Heritage Boatworks Volunteers keeping busy with Wanda III projects

The talented team of volunteers at Heritage Boatworks are always busy helping with important projects for the steamships and MDC, but recently their focus has been on items for the Wanda III. Currently they are working on several finishing touches to complete the Wanda for relaunch. One of the bigger tasks has been adding safety netting to all of the railings around Wanda’s decks. The task of adding this special netting is more complex than it sounds. It all has to be precisely measured, cut, and then carefully threaded and attached to the many railings. The process started by the team making detailed templates of the areas to be covered and then building a work surface large enough to lay out all the materials for further measurements and cutting. This was done both on the ship and then at the workshop next to the steamship office. Once cut and ready, the netting had to be woven and tied along the rails. When asking about how the process was going, the comment back was that the team have now had a lot of knot tying practice! With the job nearly complete now, it really looks great. The colour and material selected fit with the look of the ship as best as possible. This may look like a simple job, but has taken an extreme amount of planning, coordination, and talent to complete.

The boatworks team is also busy with other projects for Wanda that include cleaning and polishing the antique gauges from the ship to go on display as part of the exhibit, refinishing tables and other furniture for Wanda, building a lifejacket box, and countless other tasks behind the scenes that are contributing to the success of the Wanda relaunch. We truly could not complete these projects without the amazing support of the Heritage Boatworks team!

Other recent projects by the boatworks team include: building a mast for Wanda, refitting the Wanda canopy, restoring the Wanda fenders, restoring the Segwun’s Phoenix, restoring Segwun gangway & cabin doors, cleaning & restoring the Wanda steam engine for display at MDC, and many more! Thank you boatworks volunteers!

Join Us for Artist Life Stories: Speaker Series with a Twist!

Date: Thursday, October 10, 2024

Time: 7:30 PM

Location: Muskoka Discovery Centre

Get Your Tickets Here

Dive into an unforgettable evening with Susan Aglukark, one of Canada’s most significant cultural treasures. This event is a unique blend of conversation, live music, and audience interaction, designed to give you an intimate look at the life and journey of this remarkable artist.

About Susan Aglukark: Canada’s Arctic Rose

Susan Aglukark is not just a talented singer-songwriter; she is a powerful voice for the culture of northern communities. With a career spanning over 25 years, Susan has not only won three Juno Awards but has also been recognized with the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award and the Special Humanitarian Juno Award. Her hit single, “O Siem,” reached the top of the Canadian country and adult contemporary charts, and her music weaves together Folk traditions with Country and Pop influences.

As Deane Cameron notes, “Susan Aglukark is truly one of Canada’s most significant cultural treasures… She is an inspiration to humanity.”

What to Expect

The evening will feature two engaging interview sets, interspersed with live performances, allowing you to experience the stories behind the songs. You’ll hear Susan reflect on her journey of self-discovery, her commitment to her Inuit heritage, and her ongoing efforts to empower Indigenous youth through art.

The event will conclude with a post-show meet and greet, giving you the chance to connect with Susan and delve deeper into her inspiring narrative.

A Message from Susan

Reflecting on her journey, Susan has shared, “Art has played a significant role in my healing and in rewriting my narrative. Our children and youth are strong and resilient; they still believe in their culture and are fighting every day to find their place.” Through her music and advocacy, Susan is dedicated to helping Indigenous youth connect with their identity and heritage.

Join us for a night of storytelling, music, and inspiration as we celebrate the rich culture of Canada’s North and the extraordinary contributions of Susan Aglukark.

Don’t miss out—secure your tickets today! Get Your Tickets Here

The Diaries of Captain John Rogers

A look at day-to-day life in Muskoka from 1906-1926

 The name John Rogers seems synonymous with the history of Muskoka.  Having produced the Guide Book and Atlas of Muskoka and Parry Sound, 1879, written the Blue Books of 1915 and 1918 listing all residents, seasonal and permanent in Muskoka, having his own steamship and many jobs too numerous to list, he has left a huge legacy.

Muskoka Discovery Centre was lucky to have the loan of nine of John Rogers’s diaries starting when he was 60 years in 1906 and ending with his death in 1926.

John Rogers was born in England in 1846, was educated as an engineer and in 1875, came to Canada, then to Muskoka. He married Edith May Cox the daughter of Enoch Cox, the owner of Prospect House in Port Sandfield. Captain Rogers built a home, called Birchwood in Port Sandfield and ran it as a small family hotel.

His diaries confirm that the weather was of utmost importance – it is mentioned at the beginning of every entry. The weather controlled what activities were undertaken each day.

