What’s in a name? Quite a lot actually!
Gravenhurst and Bracebridge share at least one thing in common beyond the geographical reference of belonging to the neighborhood known as South Muskoka. Both towns were named by a curious, scholarly character, working in the 1860’s with the federal postal authority. His name was William Dawson LeSueur, a greatly misunderstood individual frequently neglected in the re-telling of local history.
After considerable research which lasted over two years, I was able to clarify one particularly significant detail about the naming of Gravenhurst. I did this with the help of the Gravenhurst Archives Committee (one of our town’s most precious resource groups), and authorities connected with the Washington Irving museum in New York, and the Irving Historical Society in Irving, Texas. It had been written into Bracebridge history texts, for whatever reason of misinterpretation, that both South Muskoka towns had been named by Dr. LeSueur “after the name of a book he was reading at the time.” For example, LeSueur admitted, in an impromptu interview in the early 1920’s with a Muskoka politician, that Bracebridge had been named after the 1822 book written by Washington Irving, entitled “Bracebridge Hall.” The error which has passed down through the ages is that “he had named the town after the title of a book he was reading at the time.” There is no basis for this claim. LeSueur however, was a noted and revered literary critic and historian, and a widely published review columnist for many international literary magazines. What most likely happened is LeSueur decided, as an honor to the fledgling town straddling the Muskoka River, that the name “Bracebridge,” as made famous by Irving, would be a name with considerable provenance to carry-forth this new Ontario community. While those who had petitioned the federal office to grant the name “North Falls,” LeSueur opted instead to borrow “Bracebridge,” as a tribute to the recently deceased American author. I am told this greatly infuriated the local citizenry but I can find no evidence an appeal was ever launched to regain the original title.
This was made official in the summer of 1864. Now here’s the problem. It has long been written by Bracebridge historians, in error, that Gravenhurst was also a name taken by LeSueur from the text of “Bracebridge Hall.” When I asked to verify the name Gravenhurst, as used by Irving, I was surprised to find the author had never once used this name in any of his many books. This should have been obvious to me, as Gravenhurst was named by LeSueur, in 1862, two years earlier than Bracebridge. It would stand to reason that LeSueur would have thusly named McCabe’s Landing (which is what the citizen committee submitted for the naming of their new post office) “Bracebridge” instead, versus taking a secondary name retrieved from the text (which of course we now know didn’t exist in any of Irving’s books). When Dr. LeSueur decided against McCabe’s Landing as a suitable name for the pioneer community on the shore of Lake Muskoka, he may well have chosen a name from a book he was reading at the time. In the case of Gravenhurst, LeSueur was most likely reviewing a recently published philosophical study by British author-poet, William Henry Smith, entitled “Gravenhurst – Or Thoughts on Good and Evil.” The book is an examination of common-place and community, and Gravenhurst is a hypothetical village, ordinary and full of life’s most common elements. Its premise is that in order to appreciate fully the goodness of life, one must have a comparable misfortune; how does one recognize the emotion associated with tragedy, if there is never any human loss. To understand and appreciate triumph, one must appreciate the range of emotion associated with defeat. This is an unworthy simplification of a great man’s work, and I offer my apology for providing such a brief overview. It is in my humble opinion, and with considerable appreciation of the work of two fine authors, LeSueur and Smith, a great and lasting honor to be associated in name with such worldly accomplishment.
Dr. LeSueur has long been treated, in historical context, as the man who changed our name, against our wishes. Rather, it is my contention, we should recognize the tribute as it was intended by this loyal and respected Canadian historian. If he was negligent in an area of the process, it was that he didn’t send along accompanying information about the honor being bestowed.
I was able to secure a mid 1880’s memorial edition of the “Gravenhurst,” book, with a biography of the late writer included in the text’s preamble, from an American antiquarian book dealer, and my wife and I, on behalf of Birch Hollow Antiques, donated the copy in care of the Gravenhurst Archives Committee for their reference.
What’s in a name? In the case of both Gravenhurst and Bracebridge, quite a lot in fact. One might even expect a road or boulevard in each town could be named to honor both Irving, in Bracebridge’s case, and Smith in Gravenhurst; two important authors in the literary history of the world. Maybe some day!
