Ontario's Historic Sites with Mom and Dad

AN UPBRINGING IN ANTIQUES - NOT BLOODY LIKELY - AS MY MOTHER WOULD SAY

BUT MOM AND POP GAVE ME AN EDUCATION IN CANADIAN HISTORY -

A LOT OF PEOPLE I TALK TO THESE DAYS, ABOUT ANTIQUES, AND THE ANTIQUE BUSINESS, FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THAT I DIDN'T COME FROM A RELIC-LADEN HOUSEHOLD. MY BOYS HOWEVER, CAN HONESTLY CLAIM TO HAVE COME FROM AN ANTIQUE-LADEN HOUSEHOLD. IN MY DAY, ON THE WISHES OF MY MOTHER MERLE, EVERYTHING HAD TO BE NEW. OUR APARTMENT IN BURLINGTON, IN THE LATE 1950'S, TO THE MID 1960's, WAS A PHOTOGRAPHIC IMAGE OF THAT PERIOD OF HOME DECORATING. THE FURNITURE, PURCHASED NEW, WAS MODEST IN STYLE, CORRECTLY PROPORTIONAL TO THE LIVING SPACE, AND FEW IN NUMBER. IN PHOTOGRAPHS I HAVE OF THIS PERIOD, THERE WAS INFINITELY MORE OPEN SPACE, THAN FURNITURE AND SUNDRY ADORNMENTS. AT CHRISTMAS, THE LIGHTLY DECORATED SPRUCE, WAS THE MOST PROMINENT "BIG THING" IN THE LIVINGROOM. WE HAD A COUPLE OF CHAIRS, A CHESTERFIELD, A FEW END TABLES, ONE COFFEE TABLE MY DAD ACTUALLY MADE, A CABINET TELEVISION, AND A COUPLE OF ART PIECES ON THE WALLS. IN COMPARISON, I HAVE MUCH LESS AIR SPACE IN OUR ROOMS HERE AT BIRCH HOLLOW. IF YOU LOOKED AT THE PICTURES THEN, AND WHAT THEIR SON HAS INFILLED, AS A COMFORT ZONE TODAY, YOU'D SWEAR I WAS ADOPTED. THESE "LESS IS BEST" PEOPLE COULDN'T POSSIBLY HAVE GIVEN BIRTH TO A HOARDER LIKE ME.

THE HINT SOMETHING WAS WRONG, WAS WHEN I HAULED SO MUCH STUFF HOME, DURING MY GAD-ABOUTS AS A KID. BROKEN HOCKEY STICKS, HALF ROLLS OF FRICTION TAPE, OLD NAILS, A FEW BRICKS, BAGS OF CHESTNUTS (WHEN IN SEASON), AND OLD CLOTHES I TOOK FROM THE SCHOOL'S LOST AND FOUND. I HAD THE HOARDER MENTALITY. "I CAN USE THIS SWEATER, AND THAT ONE OVER THERE, AND THE ONE DOWN HERE," I'D WHISPER TO MYSELF, AS I WAS LEANING HEAD FIRST IN THE GIANT BIN OF LOST ITEMS AT LAKESHORE PUBLIC SCHOOL, IN BURLINGTON. THE TEACHERS WOULD HAVE TO PULL ME OUT BY MY FEET. "IT'S TIME TO GO HOME NOW TEDDY. I'M SURE YOU'RE MOTHER WILL BE EXCITED TO SEE WHAT YOU'VE FOUND…..THAT YOU DIDN'T REALLY LOSE."

