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| 4 inch by 6 inch original painting on wood panel, artist's signature on the bottom left, found in Orillia on the weekend. Research under way. |
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| Muskoka or Algonquin scene painted by Tom Low in 1929. This great watercolour was found at a sale in Bracebridge. |
THE NEW AGE BRANDING HAS A LOT TO DO WITH INSECURITIES - WHAT IS OLD CAN BE NEW AGAIN!
THOSE WHO WANT TO CHANGE AN IDENTITY, MUST HAVE BEEN ASLEEP DURING HISTORY CLASS
I suppose, like many times in recent history, there will be certain individuals, in Bracebridge, who will brand me a heretic for suggesting their recent branding exercise, several years ago, was a waste of time, money, and the patience of the good citizens; but I've become used to being branded myself. "The historian who keeps putting his oar in where it doesn't belong!" I get it! Doesn't bother me, after all these years. But it's true. When I'm right, I go to what ever lengths are necessary, to imprint my point. My point here, and for this entire week, is that Author, Washington Irving, has a place in Bracebridge's future. He certainly hasn't enjoyed a place of honor for the first 150 years of the association. I know why!
If town governance, had felt it had some redeeming qualities, it would have adopted and developed the long overdue relationship, back in the late 1990's, when I first wrote a lengthy series on the subject for the Bracebridge Examiner. Then came a book on the provenance of the author, his legendary book, and with the Ontario town that shares a popular name. It was received like a "limp cod" handshake. Those in positions of authority then, saw it as foreign and ridiculous, and there wasn't one councillor who would take even five minutes to hear my pitch. Well, it wasn't a pitch, as such, because there was nothing to sell. I was just handing them back what they already owned as a municipality. I didn't suggest it, or invent the idea. All I did was expose how the naming came about, back in August of 1864. It was as if they all believed, I was trying to sell them on some gimmick branding, that I believe now, they didn't feel the town needed to be an economic going-concern.
This was 2000. A decade later, when branding was a much bigger deal, (as other communities were re-making themselves based on government funds to do so), they all of a sudden decided Bracebridge needed a little boost for the future as well. Something everyone would remember about the community, when they returned to their place of origin, after a Muskoka retreat. Why not adopt something everyone will remember, beyond the "pleasant visit" thing? What actually served the community, for well over a century, was no longer adequate. It used to be that "Muskoka" was the end-all; all visitors needed to remember, in order to consider Bracebridge, the enchanted little town having a bonus lakeland. A quaint hospitable burg to come back to, on the very next holiday! As for the recent branding exercise, they spent lots of money to create, it just seemed like busy-work to me. Even though I responded to the online survey, conducted by the host consulting firm, I know the "Washington Irving" suggestion I submitted, was the only one of its ilk, out of hundreds received. So even the consultants, given rightful provenance, and a branding that would keep on giving, and not cost a cent, rejected the idea without any discussion. Like calling me for example. I could have told them a great story. But how do you bridge an opening gap, like why the town has refused to accept its provenance since 1864. I couldn't explain it, so how were they going to, even if they had sensed some possibilities with this rekindling of sorts?
I think many of the town council members were asleep through High School history class. I was the one who was paying attention. Well, you know what? It helped me see a different side of history, beyond the text books, and chalkboard lessons. Beyond the drone of a teacher's voice, and the tapping of a pointer on a map pulled down from the ceiling. I slowly began to rebel against the boredom of the classroom, and used my imagination to bring the history lesson to life.
Suggesting that the town should make use of its provenance, isn't a stretch of commonplace. It should be considered a privilege of "namesake," and utilized as much as possible. It's free. No one has paid me to promote the concept. I still have some books I wrote on the subject, that didn't sell from 2000 to 2014, so it can be said with considerable accuracy, I lost a lot of money, in the bid to sell my hometown on its own legacy. I'm a beggar for punishment. But it can also be said, I was warned it was never going to catch on, before I published the first articles. I just thought that one day, the resistance of some individuals would fade with age. That's yet to be determined. I'm hopeful that 2014 will be a sparkling year for Washington Irving, William Dawson LeSueur and the business community, of the Town of Bracebridge. It's up to them individually, because it is their history to celebrate, whether town politicians wish to pursue it or not. The provenance, you see, didn't come from a consulting firm's recommendation, about what type of branding, was in the town's best interest. What to me, is a fascinating literary connection, actually came as an unexpected honor, awarded thoughtfully by a literary critic, to a struggling hamlet on the Ontario frontier.
