Monuments and Memorials

This weekend marked the last in our series of Walking Tours for this year with Brian Moore as he took us on his Monuments and Memorials Walk.  Although the day was cold and cloudy, the 15 people that attended ensured that we were kept in the warmth of friendly company.

We started outside the armouries as we were given a brief overview and were advised of the monument to commemorate the three battles from the Boer War.  On the one face are the names of three individuals from Brantford who were killed during the Boer War and the other three have pictures of the battles where their lives were lost.  It was dedicated on Victoria Day in 1903.

Our attention then focused on the Armoury itself as Brian pointed out the official name is now “Sgt. William Merrifield VC Armouries”.  National Defense wanted to raise awareness of Victorian Cross recipients by renaming armouries.  Sgt. William Merrifield was chosen for Brant as he enlisted with the 4^th Battalion, which originally captured enlistees from Halton, Hamilton, Niagara, and as far west as Peel Region. 

We then stopped briefly at Gore Park to be reminded that this was with the original location of the World War I Memorial erected by the Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire (I.O.D.E.).  It has been moved just down the street to Tom Thumb Park where the memorial current resides. 

We briefly stopped across the street from Major Ballachey's House at the corner of Brant Ave. and Church Street.  Major Ballachey served in WWI and was killed while performing his rounds with the 58th Battalion.  Before the war, he served with the Board of Education and resigned from that position to serve in the war.

We continued on our journey to the next brief stop at Grace Anglican to notice the stone work of their memorial tower that was also erected as a monument to the war.  After this, we walked to the Bell Memorial where the park is wedge shaped, signalling the breakdown of distance as a barrier by the invention of the telephone.  Originally, this feature was built as a major planning feature, where West Street would become a large boulevard to facilitate movement from the train station to downtown.  The original plans also called for a fountain to be installed on the backside of the monument.  Alexander Graham Bell made a speech stating that the concept of the telephone was thought of in Brantford, not Boston like others had been claiming. 

Finally, we attended the Brant County War Memorial which was dedicated in 1933.  It was originally constructed to remember those who died during WWI, but names have been added from WWII, the Korean War, and the recent Afghanistan Conflict.  It should be noted that the Six Nations was the largest Aboriginal contributor to the war effort, but none of their names are listed on the memorial, like Donald Brant.  This monument was constructed by Walter Seymour Allward, who also built the Bell Memorial and Vimy Ridge War Memorial.  The subsequent addition of the seven statues were meant to represent men and ladies from each contingent (Army, Navy, and Air Force), but the women have the additional representation of the Medical Corp.

Family Counselling Centre of Brant Exhibit Opening

Last night we had our opening of the Family Counselling Centre of Brant’s exhibit opening.  The Brant Historical Society partnered with the Family Counselling Centre to celebrate their 100^th anniversary.  As the doors opened, we were excited to receive our guests for the event.

                Shortly after 7PM, the President of the Brant Historical Society, Michael St. Amant, spoke about the history of the Family Counselling Services of Brant and how they have contributed to the community.  He highlighted how the organization has changed and evolved, much like the Brant Historical Society, over the years starting in response to WWI when it was then called the Social Service League.  Susan Reid, President of the Family Counselling Services of Brant highlighted how the exhibit brought to light information that they were not aware of in their history.  Finally, Dave Levac spoke about what Family Counselling Services of Brant has done, noting that they have saved lives in the community through their work.

                Attendees enjoyed seeing the exhibit, which includes an interactive portion while nibbling on snacks and having a glass of wine.  People also enjoy the engaging conversations with their neighbours and work colleagues to celebrate the success of the organization.

Appraisal Day at Myrtleville!

Dust off Great Aunt Gertrude's pewter set, Antiques Appraisal Day and Heritage Fair is coming up fast! We've assembled a crack-team of appraisers, and the registration forms are hot off the presses.

We have appraisers who specialize in glass, china, Brantford memorabilia, sports memorabilia, furniture, paper goods, militaria, and yes, Great Aunt Gertrude's pewter. Registration is $10.00 for one item, and $20.00 for 3. We've got a limit of 3 items per person to make sure everyone gets a chance to have their items appraised.

But we've got more than just appraisers for this Heritage Fair!

The Blacksmith Forge will be open!

image c/o Grand River Rafting Co.

Mike the Flint Knapper will be doing historical demonstrations of flint knapping (making arrow heads)

Image c/o Metis Nation of Ontario

Leon Fleury will demonstrate the creation of traditional drums, and will also have some items for sale.

Photo c/o B&B Canada

Judy Acri of the Asa Wolverton House B&B in Paris will be hosting our High Tea in the Parlour (sittings $20 each, RSVPs appreciated!)

Trained Museum techs will be offering services in wrapping and packing your own antiques and collectibles for museum-grade preservation ($5/item for small items up to medium-sized items, i.e. books, vases, figures, plates, etc.)

Plus many more booths, activities, and tours! See our poster for more details, and call us at 519-752-2483 or visit 57 Charlotte Street to register your antiques for appraisal or to RSVP for a tea sitting

Farewell to Lisa!

After more than 7 years as Education Officer and even longer as a summer student and volunteer at Myrtleville House Museum and the Brant Historical Society, Lisa Anderson is moving on to a new chapter in her life.

"With mixed feelings I am letting everyone know that I will be leaving the Myrtleville Museum and the Brant Historical Society on June 20, 2014. I made the decision to leave to give me the opportunity to help my husband on his family’s dairy farm and recently I was offered a part time position with the Canadian Diabetes Association which will allow me to work both on and off the farm. 

