1957

Huronia Museum – Looking Back 60 Years Ago in North Simcoe – July 23rd to the 31st, 1957

/ Tom / 1 Comment

Click on Photos to Enlarge 

Another great photo of children found in the Free Press negative collection. A classic summer picture. The caption reads; “A group of Midland children doing it up right at Little Lake Park  Saturday. Enjoying ice cream and chips are, Peter Contois, Jimmy Dagg, Barbara Ann Merkley, Billy Dagg and Teddy Dagg.” 

That feels better says, Lloyd Ruskin of Toronto, as his wife applies lotion to his sun burn outside their tent in Little Lake tourist park. Scenes like this were common in the area during Saturday’s scorcher. 

Miss Francis Hinks of Bracebridge who last week joined the Midland staff of Simcoe County Health Unit. She replaced Miss Charlotte Benson who has been transferred to Barrie. 

Everybody was looking at the thermometer in North Simcoe Saturday, as Old Sol provided some real tourist weather. Mrs. I. Culner and daughter Francie of Toronto learned it was 88 in the shade on the thermometer at Hartman’s hardware store on King Street, at 10:30 a.m. It climbed several degrees higher during the day. 

Donald Cooke, Baptist George, Hilton Sandy and Robert Whiteye work at handcrafts at the Mohawk Institute Camp on Christian Island. The 48 boys and girls, ranging in age from 7 to 18, all come from broken homes in southern Ontario Indian Reserves. Several bands contributed funds so the youth could have this outing. 

 

 

Bottle caps with roofing nails driven through were found scattered on Concession 13, Tiny Twp. Provincial constable Tom Heels picked up 25 of the caps off the road but not before seven motorists had experienced flat tires. Examing the caps are OPP Constables H. R. Banting and George Winter. 

 

Pete Pettersen shows Marie Raco and Julie Lang, both from Guelph and cottaging at Balm Beach, how he intends to hold an international ski jumping competition here on August 3, 4 and 5. Workmen above are spreading straw on the 300-foot run which will be held down by chicken wire then covered with snow made with an estimated half million pounds of ice. (If you had believed the Toronto papers of the day Midland would have been covered with snow in August,  the Globe and Mail had reported 200,000 tons would be used, the Star reported a million tons.)

Seems like a woman’s work is never done, and a camping trip is no exception. “Doing up” the breakfast dishes in front of their neat tent at Little Lake Park recently were Mrs. R. Madgett and Miss Gail Gimbert, both of Toronto. Tent and trailer space was at a premium in the big tourist park over the weekend, hottest of the season to date.

Building castles in the sand has been a fascinating hobby for many generations of visitors to Midland’s Little Lake Park. Even in last week’s heat little 19-month-old Diane Hoffman with her aunt Gloria Bossin, left, and her mother Mrs. Martin Hoffman enjoyed the game.

 

Just a sign of how fast things change, in 60 years we have gone from wood and coal furnaces to oil, to electric heat, some generated by nuclear reactors to natural gas pumped all the way from Western Canada, solar and geothermal. 

An Indian pipe bowl uncovered in a longhouse ash pit at the Forget Site held by the discoverer Edward Phelps of Sarnia. Edward is a student of the University of Western Ontario’s Summer School of Archaeology and a graduate of Central Collegiate. 

