Huntsville Day celebrates history of our town

Main photo: Among those celebrating Huntsville Day were (from left) Town of Huntsville Manager of Arts, Culture and Heritage, Teri Souter, Deputy Mayor Karin Terziano, Lake of Bays Mayor Terry Glover, Mayor Scott Aitchison, Captain George Hunt (Huntsville’s namesake played by Muskoka Heritage Place Manager, Ron Gostlin), Councillors Jonathan Wiebe, Dione Schumacher and Brian Thompson, and Town of Huntsville CAO Denise Corry.

It was a day to celebrate all things Huntsville.

One hundred and thirty-three years ago, on March 25, 1886, Huntsville was incorporated as a village. Much has happened in the intervening decades and while many things have changed, there are still places around town that those early settlers might recognize.

Before settlers arrived here, though, indigenous peoples inhabited this place. Many Town-hosted events recognize that history with a land acknowledgement statement, and it was doubly important given the nature of the celebration. To begin the Huntsville Day festivities at Partners Hall on Monday, March 25, Councillor Jonathan Wiebe said:

“Long before today, as we gather here, there have been indigenous peoples who have been the stewards of this place. In particular we acknowledge the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe, specifically the Ojibwe, Chippewa and Odawa peoples to recognize and deeply appreciate their historic connection to this place. We recognize the contributions that First Nations, Métis, Inuit and other indigenous peoples have made, both in shaping and strengthening this community in particular and our province and country as a whole. As settlers, we are grateful for the opportunity to meet here and we thank all the generations of people who have taken care of this land for thousands of years.”

Mayor Scott Aitchison welcomed attendees, and said, “It’s very exciting to celebrate yet another year of what [former Huntsville mayor] H.E. Rice referred to as the uninterrupted progress of this beautiful town of ours called Huntsville… I hope everyone loves this town as much as I do. I think we are lucky to live here.”

Above: It’s not a party without music (top left, Briar Summers entertains the crowd), cookies, and a birthday card

The Town’s Manager of Arts, Culture, and Heritage, Teri Souter, who organized the event, reminded those gathered of all of the events still to come this spring and summer, in particular the Muskoka Maple Festival on April 17, Canada Day celebrations, and Culture Days in late September.

Captain George Hunt, Huntsville’s namesake, played by Ron Gostlin, manager of Muskoka Heritage Place, led the crowd in a boisterous rendition of “Happy Birthday”. There were Huntsville Day-themed cookies, music courtesy of Briar Summers, and a giant birthday card for everyone to sign. A slideshow displayed images from Huntsville’s past pulled from the Muskoka Heritage Place collection.

And lining almost a full two walls of Partners Hall was a giant timeline created by Mayor Aitchison.

The timeline begins in 1886 and notes the reigning monarch, governor general, prime minister, MP, premier, MPP, reeve/mayor, and councillors for each year since then, and includes interesting local happenings, from the incorporation of the Village of Huntsville on March 25, 1886 and the opening of the swing bridge and Peninsula canal (both in 1889), to the first woman elected to Huntsville Council (Kathleen Walkinshaw in 1957), to more recent events like the opening of the Algonquin Theatre in 2005 and the G8 Summit in 2010.

“I’m a nerd and I love the history of our community. When I was at home recovering from heart surgery, I was digging into the question of the longest serving mayor in our history, and found out that it was H.E. Rice, of course,” said Aitchison, adding that the timeline is still a work in progress. “You highlight certain things and think, oh, that’s significant. And to see Kay Walkinshaw, our first female councillor ever, to see how long it took. I think those visual representations help remind people about things like that, and that’s important.”

Huntsville Day attendees check out Mayor Aitchison’s timeline project

The timeline begins in 1886 with the incorporation of the Village of Huntsville

Aitchison plans to display the timeline online in the future and encourages residents to add details. “I hope one day we can get it finalized and professionalized and have it up somewhere in our community where people can really see it,” he said.

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