The Best and Most Bizarre Things About Being a Camp Counsellor.

If you've ever wondered what it's like to be a Brant Historical Society camp counsellor, then you've come to the right place. It's an incredibly rewarding experience, but it does come with side effects!

The 10 Best Things About Being a Myrtleville Camp Counsellor

10) You get to act silly every day
9) You get to play on a slip ‘n’ slide

8) You get to get your face painted

7) You get to act like a kid again
6) You get to meet interesting people 

(police, firefighters and balloon-animal artists)
5) You don’t have to get dolled up for work
4) You start writing your daily notes on the back of colouring sheets
3) You learn important life skills 

(balloon-animal art)

2) You get to bake weird things every day, and then eat them
1) You develop multiple personalities (Alexander Graham Bell, Lucy) 

 

Top 10 Side Effects of Being a Myrtleville Camp Counsellor

10) You start talking in accents at home 

9) You can no longer colour in the lines
8) You talk in a high pitch voice all the time
7) You start laughing at things that you normally wouldn’t
6) You add ‘Y’ at the end of a lot of words (want a snacky?)
5) You develop the habit of a scheduled snack time
4) You feel the need to always wear a name tag
3) You start spelling like you are in grade 1 again
2) Your sentences no longer make sense
1) You miss your fellow counsellors and campers when camp is over

If you're interested in becoming a camper, or you just want to come see all of this for yourself, information about our camps, which run throughout the year, can be found on our Camps & PA Days page.

Erin's Farewell

Before I started working for the Brant Historical Society I didn’t know much about the City of Brantford and its surrounding area except for two things: that Gretzky was from the area, and that Brantford was known as the Bell City.

In my position as Curator for the museum over the past 3 years, 2.9 years to be exact, I've learned much about this community’s rich and mixed history. One of the first things I learned that has stuck with me is the very first bylaw created for the Town of Brantford. Written in 1847, it states residents are: “not to let animals roam free on their property.” I also learned when King George VI and Queen Elizabeth visited in 1939, they came in by rail, stopping for just 15 minutes and they received a gun salute both on their arrival and departure. Both a royal chair from their visit and a crest from the side of their rail car are part of the Brant Historical Society’s collection.

I love sharing the fact that Brantford was at one time the third largest industrial city in Canada, after Montreal and Toronto. From farm equipment to manufacturing pottery, Brantford’s industrial past was strong. I know I haven’t come close to learning everything there is to learn about the history of this community, but life has a funny way of changing your path and at of the end of August I’m moving on to pursue opportunities in England.

 I am forever grateful for the warmth and openness I’ve experienced from the historical society’s membership, volunteers and visiting public. The passion held by the community is infectious and I hope that this same warm welcome will be given to the Historical Society’s new curator, Chelsea Carss. Chelsea joins us from Ottawa after graduating with her Master’s at the University of Toronto Museum Studies program. I encourage you to come by the Brant Museum and Archives soon and say hello to Chelsea.

Erin Dee-Richard

Curator

A Change in Direction

Being only a year away from going to university can be scary, especially if you’re still unclear about what you would like to do. This was me in grade twelve at Pauline Johnson Collegiate. 

I was creating my schedule for second semester and realized I had two credits to fill and nothing to fill them with. At this point I thought I wanted to be a museum librarian and started to consider a co-op in that field, so I could really know if that was the right job for me. I was accepted for a co-op position at Brant Museum and Archives. I was over the moon happy! I was finally going to be doing something I enjoyed.
Unfortunately, it became apparent to staff and myself that it wasn’t for me. I loved cataloguing pictures of the different parts of Brantford that have gone through astonishing development; from the filled in canals of Greenwich Street to the blue prints for the bridge that turns Paris Road into Brant Ave. The co-op was an amazing experience that broadened my historical knowledge of Brantford but the problem came when my need to socialize was not being fulfilled. I am very much a social butterfly and after a good forty-five minutes in a quiet office I needed to get up and talk to someone! Anyone!

One morning I was called into the museum director’s office for a talk. I was sure I was doomed; this was my verbal pink slip. Fortunately, what I did get would help change my career plan in a very positive way. Instead of being scolded for my sociability I was encouraged to embrace it. The director at the time, Joan Kanigan, told me that my co-op was going to be moved to Myrtleville House Museum where my more energetic personality would be appreciated and put to good use. It’s incredibly refreshing to be told to continue being yourself, to have an individual go out of their way to accommodate you, not force you to be something you’re not. For that I will always be grateful.