  • The headline July 24th, 1957, the Free Press Herald; “Blame House Fire on TV, Family of Six Left Homeless” Fire which broke out yesterday morning in their Cambridge Street, Penetang, one-storey frame home left Mr. & Mrs. Ted Cadeau and their four children homeless. Mrs. Cadeau said she had been visiting her sister next door when she noticed smoke seeping out of her home. Returning home she discovered the television set blazing and “flames shooting out all over”.
  • The headline July 26th, 1957, the County Herald; “Vandals Puncture Motorists’ Tires, Police Probe Wave of Hoodlumism” Three separate police forces are seeking a person or group of persons, believed to be teenagers, who have been causing damage to motor vehicle tires. Causing the damage are large-headed shingle nails, driven through bottle caps to hold them upright, and placed in travelled portions of roadways around Penetang, Tiny Township and Balm Beach. The nails, apparently, are dropped on the road at dusk, or after dusk, when it is impossible for a car driver to detect them.
  • The headline July 31st, 1957, the Free Press Herald; “Pulls Children From Bay Waters, Valiant Fight Saves Tots’ Lives” Two Midland children, Laurel and Paul Lepage, were saved from almost certain death by drowning in Penetang Bay, early Saturday evening when they were brought out of the water in dying condition by Beverly “Bud” Ingram with a big assist from his daughter Jill. Mr. Ingram first noticed a boy flailing his arms about 100 feet off the shore at Huronia Park. Not certain whether the lad was fooling or really in trouble, he sent his eight-year-old daughter Jill to investigate. When she reached the lad he apparently grabbed her, and she shouted to her father. Mr. Ingram immediately swam out to the boy, three-year-old Paul, who by this time was under water. When he brought him to shore, Jill insisted “Daddy, there was a little girl with him”. Turning the lad over to bystanders, “Bud” went in search of the girl. After diving several times without finding any trace of the girl he again came back to shore and questioned his daughter further. “Jill insisted there was a little girl with the boy.” Several more dives at the spot where he had picked up the boy began to have a telling effect on Mr. Ingram. He started to get a pain in his chest. “I had made up my mind that this was the last dive, when I spotted her red bathing suit among the weeds in about 10 feet of water,” Mr. Ingram said. By the time he got five-year old Laurel to shore, Sgt. Len Robillard of Penetang Police was on hand, and he immediately went to work administering artificial respiration. When the fire department resuscitator arrived a short time later, in charge of Chief Bob Stewart, the girl was starting to recover through the efforts of Sgt. Robillard.
  • Crown Attorney W. M. Thompson intimated Monday an inquest will probably be held into the death by drowning of a 2-year-old child from Toronto off Bourgeois Beach, near Victoria Harbour, Saturday noon.
  • Two Elmvale area children were drowned at Wasaga Beach Monday when they apparently went out too far in the waters of Nottawasaga Bay. Their 10-year-old sister narrowly escaped a similar fate.
  • Lack of knowledge, near the scene, as to how to administer snake-bite serum might have proved fatal to a 12-year-old Toronto girl bitten by a Massassauga rattler at Six-Mile Lake Saturday afternoon. The mother told this newspaper that her daughter Elizabeth had been bitten on the right instep by the snake, about 15 p.m. Although she had been advised by her father to lie still if she was ever bitten by a snake, the little girl ran some 35 yards to her cottage. Arriving at Bob and Georges Store on Six Mile Lake where the cottager’s association kept snake bite serum, the mother said she was unable to find any person who knew how to administer the serum. Arrangements were then made with the OPP detachment at Victoria Harbour for a police escort to St. Andrews Hospital Midland. Despite the rough ride over an unfinished portion of the Trans-Canada highway, and through the heaviest weekend traffic of the season, OPP Constable Tom Heels was able to get Elizabeth to St. Andrews shortly after 4 p.m. She was attended by Dr. James Small and was able to leave with her parents Monday morning. A Toronto woman, bitten by the same kind of snake in the Six-Mile area last year, died several days after from the effects of the poison.
  • Lorne M. Lawson, a paraplegic who had become one of the best known and liked persons in the Balm Beach area, died unexpectedly in St. Andrew’s Hospital, Midland, Monday morning.   Lawson was the proprietor of Lawson’s Amusements situated on the County Road leading into Balm Beach. A native of Elmvale where he was born in 1904, he joined the RCAF in January 1940, and served almost six years in Canada and England as an aero engine mechanic he attained the rank of Sergeant. The accident, which it is believed finally ended in paralysis of the lower part of his body, occurred while he was stationed at Leeming, in Yorkshire, England, with the Canadian Bomber Group.