Gravenhurst and Bracebridge share at least one thing in common beyond the geographical reference of belonging to the neighborhood known as South Muskoka. Both towns were named by a curious, scholarly character, working in the 1860’s with the federal postal authority. His name was William Dawson LeSueur, a greatly misunderstood individual frequently neglected in the re-telling of local history.
After considerable research which lasted over two years, I was able to clarify one particularly significant detail about the naming of Gravenhurst. I did this with the help of the Gravenhurst Archives Committee (one of our town’s most precious resource groups), and authorities connected with the Washington Irving museum in New York, and the Irving Historical Society in Irving, Texas. It had been written into Bracebridge history texts, for whatever reason of misinterpretation, that both South Muskoka towns had been named by Dr. LeSueur “after the name of a book he was reading at the time.” For example, LeSueur admitted, in an impromptu interview in the early 1920’s with a Muskoka politician, that Bracebridge had been named after the 1822 book written by Washington Irving, entitled “Bracebridge Hall.” The error which has passed down through the ages is that “he had named the town after the title of a book he was reading at the time.” There is no basis for this claim. LeSueur however, was a noted and revered literary critic and historian, and a widely published review columnist for many international literary magazines. What most likely happened is LeSueur decided, as an honor to the fledgling town straddling the Muskoka River, that the name “Bracebridge,” as made famous by Irving, would be a name with considerable provenance to carry-forth this new Ontario community. While those who had petitioned the federal office to grant the name “North Falls,” LeSueur opted instead to borrow “Bracebridge,” as a tribute to the recently deceased American author. I am told this greatly infuriated the local citizenry but I can find no evidence an appeal was ever launched to regain the original title.
This was made official in the summer of 1864. Now here’s the problem. It has long been written by Bracebridge historians, in error, that Gravenhurst was also a name taken by LeSueur from the text of “Bracebridge Hall.” When I asked to verify the name Gravenhurst, as used by Irving, I was surprised to find the author had never once used this name in any of his many books. This should have been obvious to me, as Gravenhurst was named by LeSueur, in 1862, two years earlier than Bracebridge. It would stand to reason that LeSueur would have thusly named McCabe’s Landing (which is what the citizen committee submitted for the naming of their new post office) “Bracebridge” instead, versus taking a secondary name retrieved from the text (which of course we now know didn’t exist in any of Irving’s books). When Dr. LeSueur decided against McCabe’s Landing as a suitable name for the pioneer community on the shore of Lake Muskoka, he may well have chosen a name from a book he was reading at the time. In the case of Gravenhurst, LeSueur was most likely reviewing a recently published philosophical study by British author-poet, William Henry Smith, entitled “Gravenhurst – Or Thoughts on Good and Evil.” The book is an examination of common-place and community, and Gravenhurst is a hypothetical village, ordinary and full of life’s most common elements. Its premise is that in order to appreciate fully the goodness of life, one must have a comparable misfortune; how does one recognize the emotion associated with tragedy, if there is never any human loss. To understand and appreciate triumph, one must appreciate the range of emotion associated with defeat. This is an unworthy simplification of a great man’s work, and I offer my apology for providing such a brief overview. It is in my humble opinion, and with considerable appreciation of the work of two fine authors, LeSueur and Smith, a great and lasting honor to be associated in name with such worldly accomplishment.
Dr. LeSueur has long been treated, in historical context, as the man who changed our name, against our wishes. Rather, it is my contention, we should recognize the tribute as it was intended by this loyal and respected Canadian historian. If he was negligent in an area of the process, it was that he didn’t send along accompanying information about the honor being bestowed.
I was able to secure a mid 1880’s memorial edition of the “Gravenhurst,” book, with a biography of the late writer included in the text’s preamble, from an American antiquarian book dealer, and my wife and I, on behalf of Birch Hollow Antiques, donated the copy in care of the Gravenhurst Archives Committee for their reference.
What’s in a name? In the case of both Gravenhurst and Bracebridge, quite a lot in fact. One might even expect a road or boulevard in each town could be named to honor both Irving, in Bracebridge’s case, and Smith in Gravenhurst; two important authors in the literary history of the world. Maybe some day!
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