Lanark, North Leeds & Grenville - Hometown News December 2022

Architectural detective work ongoing in Perth

Perth - Brian Turner editorial@pdgmedia.ca

If all goes according to plan, a new definitive chapter in the long history of one of Perth’s outstand ing examples of mid 1800s com mercial stone buildings, Shaw’s

of Perth, will be out next year. Located at the corner of Gore and Foster Streets, this edifice has served as a great entrance to the town’s retail and business sector among many other functions over its long history. Now a local stone mason who has recently worked

inside the structure to help reha bilitate it in preparation for new commercial tenants has embarked upon creating a document outlin ing the social and architectural history of the building.

Vanessa Di Nardo, a graduate of Algonquin College’s Heritage Ma

All aboard the North Pole Express!

editorial@pdgmedia.ca

Mr. Grinch certainly tried his best to derail the North Pole Ex press at the Railroad Museum of Ontario on Saturday - he sent rain, a bitter cold and stormy winds, everything you could imagine to make the experience a miserable one. But the many visitors were undeterred by the Grinch's doing and flocked in great numbers to the brightly lit museum, which greeted its guests with Christmas music, tasty treats, and many many activities to make everyone happy. Many visitors drove from the larger surrounding communities like Ottawa and Kingston to see the event. Executive director Becky Allen said, “According to our tick et bookings, more than 90% of our attendees come from more that 50 minutes away and we make sure our guests are well aware of our amazing restaurants and shopping

opportunities here in Smiths Falls.”

The big man in red, Santa Claus, arrived in style for his second of three visits to the museum, and presided in the gorgeous 1899 Din ing Car. Over a hundred kids got their photo taken with a little help from Santa's friends at Catwood Photography. Mrs. Claus, a curious polar bear, and the many volunteers meanwhile kept the festivities going inside the station and on the North

po lar bear goofed around in a playful mood with everyone young at heart who dared to go near him, Mrs Claus told stories, and the telegraph office was busy relaying countless Christmas wish Santa-grams.

Continues on page 5.

sonry and Carpentry programs spent time at Shaw’s doing some stone repointing and carpentry work, and what she discovered peeling back certain layers of de cades of work led her to believe there was much more to be told than she was able to find in pre vious reports. She also hinted at a major secret feature of the struc ture which will be revealed when the restoration work is completed. Previously published works on the building indicated it opened in 1840 as a store, saddle shop and printing office and was built by Roderick Matheson along with his private home next door (now the Perth Museum). These detail that it also served as the print of fice for The Perth Expositor news paper. When Henry D. Shaw of Smiths Falls married a daughter of Matheson, in 1859, he opened a clothing store on the site. It was run by the family until the 1970s.

The two-and-a-half-storey L-shaped commercial build ing is constructed of coursed squared local rubble sandstone and common bond yellow brick. It has a high gable roof and three chimneys. A cut-stone covered

carriage way connects the main building to the original coach house and stable which is entered along Foster Street.

Di Nardo and those she worked with found items during the re moval of layers of previous work that fill in some details of the building’s history. They’ve also found signatures on walls that were penned by women during a time when only men’s signatures were ever found in such locations. The experience of those working on heritage buildings has giv en them an edge in recognizing and dating certain materials and construction methods, providing a new viewpoint in the history of such a structure.

Di Nardo is putting out the call to the public for any informa tion, pictures, or documents they might have which can fill in some gaps and bring a more accurate picture of the story and lineage of Shaw’s. She has an email address for contact at shawsofperth@out look.com. Signs have also been posted on the building with those details. Like a good detective she’s on the hunt for clues and needs some great informants.

Smiths Falls - Chris Uhlig

Pole Express itself. Christmas carols and sweet violin music filled the air, small toy trains ran along a winter model display, and many children enjoyed the face painting. Our

Shaw's of Perth. Photo credit: Brian Turner.

Photo credits: Chris Uhlig. See more photos on page 5.

Page Two

Letter to the editor

re: am i the only one - trans activism

I am a strong and ada mant believer in the free dom of speech and I believe everyone has a right to her, his or their own personal opinion. However, there is a very fine line between hatred graffiti spray-paint ed on buildings and lawns, as was recently done in Perth and that which is

written as so-called 'Am I the Only One?' thinking, which your paper chooses to print on a regular ba sis and then piously add a disclaimer saying in effect 'these aren't necessarily our opinions!'