  • Editorial – Our Viewpoint – Golden anniversary of the CPR Great Lakes steamships Keewatin and Assinaboia this year seems almost as though it might pass unnoticed. The Clyde-built lake liners, plying from Port McNicoll to the head of the lakes, have now been in service a full half century and their popularity is still high. True the craft are old-fashioned and a bit conservative in decor, but their more than courteous crews and their smooth operation offer a most attractive contrast in a day filled with jam-packed highways and speeding aeroplanes. If we might make one suggestion, it is that the CPR is consistently underplaying the attractiveness of their lake cruises. Not only are they seldom given sufficient advertising promotion, but a few thousand dollars spent on modernizing the decor of the ships, in providing more comfortable deck chairs, and perhaps by way of installing a small ship’s playroom for younger children, could have a substantial payoff.
  • While the UAW apparently keeps up its strike payments to a small corps of picketers at Canadian Name Plate, it is of interest to note that members of few if any other unions are now respecting the picket line. The plant is working at full capacity and the UAW might be wise to write off this effort at organization as an unhappy and not too successful experiment.
  • Forty-two-year-old George LeBlanc of Midland died in Wellesley Hospital, Toronto, Thursday from injuries he received in a 40-foot fall from an apartment house roof last Saturday night. He never regained consciousness. Friends said Mr. LeBlanc elected to sleep on the roof of the Carlton Street building to escape the heat. He apparently rolled over in his sleep and fell to the pavement below, suffering severe head injuries.
  • 25 Years Ago This Week; Canadian National Railway employees had completed the removal of the CNR station at Wyebridge and had taken up the rails of the roadbed. The overhead railway bridge was also to be removed later. * * * Robert King of Central School, Midland, obtained the highest standing in June examinations. Robert amassed 667 marks out of the possible 750. It was the highest aggregate that had been obtained over a 10-year period. * * * In spite of cool, rainy weather, there was an increase of 38.5 per cent in the number of tents at Little Lake Park compared with the same period in 1931. Count for one day showed 187 tents on the camp grounds. * * * Newspapers were predicting that a treaty between Canada and the United States would be signed in the immediate future for the development of the St. Lawrence waterway. It was estimated the cost of providing a seaway to the head of the lakes would be between $500,000,000 and $600,000,000. * * * Simcoe County council presented the Simcoe Foresters Regiment with new regimental colours July 27th. The presentation was made at Orillia during brigade camp. * * * A Detroit syndicate had submitted a proposal to pay for the raising and reconditioning of the U.S. warships Tigress and Scorpion, resting on the bottom of Penetang Bay. The syndicate wanted to take the two ships to the World’s Fair at Chicago and place them on exhibition.
  • Penetang lost one of its senior citizens when Maria Keefer Thompson, wife of the late C. A. Thompson, one of Penetang’s pioneer merchants, died at her Poyntz Street home, July 21. Born February 27, 1871, in Strathroy, where she also received her education, she was married to Chas. A. Thompson in Strathroy, August 26, 1896. The couple observed their golden wedding anniversary in 1946, two years before his death. Following their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Thompson moved to Penetang, where they brought up a family of five boys and one girl, who survive. They are, Dr. A. A. Thompson, Mt. Clemens, Mich., C. C. Thompson, Hamilton; Dr. E. E. Thompson, Lisbon, N.Y.; Dr. F. F. P. Thompson, Port Arthur; Dr. H. H . Thompson, Stratford and Miss G. G. Thompson, Toronto. One child died in infancy and another while still quite young. Mrs. Thompson was an Anglican and an active worker for her church. She was a life member of the Women’s Auxiliary, sang In the choir of All Saints’ Church, and for 35 years was superintendent of the Sunday School. In civic life, she was for a number of years on the board of the Protestant Separate School and had been secretary-treasurer of Penetang General Hospital Board. She was also an officer of the Women’s Institute. Funeral service was conducted by Rev. R. L. McLaren in All Saints’ Church, Tuesday, July 23. Interment was made in St. James’ Cemetery. Pallbearers were A. B. Thompson, Wm. T. Fahey, Alvin Gropp, W. H. Morrison, Dr. Murray Thompson and Dr. Alan Thompson.