In the 1907 diary, he refers to many “young peoples parties” including, teas, skating, dinners and a carnival in Port Carling.  The young people thought nothing of walking from Port Sandfield to Port Carling to go skating, then walking home. Most of the entertaining occurred from November until May at least once or twice per week, with large parties being held at Christmas, New Years and Easter. This is quite logical as the months of June through October were the busy time of year, with most jobs to be done outside. In the early years, travelling was easier in summer. This changed in 1921, when his family got a car: from then on, activities were more year-round.

During the summer months there was mention of regattas, held in Port Carling, Port Sandfield and the Muskoka Lakes Association Regatta held at Royal Muskoka Hotel. Also, during the summer it appeared that the family attended church services at least twice per week, with church on Sunday often followed by lunch. Captain Rogers travelled very frequently in the summer, visiting many places in his position as a tax assessor and making changes to his Blue Books. He often took his own boat, sleeping aboard when he went on longer trips.

The weather also had an impact on the greenhouses he built, where he grew vegetables and flowers including dahlias and roses year-round. In 1907 he purchased a “Hot Air Machine” for his greenhouses.  As an engineer, he was very good at working with machinery. He also had a furnace that warmed water that ran through the greenhouses, keeping them warm during the winter. He sold his vegetables, flowers and plants to the local hotels, but it was a lot of work: each day, particularly during the winter, he talked of cutting wood for his furnaces.

At the end of each of the diaries, there are accounting sheets showing how much money he made and what his costs of living were. By reading the diaries it is easy to believe he was a man of many talents. He worked for several years on writing the Roger’s Blue Books.  He was an engineer, a tax assessor, ship builder (Pinafore and Edith May), a local councilman, cartographer, author (The Guide Book and Atlas of Muskoka and Parry Sound District), member of the board of health, an insurance salesman, sanitary inspector, a notary (charging 25 cents for each document) and a real estate agent. He also belonged to a Literary Society and joined the Muskoka Lakes Golf and Country Club, which opened in 1920.

The diaries also mention specific dates of events, such as peace being declared on November 4^th, 1918, and Armistice Day at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, 1918. He also states that daily trains to Toronto started April 23, 1918.  He noted that the Kenozha ship burned on August 13 near Stanley House. He mentions it was very common for him to take one ship to town in the morning and return later that day by another ship.

In 1923, at the age of 77, he was still working in his greenhouses and travelling around the lakes. The weather this year prompted him to have his bedroom and office insulated. He also had his stable turned into a garage for his car. His Birchwood home got electricity in 1922.

On March 31, 1926, Captain Rogers died suddenly at the age of 80. His wife Edith lived until 1945.  His sons Bill and Carl were living at home at the time and Bill continued to make notes in the diary. Bill Rogers was a builder who built the annex at Elgin House. Carl Rogers, the youngest son, became the general manager of Muskoka Lakes Golf and Country Club.

It has been pleasure reading these diaries and learning so much about life in Muskoka at that time.

Mary Patterson, Archives Volunteer

This article first appeared in the Winter 2019 edition of Reflections magazine

Can you remember way back before we used the internet to send greetings and messages to one another? If you went on a holiday then, you would carefully take along the addresses of your friends and family, so you could send them postcards to share experiences. Or if your friends were coming to that same place, you might write to share information, like invitations and arrival times.

If you were holidaying at a resort with an official post office in its lobby, you could purchase postage stamps for your messages and parcels and send them directly from there, complete with that hotel’s cancel mark.

You would also be able to receive your personal mail, parcels and your favorite newspaper, often stamped with the hotel’s receiving cancel, as you relaxed away from home. These post offices were also used by others in the surrounding communities.

According to Susan M. Sheffield in her invaluable book The Companion Guide to Muskoka District Post Office 1861 – 1999, most of these hotel post offices were run as summer post offices, opening in May and closing in September. There were more summer post offices in the Muskoka District then in anywhere else in Canada.

Many of them were serviced by the Muskoka Lakes Navigation and Hotel Company steamships, which had the government contract to deliver mail for many years. After collecting and delivering the mail, the ship’s crew would transfer their mail bags in Gravenhurst – initially loading them on stage coaches such as Harvie’s Line of Royal Mail Stages, which ran to Washago in 1869.

From the early 1800s onwards, mail was carried by foot, horseback or coach. Later the mail bags were transferred to trains with government-contracted mail routes that were connected with a network of overland carriers.

