- Chatham-Kent Museum - Chatham
Purple velvet hat with silver embellishments
Accession Number: 991.21.4I chose this object from our collection because I find clothing, especially trends from throughout the 18th, 19th and 20th century, very intriguing. Further, how clothing can represent someone’s standing in society or their personality, culture, etc. is compelling. It is a way of communication that we use to express ourselves and we have done so for thousands of years. The way fashion changes is often in tandem with the cultural changes that occur in a society. This is important knowledge about the history of our country that young people should be educated about.This stylish hat from the 1920’s to 1930’s era was found in the attic of the McAlpine home in Dresden, Ontario before it was torn down in 1983. This hat was typical of something that women in the early 1900’s would wear in Canada. In the 19th century, women always wore hats while outdoors but by the 20th century hats were more of a fashion choice than a polite requirement. By the time this hat was worn, an uncovered head did not necessarily indicate a bad reputation or loose morals as it once would have. The deep purple velvet used for the hat once represented royalty and would have been very fashionable for the time period. The silver beading, in a leaf and flower pattern, is very intricate and may have been hand sewn. The expert craftsmanship that created this hat is a disappearing art, as most clothing today is sewn by machines and is not customized.This artifact is an example of how clothing, fashion, and trends can change very quickly over a small period of time. Even today, clothing that a woman wears expresses her personality or class. Women who did not wear hats while outside in the 19th century were considered less attractive to a potential mate. This hat, like clothing today, helped its wearer communicate about herself, her social standing, her tastes, and even her morals. It is imperative to teach young audiences that people from earlier time periods were not alien; they were very much like us today. Perhaps the way they did things and expressed themselves through fashion was a little different but the same underlying social principals still exist.
Fergie Jenkins Baseball Card
Accession Number- 988.32.13Dimensions- 8.9cm x 6.4cmI chose this artifact because, as a Canadian sports fan, no athlete set the stage for Canadian success on the biggest stages of sport more than Fergie Jenkins. As a multi-sport athlete from Chatham, Ontario, Jenkins was the first Canadian inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Since Jenkins, many Canadians have played and excelled in Major League Baseball. But they all have Fergie Jenkins to thank for blazing the trail.Jenkins is not only a testament to Canadian sport in general, but he is an example of the rich history of African-Canadian athletes. Born to a father who immigrated to Canada from Barbados and a mother who descended from slaves who escaped via the Underground Railroad, Jenkins overcame racial discrimination throughout his career to become one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history. Jenkins is one of the greatest athletes in Canada’s 150 year history and a living, breathing national treasure.With 284 career wins and 3,192 career strikeouts, Fergie Jenkins was a superstar. With a career that spanned 1965 to 1983, Jenkins brought unprecedented recognition for the game of baseball in Canada. Jenkins also excelled on the basketball court, playing for the world-renowned Harlem Globetrotters during the baseball offseason on multiple occasions. And all his accomplishments are memorialized in this Topps baseball card from 1983, which allowed young fans to sentimentalize over one of their favorite athletes and a true Canadian legend.Baseball cards have long been one of the marquee collectibles for young sports fans. A baseball card of Fergie Jenkins, in particular, is a monument to a man who achieved great things for the sporting culture of this country, and for the African-Canadian community. Former Chicago Cubs manager Leo Durocher said it best when he described Jenkins as “one of the best pitchers in baseball, ever.”
- The Canadian Clock Museum - Deep River
City of Hamilton Mantel Clock
This City of Hamilton model mantel clock was made 1880-1884 by the Canada Clock Company in Hamilton, Ontario (accession number 2014.05.01). It has a solid walnut case, hand-painted flowers on the central glass tablet, and cherubs in front of angled vertical mirrors at each side. The clock has a spring-driven, eight-day, time and strike, pendulum movement.Allan Symons is the Curator of The Canadian Clock Museum in Deep River, Ontario. This is one of the most attractive among twenty-five different models of mantel (and wall) clocks in the museum’s collection of clocks made in Hamilton, Ontario in the early 1880s. Other examples can be seen in the Galleries section of the museum’s web site at www.canclockmuseum.ca.The Canada Clock Company (Hamilton) was the third of three companies in Ontario over a twelve-year period starting in 1872 (in Whitby) that made their own clocks for the Canadian market. They struggled against fierce competition back then from eight successful American clock companies located in Connecticut.This beautiful mantel clock was 100% Canadian-made one hundred and thirty-five years ago when the country of Canada was just fifteen years old ! Of course, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”.These three early companies, ending with the Canada Clock Company in Hamilton, Ontario in the early 1880s, set the stage for Canadian factories to make products in this country for the Canadian market. Later, starting in 1904 when Kitchener, Ontario was still called Berlin, and for almost forty years to 1941, The Arthur Pequegnat Clock Company produced dozens of models of mantel, wall, and hall clocks. Unfortunately, the same as for the three earlier clock companies, no production records are known.