  • Latest issue or the Ontario Gazette reveals that, on an order dated June 14, the provincial secretary has accepted the surrender of the charters of Collingwood Shipyards Limited, Midland Shipyards Limited and Port Arthur Shipbuilding Company Limited. The three corporations were officially dissolved July They are now operated by Canadian Shipbuilding and Engineering Limited,
  • After a little less than a quarter-century of operation. Port McNicoll Continuation School has gone out of business. Starting in September, some 40 students will be transported daily by bus to Midland – Penetanguishene District High School. The Port school had provided classes for Grades 9 to 12, inclusive, shop work and home economics. The principal of the school and one of its two teachers, Mrs. E. C. Creighton will accompany the Port pupils to Midland as a new member of the MPDHS staff. Mr. Belanger said the original school building was built about 40 years ago. The continuation school addition was built 24 years ago. It provided three class rooms, shop work and home economics rooms, and an auditorium. Of solid red brick construction, the building is still in excellent condition.
  • A lifetime, resident of the Wyebridge and Waverley district, Mrs. Robert Grigg died July 17 in St. Andrews Hospital after a lengthy illness. Funeral service was held July 19 from Nicholls funeral home. Rev. W. R. Auld and Rev. N. B. McLeod conducted the service. Interment was in Lakeview Cemetery. Pallbearers were six nephews, Orval Kitching, Norman Reynolds, Eric Reynolds, Alvin Reynolds, Armour Reynolds and Willis Reynolds. Mrs. Grigg, the former Emma A. Reynolds, was born in 1877 in Tiny Township and educated at Wyebridge Public School. On March 28, 1900, she married Robert James Grigg in Coldwater. A member of the Ebenezer United Church, Mrs. Grigg had lived in the community all her life. She enjoyed quilting and rug making. Besides her husband, she is survived by one son, Mervin of Midland; one daughter, Mrs. Walter Carpenter (Mary) of Wyebridge; one sister, Hannah, Mrs. William Charles of Wyebridge; and four brothers, Henry Reynolds of Wyebridge, Frank of Waverley, Fred of Midland and Ernest of Richmond Hill.
  • At the Roxy, the Kettles on “Old MacDonald’s Farm” and Debbie Reynolds in “Tammy and the Bachelor”.
  • The marriage of Patricia Anne Jones, youngest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Earl H. Jones of R.R. 1, Midland, to Ronald Earle Graham, Elmvale, youngest son of Mrs. Cecil Graham of R.R. 1, Elmvale, and the late Mr. Graham, took place June 15 in the Vasey United Church.
  • Under The Companies Act (Ontario) Aberdeen Elevator Company Limited hereby gives notice that it will make application to his Honour the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario for the acceptance of the surrender of its charter on and after the date to be fixed by the Lieutenant Governor. Dated the 18th day of July, A.D. 1957.
  • Ten Years Ago This Week –  Some 200 passengers aboard the CPR’s S. S. Assinaboia had an unscheduled stop when the 3,900-ton ship ran aground in shallow water about 250 feet from the dock at Port Arthur. * * * Penetang council had approved a bylaw authorizing the widening of Fox Street and paving the road to a 20-foot width. It was the first paving project in the town in 15 years. * * * Dignitaries from the provincial government, University of Toronto and the Royal Ontario Museum attended the official opening of Huronia Museum in Midland (Huronia House Museum in the former Playfair residence at Edgehill). Prior to the ceremonies, a dinner was held in Huronia Tea Room. * * * Victoria Harbour ratepayers were being asked to vote a second time on a proposal to install a community waterworks. The second vote had been ordered by the Ontario Municipal Board. * * * Francis St. Amand of Waubaushene had celebrated her 104th birthday. She attributed her longevity to hard work and a quiet life. * * * Midland and district veterans, who had purchased property in the VLA sub-division west of Midland, had hit a major snag in their building plans. The big problem was the provision of water. * * * Ontario Provincial Police had “taken over” the town of Penetang. Four OPP officers arrive July 18 and commenced policing the town at 8 p.m. that same day. * * * Construction had started on Midland’s new 207,000-gallon water tower on Wireless Hill. The structure, when completed, was to be 114 feet high.
  • “Near beer” is here. The beverage with a low alcohol content showed up over the weekend in several North Simcoe locations. It has been reported sold in a store at Little Lake Park, Port McNicoll and Wasaga Beach.