Most of the summer hotel postmasters also had a winter address. When the lakes froze over and the ships ceased for the winter, the mail was carried using other methods, including on sleds and skis.

Summer post offices were found in Elgin House (1900-1960), Pinelands (1904-1919) and Royal Muskoka (1901-1952) among others. A few hotel post offices were open year-round, such as Hutton House (1889-1943) and Limberlost Lodge (1936-1960).

In order for the proprietor to run a post office in a hotel or anywhere else and to become an official postmaster, they had to apply to the Canadian government for the position. If approved, they would be given a post office name – usually the name of the hotel – and eventually be sent an equipment box which would include an official hammer and ink pad, to be used to cancel stamps once they were used. It would also contain a sign to hang outside the establishment stating the name of that post office. They would then be able to sell stamps and accept letters, post cards and parcels for shipping.

The postmaster would keep track of incoming items – some with specific address, others addressed to the recipient’s name at General Delivery. Guests, local residents and cottagers were expected to come to the post office to collect their own mail, as there was no personal mail delivery in the early days. The postmaster was responsible for giving the items to the right people.

Eventually, these resort summer post offices began closing. Many of the early resorts burned down and weren’t rebuilt. Others closed due to lack of income as the motor car became a popular mode of transportation and clients had the choice of going elsewhere for holidays. In some cases, government carriers’ contracts were not renewed; in other cases, the postmaster retired and a replacement could not be found, so the post office closed.

Eileen Godfrey, Archives Volunteer

Wanda III is housed in a custom-built boathouse and will soon resume cruising on the lakes. But before there was a III, there was Wanda II.

Wanda II was a 94-foot steam yacht owned by Timothy and Margaret Eaton from 1905 to 1914. She was built by Polson Iron Works in Toronto and was kept in their boathouse at Ravenscraig, the summer home of the Eatons, which was located across from Windermere House on Lake Rosseau. Margaret Eaton became Wanda II’s registered owner after Timothy died in 1907.

Equipped with a large steam engine, Wanda II was able to travel at a speed of 21 mph, which was faster than her predecessor, Wanda I. This was important to the family, because it meant that on trips from Muskoka Wharf in Gravenhurst to their cottage on Lake Rosseau, she would be the first boat to approach the locks at Port Carling so that she would not have to wait in line to get through the locks.

The Muskoka Discovery Centre was fortunate to have received a copy of Wanda II’s log from 1909. It was donated by Dave Dunlop, a relative of Captain Albert Campbell who skippered Wanda II. This log was written by people from the Eaton family. From this document, we were able to discern that the Eaton family used the Wanda II to frequently ferry family and guests to and from Barnesdale Station and sometimes from the Bala Station to meet the train to and from Toronto. They also took her to Port Carling where passengers were able to transfer to or from Sagamo, Cherokee or the Medora ships, which would then take them to meet the train at Gravenhurst. Wanda II sometimes made the complete  trip from Lake Rosseau to Muskoka Wharf at Gravenhurst to pick up passengers.

Many family and friends enjoyed countless cruises around the lakes, visiting at resorts like Elgin House, Windermere House and Clevelands House. They also visited at various friends’ cottages such as Llanlar, the summer home of the Massey family.  Wanda II made many trips to vist Margaret and Timothy’s son and daughter-in law, Sir John and Lady Flora Eaton, while they were staying at their summer home, Kawandag, in Rosseau. On many occasions, they served tea on board and the occasional lunch. As they cruised, they often enjoyed reading books out loud for their entertainment. One such book was titled “Fair Moon of Bath”, published in 1908. The passengers also played guessing games as they cruised along.  The log stated that on some occasions the passengers would disembark to “climb up the rocks and through the delightful woods and to see Slide Lake.” They would have their tea up there as a picnic. One entry claimed that they stopped off and “did a little mission work.” The passengers also were taken to play tennis with friends and to regattas like the ones held at Woodington House.

According to this 1909 log, Wanda II was sometimes used as a utility vessel. She cruised to the village of Rosseau to buy “some fine vegetables.” A lamb was once transferred from the RMS Medora to Wanda II. Once she was held up for an hour due to log jams. It was noted that Wanda II stopped at Port Carling to have her valves checked.

Unfortunately, Wanda II met her fate when, on August 6, 1914, she was completely destroyed by fire in the Ravenscraig boathouse. Lightning struck the boathouse that was full of firewood, used for fuel for the steam engine which added to the inferno. She was replaced in 1915 by Wanda III, which will soon resume sailing from the Muskoka Discovery Centre boathouse.

Eileen Godfrey, Archives Volunteer