The naming of Bracebridge, is as fascinating and enlightening, as the naming of Gravenhurst, two years earlier. In August 1862, William Dawson LeSueur, the federal postal authority at the time, with a little pizzaz in his good nature, decided that "McCabe's Landing," was an inadequate post office title; which he recognized, would thusly be adopted as an enduring name, by the pioneer settlement itself, on the shore of Lake Muskoka. So, being a literary critic, when he wasn't administering the duties of his postal jurisdiction, he decided instead, to use the title of a book, written by a British poet / philosopher, he happened to like. William Henry Smith's newly released book, "Gravenhurst, or Thoughts on Good and Evil," had been afforded him, with his connection to the national literary society, and national library. At the time, he was well known, as a budding literary critic, who would soon have his reviews widely published in North American, and European literary magazines. This is the pivotal issue. Understanding that the names "Gravenhurst," and then two years later, "Bracebridge," were not happenstance decisions, is the "biggest of big" deals here. Here's why. You can't understand the story, without first knowing, LeSueur didn't take his job lightly, and nothing he did in the professional sense, was without severe self control.
Where it all started to go wrong! It was noted, by several prominent local historians, many years ago now, that, for example, the name "Bracebridge," was "a book LeSueur had been reading at the time, a request came across his desk, to name a new post office in the District of Muskoka". Wrong! It was assumed, LeSueur had done the same thing two years earlier, in Gravenhurst. It might be assumed, that a copy of Smith's book, "Gravenhurst," wound up on his desk, like Irving's book, in 1864, which just happened to be in front of him, when another name was required in Muskoka. So let's clear up the misconception once and for all. LeSueur knew books well. The reason Smith's book came to his attention, was that it had just been released to the public. As a bookman, in addition to his responsibilities as a postal authority, charged with naming new offices, he had access to those new book releases as a literary critic. It is to be expected, a new edition of Washington Irving's book, "Bracebridge Hall," was brought to his attention, in the same way; not just because he was reading Irving, making it convenient to grab the title for the "North Falls," postal application. "Bracebridge," he thought, was a far more suitable name, than North Falls. I agree. He did the same with Gravenhurst, when he ruled out "McCabe's Landing," as a suitable title for the new post office. The commonplace here, is that both towns, in 1862 and 1864, had their citizen-selected names, refused by LeSueur. He just never explained why! Gosh, if only he had, it would have saved my fingers a massive workout on this keyboard.
What is critical here, and must be appreciated, is that LeSueur was a serious chap, and was both a revered literary critic, and an up-and-coming Canadian historian, of considerable future accomplishment. If he chose a name from a book, for the title of a new postal facility, he did so as a literary tribute, of the highest order. He wasn't a prankster. In the case of Bracebridge, it was even more significant, because it was a memorial tribute, to one of the best known authors in the world, who had only a few earlier. passed away. If he hadn't approved of the book, and all its literary attributes, he wouldn't have used the name. The same can be said for "Gravenhurst," and the work of William Henry Smith, which he obviously felt was insightful and ground-breaking in contemporary philosophy.
It hasn't helped, for all these years, to have had the historical references, to the naming protocol honored by LeSuer, known as the lazy-way-out for a postal clerk; and opting for a name from a book that he happened to be reading for recreation on coffee break. This has served to minimize the true honor of naming the new post office, for all the years since. If it had been noted, fifty to a hundred years ago, that LeSueur intended it to be a memorial tribute to Washington Irving, would we now be celebrating the author's work in modern day Bracebridge? I believe we would! If there was any fault attached, other than turning down the name "North Falls," without seeking permission of the citizen applicants, it was that LeSueur didn't write down the reason, he turned down one name in favor of another. Imagine what this would have done for the town, and for the good name of Washington Irving. He was just as negligent with "Gravenhurst," and the town here has similarly refused to have anything to do with Smith's work, which was landmark in so many ways. Using the name, for LeSueur, was showing tremendous respect for Smith's philosophy, which ironically, was all about the tug and pull of "commonplace," in any community. "Gravenhurst; or Thoughts on Good and Evil," is still a popular, well-read book in university studies, and it can be read online through googlebooks, if you happen to have some down time.