Huronia Museum – Looking Back 60 Years Ago in North Simcoe – July 1st to 7th 1957

/ Tom / Leave a comment

Click on Photos to Enlarge 

Music by the Midland Citizens Band drew generous applause from the passengers and crew of the South American when the big white cruise ship docked in Midland June 19. Most of the guests were members of the Cleveland, Ohio, Chamber of Commerce. It will be the only visit of the year by a big cruise ship to Midland, which not so many years ago was accustomed to seeing as many as three tied up at the dock at the same time. (The photo in the paper was much better but the negative has disappeared, a common thing with important events like Hurricane Hazel and ship launchings.) 

Fresh from their victory at the Waterloo Band Festival Saturday members of the Midland Citizens Band march down a street in Waubaushene Monday afternoon. The Midland band led the regatta day procession. (Looking south up Sandhill Road.) 

 

  

Two valedictorians were in attendance at public school graduation ceremonies at Parkview School Monday, June 24. Winston Schell of Regent School and Gaile Wright of Parkview.

A trio of Regent School pupils provided a popular item on the program during public school graduation ceremonies at Parkview School last Monday. Making like the Crew Cuts’ are Winston Schell, Kevin Rogers and Harry DeVries. (The newspaper cropped many of these photos, this one only showed the trio from the waist up. We like to show the whole photo so that you can say “I remember that stage” or  “that pull down screen” or “those black curtains at Parkview”. )

Leering medicine man lends atmosphere to the Y’s Men’s Indian Village this year. The crooked face represents an old Huron legend about a battle between the good and evil spirits. The good spirit told his enemy to turn around, which he did. When the evil spirit turned around again, the good spirit had caused a mountain to appear between them, and the evil one smashed his face on the side of the mountain.

Medonte author Kenneth Wells and his wife Lucille Oille will create a “cruising guide” for boaters on Georgian Bay waters. They are shown aboard Moonstruck ll, which last year carried them on a record making 6,000-mile jaunt through U. S. waters. They will now use the Moonstruck for cruising Georgian Bay waters. 

Damage caused by the remains of Hurricane Audrey. A car owned by Midland postman Alf Scott suffered severe damage when it was struck by this large Maple limb on Elizabeth Street near the Post Office. 

Fans question a call by the referee at a wrestling match at the Midland Arena Gardens. Lots of action during these popular events.

Popular with the younger set at least is Yukon Eric shown here signing autographs for a group of children grouped around his corner of the ring. The bouts were held each Monday evening with proceeds going to finance minor hockey in Midland. 

 

  • The headline, Free Press Herald, July 3rd, 1957. Trio Swept Through Dam Sluiceway – Survive Watery Ordeal on Severn. Three people, two women, a man and two dogs were swept through the right-hand sluiceway at the dam between Six Mile Lake and Gloucester Pool. The 16-foot boat waited too long to turn and the operator grabbed the steel safety cable and was pulled from the boat, it continued and struck the log barricade capsizing and going down the 12-foot drop.
  • The headline, County Herald, Friday, July 5th, 1957. Roof Whipped Off Store at Resort – Estimate Twister Damage $25,000.00. A line storm, accompanied by winds of twister proportions, about 9 p.m. last night caused an estimated $25,000 damage to one Honey Harbour building alone and extensive damage to others nearby. Major storm victim was Edwards store near the Delawana Inn. The wind tore a 30 by 60-foot section off the roof of the store yet left china tea cups and expensive chinaware on counters and shelves below virtually intact.
  • 25 Years Ago This Week – T. M. McCullough was elected district governor for Northern Ontario at a three-day convention of Ontario Y’s Men’s Clubs in Peterborough. * * * The armoury of “D” Company, Simcoe Foresters Regiment, located on the third floor of the new Penetanguishene Post Office building, was officially opened by Capt. A. B. Thompson, M.P., on behalf of the Minister of National Defence Donald Sutherland. About 60 attended the event. * * * Georgian Bay municipalities were attempting to arouse public sentiment to force the federal government to give financial assistance to idle shipyards in Midland and Collingwood. Hundreds of men in the two towns and surrounding districts were out of work because the two yards had closed down. * * * C. L. Wiles of Midland was presented with a long-service medal by Hon. Wm. Finlayson at the official opening of the Penetang armoury. Mr. Wiles was company quartermaster serjeant. Mr. Finlayson was honorary colonel of the 35th Simcoe Foresters Regiment. * * * A motion to abolish the Midland Citizens’ Band, submitted by a member of the council, received rough treatment from other councillors. After a heated discussion, the motion was withdrawn. * * * For the first time in many years, Midland’s water supply had been hit by a prolonged heat wave and drought. The supply of water from the creek which emptied into the reservoir was being augmented by water pumped from five artesian wells.
  • The home of Jim Sauvé on Harriet Street was badly damaged by a fire Saturday afternoon that started where the kitchen stove flue entered the wall. Estimates of the damage are in the $3,000.00 range.
  • The remains of Hurricane Audrey battered the North Simcoe region late Saturday morning, cutting power lines, telephone lines and slowing the daily rail service. Twelve trees were blown down in Little Lake Park.
  • June examination results were printed in Friday’s paper for MPDHS. Elementary school promotion lists were also published.
  • The CBC has lifted its ban on television deodorant advertising but there is however, to be continuing censorship which calls for “no odour reference, no demonstration”.
  • Eight Penetang people had a close call Wednesday night when a bolt of lightning burst into their home at 138 Fox Street. Mr. and Mrs. S. Machowski, their three children and three boarders were all in the house
    when lightning broke a window and put lamps, radio, telephone and television out of commission. Although no one was injured, they received quite a fright. “I couldn’t talk for an hour,” said Mrs. Machowski.
  • Last year Midland Park Commission endorsed a resolution outlawing
    outboards over five horsepower on the waters of Little Lake. More than 90 percent of the lake is owned by and falls under the jurisdiction
    of the Parks Commission and it has agreed that high-powered  outboards
    create not only a most objectionable noise nuisance but are a definite
    hazard to the safety of swimmers and boaters.
  • Fourth annual picnic for sightless persons of Simcoe County, held at Midland’s Little Lake Park June 26, was termed a “great success” by officials of the district office of the CNIB, as well as the guests
    themselves.
  • Since Martyrs’ Shrine opened for the current season, 102 separate and public school groups and 19 other organised pilgrimage groups have visited the memorial. School groups came from as far away as London, St. Catharines, Belleville and Sudbury. The largest number came from
    Toronto.

