By Pam Wright
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Wallaceburg’s 150th birthday wrapped up in style on Canada Day.
A host of events were held over four days, honouring both community and country, to mark the official naming of the town in 1875.
Originally founded as the Baldoon Settlement by Scottish immigrants in 1804, a post office was established in the hamlet in 1837. Designation as a village followed in 1875, followed by Wallaceburg becoming a town in 1896.
Wallaceburg and District Historical Society president Henry Van Haren said combining the two milestones was a happy coincidence.
“We’re really enjoying the crowd out here,” Van Haren said prior to the singing of O Canada and a cake cutting on July 1. “The weather turned out really well. Volunteers are busy and we’re having a great time with all of the people. It’s a bigger crowd than we expected to have.”
Van Haren acknowledged Wallaceburg has faced “ups and downs” over the years, but stresses the community is on the upswing.
“Things are looking up and we’re proud to be here. The museum is in the centre of it all.”
He credits Wallaceburg’s storied entrepreneurs and industrialists with the town’s longevity, citing names like Steinhoff, Gordon and Taylor.
“They’re the ones that brought industry to town and started Wallaceburg on its road to prosperity for the next 100 years,” he said. “People really need to know how this place started.”
Mayor Darrin Canniff and Wallaceburg Coun. Carmen McGregor, who celebrates her birthday on Canada Day, echoed Van Haren.
“When I pulled up, I saw a sea of red,” Canniff told the crowd. “This (the museum) is one of the hidden gems in Chatham-Kent. I want to see everyone in Chatham-Kent come here at some point. They don’t know what they’re missing.”
In addressing the crowd, McGregor said she’s happy her birthday falls on Canada Day.
“I couldn’t be prouder or happier to be able to share this day, especially with Canada Day and this community,” she said.
The spooky tale of the Baldoon Mystery was featured July 1 with black-clad Baldoon witch Dawn Shaughnessy Mudford telling the story.
According to folklore, the McDonald family was haunted by spontaneous fires, flying objects and odd noises in their cabin, said to be brought on by a property dispute. The strange occurrences besieging the family, early settlers to the area, ceased after they were told by a woman who could read moonstones to shoot a black-headed goose in the wing with a silver bullet. After the event, an old woman in the town was observed with her arm in a sling – on the same side as the wounded wing.
A plaque detailing the history of 505 King St. where the museum is located was unveiled June 28. Formerly the site of an ornate brick building with an upper-level opera house, the structure was hit by fire in 1905 and later demolished. In 1927, a new hydro hall was erected on the site, which today houses the museum.
