Annual General Meeting – 2018

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GTHS Annual General Meeting – 2018 – Saturday, January 20th, 2018 at 12:00 noon.

The Board of the Goulbourn Township Historical Society is pleased to invite you to the Annual General Meeting on Saturday, January 20th, 2018 at 12:00 noon.

There will be a delicious, hot luncheon at a cost of $18 per person, followed by the Annual General Meeting.

The event will take place at St. Paul’s United Church, 3452 McBean Street, in Richmond. Parking is available on the street.

Please RSVP by Friday, January 12th to: president@goulbournhistoricalsociety.org

As always, this is a great time to renew your membership(s). Our Membership Secretary will be there to assist. Membership fee is still only $15 per single membership and $20 per family.

We look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones!

See you there!

Bob Halberstadt,  Acting President, GTHS

 


Sequicentennial Farms

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Sesquicentennial Farms of Goulbourn Township

Farming was a well established activity in the former Goulbourn Township. A Centennial project initiated in 1967 by the Junior Farmers’ Association  of Ontario (JFAO) identified farms meeting the criteria of being owned for 100 consecutive years by direct descendants of the same family and that a family member was still living on the farm, and it that was still in active operation.

As we celebrate Canada’s sesquicentennial, and in association with JFAO we have identified four families that have been farming the same land in Goulbourn Township for over 150 years. This is a noteworthy showing of dedication to their homesteads. In appreciation of the accomplishment by the Anderson, Dawson, Hobbs and Kenny families, the Goulbourn Township Historical Society celebrate this achievement.

A reception will be held on Saturday, November 25th from 11:00am to 1:00pm in the Grace Thompson meeting room at the Ottawa Public Library – Stittsville Branch, where in association with the Junior Farmers of Ontario, GTHS will be presenting the Canada 150 signs to the families.Come out and celebrate and thank our local farmers and their families for the phenomenal work they do and especially for the length of time they have been doing it. Hope to see you all there!

Nicholas Sparks

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Nicholas Sparks

with Brian Hull

Speculated Portrait of Nicholas Sparks of Bytown

Nicholas Sparks (?) – photo courtesy of Brian Hull / Sparks family historian

Saturday, November 18, 2017 at 1:30pm at the Ottawa Public Library – Stittsville Branch, 1637 Stittsville Main Street Ottawa, ON, K2S Canada (map)

Come and be entertained by Brian Hull our guest speaker as he regales us with stories about his great-great-great-grandfather Nicholas Sparks. Sparks was born in 1794 and arrive in Wrightville (Hull-Gatineau) 201 years ago from Wexford, Ireland. He began working for Philemon Wright at £50 per year. He very quickly became a property owner and landlord in Bytown and owned most of the lands in the present day commercial core of Ottawa. He died here in 1862 and was buried in St. James Anglican Church Cemetery, Hull.

The presentation, parking and refreshments are all free. Remember, “tell a neighbour, bring a friend”.
See you there.

Road to Richmond

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The Road to Richmond – October 21, 2017 – with Larry Cotton.

Richmond Road was built in 1818 to connect the military settlement at Richmond with Richmond Landing just below the Chaudière Falls on the Ottawa River in Bytown. The British Government had offered land in the Richmond area to British veterans of the War of 1812. Richmond Road was originally a corduroy road. Today, what is left of the road is paved. It is one of the oldest roads in Ottawa.

Corduroy Road – 1832 by Henry Byam Martin NAC115040

Looking forward to the 200th anniversary of Richmond in 2018, author Larry Cotton, will speak about “The Road to Richmond”. Larry is the author of 6 books including the well known, “Whiskey and Wickedness”. Larry’s books are all historical in nature as he has a passion for history.

This month’s event is held at the Richmond Legion <click here for map> starting at 1:30 pm. The presentation, parking and refreshments are all free. Remember, “tell a neighbour, bring a friend”.

See you there!

Photo Contest 2017

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GTHS Photo Contest – 2017

Our contest is now over – Thanks for your participation.

It’s time to clean your lenses, charge your batteries, and have tripods at the ready to enter the Goulbourn Township Historical Society’s photo contest!

In preparing for the Village of Richmond’s 200th anniversary in 2018 we are focusing this year’s heritage photo contest on images in and related to Richmond, Ontario. Our categories include:

  1. People of Richmond
  2. Richmond Heritage
  3. The Jock River
  4. Timeless Pastimes

Submission deadline is September 30th, 2017. Complete contest rules, entry forms and model release forms are available from the links below:

Official Rules 2017
entry form 2017
Model release 2017

Check out our previous winners -> Photo contest winners

Art in the Park

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Art in the Park is set for Sunday June 4th 2017

Come out and enjoy a pleasant afternoon at Stittsville Village Square (corner of Stittsville Main Street and Abbott Street.) From 12pm to 5pm you can engage with 90 exhibitors and performers in a fun afternoon presented by the Stittsville Village Association.

The Goulbourn Township Historical Society will be well represented as we celebrate historical Stittsville Main Street. Here are a few historical photos of our Main Street. Hope to see you there Sunday. The weather forecast looks good!