Huronia Museum – Looking Back 60 Years Ago in North Simcoe – June 1st to 7th, 1957

/ Tom / Leave a comment

Click on Photos to Enlarge 

Photo with Dr. B. P. Rynard, Progressive Conservative candidate for Simcoe East includes Judith Ruth Laity (Mrs. Ken Kiefer), her mother Mrs. G. B. “Bud” (Ilene) Laity and Mrs. Rynard. The event was a tea at the Midland YMCA on Thursday given by the Midland District Women’s Progressive Conservative Association. (Congratulations to Judy on her recent retirement from the Midland Public Library) (The lady to the right of Mrs. Rynard in the background I believe is Mrs. Don (Vida) Bridges.) 

At the closing dinner of Midland’s Little Hockey League at the Georgian Hotel Thursday night the captains of the three winning teams were presented trophies by Harold Butson. Ernie Boast (died Nov 6, 2014, Ottawa ON), left, with the Junior OHA trophy, Ernie Charlesbois the NHL trophy and Barry McIlvarey the AHL, all of the “B” section. 

 Midland has had its share of national political figures during the federal election campaign that is drawing to a close. Friday at the Midland YMCA the ladies committee supporting the Liberal Party held an event attended by Lester B. Pearson, Minister of External Affairs. Mrs. G. E. Tanner, Mrs. Fred H. Bell, Mrs. Charles Onley and Mrs. Frank Hartman (Jean nee Haig). 

 

Golden wedding anniversaries seem to be all the rage in North Simcoe this year, with much more than the usual quota of citizens having achieved a half-century of wedded life. The couple above, Mr. and Mrs. Freeman French, who live on a farm just west of Waverley, marked their anniversary at the home of his sister, Mrs. W. McConnell, in Elmvale May 29. The original wedding service was also held in Elmvale. 

Low water levels of Georgian Bay and the Muskokas is causing considerable financial and operational issues for resort and marina operators. The owner of Duck Bay Camp at Waubaushene, Sid Langley watches as a crane and bucket try to deepen the boat channel into his property, at $16.00 per hour. 

Ski enthusiasts will no longer have to crowd into the tiny shack which served as a chalet at Midland Ski Resorts when next season rolls around. There’ll be plenty of room for everybody in this 90-foot building which used to serve as the community hall at Little Lake Park. Cut in three sections, it was moved to its new site early last week. Plans are also underway to have the building serviced with hydro and water. 

There wasn’t much room for any other traffic as this section of the old community hall from Little Lake tourist camp rolled out Highway 27 early last week. 

Pete Pettersen, Jutta Keylwerth and Keith Bertrand manager of Midland Ski Resorts Ltd. admire a model of the ski jump as it will look this summer during the ski meet on the August holiday weekend. The model was built by Melvin W. Smile of Hamilton. 

Dr. Swan tries on his son John’s new jacket that he and his teammates received Thursday night at dinner in the Georgian Hotel. The team won the junior OHA Ontario Little League final and also received wrist watches. Other players in jackets are Dennis Abbott, Wayne Holden and Bob Weckman. 

Huronia Museum is open again for a new season and one of the first visitors is an avid local historian and Coldwater banker Ken Hamilton. Mr. Hamilton is also the treasurer of the Huronia Historic Sites and Tourist Association. Vic Grigg, a museum staffer, shows Ken an exhibit. 

 No doubt that June was the month for weddings. 

