About Me

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Delta, British Columbia, Canada
I took very early retirement from teaching in '06 and did some traveling in Europe and the UK before settling down to do some private tutoring. As a voracious reader, I have many books waiting in line for me to read. Tell me I shouldn't read something, and I will. I'm a happy, optimistic person and I love to travel and through that believe that life can be a continuous learning experience. I'm looking forward to traveling more some day. I enjoy walking, cycling, water aerobics & and sports like tennis, volleyball, and fastpitch/baseball. I'm just getting into photography as a hobby and I'm enjoying learning all the bits and bobs of my digital camera. My family is everything to me and I'm delighted to be the mother of two girls and the Gramma of a boy and a girl. I may be a Gramma, but I'm at heart just a girl who wants to have fun.

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

ABC Wednesday - U is for UPPER CANADA VILLAGE

ABC Wednesday is up to the letter U already! To see other participants and their offerings, please click here to go to Mrs. Nesbitt's place. I decided to take you to Upper Canada Village today, a historical spot on the St. Lawrence Seaway, that we visited in 1987 and again in 1988. Here are my two girls perched on an old log fence on the grounds of the village in the fall of 1988 with the river behind them. I remember the day as though it were yesterday. This one will open if you click on it.

When we lived in Ottawa for 3 years in the late '80s, we escaped twice to another time and place, amidst the sights and sounds of an 1860s village. A key part of the experience at Upper Canada Village is the authentic buildings that make up the village, the activities that each housed, and of course, the people who lived there. Costumed interpreters tell you what life was like in the 19th century and when you speak to them, they stay in character. For example, when we went to the schoolhouse, the children had to raise their hand and call the teacher "Miss." When we went to the butcher's house, we watched him making sausage with old machines. We went to the newspaper office and saw them setting the old type machines.

Upper Canada Village endeavours to depict life in a rural English Canadian setting during the year 1866. Featured at the site are over 40 historical buildings, including several working mills (woollen mill, grist-mill and sawmill) and trades buildings (blacksmith, tinsmith, cabinetmaker, cooper, bakery, cheese-maker). Farming is demonstrated through the growing, harvesting of processing of heritage vegetables & livestock. Aspects of late 19th-century domestic arts, social life, music, religion and politics are also discussed, interpreted and demonstrated at by staff dressed in clothing of the period. (Wikipedia)

Upper Canada Village is located in Morrisburg, Ontario, set right along the St. Lawrence Seaway. There is so much to see and do there that you must plan to stay for a whole day. It makes a great family outing. We first went in the summer of 1987 and when friends came to stay for a couple of weeks in the fall of 1988, we went again. It was great to see the place at different times of the year and the fall was the best as it was harvest time.

Here are a few photos from our visits to Upper Canada Village. I apologize for the clarity (or lack thereof) of the photos because they had to be scanned. Remember it was 20 years ago that we went there.

First we have the schoolhouse. My daughters learned that the school was heated with an old wood-burning stove and the teacher would come early to get the firewood from the side of the school and start the fire. The girls also had to raise their hand and ask permission to have their photograph taken with the teacher. Of course the teacher said, "You may." The other thing that my daughters found rather horrifying was that the "washroom" was a single outhouse beyond the school in among some trees! Imagine having to go out there in the dead of winter! (reminiscent of Little House on the Prairie. )

These photos will enlarge if you click on them.
































Here is Christ Church and we went inside and sat on the hard wooden pews. It seems that each family had their own section in which they'd sit. The box pews were rented by families but the ones at the back and in the gallery were free. The girls had their photos taken at the altar both times we went but this one taken in 1988, although a bit dark, is clearer than the one taken in 1987. (Oh and that's my husband and Jaclyn at the front door.)
For some reason, these ones won't enlarge if you click on them. Oh well.


Jamie climbed up the signal tower here. If you look carefully, you'll see her waving from the top left. These towers were meant to be a system of visual telegraph signal towers for relaying important military messages up and down the St. Lawrence.

It was a gorgeous fall day, just perfect for walking around. When our feet got tired, we just hopped on the wagon to get a view of the St. Lawrence Seaway as we made our way around the outskirts of the village. That's hubby and the girls watching me take their photo.

I believe Upper Canada Village has added more to the park in the past 20 years and if I were to return to the area, I'd definitely go and visit it again. For anyone visiting the area near Ottawa or Montreal, do go. You will love it.

52 comments:

Texas Travelers said...

I love History and I love Good Photography. You get 2 home runs.

Great post. I enjoyed it very much.

U is Under scrutiny.
Come visit,
Troy and Martha

Anonymous said...

I enjoyed this post very much, especially the pictures. Very nice U post.

imac said...

Great photos and info.


come and visit mine for the High Jump.

Michele said...

Oh Leslie... Superb job on this post... adore the history on this and awesome photos... this is one of the better U posts!
Mountain Retreat

Kjersti said...

Great choice, and very interesting too.

Anonymous said...

This would be a very interesting outing. The 80's photos are fantastic!!

Unknown said...

What a great post, lovely shots and nice choice for U.

Pernille said...