One of the other problems, historians in the past, created for contemporary writers, is that it had been assumed wrongly, for decades, that the name "Gravenhurst," was taken from the Irving book, "Bracebridge Hall." This was the first major stumbling block I had to climb over, rather clumsily, and first of all, I had to buy a copy of the book, and read it cover to cover, to find this reference. It doesn't exist. Never did. When I consulted Washington Irving scholars, to ask whether they knew of any reference to "Gravenhurst," made by Irving, in any of his other works, beyond Bracebridge Hall, their answer was, what I had thought. He didn't! Irving may have travelled through a community in England, known as Gravenhurst, but he never wrote it into any of his books or short stories. Then there was this pressing reality. Why would LeSueur, a highly disciplined civil servant and writer, have extracted a name from the actual text of Bracebridge Hall, in 1862, when the good folks from "McCabe's Landing," were trying to launch their postal outlet? It would have made more sense to have taken the name "Bracebridge" instead, versus looking through the text of the book to find a suitable name. This was an often repeated error by local historians, that I corrected in 2000, another reason my work was considered treasonous. It couldn't be helped. Historians in both towns, had never read "Bracebridge Hall," previously, until I loaned them my copy. This proved beyond doubt that LeSueur took the name from Smith's book, not from anything Washington Irving had penned. Thus, LeSueur borrowed the names as literary tributes, to both fledgling hamlets. I suppose he assumed we'd figure it out one day. Unfortunately, the honors he afforded us, have been protracted for the past 150 years. What a shame. Both writers were highly accomplished, and internationally revered, but the provenance in Smith's case, was missing almost entirely until 1999 (when I wrote about it for the Gravenhurst Banner). It's first mention was in the Centennial publication of "The Light of Other Days," when historian Cecil Porter made light reference to the book "Gravenhurst," by Smith, as another possibility for the post office name. He was right of course. Cecil read "Bracebridge Hall," at my urging, and for once, the historical record had been officially corrected. Gravenhurst was not named as a result of Washington Irving's published work. The historians had simply never read the book to verify this fact, and had repeated the error over and over.
Two years ago, I wrote a lengthy feature series, on this same blog-site, to shed some light on the naming of "Gravenhurst," with a lengthy profile on William Henry Smith, and his work, in recognition of the 150th anniversary of LeSueur's initial tribute to town and author. (August 1862 - August 2012) We even put together a short video to run with the blog. I did believe it was a matter of protocol to notify the mayor of the Town of Gravenhurst, and one sitting town councillor, that this anniversary was coming. I gave about a month's notice. Council instead, decided to celebrate its 125th year of incorporation, as a town instead, of the 150th anniversary of its naming, with this literary provenance; which some in the literary community would find an exceptional honor.
On Friday, August 1st, it will be 150 years, since the Town of Bracebridge's official naming, courtesy William Dawson LeSueur. It will only be recognized in this blog, and the several publications I notified, one being "Curious; The Tourist Guide," which I write for monthly. I have sent letters to the editor of the other regional publications, but there are no guarantees they will decide to publish them. So once again, there is no excitement about, what to many of us, who know our literature and heritage, is an exciting connection to the author of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," and "Rip Van Winkle." I don't care how much the municipality spends on branding in the future, or if they wish to commission a statue of Santa Claus, for the main street; nothing will trump the provenance with Washington Irving. One day, a new council, may decide that it is finally time, to stop obstructing, what should be a most welcome part of our heritage, to be enjoyed and exploited, as Dr. LeSueur probably believed would have happened during his lifetime. I'd like to explain a little more about this provenance in the coming days, leading up to the August 1st anniversary.