Why is it that one in vokes OPP response and the threat of criminal

charges, while the other, which stimulates young people and adults alike to commit these hurtful crimes, gets published and distributed free of charge in the grocery store?

Please stop it!

Sincerely

Rev. Robert Selby Middleville, Ontario

It's eggnog season. Cartoon by Patrick Labelle.

Carleton Place's Christmas Parade draws record crowd

Carleton Place - Brian Turner editorial@pdgmedia.ca

Am I the only one? opinion: the new twitter 2.0

Twitter gives everyone a voice. It’s the wild west, entertaining at best and toxic at its worst. It has mobilized groups like Me Too and Black Lives Matter and most recently the Ira nian Revolution and Rus sia’s invasion of Ukraine. It is a lazy form of activism. Twitter is not a place for a healthy debate. It is a noisy confused state where con text goes to die. It never takes more than a minute or two to find something to be annoyed at and yet I’m compelled to return to the chaos and engage in some bickering with strangers online.

As a free speech advo cate, I applaud Elon Musk wholeheartedly for buying Twitter. Twitter employees were notoriously shadow banning and censoring one political side. These moral

arbiters of truth were us ing the platform to push their own agenda and they got caught multiple times. Elon Musk saw what was happening and vowed to make it a more level playing field. As the famous phi losopher Voltaire once said, “I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Censorship is a slip pery slope. The civil rights movement, gay rights and the feminist movement would not have happened if we did not have freedom of speech. It is a fundamental right, written in our con stitutions and it must be protected. When Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriquez first tabled Bill C-11, the Trudeau government's on line censorship bill, the pri mary rationale he gave for crafting the legislation was to promote the interests of Canadian content creators. Some critics of this bill say that it’s the beginning of the end of free speech in Canada. That they want to control what we say, what

Publisher Patricia Krotki pmkrotki@pdgmedia.ca

Reporters

Kathy Botham

Sally Smith

Janelle Labelle

Brian Turner

Shannon McLellan

Carrie Wynne

we see and in what lan guage. It wasn’t passed by the Senate, thank God, but you can see a concerted ef fort to suppress this value in our democracy. This may not concern you right now, but one day it will be your voice they try to silence. As Benjamin Franklin was quoted, “Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation, must begin by sub duing freeness of speech.”

The anonymous nature of Twitter brings out the worst in people. You would never say half the things you do on Twitter directly to someone’s face. People are nasty but underneath anger there is frustration and pain. If we’re alive we can get better. We don’t have to take away Canadi ans’ rights to do this. Nor should we listen when peo ple tell us our views are not okay. Am I the only one?

The opinions stated in this article are those of the author and do not neces sarily reflect the opinions of Hometown News’ man agement, staff or writers.

Santa and Mrs. Claus bid farewell to Carleton Place's Christmas Parade as they head back to work in prepa ration for the Big Day. They wish to thank Carleton Place for such a warm welcome and such huge crowds abso lutely full of the Christmas Spirit. The annual nighttime event gathered record atten dance in terms of both par ticipants and parade watch ers despite a new route (required due to Bridge Street construction) on a balmy and clear November 26. A special North Pole thanks to all the organizers and volunteers.

Waterfront Gastropub steps up again

Carleton Place - Brian Turner editorial@pdgmedia.ca

The great communi ty-minded folks at Waterfront Gastropub are planning once again to host a free Christ mas dinner in Carleton Place on December 25. This will be their ninth edition of this fabulous example of the true giving spirit of the season.

As in past years, they’re putting out the call for their patrons and others to help finance this operation with their Fill the Stocking cam paign. Every $10 donated to this very worthy cause will be matched dollar for dollar by Waterfront with coupons which can be re deemed by their donors for the great food and drink they serve everyday.

Diners can eat in or take out a complete festive din ner with all the trimmings

Hometownnews

Photography

Kathy Botham Sales & Advertising

advertising@pdgmedia.ca

Photo credit: Submitted.

or even get it delivered. Just call the pub at 613-257-5755 or check out their Facebook page to get more details and to make a reservation. Waterfront Gastropub is lo

Community Engagement

shannon@pdgmedia.ca johnnyfive@pdgmedia.ca

Submit an Event events@pdgmedia.ca

cated on the river at 12 Bell Street in Carleton Place. Thanks to the generous hard-working crew at the pub, no one will be left out this Christmas!

