Stories of Orillia & Area
Learn more about Orillia’s History
2023 Year-end Message from the OMAH History Committee
As 2023 ends, the OMAH History Committee is very appreciative of the continuous, wide-reaching support for our popular History Speaker Series where local history is celebrated. A full...
Harriett Todd – Orillia’s Forgotten Hero
By David Town, Historian and Guest ContributorHarriett Todd, image provided by David TownFew people have had a greater influence on Orillia than Harriett Todd. Most of us only recognize...
Great Grandparents Immigration to Canada
By Janet Houston, OMAH History CommitteeAlfred and Jane HuckerWhat could tempt a middle-aged couple to emigrate from England to a distant part of the Empire in 1912? Fifty years of age is...
The Hallen Family’s Arrival in Orillia
By Fred Blair, OMAH Family researcher and guest contributerEleanora’s Diary, November 4, 1833 “In the morning, before we went out of the steam vessel, George put his fish [line] in as he...
All About the O’Brien Family, Founders of Shanty Bay
By Trish Crowe-Grande, OMAH History Committee ChairLucius Richard O’Brien portrait undated M.O. Hammond Collection: National Gallery of Canada ArchivesEdward and Mary O’Brien At the age of...
Mayor William Sword Frost
By History Committee members Bruce McRae and Mary Ann Grant Recently, our own City of Orillia was featured on the popular game show Jeopardy. What could we have done to garner such...
A Tribute to Jean Sarjeant
by Mary Ann Grant, OMAH History CommitteeCredit - Special to the Orillia Packet and Times - Kate Grigg Jan 12, 2017 “Dad's Diary includes tales worth telling"The Orillia Museum of Art...
The History of Strawberry Island, Lake Simcoe
By Fred Kallin, OMAH History Committee memberAnatari, Pa-Push-Quan, Gwillam’s Island, Lundy’s Island, Creighton Island, Anderson Island, Starvation Island: these are all previous names for...
The Barons of Dallas
By Fred Blair, OMAH History Committee member and Family Historian In 1835, James Dallas and his family sailed from Scotland to New York City, travelled up the Erie Canal, and made their...
A Murder Plot and the Canadian Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
Currently on display at the OPP Museum, these items were seized by OPP members during investigations. The grey Canadian Knights of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) t-shirt was seized as part of the...
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HOURS:
TUESDAY: 11 AM - 4 PM
WEDNESDAY: 11 AM - 4 PM
THURSDAY: 11 AM - 4 PM
FRIDAY: 11 AM - 4 PM
SATURDAY: 11 AM - 4 PM
SUNDAY: CLOSED
MONDAY: CLOSED
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Land Acknowledgement
The Orillia Museum of Art & History is located on the traditional territory of the Anishnaabeg. The Anishinaabeg include the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Pottawatomi nations, collectively known as the Three Fires Confederacy. We respect and observe the long and enduring presence of Indigenous Peoples – First Nations, Metis and Inuit – on this land. Their teachings and stewardship, culture and way of life have shaped our City’s unique identity.
In acknowledging that we occupy colonized Indigenous territories, and out of respect for the rights of Indigenous people, we accept our collective responsibility to recognize our colonial histories as well as their present-day manifestations in order to honour, protect, and sustain this land.