Past Events

For a list of current events, see our Current Schedule of Events.

2011-2012: Lectures
2010-2011: Lectures
2009-2010: Lectures
2008-2009: Lectures | Bus Trip
2007-2008: Lectures | Bus Trip |Historical Conference
2006-2007: Lectures
2005-2006: Lectures

2011-2012 Lecture Series

In progress.

2010-2011 Lecture Series

Lectures are held in the hall of St Andrew's Presbyterian Church at the corner of Norfolk and Suffolk streets, starting at 7:30 pm.

GUELPH HISTORICAL SOCIETY - EVENINGS WITH HISTORY

OCTOBER 5, 2010
Topic: "The Love Letters of Edward Johnson"
Guest Speaker: Gloria Dent

As a local historian, musician and editor, Gloria Dent has published articles on the cultural history of Guelph, the Guelph Spring Festival, the violin, and the life of Edward Johnson. Her recently released book At My Sweet Recall: The Letters of Edward Johnson and Beatriz d'Ameiro, 1906-1908 allows the reader to share the letters between Johnson and his future wife. Books will be available for sale.

NOVEMBER 2, 2010: ANNUAL REMEMBRANCE LECTURE
Topic: "Amazing Airmen"
Guest Speaker: Ian Darling

Amazing Airmen by Ian Darling is a collection of true stories about Canadians who survived horrendous ordeals during the air war against Nazi Germany. Four of the veterans in the book either live in Guelph or once lived in the city. These painstakingly researched stories will show what the now-aging veterans endured as young men in the Second World War. Artifacts from the war, including some from the prison camp where The Great Escape occurred, will be on display. Books will be available for sale.

DECEMBER 7, 2010
Topic: "The world comes to Guelph: Stories from the Storyteller guitar"
Guest Speaker: Doug Larson

"Storyteller" is the name of the guitar known locally as the Guelph Guitar Project. But Guelph, like most families, communities, towns, cities and countries is not composed just of what it makes itself, but also what others bring to it. The Storyteller was built using artifacts that came to Guelph from around the world. Doug will do his best to sing and tell the stories of the coming together of those artifacts."

FEBRUARY 1, 2011
Topic: Life Stages of Women, Cree, Metis and Ojibway: The Elders Speak
Guest Speaker: Dr. Kim Anderson

Dr. Kim Anderson is a Cree/Métis scholar and researcher with expertise in Indigenous knowledge, oral history, and community-based research on health and healing.
Dr. Anderson will speak about her research on life stage roles and responsibilities of Métis, Cree and Ojibway women at mid-twentieth century. She will explain how she used theories from Ojibway life stage “teachings,” which stress that health and well-being are dependent on how well community members fulfill life stage roles and responsibilities. The content of the talk will be based on conversations with fourteen northern Algonquian elders from the Prairies and Ontario, who shared stories about the girls and women of their childhood communitie

MARCH 1, 2011
Topic: The Treasures of "The Ward": An Illustrated Guide to Old Guelph's
Best Kept Secret
Guest Speaker: Terry Crowley

What we commonly refer to as "The Ward" is probably the least-known part of the old city. In this illustrated lecture, retired professor Terry Crowley will walk us through parts of Ward One Guelph and reveal some of the heritage gems to be found for those who venture on the quest.

APRIL 5, 2011 at 7:00pm
Topic: "The Missing Link in Presbyterian Guelph: The United Presbyterian Church, 1846-1883"
Guest speaker: Donna Speers
Location: Knox Presbyterian Church

Now long forgotten, the United Presbyterian Church once flanked St. Bartholomew's Church at the corner of Dublin and Cambridge Streets. Founded by disaffected members of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, the congregation was led by Rev. Torrance. Donna Speers will share her research on the congregation that worshipped at the church before it was closed, demolished and became one of Guelph's lost buildings. - poster

2010-2011 Special Events

FOURTH ANNUAL KIRKING John Galt Day Sunday Celebration
Sunday, July 31, 2011
10:30 a.m.
Norfolk Street United Church
75 Norfolk Street, Guelph
IN CELEBRATION OF JOHN GALT DAY, the Old Stone Churches, the Guelph Historical Society, and the City of Guelph are hosting the Fourth Annual John Galt Sunday Kirking.
click for more information

"Kirking" is a Scottish ceremonial parade of dignitaries led by a piper as a prelude to a civic church service. The service recognizes the contribution of local leaders, expresses hope for their wisdom, and shows appreciation for their dedication to the local community. This ceremony was practised in John Galt's Irvine, Scotland at the time of Guelph's founding in 1827.