I CAN REMEMBER ONE GREAT EXCEPTION TO MY MOTHER'S RULE. FOR WHATEVER CRAZY REASON, MERLE DECIDED TO GO WITH A FRIEND, TO A YARD SALE JUST OUTSIDE THE URBAN AREA OF BRACEBRIDGE. I THOUGHT SHE'D LOST HER MIND. SHE BOUGHT A CIRCA 1930'S CHINA CUPBOARD. SHE TOLD HER FRIEND THAT SHE HAD ALWAYS WANTED ONE TO KEEP HER GOOD CHINA SAFE. WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY GOOD CHINA. SERIOUSLY. AND THAT'S EXACTLY HOW THE CABINET WAS USED. JUST AS AN ADDITIONAL CUPBOARD, TO HOUSE WHAT WE ALREADY POSSESSED. SHE JUST SPREAD IT OUT, BUT TOLD ALL HER FRIENDS, SHE HAD JUST BOUGHT "A DARLING ANTIQUE CHINA CABINET." NOT ONLY THAT! SHE ALSO BOUGHT TWO FAIRLY NICE PRESS-BACK CHAIRS FOR THE KITCHEN. FUNNY THING THOUGH. THERE WASN'T ENOUGH ROOM IN THE KITCHEN, SO SHE GAVE THEM TO ME. THUS, THE LOCAL LADS AND I, HAD TWO NICE CHAIRS, SET UP IN THE END-ZONES, TO PLAY MY MUNRO TABLE-TOP HOCKEY GAME.

WHEN MY PARENTS MOVED TO A SMALL COTTAGE, ON ALLPORT BAY, OF THE WIDER LAKE MUSKOKA, IN THE FALL OF 1974, AND I WENT OFF TO UNIVERSITY, MERLE GAVE THE CHINA CUPBOARD TO A FRIEND. EVEN THOUGH I REALLY LIKED IT, AS MODEST AS IT WAS, SHE WANTED RID OF IT ENTIRELY. NOT JUST TO SHIFT IT INTO MY BEDROOM, WHICH WOULD HAVE LOOKED GREAT WITH MY ARRAY OF COLLECTIBLES. THEN WHEN I WENT LOOKING FOR THE PRESS BACK CHAIRS, "I THREW THEM OUT." "WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR," I DEMANDED, ONCE AGAIN, HAVING REALLY LIKED THOSE TWO HIGH BACKED CHAIRS. "IT'S JUST OLD STUFF. WE'VE GOT ENOUGH JUNK AROUND HERE," SHE SAID, IN THAT SIGNED, SEALED AND DELIVERED MANNER, SHE HAD USED THROUGHOUT MY CHILDHOOD, TO COVER MANY TIMELY ISSUES. IN FACT, SHE ONLY THREW THOSE CHAIRS AS FAR AS THE GARBAGE BOXES OUTSIDE OF THE APARTMENT, WHERE THEY WERE SCOOPED UP BY ANOTHER RESIDENT, SENSING THERE WAS SOME VALUE HANGING ONTO THEM. JUST LIKE I WOULD HAVE, IF GIVEN AN OPPORTUNITY.

YET STRANGELY ENOUGH, MERLE AND ED GAVE ME SOMETHING BETTER THAN A CHINA CUPBOARD, AND TWO PRESS-BACK CHAIRS. THEY TOOK ME PLACES. WE TRAVELLED A LOT IN MY YOUTH, BECAUSE MY DAD, LIKE ME, FOUND A SORT OF SPIRITUAL RELEASE OUT ON THE OPEN ROAD. EVEN FROM A VERY YOUNG AGE, MERLE AND ED WOULD MOTOR ME ALL OVER THE PROVINCE. I WAS AFFORDED OPPORTUNITIES TO VISIT FORT HENRY, FORT YORK, FORT NIAGARA, MACKENZIE HOUSE IN TORONTO, THE ROYAL ONTARIO MUSEUM, UPPER CANADA VILLAGE, AND HISTORIC SITES DOTTED FROM BUFFALO TO DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA. EVERY YEAR THEY TOOK ME TO THE CANADIAN NATIONAL EXHIBITION, WITHOUT FAIL, WHERE WE VISITED THE SPORTS HALL OF FAME, ED'S FAVORITE STOP IN A BUSY DAY. THEY TOOK ME TO EXPO IN MONTREAL, AND IT WAS A BLAST. WE STAYED WITH FAMILY IN LACHINE, AND WE GOT TO SEE A LOT OF THE LOCAL ATTRACTIONS, AND HERITAGE SITES. THEY JUST LOVED TO TAKE ME TO HISTORICAL SITES, AND THAT INCLUDED EVEN ROADSIDE SIGNS WE HAD TO STOP AND READ. THEY LIKED HISTORY AS LONG AS IT DIDN'T CREATE A CLUTTER IN THEIR APARTMENT, OR HOUSE.