Contact 613-284-9826 editorial@pdgmedia.ca

Santa and Mrs. Clause make an apperance at the Carleton Place Christmas Parade. Photo credit: Brian Turner.

community

Refuge and welcome in Smiths Falls for Ukraine

Mark Czubak knew if the Smiths Falls Welcomes Ukraine (SFWU) com mittee was going to work, the thinking behind it would have to be thorough, thoughtful and workable.

Now, early December 2022, there will be seven Ukrainian families living with host families in the surrounding community — that’s 22 people rang ing from a 21-month old, to grandparents. Czubak explains “if there are three kids the dad can come. If there are two kids, the dad stays and fights.”

Committee member Lin da Mckenna adds that two of the seven families were brought here privately but “they’re all under our um brella.” And the final family is arriving December 8, a mom and son.

They’ve traveled from a war-torn country and land ed in a small community that has stepped up to make their first months and year here warm and productive, finding friends, building a home, learning a new lan guage, giving perhaps a short sigh of relief.

“A lot’s happening now,” says Czubak. It’s taken from April to mid-No vember to pull things to gether, from finding host families, through checking and vetting them, to get ting grants from the federal government. “It’s compli cated,” he adds. It needed logistics to get done — and that’s where the committee comes in. Each commit tee member has a different skill. All those skills add up to a powerful force when it comes to meeting needs, doing paper work, finding schools for kids, helping with a new language. All to gether, Czubak says, smil

ing, and tooting the com mittee’s horn a bit, “we’re a good package…we did an awesome job. We complete ly succeeded.”

Mckenna agrees. “Being able to help is special.”

Chris Williamson also agrees. He was angry and saddened, he says, when he first heard about the in vasion. Realizing there was not much he could do thou sands of miles away in Can ada, he decided the com mittee would be a good way to extend some comfort, to bring some safety to fami lies coming to a “relatively peaceful country.”

Mark Paine speaks up, too. He’s spent time in Ukraine, has seen the “terror,” under stands their anxiety. “My heart bleeds for them.

“Thank God we have the committee and the people of Smiths Falls.”

So what’s next? Find ing jobs to match their experience.

Czubak says among the Ukrainians are IT people, IT and logistics people, in structors in physical fitness, an electrician, teachers…a wide range of expertise.

And some kids, he adds, have experience with soccer. “So where should they play?” he asks, putting it out there.

When families arrive they get immediate help, but sometimes it’s hard to know just what they need. Most of the host families were in touch with Ukrainian fam ilies beforehand and got to know each other a bit — “likes and dislikes.”

But, as Czubak says, you can’t outright ask their bank balance so you “have to pay attention.” Host families are observant, they use sensi tivity and empathy to figure out wants and necessities.

“Stuff trickles in,” he adds, and then grins — “… Ukrainian teenagers are

getting popular in school and Smiths Falls kids want them as friends.”

As always, the Town has been quick to step up. There is money to help, if needed, as well as gift cards from many local businesses.

There are also people in the community who speak Ukrainian, and Ukrainians are “trying hard to learn English. Kids in school learn fast,” he adds. You can be sure of one thing, Czu bak says decisively, “Ukrai nians are darn proud.” He means they don’t want to take without giving back.

The SFWU committee set some goals for itself when it took on this venture: safety first, then systems in place to help the incoming fam ilies function, and finally to help find employment. Already some have jobs with bigger employers in town, and others, with help, are still looking.

“Once the children are settled and the paperwork is done, they all want to work,” Mckenna says. “They want to be independent.”

Watch out for these dates: December 19 is Ukrainian St. Nicholas day and “each kid will get a present,” Czubak says; January 7 is Ukrainian Christmas, and January 14 is a Ukrainian Free Skate with an after noon of skating at the Me morial Community Centre in Smiths Falls.

For more information go to the smithsfallswelcome sukraine.com website; their email address is sfwelcome sukraine@gmail.com.

Committee members are: Nathalie Desrosiers, Julia Hill, Beth Hill, Mary Lynn Dales, Chris Williamson, Darlene Webber Crawford, Linda Mckenna, Helen Petersen, Wendy Alford, Mark Paine, Shawn Pan kow, and Mark Czubak.

The Table, Canopy Growth collaborate on Holiday Feast

Smiths Falls - Submitted editorial@pdgmedia.ca

The Table Communi ty Food Centre is pleased to announce that in col laboration with Cano py Growth Corporation (“Canopy Growth”), the two organizations will be offering a community holi day meal in Smiths Falls on December 8th. The meal will be a traditional turkey dinner with all the trim mings and will be served from 5pm to 7pm at Han ley Hall (30 McGill Street North). A limited number of meals will also be deliv ered to individuals referred to The Table by partner agencies. No registration is required for the dine-in meal which is available for

free to the community.