When I carry-on, admittedly a little weary now, still making these copious notes, about the Town of Bracebridge, specifically regarding the business community, and the potential advantages of hooking up, on its own, to a rightful, 150 year old provenance, it's not to suggest, my old home town, needs to face-dress what it already possess of historic identity. I like it just the way it is. But when it comes to seeking out "branding" potentials, to facade over what we already possess, excuse me, for getting a little annoyed, especially when Washington Irving misses the cut once again. What I have suggested, however, is that beyond the newly imposed branding, of continuous learning, or possibly in the future, as "Santa's Summer Home," in respect to the long time relationship with "Santa's Village," I truly believe that the citizens, and governance, need to add-onto this, with something they have possessed and owned, but never utilized to their advantage. Obstructing this from occurring, has frankly gone on for far too long. There are Irving historical societies that would love to have a town, with connected literary provenance, to join them for the celebration of the author's love for life, passion for history, and tradition, to assist the ongoing stewardship of his timeless folk tales.
In tomorrow's blog, I would like to explain a little bit more, about Washington Irving, and why it wasn't an insult in the least, to select the work of an American author, as the new name for a Canadian hamlet, circa 1864. Irving, you see, was a stalwart believer in the preservation of cultural traditions, and it's why he spent so much time in England, researching and writing about its unique qualities; because as he noted, in his time, that Americans, after the Revolutionary War, mistakenly felt it necessary to develop their own traditions. Thusly abandoning much of their British ancestry, for no good reason. Please join me tomorrow, for part two of the "Washington Irving - Bracebridge, Ontario," feature series, in honor of its 150th anniversary, 1864-2014. There won't be a parade, a ribbon cutting, a "street naming," concert in the park dedicated to the anniversary, a pub-crawl, or even a toast at the local pub, in Irving and LeSueur's honor. But hopefully, I'm going to inspire a change here, that may finally become an accepted and celebrated reality of branding, that didn't come from a consultant's report; or have to be paid for, in order to receive. Please join me this week, for some insights on the naming of two South Muskoka towns. Both, very honorable situations, that need to be seen in the bright light that was initially intended, but went dim out of neglect.
I don't want this to be seen as a way of lobbying local government to support my mission, to promote this aspect of community heritage. I have nothing to gain, except as an historian, who feels obliged to dot his "i's," in order to feel a job has been successfully completed. It's not the case the town has to sign on to anything, to complete my mission. But I do have to make it as public as I possibly can, and this, in a few days, will be my mission of satisfaction.
Thanks for joining me today. Lots more to come.
From the Archives of August 2012
GRAVENHURST POST OFFICE BECAME OFFICIAL IN AUGUST 1862
THE HAMLET WAS NAMED AFTER A BOOK BY WILLIAM HENRY SMITH
"SMITH, WILLIAM HENRY (1808-1872), philosopher, poet, and miscellaneous writer, son of Richard Smith, barrister-at-law, was born at North End, Hammersmith, in January 1808, of parents in easy circumstances. Theyre Townsend Smith was his brother. He was educated at Radley School, then a non-conformist institution, and afterwards at Glasgow University, where he made many valuable friends and imbibed the habits of thought which influenced his subsequent life. After his father's death in 1823, he was placed with Sharon Turner to study law, and served out his articles as a solicitor with excessive distaste. He was afterwards called to the bar, and went circuit for awhile, but obtained no practice. Having a small independence, he mainly led the life of a recluse man of letters, reading, thinking, writing, and enjoying the friendship of Mill, Maurice, and Sterling, (author philosophers of considerable acclaim) having assisted the latter two when they edited the 'Atheneum.' Caroline Fox notices his likeness to Maurice," which is a strikingly significant compliment, in fact. (The Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press)
William Henry Smith turned his back on the legal profession, and became a well regarded and accomplished author, and this connects to us, today, in modern day Gravenhurst. His decision to quit law, in reality, and the passion he had to write, generated some years later, the book "Gravenhurst," in 1862, the same year our post office was officially named the same. It was no coincidence. Just provenance we knew very little about.
THERE WERE NO BALLOONS SET FREE AS A BUNCH, INTO THE BLUE SKIES OVER GRAVENHURST. THERE WAS NO PARADE, NO FLY-OVER BY THE SNOWBIRDS, GUNFIRE IN CELEBRATION, OR A SINGLE NOTICE ANYWHERE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN, THAT TODAY MARKED THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE OFFICIAL NAMING OF THE TOWN OF GRAVENHURST.......MARKED BY THE OPENING OF THE FIRST POST OFFICE IN AUGUST 1862.