  • Midland Free Press headline June 5th, 1957; Bold Robber Enters Mill Rifles Till at Noon Hour. A daring thief entered Midland Planing Mill yesterday and rifled the cash register while the office staff was home for lunch at noon hour. Planing Mill Manager Frank Bray, who discovered the theft on his return, said the culprit apparently gained entry through a basement door. The front door to the office was locked.
  • County Herald headline June 7th, 1957; 28,446 Eligible To Vote in Simcoe East Riding. A total of 28,446 people are eligible to vote in the four-way contest for Simcoe East Monday. In the 1953 federal election, 72 percent of the 27,479 eligible to vote at that time went to the polls. In 1949, the riding mustered 78 percent of its voters.
  • Four anglers, fishing at the mouth of the Sturgeon River last week, caught four large pickerel. The fish were taken on a variety of plugs, flatfish, pikey-minnow and Canadian wiggler. Lucky anglers were Phil Mahz, Depew, N.Y., Bill Kepnser, Hamburg, N.Y., F. Keenan and son Frank of Sturgeon Bay. The fish weighed 11, 10, 9, and 7 pounds, respectively. (Sports fishing was a major tourist attraction in North Simcoe years ago, with hotels being booked far in advance of season openings. Many of the anglers were Americans. In the opening day photo below many of the cars parked near a popular local stream have New York state licence plates.)
  • Reviewing his firm’s operations in Midland during the past five years, Guenther Leitz, president of Ernst Leitz (Canada) Limited, told his listeners Wednesday night one factor he found disappointing was the inability to induce more Canadians to join the staff. Addressing the fifth anniversary banquet at Parkside Pavilion, Mr. Leitz said the Canadian company had fallen far short of its original intention of employing six Canadians to one German to train them to become tradesmen.
  • A sum of money, estimated to be between $900 and $1,100, said to be Saturday night’s receipts missing from the safe of Penetang’s Hotel Brule, has posed a problem for Penetang Police. A similar amount, receipts from Friday night’s business, still remain in the safe. Loss of the money was discovered by Bernard McDonald, a hotel employee, Sunday afternoon after he had been called at his home by manager Phil Robitaille to investigate the reason no one was on duty at the hotel desk. Police are also searching for Oliver Dyer, 75-year-old desk clerk who was supposed to be on duty at the time.
  • Injured about the face and head when a hydro pole on which he was working broke at Little Lake Park, Midland, Monday morning, Kenneth Walker, 23, was transferred to a Toronto hospital for further examination by a specialist yesterday. Allan Walker, a brother, said Ken had been removing wires from a pole, located in the tent area of the park. Several of the old poles are replaced yearly as a safety measure, Allan said. Many of them, while otherwise sound, are worn thin around the base.
  • Want Ad – For Sale – $18,500 OR OFFER — Owner’s new split-level home with wide picture window overlooking the lake and treed gardens; 29 ft. living room, work-easy kitchen, 3 bedrooms, finished recreation room with fireplace, large insulated attic, heated attached garage, patio, landscaped, air-conditioned, oil heating. 286 Fourth St., phone L A . 6-5840, Midland.
  • Obituaries; A resident of Midland for forty years Mrs. Joseph Cripps died in St. Andrew’s Hospital May 23 following a coronary thrombosis, she was 73. Funeral service was held at A. Barrie and Sons funeral home Monday, May 26, with interment in Lakeview Cemetery, Midland. Rev. W. R. Auld officiated. Pallbearers were Alex Ingram, George Ingram, Marlowe Atkinson, Harold Humphries, Gerald McAvoy and Larry McAvoy. Cripps, the former Margaret Emma McAvoy, was born on the Second Concession, Flos Township Nov 12, 1884, and received her education in Flos and Hillsdale schools. In 1906 she was married to Joseph Cripps in Barrie. After spending several years in Hillsdale she moved to Midland where she continued to reside until her death. On Oct. 3. 