Chef Jay Ride from the Lockmaster Taphouse is taking the lead on prepar ing the meal. The Table is thrilled with the generous community support. Can opy Growth has provid ed the Table with a $5,000 donation towards the meal and other food programs in Smiths Falls. Lockmas ter owners Dan Thompson and Rob Dobson are donat ing turkeys and Dan An dress from Andress’ Inde pendent is donating the pie for dessert. Canopy Growth staff will be onsite to lend a helping hand to assist with prepping and serving the dinner alongside other community volunteers.

The Table is currently supporting lunch pro

grams in Smiths Falls run by St. Francis and the Le gion with funding from the Town of Smiths Falls and Canopy Growth. The lunches and holiday meal are part of the Perth-based organization’s efforts to establish new program ming and a new facility in Smiths Falls. This proj ect, The Falls Food Hub, will adapt the approaches and programs offered at The Table’s Perth loca tion including commu nity meals, food skills programs, navigation ser vices, and advocacy. In the New Year the Table plans to offer new programming at a temporary location while they finalize plans for a permanent home in Smiths Falls.

Smiths Falls - Sally Smith editorial@pdgmedia.ca

Left to Right: Beth Hill, Wendy Alford, Julia Hill, Chris Williamson, Mary Lynn Dales, Nathalie Desrosiers, Helen Petersen, Linda McKenna, Darlene Webber Crawford, Mark Czubak Photo credit: Smiths Falls Welcomes Ukraine - smithsfallswelcomesukraine.com

lifestyle

This holiday season, open doors to connection for caregivers like Helia

the pandemic, caregiv ers were already feeling alone and isolated — and COVID-19 has only inten sified these struggles.

Seniors who provide care to family members are particularly vulnera ble to burnout, isolation, and poor health outcomes, as they often have health challenges of their own to manage at the same time.

For Helia, the program she joined is fueled by United Way East Ontario to help her decompress from the demands of caring for her husband. It’s a place where caregivers can take a break from their daily rou tine and find reassurance and comfort while sup porting their loved ones.

with social services across Lanark County, I have seen first-hand how pro grams that support care givers are critical to the wellbeing of people like Helia. But equally as im portant, these programs provide critical relief for our already strained healthcare system by keep ing overworked caregivers and their family members out of hospital.

lia attends provide respite, connection, education, and peer support to lessen the isolation caregivers ex perience every day.

Advertorial editorial@pdgmedia.ca

After 12 years of caring for her husband with Par kinson’s disease, on top of her own health issues, Helia was exhausted and overwhelmed. The emo tional weight of caring for her husband’s every need had been taking a toll for a long time.

As her husband’s condi tion got to the point of hos pitalization, Helia arranged for him to go into a longterm care home for further medical support. How ever, her caregiving tasks didn’t disappear. Caregiv ers are still on duty when the person they care for moves into long-term care homes—they’re waiting for phone calls, advocating for

their loved one’s needs, pro cessing their emotions, and so much more.

Helia is one of the more than 3.3 million Ontario residents who provide care to seniors and adults with disabilities who need sup port with their daily living.

The job of an infor mal caregiver is mentally, emotionally, and physical ly strenuous. Even before

The program taught Helia that it’s okay to put yourself first and to say no sometimes. It helped her to understand that she’s not alone with all the anger, grief, guilt, and frustration she feels. When she gets together with other caregivers, He lia says, “we laugh a little, vent a little, cry a little. It’s very helpful!”

Working on the ground

United Way knows that powering these pro grams is paramount to keeping seniors and their caregivers healthy, safe, and connected. We work with partners across Prescott-Russell, Ottawa, Lanark County, and Ren frew County to find last ing solutions to complex, chronic, local issues. That is our promise 365 days a year—during crises and normal times.

Helia’s story is unique, and yet she is only one caregiver out of the mil lions facing challenges in supporting their loved ones. While we untangle and tackle the systemic issues facing caregivers, programs like the one He

Our neighbours across Lanark County could use some extra help this holi day season. Life is getting more expensive—forc ing people to stretch their budgets just to meet ba sic household needs. For those who are struggling, the holidays can be a time of added stress and anxiety.

