by Monica | Aug 20, 2025 | Publications
Written by Fred Blair James Jethro Hatley was born in England in 1844 and arrived in Canda in 1867. In 1871, he purchased 143-149 Mississaga Street East. He may have built the building presently at that location that year, but the year of its construction is...
by Monica | Sep 25, 2024 | Publications
Written by Guest Contributor and Quilter Theresa Fama I grew up in Thunder Beach. I had a loving family and had the best playground any child or adult could ever dream of. I made a story quilt to preserve these cherished memories. The McNamara Memorial Park is what it...
by Monica | Aug 9, 2024 | Publications
Written & researched by Ron Nash How would you describe a 98-year-old eating establishment? As there is very little signage these days, one cottager friend just calls it ‘The White House.’ The ‘White House’. Hill’s Maple Leaf Restaurant It was...
by Monica | Jul 2, 2024 | Publications
Written & researched by Trish Crowe-Grande, OMAH History Committee Chair The Mariposa Folk Festival was spearheaded by Ruth Jones, an Orillia resident and significant figure in the folk music movement, who rallied her local community and Toronto contacts to bring...
by Monica | Jun 18, 2024 | Publications
Written & researched by Trish Crowe-Grande and Cliff Whitfield In 1949, Harry Peacock, a member of the Orillia Kiltie Band, decided to leave the Kilties to start up a brass-band in Orillia. In the 1950s, Mr. Peacock, along with his band committee, secured the...
by Monica | May 22, 2024 | Publications
With an Introduction by Fred Blair, Genealogist and Family Historian The Cracked Bell Caper of 1900 is a part of Orillia history worth retelling. On December 24, 1956, the Orillia Packet and Times published some recollections by either Alan or Heber Greene, both sons...
