Rural Roots

When Willie Jackson went out west, he fell under the spell of the charismatic rebel leader. And he would remain true to the Métis cause for the rest of his life

by CAMPBELL CORK

In the fall of 1885, Métis leader Louis Riel was arrested, tried for treason and hanged in Regina after leading two rebellions in Western Canada.

The Ontario town of Wingham, Huron County, has two connections to the rebellion, one from each side of the fight.

They braved many a snowstorm to get to their patients and delivered thousands of babies, some of whom were named after them in gratitude

by CAMPBELL CORK

Those old-time doctors were tough. Before snow machines and cars, doctors made many winter calls in the early days with horse and cutter wearing a fur hat, coat and mitts and a hot brick under a heavy robe to add some warmth.

He was a rank amateur in the train-robbing business and his one attempt was like a bad movie. It got him 25 years

by CAMPBELL CORK

Long, long before the modern notion of moving money electronically was even a twinkle in anyone’s eye, there were those criminal minds for whom the movement of money by railroad proved an irresistible attraction.

When a biplane dropped out of the sky into the Hubers’ wheat field, half the township turned out to enjoy the spectacle

by CAMPBELL CORK

It was a perfect spring day back in 1917 and the Huber family of Carrick Township, Bruce County, were not expecting any company to drop in at their farm that Sunday. But some unexpected company did drop in – literally, from the sky.

Necessary and sociable events though they were, as one contemporary commentator noted, they had their downside when the grog came out

by CAMPBELL CORK

The work bee was a heck of a way for the pioneers to get big projects completed. But an observer of the day, Maj. Samuel Strickland, had some harsh words for the good old work bee.  

The Mount Forest hardware store owner advertised cheap goods and value for money. But he didn’t set out to please all his customers – only the deserving ones

by CAMPBELL CORK

In 1993, Ron Linseman of Arthur Township, Wellington County, brought me a little catalogue which was published in 1915 by the Hendershot Hardware store of Mount Forest.

On Flower and Bird Sunday, at the Mount Forest church, the birds would be chirping all through the service, their cages surrounded by peonies

by CAMPBELL CORK

There was a time in a lot of churches in Ontario when one Sunday in June was set aside for the birds.

Everyone would bring their favourite cage full of songsters and they would be carefully arranged at the front of the sanctuary.

Herbie Neill’s collection of artifacts, accumulated on his travels across Canada, form the core of the Huron County Museum in Goderich, which today attracts 23,000 visitors a year

by CAMPBELL CORK

Herbert Neill travelled across Canada in the 1930s and 1940s collecting artifacts. His great passion was to make sure that folks never forget the story of the early settlement of Ontario and particularly of Huron County.

Bob McLuhan took over the Proton Township school just three months after he had graduated from Grade 12. There was no contract to be signed, just a handshake and a promise to do his best

by CAMPBELL CORK

Bob McLuhan was one of the last of the one-room school teachers. He made it to the front of SS#3, Proton Township, Grey County, in September of 1956. He had just graduated from Grade 13 the previous June.

He spent 40 years bringing telephone service to rural customers Bell had no interest in. And, as recognition for his service, he wound up in the Agricultural Hall of Fame

by CAMPBELL CORK

In 1947, Ray Wightman was an 18-year-old kid going to high school. That year, his father, Benjamin, died unexpectedly and Ray wound up leaving school to help his widowed mother run the family telephone business. Little did he know then that he was destined to become a member of Ontario’s Agricultural Hall of Fame.