SO IT WAS A RATHER CONTRADICTORY HOUSEHOLD. I GOT A LOT OF MY INTEREST IN ANTIQUES FROM VISITING THOSE IMPORTANT HISTORIC SITES. BUT WE NEVER, EVER CROSSED THE THRESHOLD OF AN ANTIQUE SHOP. GOD FORBID. I MIGHT WANT TO BUY SOMETHING TO CLUTTER UP THE HOUSE. I THINK MERLE, WHO HAD COME FROM A RATHER PRIVILEGED BACKGROUND, DEVELOPED A BAD ATTITUDE ABOUT POSSESSIONS, AFTER MY GRANDFATHER, STANLEY JACKSON, PASSED ON, IN THE EARLY 1970'S. SHE HAD LIVED IN A BEAUTIFUL HOUSE, STAN HAD BUILT FOR THEM, AND IT WAS LOADED WITH MANY BEAUTIFUL ANTIQUE PIECES, BROUGHT FROM THE FAMILY FARM THEY ONCE OWNED IN TRENTON, ONTARIO. STAN WAS A GIANT OF A MAN, OR HE ALWAYS SEEMED A MASSIVE HUMAN BEING, WHEN I'D LOOK UP AT HIM. HE HAD BEEN A CAREER BUILDER. IN TORONTO TODAY, NEAR JANE AND BLOOR, (OLD MILL AREA), THERE IS A STREET KNOWN AS "JACKSON AVENUE," WHICH WAS ALLEGEDLY NAMED AFTER HIM. HE BUILT MOST OF THE HOUSES ON THE STREET, SO I GUESS IT MADE SOME SENSE TO AFFORD THE NAME TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD.

WHEN MY GRANDMOTHER, BLANCHE DIED, STAN DECIDED TO PUT THE HOUSE UP FOR SALE. HE TOLD MY MOTHER HE COULDN'T LIVE IN THE SAME HOUSE, WITHOUT HIS WIFE….AS IT WOULD BE HAUNTED BY MEMORIES OF THEIR LIFE TOGETHER. I CAN REMEMBER HIM CALLING MY MOTHER, AND ASKING HER TO COME TO TORONTO (FROM BURLINGTON), TO PICK THINGS SHE WANTED TO HAVE, FROM HER MOTHER'S KEEPSAKES AND THE HOUSE IN GENERAL. I VIVIDLY RECALL GOING IN THE HOUSE, AND FINDING OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS RUNNING WILDLY THROUGH THE ROOMS CLAIMING THINGS THEY WANTED. THEY WERE DASHING UPSTAIRS AND DOWNSTAIRS, EVEN INTO THE BASEMENT, WITH PIECES OF TAPE, TO IDENTIFY WHAT ITEMS HAD ALREADY BEEN SPOKEN FOR. MY MOTHER WANTED ONE THING. HER FATHER'S VIOLIN. IT HAD ALREADY BEEN GIVEN TO HER SISTER'S SON. HER SECOND CHOICE, WAS A SMALL PRINT OF A PASTURE, HER MOTHER USED TO HAVE HUNG ON THE WALL, IN HER BEDROOM. AS A YOUNG GIRL SHE HAD ALWAYS ADMIRED IT. THERE WAS A BROACH AND A NECKLESS MERLE WAS ABLE TO GRAB, AMIDST THE FRENZY OF FAMILY CLAIMING THEIR HEIRLOOMS. I REMEMBER JUST SITTING ON A SOFA WITH STAN, AND WAITING FOR MY MOTHER TO COME BACK FOR ME. IT DIDN'T TAKE LONG. SHE SHOWED HER FATHER WHAT SHE WANTED OF HER MOTHERS, AND SAID, "DAD, I JUST CAN'T BE PART OF THIS ANY LONGER. I DON'T LIKE WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE. I SHOULDN'T HAVE COME. THIS IS GOING TO BE THE LAST MEMORY I HAVE OF THIS BEAUTIFUL HOUSE, AND MY MOTHER." I DON'T THINK STAN WAS IN ANY POSITION TO COMMENT, AS I'M PRETTY SURE THERE WERE TEARS ON HIS CHEEK. AT LEAST THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT AT THE TIME. I DIDN'T REALLY UNDERSTAND MUCH ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON. I KNEW MY GRANDMOTHER HAD DIED, AND WE'D BEEN HERE, AT HER PARLOR BEDSIDE, ONLY HOURS BEFORE SHE PASSED. I COULDN'T FIGURE OUT WHY STAN WAS MOVING AWAY. I REALLY LIKED VISITING, ESPECIALLY WHEN HE TOOK US OUT IN HIS NEAT OLD CAR, WITH THE WIRE "CURB FINDERS" ON THE SIDE OF THE CAR. THAT'S HOW I KNEW HE'D ARRIVED AT OUR PLACE. I COULD HEAR THE WIRE "FEELERS" HITTING THE CONCRETE.

