioneer Village.
September 16th – tentative date set for Harvestfest; more to come later.