With your support, we can help caregivers like Helia stay connected. We can give kids the tools they need to succeed in school and in life. We can help people struggling with their mental health con nect with accessible coun selling and peer support.

This holiday season, give the gift of possibility. If you can, please donate today at unitedwayeo.ca/holiday to support caregivers like Helia, and the thousands of other people across East Ontario who rely on Unit ed Way each year.

- Shannon Bruce, Regional Director, Lanark County, United Way East Ontario

Photo credit: Submitted.

All aboard the North Pole Express!

Falls - Chris Uhlig editorial@pdgmedia.ca

Continued from page 1.

The braver people who ventured outside went on a tractor-driven hay wagon excursion and of course hopped on the train for a ride to the North Pole (OK, it was just the train yard, but almost as good as the Pole).

And the truly lucky ones even got to see a rainbow while the train slowly rumbled over the rails.

A number of vendors offered their goods at a small artisan mar ket, among them Jabreezy’s Donuts, Mighty Valley Coffee, CoverMe

Cushion Covers, Polka Dot Candy, Jenn Hanratty, and others. Said event organizer Becky Allen, “We received fantastic support from our sponsors, Andress’ Independent grocer as well as Canadian Tire who helped us turn our 1912 station into a Christmas wonderland.” Other sponsors for this year's activities in cluded Wills Transfer Limited, ontrac Employment Resource Services, and Smiths Falls Building Supplies.

Allen added, “the 2022 North Pole Express sold out for the threeday event weeks before the first date launched. More than 2000 people at tended the event over three days.”

Many thanks belong to everyone who made this event possible, the volunteers and helpers, the vendors and all the sponsors.

And if you missed it, you have one more chance with the third and final North Pole Express at the RMEO this year on December the 10th. Train rides might be sold out, but all other activities are still going and some times tickets open up. Check with the museum at (613) 283-5696. The museum gift shop will be open until December 17th 10-3 for Christmas shopping. So come on by and then head to the Smiths Falls Christmas parade afterwards.

The Secret Santa of Carleton Place

editorial@pdgmedia.ca

Sometimes people do good things and never get recognized. They stay in the shadows of goodwill doing what they do, and no one ever finds out. Sometimes it takes a Mother to recognize what their kids do and speak up for them, which I applaud and agree with 100% like all Mothers. So thanks also goes out to Theresa Porteous for giving this shout out, as oth erwise we would never ever know. Got to love Moms!

“My son Peter Porteous of All Purpose Towing of Carleton Place creates a toy donation every year and does an amazing job. He gets people to donate toys and money and he matches each donation. I was at his shop today to drop off a couple of toys and was pretty amazed at the amount of toys he has to help families this year. He works hard every year to make this happen”.

Thank you Peter for do

ing what you do. If every one did this, there would never be an overlooked child at Christmas. Well done Peter! For that we give you a Carleton Place and Lanark County gold star.

A little bit of a brag and I’m sure I’m going to hear about it all day from Peter Porteous.

I am very lucky to work everyday with my cousin who is probably the most generous and caring dude I know. He has been doing this toy drive for 10 years and matching donations.

The toy drive seems to have taken on a life of its own! He showed me a pic ture from 3 years ago and it’s safe to say this pile is 4 times bigger.

We will be accepting toys at 51 Industrial Ave until November 30th. If you can please help make this the biggest and best toy drive ever!

You can also etransfer to allpurposetowing@hot mail.com Password: Toys

Smiths

See the full gallery at Hometownnews.ca. Photo credits: Chris Uhlig.

Peter David Porteous. Photo credit: Peter's Facebook Page

Carleton Place - Linda Seccaspina

Theresa Porteous wrote: 2017

While last month I cov ered the 12-day autumn bus tour we took experi encing the wildlife and boat sights, history and foods of Newfoundland and Labrador, this month, as promised, will focus on the beers, another rum, and a unique cocktail, along with another fruit wine that went surpris ingly well with a bowl of clam chowder.