2009-2010 Lecture Series

Lectures are held in the hall of St Andrew's Presbyterian Church at the corner of Norfolk and Suffolk streets, starting at 7:30 pm.

Tues., Oct 6, 2009: Lecture
The History of Guelph Police Service Title: "Discovering Guelph's Legal Past Through Police Eyes - The History of the Guelph Police 1827 to 2009"
Guest Speaker: Sgt. Doug Pflug, Media Officer, Guelph Police Services

Sgt. Pflug will cover the daunting process that he and fellow committee members took to create the new book "Fingerprints Through Time: A History of the Guelph Police." Join us as he shares excepts from the book, examine some historical artifacts and discover some newly acquired movie footage.

Tues., Nov 3, 2009: Remembrance Lecture
Topic: "Canadian Forces: Wherever They Are Needed"
Guest Speaker: Dr. William Winegard

Dr. Winegard will offer his unique perspective on Canada’s proud history of service.

Tues., Dec 1, 2009 at 7:30 p.m.
"Natural Beauty and Natural Bounty: Guelph and the Environment, 1827-1927"
Guest speaker: Dr. Debra Nash-Chambers
Please note the change of location for December meeting only:
Knox Presbyterian Church, 20 Quebec St., Guelph (Parking in Baker Street Lot)
poster

Debra Nash-Chambers will present an adaptation of her conference paper from the “History on the Grand: Environment and Industry Program”. The lecture will explore the natural advantages of the townsite and the importance of the location and natural resources on the growth of the community, the character of its development, and the impact of industrialization on the local environment. Well into the 20th century, civic boosters praised the inherent beauty and bounty of Guelph in promotional material designed to attract workers, investors and industrialists to the city. Debra Nash-Chambers is a professor in the Department of History at Wilfrid Laurier University and Past-President of the Guelph Historical Society.

Tues., Feb 2, 2010: University of Guelph Lecture
Topic: "The Early Settlement of Ontario: The Untold Story"
Guest Speaker: Dr. Catharine Wilson, Department of History, University of Guelph

Catharine Wilson challenges notions of early Ontario as a freeholding society with evidence that tenants were a common and important part of the economy. She details why tenancy has been overlooked and what it was like to be a tenant farm family with statistics and human dramas drawn from various parts of the province including Wellington County.

Tues., Mar 2, 2010: Lecture
Topic: "Building the Wall"
Guest Speaker: Ross Irwin, Guelph Historical Society

The beautiful stone wall confining the Speed River through Royal City Park was built with relief labour in the 1930s. How it came about and political problems in its construction will be presented along with a brief introduction on the early recreational use of the river and the development of Guelph's early park system in 1909.

Tues., Apr 6, 2010: Lecture
Topic: "Change and Continuity in Local Architecture: The Wellington County Museum and Archives' Gordon Couling Collection"
Speaker: Elysia De Laurentis, Wellington County Museum

Artist and Professor, Gordon Couling, not only witnessed changes to Guelph's streetscapes and surrounding countryside, but spent years documenting their transformation. This talk will offer a sampling of the thousands of photographs through which he recorded the creation, destruction, and evolution of buildings in Guelph and Wellington County between 1950 and 1983. This collection is an invaluable resource for architectural historians and those interested in the history of their homes.

Bus Trip to Erin - Sat, May 23, 2009

This year's bus trip is a joint venture of the GHS and the Guelph-Wellington chapter of ACO (Architectural Conservancy of Ontario). The trip is on Saturday May 23, 2009, and will be to mills and a printing press in the Erin area. The cost of $40 includes bus transportation, admissions, and lunch in an Erin restaurant. For more information, contact Paul Ross at 519-821-6268 or email him at ann.paul(at)rogers(dot)com

Fall 2008 to Spring 2009 Lecture Series

Tues, Oct 7, 2008
"Downtown Guelph: An Evolving Landscape"
Ian Panabaker, Urban Design and Heritage Planner, City of Guelph

Tues, Nov 4, 2008
"The Royal City Goes to War:
How the Guelph Evening Mercury covered the First World War"
Annual Remembrance Lecture:
Jenn Annis, Doctoral Candidate, Department of History, Wilfrid Laurier University

Tues, Dec 2, 2008
"Guelph's Methodist Heritage"
Ken Russell, Archivist, Norfolk Street United Church

Tues, Feb 3, 2009
"A Giant Love-feast:
National Unity, Canadian Identity and the Celebration of Dominion Day"
Annual University of Guelph Lecture:
Dr. Matthew Hayday, Department of History, University of Guelph

Tues, Mar 3, 2009
"A Most Fortunate Court-Martial:
Admiral Sir Charles Kingsmill and the Royal Canadian Navy"
Dr. Rob Davison, Department of History, Wilfrid Laurier University

Tues, Apr 7, 2009
"Guelph's Lost Buildings and the Paintings of Evan Macdonald"
Annual General Meeting, Guelph Historical Society
Guest Speaker: Flora Macdonald Spencer
author of "Evan Macdonald, A Painter's Life", edited by Judith Nasby, Wilfrid Laurier Press, 2008.