The next week I started at Myrtleville House Museum. I was going to be doing Christmas programming in the mornings with other volunteers. A cool, calm, and collected Lisa Anderson filled me in on everything that goes on during the programs but could not have verbalized the crazy mornings that were ahead. Every morning there was a group of loud and excited students from any number of grade schools from Brantford and Brant County. I led the tour groups while other volunteers baked, made toys, and created Christmas crafts with the students. I fell in love with working with the children, and telling them all about history. It was the most gratifying experience to have enthusiastic students come through asking insightful questions and really getting involved with the lessons. I soon became increasingly interested in the job of Education Officer and I started seriously thinking about doing what I saw Lisa do every day. 

I ended my co-op with the promise of coming back for March break camp. For that week I soaked up every moment I had, leading the kids in games and crafts that were not only fun, but learning based. Currently, I am the Historical Interpreter for Myrtleville House Museum and I love it. Along with giving tours and developing interactive ways of doing so, I also get to help with education programming. Sharing our heritage with others has to be the most amazing job there is. Thanks to the people that share my passion for the past, I am moving forward in my education with peace of mind that there is a profession in history that truly fits me.

Come visit Myrtleville House Museum and meet our enthusiastic Heritage Interpreter, Shelby.

         For more information regarding volunteer opportunities, please visit us here! 

Mr. Carroll's Concoctions

Suffering from a bleeding nose? Chew newspaper.

Newspaper!?! What were the pioneers thinking?

Mr. Charles Carroll was an apothecary from Cork, Ireland. He was the father of Eliza Good (founder, along with her husband Allen Good, of Myrtleville House). Carroll’s partner was Thomas Daunt and he owned a house called Myrtleville House in Ireland. It got its name from the Myrtle bushes that grew around the home. In an effort to remember this house when she moved to Brantford, Eliza Good and her husband built a house to look just like the one in Ireland and named it Myrtleville House. There is no doubt that Eliza knew about medicine and herbs from her father and helped her family and the families of Brantford with many illnesses. Although it was common for infants to not live past infancy, all ten of her children survived.

When Eliza and her husband came to Brantford she brought her father’s apothecary kit with her. This is now on display in the library at Myrtleville House Museum. One of the most interesting items in the kit is a scorpion. Pioneers believed if the scorpion ran across your chest it could cure diseases. Not understanding germs, and the science behind many illnesses, the pioneers relied on superstitions and old wives tales. Here are some of my favourites:

If suffering from the flu- Kill a chicken and hold its body against the bare feet of a patient or have the patient swallow a cobweb, rolled into a ball.

If suffering from a cold- Hang a sock full of roasted potatoes around the neck of a patient

If suffering from a cough and sore throat- Simmer a piece of salt pork in hot vinegar and let the meat cool. Fasten the pork around the patient’s neck with a piece of red flannel. If you have no pork, tie a dirty sock around the patient’s neck.

There were also some old wives tales that did actually work:

For someone with a chest cold- Apply a warm towel or blanket to the patient’s chest over night. This warm towel was called a poultice or mustard plaster. Pioneers would apply herbs, spices, cow manure and mustard to the plaster. These extra items did not have any medicinal value. It was the warmth from the towel that would help the chest cold.

To cure hiccups- Swallow a spoonful of sugar with a cup of water. The sugar works because it makes muscles relax.

To whiten your teeth- Clean your teeth with baking soda.

Herbs were also used for medicinal purposes. Willow Bark cured general pain, horehound was said to cure sore throats, horsetail helped to keep skin youthful and Rosehips were said to be high in Vitamin C and prevent scurvy. There were many different herbs pioneers used, some causing more harm than good.

Grade 3 classes can explore early health and medicine with our grade 3 outreach program “Mr. Carroll’s Concoctions”. Students create their own poultice, learn about different herbs and their uses, play a game of “could this cure you?” and talk about pioneer ideas and early beliefs through many hands on activities.

I enjoyed researching for this education program. It makes me wonder what future generations will say about our medicine beliefs.

Lisa Anderson, Education Officer

For more information about booking programs visit our website or call Lisa Anderson, Education Officer at 519-752-3216 or Lisa.anderson@brantmuseums.ca

The Walking Tours

After having worked on developing a downtown walking tour for the opening of Harmony Square and three previous downtown tours as part of pre-event programming for Doors Open Brant, the Executive Director asked me in January if I would conduct some of the walking tours a second time, and even develop some new tours with appropriate support materials so that others could deliver them.