BUT A FEW OF US DIDN'T FORGET, AND WE MADE A SPECIAL VIDEO THAT WE HAVE OFFERED THE TOWN FREE OF CHARGE, TO MARK THE HISTORIC MILESTONE OF WHICH WE ARE ENORMOUSLY PROUD AS HOMETOWNERS. I HAVE ALSO PLANNED A MULTI-BLOG SERIES TO FURTHER EXPLAIN OUR FASCINATING CONNECTION TO ONE OF BRITIAN'S WELL KNOWN AUTHORS, AND HOW IT ALL CAME ABOUT, THANKS TO THE HANDIWORK OF POSTAL AUTHORITY, AND CANADIAN HISTORIAN, WILLIAM DAWSON LESUEUR. AS HISTORY GOES, OF THIS KIND OF THING, THE "GRAVENHURST" CONNECTION IS A DANDY, LARGELY BECAUSE OF ALL THE SCREW-UPS OVER THE DECADES, THAT HAVE KEPT US DISTANT, FROM KNOWING MORE ABOUT THE WRITER RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR NAME. I HOPE, AT THE VERY LEAST, THAT THIS SERIES OF ARTICLES, AND MUSIC VIDEO, WILL ESTABLISH ONCE AND FOR ALL, A SUITABLE ONLINE ARCHIVE, FOR RESEARCHERS AND HISTORIANS IN THE FUTURE......AND HELP THEM AVOID THE SAME MISTAKES THAT HAVE BEEN MADE OVER AND OVER FOR WELL MORE THAN A CENTURY.
IN A DOCUMENT IN POSSESSION OF THE GRAVENHURST ARCHIVES COMMITTEE, AND ORIGINALLY SENT TO REGIONAL HISTORIAN, CECIL PORTER, FROM THE FEDERAL OFFICE OF CANADA POST, THERE IS CLEAR CONFIRMATION, OF THE CONNECTION BETWEEN POSTAL AUTHORITY, WILLIAM DAWSON LESUEUR AND BRITISH AUTHOR, WILLIAM HENRY SMITH, AS RELATES TO THE 1862 NAMING OF THE NEW POST OFFICE.
THE LETTER DATED, THE 10TH OF SEPTEMBER, 1965, NOTES THE FOLLOWING, ABOUT THE NAMING AND OPENING OF THE POST OFFICE: "The Post Office records show that the Post Office at Gravenhurst, was originally opened under that name on the Ist of August, 1862. The original appointee to the Postmastership was James McCabe, whose term of office extended to December 1867, when he was succeeded by Peter Cockburn whose appointment was on the first of April, 1868, and who served until February 1873."
The letter also informs Mr. Porter, one of the authors of the well known local history, "Light of Other Days," (working with the Centennial Committee), that "Records in Ottawa indicate that in 1905 an early settler wrote that the community prior to the establishment of the Post Office was called McCabe's Landing, and it will be noted that the original postmaster in 1862 had the surname McCabe. Records also show that W.D. LeSueur of the Post Office Department, acknowledged naming the area Gravenhurst and indicates he secured the name from the title of a book by William Smith, author of 'Thorndale'."
In a November 1923 article, published in the Gravenhurst Banner, also provided by the Archives Committee, the following paragraph identifies the connection with William Henry Smith:
"Mrs. J.A. Northey, of Toronto, who was a patient at 'Calydor' (Sanatorium) last winter, received a letter from a lady friend in Toronto, a member of a reading circle, who gives a new clue to the naming of Gravenhurst in the following paragraph from her letter. 'When I wrote the name Gravenhurst, I recollected something my uncle once told me about that place. For over forty years he was in the Post Office Department, at Ottawa, and for very many years he was secretary of the department, which is the next post to that of Deputy Post Master General. In the course of his work there, he had to name a great many post offices throughout Canada, mostly of course small hamlets just setting up an office; when it became necessary to find a name for one up in the northern districts, he called it 'Gravenhurst,' after the title of a book he happened to be reading at the time."