I THINK THIS WAS PROBABLY ONE OF THE REASONS, MY MOTHER HAD AN AVERSION TO HAVING TOO MANY COLLECTIBLE ITEMS, AND BURDENSOME FURNITURE PIECES. I THINK THERE WERE ANTIQUE PIECES THAT REMINDED HER OF THE FAMILY HOUSE IN TORONTO, AND OF THIS, SHE WANTED NO PART. WHEN SUZANNE AND I CLEANED OUT MY PARENTS' ESTATE, SEVERAL YEARS AGO, THE ONLY OLDER PIECES AND ART, WERE ONES WE HAD GIVEN TO THEM AS GIFTS AT CHRISTMAS AND ON BIRTHDAYS. THEY HAD A FEW VALUELESS OLD CHAIRS BUT MOST PIECES WERE MODERN WITHOUT EVEN A HINT OF HEIRLOOM PATINA ANYWHERE….EXCEPT THE THREE PAINTINGS ALL FROM THE 1970'S, I'D GIVEN THEM AS GIFTS. I DID FIND THE BROACH, NECKLESS AND SMALL PASTORAL PRINT, I REMEMBER HER PICKING UP FROM STAN'S HOUSE THAT DAY, STILL TUCKED SAFELY, IN A TIGHT WRAP OF LINEN, BURIED DEEP IN A DRESSER DRAWER. OUTSIDE OF BEING MOVED AROUND A BIT, IN THE YEARS SINCE HER MOTHER'S DEMISE, I DON'T IMAGINE MUCH CHANGED WITH THOSE PIECES….LOCKED AWAY FOR SOME UNIDENTIFIED POSTERITY. WE HAVE THEM NOW, AND WILL PASS THEM ON TO OUR BOYS WHEN THE TIME COMES. THEY LOVED THEIR OWN VISITS WITH MERLE AND ED, WHO SPOILED THEM WITH SO MANY TOYS AND WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITIES, AS I HAD ENJOYED AS A YOUNGSTER.

I REMEMBER A STORY MY MOTHER TOLD ME, A FEW YEARS BEFORE HER STROKE. STAN HAD BEEN HIRED TO BUILD A CHURCH IN TORONTO. "WE DIDN'T HAVE A LOT OF MONEY THEN, AS IT WAS IN THE DEPRESSION THAT HE BEGAN CONSTRUCTION. HE PUT A LOT OF PERSONAL MONEY INTO IT, THINKING THE CHURCH WOULD PAY THEIR BILLS AFTER SOME FUNDRAISING EFFORTS. HE FINISHED THE CHURCH BUILDING, HANDED OVER THE KEYS BEFORE GETTING PAID. THEY NEVER DID. IN FACT, THEY REFUSED TO PAY. STAN WAS SO MAD THAT HE DROPPED RELIGION ALL TOGETHER DURING THAT TIME, AND VOWED TO NEVER ENTER A CHURCH AGAIN." JUST AS MERLE REFUSED TO HAVE MUCH IF ANYTHING TO DO WITH ANTIQUES, BECAUSE OF A SIMILARLY BAD EXPERIENCE, FOLLOWING HER MOTHER'S DEATH. AS SOME IRONY TO THIS STORY, IS THE FACT MY GRANDFATHER DIED ON THE STEPS OF A CHURCH IN FLORIDA, AFTER SUNDAY MORNING SERVICE, AND LEFT HIS ENTIRE ESTATE TO ASSIST THE SAME CHURCH THROUGH SOME TOUGH ECONOMIC TIMES. OBVIOUSLY STAN HAD FORGIVEN RELIGION, FOR A FORMER CHURCH JOB UNPAID.