Upon arrival in the hot, late-August afternoon, ev eryone did the mandatory stop before getting to the hotel in Corner Brook for snacks and various liquid refreshments. For us, it was a few beers and a bot tle of Iceberg Gold Rum made by Canadian Ice berg Vodka Corporation in St John’s; $33. This is a golden rum from Canada's icebergs, made in Guyana from Demerara rums and then diluted to bottling strength with pure arctic iceberg water; featuring notes of Demerara brown sugar, hints of English tof fee, butter rum and vanilla, complete with a warm, rich and silky smooth finish. But to start and quench our thirst, it was the Day Boil Session IPA for me, a 4,5%abv tall boy can which was a refreshing citrus ex plosion, but not over the top like some West Coast hopheads make their Ses sion IPA beers. My wife Sandy prefers lighter la gers so she chose the Ice berg Beer. This is a light ale also at 4.5%abv which she found pleasantly refresh ing, made by Quidi Vidi –clear, clean, and pure, just like the 20,000-yearold iceberg water it’s made from. A pale straw colour

with a rapidly thinning white head, this Ameri can-style lager has subtle malt flavour and mild bit terness. Toasted grain and a slight mineral character are accompanied by a very smooth, clean mouthfeel with lively carbonation and a dry finish. But it is not cheap at $5.88 for a 473ml can!

The next day we were off up the West coast to Port aux Choix to walk the lighthouse trail in ‘muzzy’ weather – local term mean ing weather between over cast and intermittent light rain. But we all trooped on and they couldn’t say that we were ‘nich,’ as in “the kids today are nich,” meaning they have gone soft! Walking the pier looking at all the trawlers, and then off to the pub in the motel where I was in troduced to 1492 Tradi tional Ale also by Quidi Vidi at $5.95 a bottle while listening to a great live lo cal band where a gal, her brothers and even her fa ther came up for an accor dion tune. It was an instant Down East party where one gal was going around asking guys and even a gal or two (including my wife) to dance just for the fun of it. I did my best, but the jig was beyond me as they quickly knew we were Upper Canadians!

The next day was off north again where we took the ferry to Labrador and spent the day at the Red Bay Basque Whaling Mu seum site. Look this up on the internet for the amaz ing history. I know the underwater archaeologist who first surveyed this site when we all went on scu ba dives around Ottawa and the St Lawrence river many years ago. They in vented hot water dive suits by pumping down warm water into tubes in the suit arms and legs to keep the divers warmer and on longer dives in the frigid water up there. Another great Canadian invention that has since been com mercialized by the indus try! In this northern clime it was perfect for trying Crowberry Jam (made from local partridgeber ries), and Bakeapple Jam on local scones, downing that with Ragna Rock –Immortal Idun, a raspber ry/cherry kettle sour beer, 4.1%abv at $0. Made in St Anthony’s at the northern tip of Newfoundland by Northern Brewery Co, it is based on the Norse god

dess, Idun, who protected the fruit of the Asgardians giving them immortali ty. Fresh, tart sour with a touch of cherry and a blast of raspberry; unfiltered –water, malt, wheat, hops and yeast; another great refreshing beer.

Off to Twillingate, where at lunch, I had a bowl of fresh clam chowder ac companied by a small bottle of Moose Juice, 11.5%abv fruit wine blend of blueberry and par tridgeberry which was an amazing match with the slightly tart wine offsetting the thick creamy chowder as a rosé would do with a sweet seafood casserole. Chock full of antioxidants and anthocyanins, this could be called health juice but it contains alcohol so we’ll just say it’s berry healthy for you!

Next in Bonavista on the east coast, wending our way south, it was time at lunch to start with a local cocktail that caught my eye – Bakeapple Delight (gin and tonic with bakeapple juice) at $11.95, before we toured the Mathew Lega cy Museum housing one of two replica caravelle versions of the ‘Mathew’ sailed by Giovanni Cabo to (John Cabot to us) to North America in 1497 where he exclaimed ‘buena vista’ upon seeing the har bor of Bonavista!

Ending in St John’s for a day and a night gave us time to tour the city by bus and on foot. The total trip covered 2,913km by bus and we walked about 100, 000 steps – what a trip! You have to go there if you get a chance to see a different part of Canada and meet some very colourful and friendly East Coasters!

Let's Eat

Beer, Wine and Spirits Food & Drink

Brian Turner

final score sports bar: a destination with great food

This fall, Carleton Place welcomed a new entertain ment and food establish ment that has filled a large need for sports entertain ment, comedy, and great food. Final Score Sports Bar is located on Flora Street (just north of Town line Road in the mall). The partners involved, John and Lisa Bailey, Mark Van Ri jswijk, and Deanne Dunn also operate the Waterfront GastroPub on Bell Street, giving them the distinction of having the only restau rants on the north side of the river in town. Their vision for Final Score was to create a destination lo cation for sports fans look ing for a friendly neigh bourhood pub. By early reactions from the public, they’ve scored a hat-trick.