1956, Mr. and Mrs. Cripps celebrated their golden wedding anniversary. In a fall three years ago, Mrs. Cripps broke her leg but was able to get around in a wheelchair. Her hobbies consisted of knitting and quilting. She is survived by her husband, four sons, Dalton, Newmarket; Allen, Iron City; Albert, Midland and William, Willowdale; one daughter, Mrs. Lorne Faragher (Goldie), Midland; one sister, Mrs. Robert Humphries of Midland and 11 grandchildren. **** A resident of Midland for more than half a century, Harriet Ellen Bissette died May 10 at St. Andrews Hospital following a short illness. She was 82. The funeral was held May 14 from her residence at 292 Princess Street to St. Margaret’s Church, where Rev. F. Voorwerk celebrated mass, Pallbearers were John Bissette, Paul Bissette, Bernard Goneau, Murray Kearns, Gerald McNamara and Ernie Nicholson. Interment was at St. Margaret’s Cemetery. Born in England in 1875, she came to Haliburton as an infant and there received her education. She and Fred Bissette were married at Lindsay in 1889 and settled in Midland. Mr. Bissette died in 1948. A member of the Roman Catholic Church, Mrs. Bissette was active in church work. As early as 1924 she was a promoter of the Canadian Messenger and was interested in the St. Vincent de Paul Society when it was active here. Mrs. Bissette was the only woman on the Cemetery Board when it was first established. For at least 12 years she was president of the Catholic Women’s League. During the war years she convened for St. Margaret’s on the Red Cross, sewing in the church basement, reported deaths of servicemen to St. Michael’s Cathedral, assisted in blood clinics and at the soldiers’ banquet at the close of the war. *** Funeral service was held Friday, May 31, for Wilfred Martin who died unexpectedly at his Penetang home after suffering a heart seizure. The funeral was held from the Beausoleil funeral home to St. Ann’s Memorial Church where Father J. Kelly, assisted by Father J. Marchand and Father L. McGough, officiated. Pall bearers were Ed. Desrochers, Walter Spearn, Ken Tannahill, Gerard Bourgeois, Bob Stewart and Jos. Desrochers. Interment was in St. Ann’s Cemetery. Born in Penetang, July 17, 1892, Mr. Martin was a bachelor and had spent his entire life here. A butcher by trade, he was well known in town. A Roman Catholic, he was a 3rd degree member of the Knights of Columbus, and a member of the Holy Name Society. Surviving are one brother, James of Montreal; and five sisters. Miss Helen Martin and Miss Loretta Martin, Penetang; Mrs. Ada Bakewell and Mrs. Mary Marshall, Toronto; Mrs. Rose Russell, in North Bay.
  • 25 YEARS AGO –  Masons, Odd Fellows, Orangemen and citizens paid tribute to Arthur Bugg, former mayor of Midland, at funeral services held at his residence. Midland Citizens’ Band headed the funeral cortege to Lakeview Cemetery. * * * Ontario Premier Henry had been served notice to appear as a witness in a Hydro probe which was being conducted by Mr. Justice Orde in Osgoode Hall. * * * Hannah Kennedy, one of the earliest residents of Penetang, died at her home. * * * Miss Hilda McDonald was appointed the superintendent of the Penetang hospital. Her duties were to commence June 1. Mrs. Mac Donnelly, the superintendent of the nursing school, remained in charge until Miss McDonald took over her duties. * * * Captain Robert Dollar, closely identified with Midland’s early days, died at his home in San Rafael, Cal. He was 88. * * * Midland’s lacrosse team was holding down top spot in the district league, after handing Stayner an 11-6 defeat in Stayner.  * * * Midland council had hit a snag in its public works program. Council held a special session to determine how it would finance the work planned for 1932. The problem was left in the hands of a special committee. *** Bessie Lovering of Coldwater, Elizabeth Ruth Carr Topping, Doris A. Trill and Mable Beatrice Baker, all of Midland, formed the graduating class of St. Andrews Hospital School of Nursing. Graduation exercises were held in the YMCA. * * * In a Georgian Bay League fixture, a ball team from  Penetanguishene defeated a Midland YMCA aggregation 17 to 11.
  • Last week at a dinner attended by 325 persons, the management and 150 employees of Ernst Leitz Canada celebrated their fifth birthday in Midland. It was a happy occasion and an important one. In the past five years, Leitz Canada has not only made a major contribution to the up-building of the economy of North Simcoe but has become a by-word all across this nation and throughout the United States for top quality precision optical instruments. The reputation which was once enjoyed exclusively by the parent plant at Wetzlar has now been acquired in no small part by the Midland factory.
  • Preparations for what Pete Pettersen is sure will be the biggest summer ski meet in the world are swinging into high gear. The three-day civic holiday event, which will feature top jumpers from Canada, the United States and Europe could draw as many as 50,000 people to Midland from August 3 to 5, Pete said Monday.
  • Penetang tennis enthusiasts will concentrate on junior membership during this season, says Ted Light, newly named president of the Tennis Club. Miss Helen Dubeau is secretary-treasurer.