I BELIEVE THEIR RESOLVE TO GIVE ME AN EDUCATION IN CANADIAN AND AMERICAN HISTORY, PLAYED A LARGE ROLE IN MY FUTURE INTERESTS, NOT JUST IN HERITAGE MATTERS, BUT IN ANTIQUES AND COLLECTIBLES GENERALLY. WHAT I SAW AT THESE HISTORIC SITES AND MUSEUMS, I WANTED FOR MY OWN MUSEUM ONE DAY. I'VE COME CLOSE TO FULFILLING THAT AMBITION, AND IF YOU WERE TO ASK MY BOYS WHAT RECENT MOVIE IS SOMEWHAT BIOGRAPHICAL, THEY WOULD TELL YOU, WITHOUT EVEN THE SLIGHTEST GRIN, "A NIGHT AT THE MUSUEM." NOW THEY'RE REPEATING THE SINS (AS MY MOTHER MIGHT REFER) OF THE FATHER. SUZANNE IS NOT A HARD-CORE COLLECTOR, WHICH IS ALSO ODD, BECAUSE SHE COMES FROM A FAMILY THAT POSSESSED SOME AMAZING PIECES OF HISTORY….MUCH OF IT MARINE HERITAGE FROM MUSKOKA. HER MODEST RELATIONSHIP WITH ANTIQUES AND COLLECTIBLES HAS ALWAYS PUT US ON A COLLISION COURSE, HERE A BIRCH HOLLOW, ESPECIALLY WHEN I COME HOME WITH A VAN LOAD OF PRIMITIVES I'D LIKE FOR THE LIVINGROOM. "AIN'T GOING TO HAPPEN TED….GET OVER IT!" SHE YELLS FROM THE VERANDAH.

I DON'T REMEMBER EITHER MY MOTHER OR FATHER, CELEBRATING THE FACT I HAD BECOME AN ANTIQUE DEALER. THEY DID PARTNER WITH ME IN OUR FIRST BUSINESS, CALLED OLD MILL ANTIQUES, ON THE MAIN STREET OF BRACEBRIDGE, CIRCA 1977, BUT THEY KEPT TO BUYING AND SELLING GIFTWARE, EVEN THOUGH MY COLLECTION SOLD QUICKLY AND REGULARLY. I WAS WASTING MY TIME TRYING TO CHANGE MY MOTHER'S OPINION OF OLD STUFF. THEY WERE BOTH IMPRESSED THAT I GRADUATED UNIVERSITY WITH A DEGREE IN HISTORY, AND THAT I BECAME A FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE BRACEBRIDGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY, AND AN EVENTUAL MANAGER OF WOODCHESTER VILLA AND MUSEUM. THIS, I THINK, WAS WHAT THEY HAD HOPED FOR, BY HAULING ME TO ALL THOSE HISTORIC SITES AS A KID. NOT TO BE AN ANTIQUE DEALER. YET I'VE BEEN AN ANTIQUE HOBBYIST FOR MOST OF MY LIFE, AND I'VE NEVER HAD A SINGLE REGRET. OH, JUST ONE. (NOT INCLUDING BEING ANGRY ABOUT LOSING THOSE PRESS BACK CHAIRS) I WENT TO A YARD SALE, ONE DAY, ABOUT TEN YEARS AGO NOW, AND I FOUND OUR OLD CHINA CUPBOARD FOR SALE. THE FOLKS WHO GOT IT FOR NOTHING, WERE SELLING IT FOR $150. I HAD ABOUT TEN BUCKS LEFT, AND A MISERABLE BUDGET FOR THE NEXT WEEK, AND HAD TO DRIVE AWAY WITHOUT IT JAMMED INTO THE VAN. IT WASN'T WORTH THE ASKING PRICE. I COULDN'T JUSTIFY PAYING THIS FOR MEMORY ALONE. WE HADN'T OWNED IT LONG ENOUGH TO DEVELOP ANY REAL HEARTFELT ATTACHMENT. IT WAS JUST A PIECE OF VINTAGE FURNITURE? WHY THEN DID I GRUMBLE ANGRILY ALL THE WAY HOME? IF YOU'RE AN ANTIQUE

OR COLLECTIBLE DEALER, YOU WILL HAVE FELT THIS EMOTION MANY TIMES, LEAVING A PIECE BEHIND….DUE TO LACK OF RESOURCES.