From the sports per spective they’ve got it covered better than any one with large high defi nition screens covering every square foot of wall space and streaming sub scriptions that give them access to every legal ly-viewable event on the planet. Due to their fore sight, each screen can be operated individually giv ing their fans the ability to watch what they want, when they want. Their

pool room is another rar ity: available to patrons without charge. They’ve created a great dart board area with lots of room and proper lighting. Not into sports? No problem, as they’ve also created a roomy yet comfortable comedy club venue for the famous Mark Breslin’s Yuk Yuk’s with shows ev ery Friday and Saturday night (warning; many of these sell out in advance, so book early).

The menu at the Final Score is pub-style, but with a quality twist. Portions are generous with choice ingredients and lots of de cidedly non-pub choices. You can get cauliflower bites and gluten free buns as well as beyond-meat burgers. Their pizzas come piled high with toppings and loaded with cheese and if you order a small, bring a partner to help you out unless you’ve got a large appetite. They also have an extensive sub-sandwich menu and all the apps you could imagine. I’ve tried several dishes and can state they are a level beyond.

Behind the bar you’ll not only find your domes tic favourites on tap, but an unusually large selec tion of craft and import

brews as well. Like their food menu, prices are very reasonable, so a night out won’t break the bank.

You might think open ing a busy sports bar in the middle of a residen tial neighbourhood might bring some friction with homeowners, but Final Score has found the op posite. Local fans have been flocking to the bar in droves, all extremely hap py to have a welcoming watering hole with great food and entertainment to call their own, within walking distance.

You can check out all that Final Score Sports Bar has to offer by logging onto finalscoresportsbar. ca. Their address is 384 Flora Street and phone number is 613-866-9911.

There’s plenty of free parking and the facili ty is wheelchair friend ly. They’re open Sunday through Wednesday from 11:30 am to midnight and till 1:30 am Thursday through Saturday. They provide the definitive an swer to ‘what’s there to do in Carleton Place?’ Take in a first-class comedy show, stay for some great food and drink after, and maybe become a sports fan: this is the place!

Photo credit: facebook.com/FinalScoreSportsBarCP.

Photo credit: Submitted.

Photo

Brian

When Reginald Bur roughs moved into the Keyhole House, he left his mark by signing his name, his son Nelson’s name, and the year “1907” into the wet concrete of a basement windowsill. The family’s new three-digit phone number was 218, and they were listed in the Smiths Falls Telephone Directory as R. E. G. Burroughs at 182 Brockville Street. Mrs. R. E. G. Burroughs (aka Augusta Martha Parker) was six months pregnant at the time and was not mentioned in the window sill or directory.

During our recent dining room restoration efforts, we discovered a golf ball inside the wall. The WHY NOT insignia made it easy to identify as a golf ball man ufactured by Henley’s Tyre & Rubber Company Ltd

by Ted Outerbridge

of London. Golf balls such as this one were available for purchase in England in 1918. Did Reginald bring it home following his service in WWI? Could he have used it at the Poonahmalee Golf Club, which was right across the street from his house at the time?

Reginald Edward George Burroughs (1874-1944) was born in Ashton, On tario on March 29, 1874. His parents were George Alexander Burroughs and Penina Jane (Argue) Bur roughs. In 1891, the census documents Reginald as a tailor apprentice living in Mattawa, Ontario. He was one of ten people living at the same address which included: his two siblings, three step-siblings, his fa ther and step-mother, a domestic servant, and a lodger. His mother, Peni na, had died at the age of twenty-two.

Reginald was a brownhaired, blue-eyed mer chant tailor and pros pector when he married Augusta Martha Parker (1876-1966) from Kit ley on February 2, 1898,

at the age of twenty four. In 1907, the Burroughs bought the Keyhole House for $3000 and maintained ownership of it for sixteen years. Their son Nelson was seven at the time. Their daughter (Marion Augusta Bethune Bur roughs) was most like ly born at the Keyhole House, a few months after they moved in. Their son, Gerald Isaiah, died pri or to his fourth birthday. This wasn’t the only trag edy they faced; according to Reginald’s WWI file, they had another child who died at birth.