- Museum Windsor - Windsor1359 km
Jacques Baby's portrait
Jacques (James) Baby (painted 1825-1830). B. in Detroit, 1763, member of local French mercantile family, was also a member of both the Executive and Legislative Councils of Upper Canada. In 1807, he and his wife, Elizabeth Abott bought the Duff-Baby house. Jacques was the brother of Francois Baby whose house (built in 1812) is the current location of Windsor's Community Museum. Francois was a militia officer, politician, justice of the peace and businessman. The Baby family, who were French and Roman Catholic was one of the most powerful in the Western District of Upper Canada. Following the British conquest of the French in 1760, the family pledged allegiance to the British crown and enjoyed good relations with the government at York (Toronto). However, it was sometimes regarded with suspicion by the local French-speaking population due to their close ties to the governing authorities.
Windsor's Community Museum's Door fragment
"Rectangular fragment of a door; keyhole through panel, routed from back to receive lock; opposite edge cut out for hinge; design is "The Holy Family In The Carpenter Shop". It is possible that this carving was the tabernacle of the 1787 Assumption Church which was replaced by the present Assumption Church in 1846."The maker was Francois Baillarge
Windsor's Community Museum Watch and Compass
This object was designed to tell time. The compass aspect of this item is used to determine north. Once north is determined, the shadow produced by the fine string attached to the narrow metal stem in the upright position indicates the time. This object was made by Roch Blondeau in 1671 in Paris, France. It was brought to the Detroit region by Pierre Descomptes dit Labadie, one of the first to receive a land concession on the Windsor side of the river in 1749. In a 1905 address to the Essex Historical Society it is mentioned that the sundial compass was in the possession of Daniel Labadie.
- The Muse: Lake of the Woods Museum and Douglas Family Art Centre - Kenora1366 km
Lake of the Woods Museum Mobile Tour Sneak Peek
The Lake of the Woods Museum Mobile Tour is an audio-visual tour of the museum presented on an iPad (a hand-held computer). The Mobile Tour provides background information about the museum and its collection, and then, case-by-case, exhibit-by-exhibit, describes what you are seeing and provides an overview of the area's history. The Mobile Tour includes video clips, archival photographs and stories by community members. The Mobile Tour is meant to provide you with information about the artifacts and photographs in the museum so that you might have a better understanding and deeper appreciation for those who have preceded us.The Mobile Tour iPads are available on loan for the duration of your visit to the museum.
Lake of the Woods Museum MOBILE TOUR
The Lake of the Woods Museum Mobile Tour is an audio-visual tour of the museum presented on an iPad (a hand-held computer). The Mobile Tour provides background information about the museum and its collection, and then, case-by-case, exhibit-by-exhibit, describes what you are seeing and provides an overview of the area's history. The Mobile Tour includes video clips, archival photographs and stories by community members. The Mobile Tour is meant to provide you with information about the artifacts and photographs in the museum so that you might have a better understanding and deeper appreciation for those who have preceded us.The Mobile Tour iPads are available on loan for FREE with museum admission for the duration of your visit to the museum.
Lake of the Woods Museum Gift Shop
The Lake of the Woods Museum Gift Shop stocks unique and interesting gift ware, children's toys and books by local authors and with local Kenora content. There is something for everyone on your shopping list:Children - for Books and Education GamesOutdoorsmenNon-fiction historiansFiction readersWritersGardenersBird WatchersCooksFood LoversBe sure to stop in when you are next in Kenora.
- Moore Museum - Mooretown1427 km
St. Clair: Discover Its Heritage
This video introduces viewers to the history of the former Moore Township, now part of St. Clair Township.