IN THIS MONTH'S ISSUE OF "CURIOUS; THE TOURIST GUIDE," IN MY REGULAR MONTHLY COLUMN, I MAKE REFERENCE TO THE FACT, IT HAS BEEN INCREASINGLY OBVIOUS, OVER THE PAST TWENTY YEARS, THAT YOUNG PEOPLE ARE NOT GETTING INVOLVED IN THE ANTIQUE PROFESSION, IN THE KIND OF NUMBERS THAT WILL FILL OUT THE RANKS OF DEALER-KIND IN THE FUTURE. THE AVERAGE AGE OF PRESENT ANTIQUE DEALERS SHOWS THAT THE INDUSTRY REQUIRES AN URGENT INFUSION OF YOUTH…..NEW BLOOD, NEW IDEAS, AND A NEW FUTURE FOR ALL THE OLD STUFF OUR GANG HAS CONSERVED FOR THE FUTURE. AS I BECAME INVOLVED IN THE ANTIQUE TRADE BY ABOUT EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE, AND OUR BOYS, ANDREW AND ROBERT, MUCH EARLIER THAN THIS, I CAN'T HELP BUT WONDER WHAT THE ACTUAL NUMBERS ARE, OF UNDER AGE "THIRTY" DEALERS, BREAKING INTO THE PROFESSION. I WAS INTRODUCED TO THE JOY AND ADVENTURES OF HISTORY WHILE I WAS STILL IN THE EARLY GRADES OF PUBLIC SCHOOL, AS WERE MY LADS. WHILE I'VE ALWAYS SUSPECTED WE ARE EXCEPTIONS TO WHAT IS ACTUALLY TRANSPIRING AMONGST COLLECTORS AND DEALERS, AND THEIR FAMILIES, I'M GENUINELY WORRIED THAT THIS GREAT INDUSTRY WILL ONE DAY BE SERIOUSLY UNDER STAFFED, DUE TO THE FACT IT'S NOT BEING SOLD TO YOUNG ADULTS TODAY, AS A REWARDING, ADVENTURE-FILLED CAREER OPPORTUNITY. MAYBE I'M WORRIED ABOUT NOTHING. BUT TELL ME, HOW MANY PEOPLE YOU KNOW, WOULD WANT THEIR KIDS TO GROW UP LIKE ME? STILL CHASING A HOPEFUL PROFIT, ONE DAY SOON; STILL GETTING EXCITED BY AN ANTIQUE HUNT IN THE COUNTRYSIDE; STILL BEING ENTHRALLED BY MUSEUMS AND HERITAGE SITES? WELL, MY SONS, AT LEAST, HAVE FOUND ME SOMETHING OF A ROLE MODEL, AS THEY HUSTLE OFF TO WORK EACH DAY, GLORIOUSLY HAPPY, ABOUT THE ADVENTURES THEY'RE ENJOYING WEEKLY, SELLING ANTIQUE INSTRUMENTS, COLLECTIBLE GUITARS, VINTAGE DRUMS, BANJOS, UKES AND OLD VINYL, FROM THEIR GRAVENHURST MUSIC SHOP. I'M GLAD THEY'RE HAPPY. THAT MEANS A LOT. WORK AND PLAY, ALL IN ONE CURIOSITY-FILLED, LITTLE SHOP, IN THE BEAUTIFUL HINTERLAND OF SOUTH MUSKOKA.

IN THE NEXT BLOG, I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE YOU TO MY WIFE'S FAMILY, OF WINDERMERE, AND UFFORD, ONTARIO, SOME OF THE EARLIEST PIONEERS TO THE NEWLY OPENED DISTRICT OF MUSKOKA, BACK IN THE PIONEERING BOOM OF THE 1860's. THANK FOR JOINING ME TODAY. MUCH MORE TO COME.