Press clippings docu ment several Burroughs family misadventures. In 1912, The Evening Tele gram, St. John’s Newfound land ran the following headline: Let Son Carry the Riffle, Father Must pay $300 Damages to His Son’s Victim. The article explained that Reginald, a dealer in mining prop erties, had allowed his twelve-year-old son to carry a rifle. While strug gling for possession of the weapon with another boy,

it went off; a third boy, Johnny Moran, lost his left eye. In 1913, The New Westminster News wrote that prospector R. E. G. Burroughs had been hired by a party of Ottawa capi talists to survey the Lake Mistassini area in northern Quebec for diamonds. Fol lowing a thorough search by Reginald and his team he was quoted, saying “As a diamond country there is nothing doing.”

Reginald’s sister Bertha was married at the Key hole House, and it made the news. The Ottawa Cit izen wrote “ARGUE-Mc CULLOUGH-On Wednes day morning, February 26, 1913 at the home of the bride’s brother, Mr. Regi nald Burroughs, Brockville Street, Smith’s Falls, by Rev. D. N. Coburn, Bertha Bur roughs-McCullough of Ot tawa, to George Archibald Argue of Saskatoon.” Ber tha was given away by her younger brother, John Er nest. Six-year-old Marion, the bride’s niece, was the flower girl. Following the wedding, Bertha left her civil service position in Ottawa and moved to Sas katoon with George.

Shortly after, both fa ther and son marched off to serve in the First World War. In 1915, Reginald Burroughs filled out his attestation paper for the Canadian Expeditionary Force at Borden’s Motor Machine Gun Battery. The unit was under the command of Major E.J. Holland VC, and it was named in honour of Ca nadian Prime Minister Sir Robert Borden. Reginald, then forty years old, sailed overseas aboard the RMS Carpathia. He arrived in England eleven days later, at which point he was relo cated to France.

Reginald’s military files indicate that his conduct and character while in service was very good. He was promoted to Ser geant in 1916. Notes in his medical file indicated that his judgement was undis turbed while in service. However, the horrors of war he experienced took their toll on him. Reginald was diagnosed with influ enza, Trench fever, color blindness due to toxaemia in Vimy, psychoneurosis, and “shell shock.” Today we would recognize his fragile psychological state as a form of post-traumat ic stress disorder (PTSD). The Military Convales cent Hospital in Epsom, England issued a report recommending that he be hospitalized follow ing his discharge. He was posted to Kingston Mili tary Hospital in 1918, and was granted a two week stay at his home, news of which made the Ottawa Journal. They wrote: “Ser geant R. E. G. Burroughs, who has been on active service for three years, has been invalided to Cana da and is at present at his home here on Brockville Street, having been grant ed two weeks leave from the Convalescent Home at Kingston.” On September 6, 1918, following four months of treatment, he was discharged for “being medically unfit for further War Service.”

Reginald’s son Nelson also served in WWI. He was a seventeen-year-old student when he filled out his attestation paper for the Canadian Expedition ary Force to serve in the Canadian Army Medical Corps. At the age of nine teen, he was discharged and appointed flight cadet with the Royal Air Force. A

1921 census indicates that Reginald, Augusta, Nelson, and Marion relocated to Montreal. Nelson married Gertrude "Dorothy" May McCall on March 13, 1922. He was just 22 years old. The couple then moved to Halifax, where they would have four children. Only two survived beyond the age of one. Reginald Wil liam Nelson Burroughs died on March 30, 1967.

Marion worked as a nurse in Montreal. She was living in Lachine with Jamaican master builder Dennis Brian Caryll when their son David Brian Car yll was born on March 24, 1938. David married Jessie May Jackson in 1965, and relocated to Hamilton, On tario. Dennis died in Mon treal at the age of 57 in 1963 and Marion died at the age of 98 in 2005 in Toronto.

A 1935 voters list doc uments Reginald living in Thor Lake, Nipissing, On tario where he was working as a prospector. He died at the age of 70 in Geraldton, Ontario on April 3, 1944. He had been working for the Department of Land & Forestry prior to his death. His remains are buried at Maple Vale Cemetery in Smiths Falls. His wife Augusta lived until 1966 when she died at the age of 90. She is buried beside Reginald and their son Gerald, daughter Marion, and son-in-law Dennis, just down the street from the Keyhole House.

Ted & Marion Outer bridge are currently restoring the Keyhole House, a Smiths Falls heritage home built in 1892. They are also being swept away by local history & mystery. You can follow them on Instagram, Face book, YouTube, and TikTok @thekeyholehouse or email ted@tedouterbridge.com.

TOP IMAGE: Reginald Burroughs windowsill. BOTTOM IMAGE: Reginald Burroughs grave. Photo credits: Ted Outerbridge.