Daytripping Spring 2024

The
Daytripper
The Elgin Military Museum
So many places to discover in ST. THOMAS & PORT STANLEY
30 Talbot Street, ST. THOMAS • 519-633-0594
• Canadian Military History with an Elgin County focus
• Archive & Reference Library
See website for current hours & museum updates:
www.TheElginMilitaryMuseum.ca
SHOP
LOCAL
Plan a visit...
to the Elgin County Heritage Centre
Featuring changing
exhibitions & highlights
from the collection on view.
A recreation of the Irish castle
where the region’s founder
Col. Talbot once lived,
featuring armour, furnishings and
a 10-foot-tall Robert the Bruce.
Crafts and activities for families.
A gift shop with gems
from local artists.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
ELGIN COUNTY
Heritage Centre
460 SUNSET DRIVE, ST. THOMAS
CALL OR CHECK OUR WEBSITE FOR HOURS OF OPENING.
519.631.1460 EXT. 193 elgincounty.ca/museum
Truly unique & one-of-a-kind
ever changing selection
Vintage Signs
Antiques • Collectables
• Buy • Sell • Trade • Consign
open: tuesDAy to
satUrday 9am-3pm9
791 Talbot Street (upper)
St. Thomas • 519-633-1043
Join In as Port Stanley
Celebrates 200 Years
By Catherine Harrison, Port Stanley
If you’ve had the pleasure of visiting
Port Stanley, you know this lakeside
community comes to life in the spring.
And if you’ve never visited, the residents
and businesses invite you to make 2024
the year you do as the town celebrates its
bicentennial.
Located on the north shore of Lake Erie
at the mouth of Kettle Creek, the thriving
fishing village was once considered a
main gateway for settlers coming to
Ontario. It took its name in 1824 after
Lord Stanley, father of the eponymous
donor of the Stanley Cup and Governor
General of Canada.
Port Stanley
Festival Theatre
Today the town is better known for
fabulous restaurants like the 100-yearold
Mackie’s beachside grill as well as
a variety of elegant bistros and friendly
coffee shops and high-quality shopping
destinations like Peppertree Spice
Company and Lake House Books, not
to mention a wide selection of designer
clothing stores, elegant gift shops and
local food markets. The popular Port
Stanley Festival Theatre draws visitors
to the community for its year-round
productions and the kid-friendly Port
Stanley Terminal Railway offers scenic
rides on one of Ontario’s oldest railway
lines.
While interpretive plaques and selfguided
walking tours are always
available to help visitors
engage in our history
(portstanleyheritage.com/
walking.htm), those
interested in participating
in 200th anniversary
events will find so much
more to delight them.
The ever-growing roster of
activities will be updated at
facebook.com/portstanley200.
One anniversary project will result in
a meaningful legacy for generations to
come: 200 Trees for 200 Years. The Port
Stanley Village Association (PSVA) with
staff and students at Kettle Creek Public
School are creating a 2-acre, waterfront
Carolinian parkland and naturalized
trails on reclaimed lands owned by the
Municipality of Central Elgin at the East
Harbour, an area locals refer to as ‘the
berm.’
200 Trees for 200 Years will help
remove the invasive plant species that are
encroaching on the brownfield, bring in
clean clay loam and establish groves of
native trees and shrubs that will support
an authentic Carolinian area and wetland,
benefiting species-at-risk and beautifying
the community. The accessible pathways
through the groves will charm those who
already enjoy the pierside, beach and
town strolls that Port Stanley has to offer.
The seeds of 200 Trees were planted
when the Kettle Creek ECO class of 2017
did a greening project and envisioned
the berm as a native forestland with
naturalized pathways to benefit the
community. The students reached out
to the PSVA who also wanted to see the
brownfield transformed. A partnership
was formed. Each year the current ECO
class has worked on the “berm project,”
leaving a legacy for the next years’ class
and learning important skills
along the way. This year, grant
writing was one of those
skills and students were
successful in securing
grants from the McLean
Foundation and the Jane
Goodall Fund.
Fundraising is important
as the park is entirely
community funded. In addition
to grants and other fundraising
activities, the 200 Years volunteers
are actively soliciting donations and
sponsorships. Ontario’s Carolinian zone
has been in sharp decline and needs
ongoing restoration and protection.
Tax deductible donations can be
made through the Elgin-St. Thomas
Community Foundation.
As you can see, Port Stanley has lots
going on in 2024! Be sure to add this
lakeside community to your Daytripping
agenda.
Port Stanley Terminal Railway
Page 52
Praise youth and it will prosper. - Irish Proverb
Spring 2024