Historical Conference to fund Environmental Disaster Relief
Fri-Sat, June 13-14, 2008

The Ontario Historical Society's 120th anniversary conference "From Nature to Ecology, Landscape to Ecosystems: A Historical View of Ontario Environments". The conference is being held at the University of Guelph.

The event features a Gala Evening on Friday, June 13,2008 in War Memorial Hall. Proceeds from the Gala will go to the Canadian Save the Children's Myanmar/Burma Disaster Relief Fund.

News Release:
June 10, 2008 - for immediate distribution

Conference Brochure & Registration Form:
page1, page2

Bus Trip to Royal Ontario Museum - Tues, May 6, 2008

Trip to the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto on Tues, May 6, 2008. Bus leaves from Harcourt Memorial United Church at 8:30am, and returns at 5:15pm.

View the poster

Fall 2007 to Spring 2008 Lecture Series

Date: Tuesday, 02 October 2007
Title: Caring for Mind, Body and Soul: Guelph's Catholic Institutions to the End of the Great War
Speaker: Debra Nash-Chambers, Professor of History at Wilfrid Laurier University.

As one of the first churches to establish itself in Guelph, Roman Catholic religious institutions, schools, and hospitals remain prominent parts of Guelph's social, cultural, and architectural landscape. Their colourful history to the end of the Great War includes not only many accomplishments, much beauty, and long service to the community's medical and spiritual needs, but also violence and controversy.

Debra Nash-Chambers received her PhD in History from the University of Guelph. She teaches Canadian and American History at Wilfrid Laurier University. In addition to her work on Guelph's Catholic institutions, her research interests include public, family, urban and legal history. "Remembering Pilkington Township: Lives, Loves and Labour", co-edited by Nash-Chambers, was published in 2006 by The Wellington County Historical Society. Currently, she is President of the Guelph Historical Society, and is completing a book on family and power in late Victorian Guelph for the series "Childhood and Family in Canada" edited by Cynthia Comacchio and published by Wilfrid Laurier Press.

An update on the restoration work at the Church of Our Lady Immaculate will be given at the meeting by a representative from the church.

Date: Tuesday, 06 November 2007
Title: Vimy Ridge Revisited
Speaker: Ken Irvine, Education and Events Programmer, Guelph Civic Museums

In his role with Guelph Museums, Ken Irvine accompanied several school children to Vimy Ridge in April 2007 where they witnessed the re-dedication ceremony along with the our Veterans and military personnel, the Prime Minister, the Queen, and countless others. These ceremonies were broadcast across Canada. Irvine will share his personal experiences of the emotional event. He will provide this talk for our Annual Remembrance Lecture.

Ken Irvine has a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the University of Guelph, a Bachelor of Science in Education degree from Medaille College, and a certificate in Museum Studies from the Ontario Museum Assn. He is on the executive of the Guelph Historical Society and the Heritage Planning Committee for the Fergus Scottish Festival. Ken has worked for over 10 years designing and delivering the education programs at both the Guelph Civic Museum and John McCrae House as well as coordinating museum special events.

Date: Tuesday, 04 December 2007
Title: Guelph's Steam Rail Heritage
Speakers: Paul Breadner, Jim Hall, and Steve Host

Guelph's early development as a transportation and economic centre was tied very closely to steam rail development in Southern Ontario. Waterpower provided by local rivers played an important role for Guelph as a regional manufacturing centre, but a lack of navigable waterways determined that the goods, services, and people needed a strong rail transportation network to be successful. This talk will illustrate how important rail infrastructure has been to Guelph's development, and will pay tribute to our Steam Rail Heritage, and honour Guelph's CN 6167 Northern Steam Locomotive as a legacy to Guelph's early prosperity.

Paul Breadner and Jim Hall are both active members of the Guelph 6167 Steam Locomotive Restoration Committee, and Steve Host is President of the Guelph Historical Railway Association. They will have items relevant to Guelph's railway history on display and for sale.