Where the facts of the official naming become confusing, has a lot to do with Bracebridge officials and historians, who for whatever reason, began substituting Washington Irving's book, "Bracebridge Hall," into the last line of the paragraph above. Time and time again, LeSueur is accused of naming our town, based on a book he happened to be reading at the time. The same holds true, in fact, for Bracebridge, two year after the opening of the Gravenhurst Post Office. "He named the new post office after the name of a book he was reading at the time." This one line has frustrated me for the past fifteen years, because it makes assumptions, that LeSueur was both cavalier, and a postal clerk who read books while on the job. Consider what respected writer and historian, Redmond Thomas, gave as a speech, many years ago, to the male members of the Teachers' Federation of Muskoka, published in the local press.
As to how the communities of Muskoka received their names, he writes about both Bracebridge and Gravenhurst, by suggesting, "(LeSueur) picked the names Bracebridge and Gravenhurst from two places mentioned in a book he had read, namely 'Bracebridge Hall,' by Washington Irving. In the reference book, "Places in Ontario," by Nick and Helma Mika, the following information is included about the naming of Gravenhurst: "The centre of this town, situated on the south end of Lake Muskoka, was variously known as McCabe's Landing, McCabe's Mill, and McCabe's Bay, after James (Micky) McCabe, the first settler here in 1859. It was given its present name in 1862 by William Dawson LeSueur (1840-1917), a secretary of the post office department, after a reference to Gravenhurst in Washington Irving's novel, "Bracebridge Hall (1822). William Smith's novel "Gravenhurst," (1862) is frequently cited as the source of the name, but LeSueur left a written record about how he chose it."
In another article, provided by the Archives Committee, the following is noted of the naming of Gravenhurst: "Local historian, Claud Snider, has gone to considerable trouble in efforts to find who named the tiny village of Gravenhurst, but without success. However, he believes it was named after a small English town in Bedfordshire, England, during the first ten years of settlement."
SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT - NO "BRACEBRIDGE HALL CONNECTION"
Quite a number of entries have been made in Bracebridge histories, suggesting incorrectly, that Gravenhurst was the name LeSueur fished out of American Author, Washington Irving's famous book, "Bracebridge Hall." I worked for months to disprove this was possible, and I purchased a copy of the book, and read it twice. I also asked several Irving authorities, in the United States, if the revered writer had ever used the name "Gravenhurst," in any of the books he wrote.....not just in the case of Bracebridge Hall. I even asked if there was any chance that Irving had visited the community of Gravenhurst, in England, while on his travels.
First of all, Irving did not use the name "Gravenhurst" in the book "Bracebridge Hall." He didn't write the name in any of his other books either. There is no evidence he visited the village of Gravenhurst in England. I gave my copy of Bracebridge Hall to the Archives Committee, here in Gravenhurst, to read, in order to satisfy themselves, that there is no credit due the good Mr. Irving, at least for our name.
Based on my firm belief, that our town was named after a book written by British Author, William Henry Smith, entitled "Gravenhurst; or Thoughts on Good and Evil," our family purchased a rare 1870's memorial edition of Smith's book, and presented it to the Gravenhurst Archives Committee, along with an Archives of Canada photograph of William Dawson LeSueur, and a copy of his biography, entitled "A Critical Spirit - The Thought of William Dawson LeSueur," by A.B. McKillop. The antiquarian copy of "Gravenhurst," was purchased from "Timothy B. Wilder, Rare Books, of Hubbardston, Maryland, in 1998. It was the 1875 edition, with a memorial biography of the author, as penned by his wife. He died in 1872.
As a sidebar to this story, is the fact the packaged book was returned to sender, by the Gravenhurst Post Office.....Mr. Wilder receiving the book, because there was no postal code on the package. Even though my name and address was correct, postal policy indicated it had to be returned as undeliverable. I thought this was quite appropriate and a little amusing, considering all the mistruths, and information tangles, I'd been dealing with for severals years previous to this event.
My intrusion in the naming debacle was not welcome by several Bracebridge historians, who thought it best to leave historical record as it had been intially written, including the clear error with their research; the name "Gravenhurst" was never used by Irving, as they had been claiming for decades if not longer.