I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Myrtleville House Museum as the education officer.  Since 2008 I have had the opportunity to see thousands of students at Myrtleville or in the classroom. I have enjoyed decorating the house for a Victorian Christmas, baking cookies, making crafts, making wooden toys, and doing old fashioned laundry. My favourite experience was playing the strict teacher from the 1860s for our School Bells program.   

I have thoroughly enjoyed working with the volunteers at Myrtleville House and have appreciated their dedication.  Thank you to the education committee who continue to be committed to improving our education programs.  Through our partnership with Brantford Laurier and Nipissing University I have had the opportunity to work with many fourth year con-current education students.  They have been an asset to our museum and to our programming. 

Sarah Thomas has accepted the position of education officer.  I wish her all the best. 

Thank you for a wonderful seven years!

Lisa Anderson

Education Officer "

The Staff and Board of the Brant Historical Society would like to thank Lisa for consistently going above and beyond in her role as Education Officer, and for making Myrtleville an even more welcoming and wonderful place to be. We wish her the very best of luck in her new endeavours.

We would also like to take this opportunity to formally welcome Sarah Thomas, who will be beginning her role as Education Officer on June 23rd. Welcome to the Historical Society, Sarah!

Brant Museum Inventory Project

If you've been to the museum lately, you'll probably notice a lot of changes. First, and probably most noticeable as you walk in through the front doors, we've changed our Victorian Parlour into office space.

New view from my desk. Stop by & say hi!

We're up front so that we can actually see folks coming in through the door, and so that we can assist our visitors right away.

The other thing you'll notice is that our programming room is overtaken with packing materials and inventory tools, and that several artefacts have come out of their regular hiding spots for their moment to shine.

Affectionately known as "The Marshmallows": giant rolls of foam and bubble wrap.
Yes, that's right. A giant roll of bubble wrap. 

The inventory project aims to make sure that all objects in the BHS collection are a) qualified, b) catalogued in our digital database, and c) packaged and stored correctly according to Ontario and Canadian museum association guidelines.

John busy cataloguing among the boxes

The project is an enormous undertaking, but one that is very necessary. You might have heard rumblings that the museum is moving. It is true that the current building which houses the museum is at capacity when it comes to storage, and it's also true that the BHS is examining other opportunities when it comes to a physical plant. In the meantime, it behooves the museum to have its collection properly stored in portable solutions so that, in the event a new building is in the immediate future, we're ready to go at the drop of a fashionable 19th century top hat.

Justin wrapping objects ready to be stored.

The Inventory Project has been ongoing and all-encompassing. Despite the fact that a couple of our exhibition rooms are being used as workspaces, and if you will pardon our dust, the Brant Museum & Archives is still open for business and ready to serve. The Brant Square exhibit is open to the public, as well as the Famous Faces exhibit, which will be replaced over the summer with a new exhibit. The research facilities are also in full functioning form, and are free to use for BHS members. Bring your research project and spend a day at the museum!

Bust of Judge Hardy, honorary co-manager of the Inventory Project,
pictured here among packaged and boxed books

Judge Hardy, being judgy. 

We're open our regular hours during the summer, Monday through Friday, 10am-4pm.

Meet Black Smith - Eh Day at Myrtleville

Meet Black Smith, the blacksmith at Myrtleville House Museum. Smith has been working in the forge for the last couple of years, making tools and trinkets for the community. Blacksmithing is the craft of using extreme heat and heavy hand tools to make iron into things from nails and hooks to knives, cutlery, and other useful tools. 

Here is Smith in his natural habitat: by the blistering heat of a coke oven forge.

Smith enjoys the meditative nature of his job: the swing of the hammer, the sizzle of the red iron as it quenches in water, the crackle of the kindling. Smith is the crafty type, and you'll often see him in contemplation about the important things in life and his own life's ambitions.

For Smith, both of those things are pancakes.

Smith has a bit of a problem with pancakes, actually...

Smith concocts clever (and not so clever) schemes to steal Lumber Jack's pancakes so he can get a second helping. Once he created a scale macaroni model of a moose being crushed by a tree and put it in the window for Lumber Jack to see - when Jack leapt up to the rescue, Smith filched his flapjacks. Once Smith just yelled "Hey, look over there!" and got hold of Jack's shortstack AND thick-cut maple bacon. On that day, Jack declared Smith a public menace and his official nemesis.

Like that'll stop Smith.

See Lumber Jack and Black Smith at Eh Day on May 17th, 10am-2pm at Myrtleville House Museum, and make sure to eat your pancakes before Smith gets them!

Meet Lumber Jack - Eh Day at Myrtleville

Meet Lumber Jack, the hard-working lumberjack from Myrtleville House Museum. Jack uses hand tools such as axes, hatchets, and different types of saws to fell trees in the wilderness. Lumberjacking (or "Logging") was a very dangerous job since workers used sharp hand tools, worked in hinterland conditions, and were regularly surrounded by falling trees weighing hundreds of pounds. Like regular humans, lumberjacks are quite crushable.

Here is Jack, having just stomped a 115ft Black Walnut tree to a stump. 

During working days Jack can be found wandering through the wilderness. In addition to his duties as a lumberjack, he takes part in many traditional hinterland activities, such as scavenging for fruits, berries, nuts, and mushrooms, tapping sugar maples, whittling tools and items to use around the house, and hunting for the Southwest Ontario Sasquatch.

Walking through the many lovely forests, trails, and riverbanks in our community affords Jack some wonderful solitude to sit among the rushes and shrubs, surrounded by the many small woodland animals, birds, and insects, and contemplate the important things in life. 

Mostly pancakes and bacon.

Awwww, bacon.

Join us on May 17th to meet Lumber Jack and take part in our Lumberjack Photo Booth! Watch our blog for an introduction to Lumber Jack's nemesis, The Black Smith.