Date: Tuesday, 05 February 2008
Title: The Cold Hand of Charity and Other Niagara Tales
Speaker: David Murray, Professor Emeritus, University of Guelph

This lecture will explore changing ideas, laws, and attitudes about social assistance and crime in Upper Canada during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. For this, our Annual University of Guelph Lecture, Dr. Murray will draw from his recently published book, "Colonial Justice: Justice, Morality and Crime in the Niagara District, 1791-1849".

David Murray, now Professor Emeritus, has been a member of the Department of History at the University of Guelph since 1967. He is a former Dean of the College of Arts and the author of a number of books. In 2008 he, with co-author Susan Armstrong-Reid, will be publishing "Armies of Peace: Canada and the UNRRA Years" through the University of Toronto Press.

Date: Tuesday, 04 March 2008
Title: If These Walls Could Speak: The Wellington County House of Industry and Refuge, 1877-1947
Speaker: Susan Dunlop, Curator, Wellington County Museum & Archives

Before the advent of social welfare, impoverished citizens relied on kindly neighbours and on churches for support. Local government entered the picture in 1877 when the County built the House of Industry and Refuge between Fergus and Elora. Known locally as "The Poor House", this institution offered food and shelter to the "deserving poor" of our area. Today this building houses the Wellington County Museum. This talk will discuss 19th-century attitudes and responses to poverty, explore the living conditions of the inmates and staff, and will show the behind-the-scenes process of how the House of Industry exhibit, currently on display at the Museum, was put together.

Susan Dunlop is the Curator of the Wellington County Museum and Archives. For two years she researched the House of Industry and Refuge in preparing this major exhibit about the history of the institution.

Date: Tuesday, 01 April 2008 [Annual General Meeting]
Title: St. Andrew's Church: Celebrating 180 Years of Presbyterian Heritage
Speaker: Wilma Welsh, Past Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Canada

2008 marks the 180th anniversary of the congregation of St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Guelph's oldest. Its membership has included many people who have made lasting contributions to our city. The beautiful architecture of the current church building has served as the site of the Guelph Historical Society's public meetings for many years. A guided church tour and reception, sponsored by the Anniversary Committee and the GHS, will follow the talk.

Wilma Welsh was the moderator of the 132nd General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Canada from June 2006 - June 2007, and was the first lay woman to be elected to that office. While serving in this role, she attended 139 events in 70 locations. Prior to her retirement, she was employed overseas with the International Ministry Office of the Presbyterian Church in Canada before returning to Toronto to work for the IMO. Currently, Ms. Welsh is the mission coordinator for Knox Presbyterian Church, Guelph.

The Guelph Historical Society's Annual Meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m.

Fall 2006 to Spring 2007 Lecture Series

03 October 2006: In "Dancing to Perdition: Growing Up in Modern Canada 1920-1950", Dr. Cynthia Comacchio will speak on aspects of adolescence experienced between and immediately after the two World Wars. This talk is based on research undertaken for her new book, "The Dominion of Youth: Adolescence and the Making of Modern Canada, 1920 - 1950" which will be launched at the talk. Dr. Comacchio is a Professor of History at Wilfrid Laurier University, and editor of the series "Family & Childhood in Canada".

07 November 2006: In "Wellington County's Two Other War Poets", Greg Oakes will explore the lives and literature of local war poets whose works have been overshadowed by Guelph's more famous John McCrae (author of "In Flanders Fields").

05 December 2006: In "Canada's Arctic Rangers", Whitney Lackenbauer will discuss his extensive research of the Arctic Rangers and their protection of Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic. Dr. Lackenbauer is an Associate Professor of Modern Canadian History at St. Jerome's College, University of Waterloo.

06 February 2007: Dr. Alan Gordon will present a talk entitled, "Public Use and Representation of History". Dr. Gordon is a Professor of History at the University of Guelph.

06 March 2007: Well-known local historian, Dr. Gil Stelter, will present "The Church and the Community" in honour of St. George's Anglican Church celebrating the 175th anniversary of its congregation. Dr. Stelter is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Guelph.

03 April 2007: Tom Fournier of the 41st Regiment of Foot Military Living History Group will present "The War of 1812 Through the Eyes of a British Soldier". Mr. Fournier will approach the talk from his unique perspective of the war as an historical re-enactor.

Fall 2005 to Spring 2006 Lecture Series

04 April 2006 – Susan Ratcliffe, Archivist and Publicist for the Guelph Historical Society, will share her research on the historical significance of the Speed River that separates the west and east ends of the city and was so critical to the founding and economic development of Guelph. She has chosen the title "The Speed River: Life Blood of Guelph".