I even offered these same historians my copy of "Bracebridge Hall," to read, as they had not done so previously, but they opted to avoid the issue. I pointed out to them, and to any one else who would listen, back in the late 1990's, that it was unreasonable, for Mr. LeSueur, a scholar as well as a federal civil servant, to take a name from inside a book, when he could have used its title. This means, that because Gravenhurst was named two full years before Bracebridge was granted its post office, that LeSueur, would have named our post office "Bracebridge" instead, if their theory held water.......and used a name found in the text, to re-name "North Falls," which was the title of Bracebridge before LeSueur made his unsubstantiated change. You have to know the accomplishments and handiwork of Dr. LeSueur first, to understand he would not have done this, ever! I had a chat, quite a few years ago now, with one of a number of "North Falls" loyalists in Bracebridge, still offended all these years since, that LeSueur buried the name the citizens had selected. They were so concerned about this federal over-ruling of their choice, that they registered the name, to keep it from being lost by time. I'm not sure about the citizens of Gravenhurst, just how they felt then, and today, about having the name "McCabe's Landing" rejected by LeSueur, in favor of a title borrowed from a newly published book.
As I've repeated about a thousand times, LeSueur was not just a civil servant. He was a respected historian and literary critic, known in Europe and North America, and he would have had access to most of the newly published books. Smith's book was published in 1862, the same year the Post Office was given its name. As for the naming of "Bracebridge," he obviously admired the work of the author, enough to afford the name he imposed by authority, onto a fledlging Canadian hamlet, he thought would come to appreciate the literary provenance, of being related to one of the great authors in history. I think he would be disappointed it took about 150 years to raise significant interest amongst the citizenry. Just as a little footnote to this; my readership has tripled in the last few days, in part, related to this coming historical feature. (Of course, it could also be because of my Music on the Barge reviews)
I will offer more information on Mr. Smith in an upcoming blog, but what is important to remember, is that William Dawson LeSueur, was in roughly the same enterprise as his colleague William Henry Smith; both writing reviews of philosophical texts, for magazines such as Blackwoods. I adamently believe, LeSueur was so impressed by Smith's book, that he borrowed the title, to name the hamlet on Muskoka Bay. The citizens then were miffed why LeSueur had discarded their choice of names, "McCabe's Landing," and gave them the strange name of "Gravenhurst." LeSeuer had an explanation but he kept it largely to himself, feeling the settlers in the encampment, wouldn't have understood the literary significance anyway. Admittedly, this was his failing, and even if the citizens didn't get the connection, they should have been offered an explanation none the less. As a result of his failure to communicate, why he had selected "Gravenhurst," as the name of the brand new Post Office, history and its keepers, have distorted the act many different ways, somewhat retarding the credit deserved to both gentleman.....LeSueur and Smith. Hopefully this has been corrected, if historians in the future, would research more diligently and thoroughly than in the past.
In the coming days, I will present more background information about both Dr. LeSueur, and William Henry Smith, and why the 150th anniversary of the naming, deserves more public recognition than it has to date. If I hadn't decided to create this editorial series, and beg help from my videographer son, the 150th would have been missed (neglected) entirely. Make sure you click onto the music video, son Robert produced to commemorate the occasion of the century and a half anniversary. Much more to come.
(NOTE ABOUT THE VIDEO - I WANT TO THANK SON ROBERT FOR HAVING THE PATIENCE TO DEAL WITH HIS MEDDLING, ARGUMENTATIVE, INTRUSIVE, PAIN-IN-THE-ASS FATHER, TO MAKE THIS CONTEMPORARY MUSIC VIDEO, TO HIGHLIGHT THIS AUGUST IST ANNIVERSAY. HE'S A GOOD LAD! THE VIDEO AND THIS PROJECT, WERE DONE OUT OF RESPECT FOR OUR HOMETOWN, AND ALL THE FOLKS PAST AND PRESENT, WHO WORK SO HARD, TO MAKE IT A DYNAMIC, GOOD NEIGHBOR COMMUNITY.)
Thanks for visiting today's blog. Please join me again soon.
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