In March I developed a draft schedule that included some repeat tours such as the Market Street Walk, Victoria Park Heritage Walk, and the Downtown Walk, as well as two new tours that would be repeated for Doors Open Brant 2012 and Remembrance Day, specifically, the Brant’s Ford Walk and the Memorials and Monuments Walk.

To date I have done the Brant’s Ford Walk on Saturday, April 21st at 10:30 a.m. A modest twelve people joined me on a very cool spring morning to learn about the earliest development of this area prior to 1812. The walk was set as a primer leading into the happenings during the War of 1812 period which will be part of the bicentennial commemorations over the next three years. The walk moved through the four parks that circle Brant’s Ford and while the guide was in costume, costume is not necessary for conducting the tour.

The next walk was done of Market Street, walking from the Brant Museum & Archives up to the Railway Station and down Market Street to Colborne Street on Saturday, May 26th at 10:30 a.m. Eighteen people joined me for the walk with elements of a “Jane’s Walk” focusing on the remaining structures from Brantford’s Golden Age (1880-1914) and the developments between Brantford’s two competing transportation systems – the canal and the railway. Once again the guide was in costume to help set the context. The consequences of this tour are that it has already brought some new members, contributions, and some researchers investigating their own properties.

There are six additional walking tours booked this year, and we would love to see you there!

Brian Moore
For  a complete list of upcoming events, including the Walking Tours, click here

Ce n'est pas un lampe!

When I first saw this artifact, I thought it was a lamp. Actually, I thought it was a lamp from the time I started working at the Brant Museum and Archives until about three months ago. I was researching serving pieces for a cooking exhibit I put together at the Brantford Public Library, and I saw an item that looked almost exactly like this piece as part of a Victorian serving set. I thought it was an oil lamp because of its resemblance to the “Butterfly Lamp” from Resident Evil IV (and I play way too many video games), but it is actually called a Pickle Castor.

The pickle castor is made up of four different pieces: the metal frame, lid, and tongs, and the glass canister. It was a serving piece which would have been used by a very discriminating Victorian host or hostess, who would have been absolutely mortified at the prospect of plunking down a jar of pickles on their exceptionally appointed dinner table. The castor allows the user to take the pickles out of their jar, and place them inside the glass canister. The handle allows the piece to be passed around the table, so that each guest might take which pickles they like, and the tongs mean that no lady or gentleman would need to dirty their fingers, nor would they need to be so rude as to actually reach inside the vessel for a pickle. Basically, a pickle castor is the classiest way to serve pickles without flying them down on silk scarves like cirque du soleil.

This particular castor is made of silver, and was crafted by the Meriden Britannia company of Hamilton. The blue glass is painted with multi-coloured flora, and is in excellent condition.

The pickle castor, along with an array of other Victorian items, can be seen in the Victorian parlour at the Brant Museum and Archives.

Carlie M, Program Coordinator & Development Coordinator, BHS
Click here to visit the Victorian Parlour

Farewell and Thanks

Change can be both exciting and sad at the same time and it is difficult for me to let everyone know that I am leaving the BHS.  I recently accepted the position of Executive Director with the Museum of Ontario Archaeology and will be leaving the Society on May 25, 2012.  My formal training was in archaeology so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to work for an organization which matched both my personal and professional interests.

The Board of Directors has started the search for a new Executive Director, and Erin Dee-Richard has been appointed Acting Director in the interim.  Erin has a Masters in Museum Studies from the University of Leicester in England and understands the overall requirements of managing a museum.  She has been working at the BHS since December 2009 and has excelled in her role as Curator.  I am very confident in Erin’s ability to manage the BHS during this transition.

I have thoroughly enjoyed working at the Brant Historical Society and am proud of what we have accomplished over the past six years.  Key for me has been the work we have done with the community.  Piloting the Building Responsive Museums Framework and undertaking the Community Engagement Study gave us an opportunity to find out what our community wants, expects and needs from the Brant Historical Society and its museums.  Exhibits have become more engaging as we work with Laurier Brantford and Community members to create exhibits that speak to the people living here.  Education and Outreach programs have grown each year and the creation of the Oral History Program is enabling us to capture more of our community’s history.  Our new logo and updated website portrays a fresh, warm, and welcoming organization.

The Brant Historical Society serves its community by enabling people to connect to their history and share their stories across generations and cultures.  I have been privileged to be a part of this for the past six years.

Sincerely,

Joan