Looks like a very nice place:) Very nice and interesting U-post!

me ann my camera said...

Wonderful photo captures from times past. Historical villages are gret p[laces to help up recapture the past. Both the photos and text are so educational.

Anonymous said...

Great pictures! Thanks for dropping by my post!

Paulie said...

Thanks for the tour of a place I might never have the chance to go. It reminds me a lot of Fort Vancouver here when they portray people in the different areas during Thanksgiving and Christmas.

I really enjoyed your byline and photos.

Petrus said...

I visited this part of Canada a few years ago and really enjoyed the holiday - so much history to see ..

The village looks interesting - there is a similar school replicated at Wigan Pier in England.

Dina said...

Wonderful that different countries keep their history on view in these outdoor museums. Thanks for sharing yours.

mrsnesbitt said...

Why is it, we all wave when high up! LOL! I still do it!

Anonymous said...

What an interesting place.
Good choice for your U & it's always fun to look back on one's older photo's.
TY for sharing.

Dragonstar said...

This kind of "living history" teaches so much more that just books. It must have been a real experience for your girls.

Rune Eide said...

Always nice with a bit of "new" history! Thank you for sharing.

My U is here

Profile Not Available said...

Excellent series of photos! We have a couple of these sites within a short drive, and I think the kids really learn so much more when the history comes alive in this way!

Petunia said...

I really enjoed this post:)

Gerald (Ackworth born) said...

These places are a real eye-opener for the youth of today.

abb said...

Wonderful! A place I'd truly enjoy visiting. Your photos capture it well. Also loved your Autumn picture that won you first place. Can see why.

I'll be back.

You captured the ABC Wed.'s U perfectly!

Louis la Vache said...

Very interesting "U" post!

"Louis" thanks you for visiting San Francisco Bay Daily Photo.

Katney said...

A charming trip back in time.

nonizamboni said...

Great post with so many interesting photos.
Thanks for sharing your trip!
Happy Wednesday.

Daryl said...

Charming .. thanks for sharing your family adventure


:-Daryl

Reader Wil said...

I enjoyed reading the story about the Upper Canada Village. I love history, hence my post of today.

Anonymous said...

What a interesting place to visit! Thanks to you, now I have been there too.

Bear Naked said...

Oh my goodness.
Your U post about Upper Canada village brought back so many memories.
I think it was probably around 1980or 1981 that we visited there.
Now I am going to have to find our photos so that I can see when it was.
Thank you

Mrs Mac said...

I love history! THanks for this, I really enjoyed it.

& Excellent idea for "U"!!!

(thanks for the visit to mine!)

:^)

Mental P Mama said...

What a beautiful place...unique and unspoiled.

Daniel Chérouvrier said...

Fine place, between a Cajun village and a Finnish one.

Kim said...

Looks like fun, we had several old villages near us growing up. We took school trips there a lot. It was so much fun seeing how people used to live and pretending to be them.

Andrea said...

Interesting history. The pictures remind me of Caves Cove in the Great Smokie Mountains.

Anonymous said...

Splendid post. Thanks for the visit.

Jules said...

Thanks for the UCV history lesson...very informative...looks like a great place to visit with the kids...
Thanks for the visit,
Is construction ever really done...it seems like when you finish one project another one pops up:)

Suburbia said...

That looks a fantastic place and so good for U!

Thanks for visiting mine:)

Jane said...

Lovely pics Leslie. BTW - I've had the furnace on too!!!

Barbara said...

I love to visit places like this, I like all things historical, you have some great photos and I can see lots of memories.

Neva said...

Very good ...thanks for sharing!
Mine is here.

Linda said...

Nice post and story. Lovely pictures. You always visited the best places.

CaBaCuRl said...

Thank you Leslie for your warm welcome to ABC Wed. I am also a retired teacher!
I loved your post on Upper Canada village...I love historical / recreated towns or villages. Such a meaningful way to make history come alive for visitors.

Alan said...

Sounds like a great place. I love those living history areas. They do something similar in St. Augustine, FL. I've also enjoyed Jamestown and Williamsburg, VA with their colonial setups. Neat stuff.

Tash said...

What a fun post! I missed seeing the Tuscany one before & enjoyed browsing that.
As an aside, I recently read "The Battle for Villa Florita" by Rumer Godden, which you may enjoy also.

Powell River Books said...

Thanks for a great informative post. I want to do some traveling and you give us such great ideas. I invite you to come see my U is for Use and Re-Use. -- Margy

photowannabe said...

Really nice series of pictures showing the living history. Very cool and its a wonderful thing to do with children.

kRiZcPEc said...

thanks for the tour, happy shooting. :)

Marvin said...

Living history villages are great. Thanks for the tour.

Casdok said...

An intersting post and super photos. :)

Liz Hinds said...

It sounds like a marvellous place. I like that sort of history: not too ancient but the sort you can just put yourself in.

Miss_Yves said...

Interesting post!Original experience !!
Your virtual image in the kitchen is
unique !
miss Yves

DeeJay said...

Looks idyllic

Gordon said...

A interesting and informative post.