Behind The Scenes Sundays

Here are some upcoming events from other museums in this region along with our own Heritage Farm Show. 

Burford Township Historical Society

would like to invite you to an afternoon with the author of

Elizabeth’s Quest, Sandra Campbell.

 

Sunday September 21, 2014

Program start at 2p.m.  goes until 4p.m. at the Museum in Harley

You can find out more about Sandra and

Elizabeth’s Quest at www.elizabethsquest.com

 

A fight for survival during the war of 1812

 

As well as meeting and listening to Sandra read from her book, she will give a brief history on why she wrote this book

and how and where her research has led her.

 

The Museum will be on display also for your enjoyment.

 

Please join us.

 

 

Service Saturday- Ken Reinke

Service Saturday- Ken Reinke

This weeks service Saturday features Ken Reinke from Wallacetown. Ken is currently the vice president and active treasurer of the Tyrconnell Heritage Society. Ken became involved after his wife, Susan got involved with the Tyrconnell Heritage Society. Ken has been volunteering with the Backus-Page House Museum for 10 years. Ken helps out with a variety of things at the museum but he mostly helps with the food aspect of events. Ken enjoys the local history that is linked with the Backus-Page House. Of all the events held at the museum Ken's favourite is the Christmas Dinner, which is held annually and takes place on December 6th, 2014. 

Ken with his wife, Susan

Kelsey

Backus-Page House Museum





Foodie Friday- Honey Nut Bread

Honey Nut Bread

Ingredients: 

• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 3 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 cup chopped nuts
• 2 cups butter milk
• 1/2 cup liquid honey

Topping: 

• 1 Tbsp. liquid honey
• 1 Tbsp. melted butter
• 2 Tbsp. chopped nuts 

Instructions:

1. Mix dry ingredients and 1 cup of nuts in a bowl. Blend milk and 1/2 cup honey. Stir into dry mixture just enough to blend. Pour into a 9 x 5 x 3 loaf pan. 
2. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes.
3. Blend topping mix and spread on hot bread. Sprinkle with 2 Tbsp. chopped nuts. Return to the oven for 5 minutes to glaze. 

Recipe from the "Heritage Cookbook". 

Kelsey Conway

Backus Page House Museum

I Love the 50's!

Hello everyone, 

Sadly Catie has left us for the summer as she is going back to school. I will be taking over her Wednesday posts with interesting facts and information about the 50's! "I Love the 50's" will compare a different object or concept each week and will outline the difference between the 1850's and the 1950's.    To start off "I Love the 50's" is the love for skirts that were wore in the 50's! 

Skirts

In the 1850's skirts were long and trailing. The typical shape of the skirt was bell shaped. The skirt had an interesting waistline as the fabric would have been gathered or pleated. Also, in the 1850's the hoop skirt began to gain popularity. The size of the hoop would vary depending on the occasion and the height of the woman. For example the hoops for day dresses would have been smaller then the hoops for evening dresses. The range of the circumference of the hoop was anywhere between 115 inches and 150 inches, of course taller women would have had a larger hoop in their dress. 

 Dress variations came into play in the 1950's. A couple examples of the variations were the pencil skirt and the poodle skirt. Women no longer had to feel as though they had to follow one strict fashion trend. The main focus of a 1950's dress was the waist line.  

     

Kelsey 

Backus-Page House Museum

Toolbox Tuesday - The Chisel

The Chisel 

         The chisel is a tool that was used for the carving or cutting of a hard material such as wood, stone or metal. It could either be used manually or by striking the end with a mallet to drive it into the material.  The chisels currently in our barn collection are made out of a combination of metal and wood. The handle of the chisels are usually wood with a metal blade. There are many different types of chisels that can be very difficult to categorize. The firmer to forming chisel was an all purpose chisel and was a basic chisel design. One special use for the forming chisel was to remove the rest of the wood to form a mortise after auger holes were drilled into the wood. The framing chisel is a heavier version of the forming chisel and it was largely used to cut tenons to fit the mortises. Both of these types of chisels were often wood handled and were designed to be struck with a mallet. Another version of chisel is the mortise chisel and its one purpose was in created mortises. This chisel was used without drilling auger holes, it cut directly. This chisel was almost square in shape. The final chisel was called the slick, also known as the paring chisel, was designed not for striking but to be used with two hands. A slick was characterized by having a slight curve toward the bevel side, if no curve is evident than it is a framing chisel. 

Come out to the Heritage Farm Show on September 13th and 14th at the Backus-Page House Museum. 

                                                                          See our antique chisels's and other farm implements that have been featured in our Toolbox Tuesdays.   

Media Mondays

Happy Monday!

This Monday I am going to give you a sneak peek into some of the short videos we have been collecting all summer for our tablet tours here at the museum. We have been picking objects and areas of the museum that we are questioned on constantly. These areas include: the garden, the parlour, antique toys, quill writing... and the list goes on. Therefore, our staff this summer have all contributed ideas towards videos we should make and add to our tablets for visitors to access when they come for a tour. These videos allow visitors to learn something extra about specific rooms, objects or areas of the museum and grounds that they may be interested in. By creating these videos we are actually able to demonstrate how things are done or what certain things were used for without over-handling our artefacts. Some were very fun to make, having a variety of bloopers to precede the actual video! Below are two videos we recently created to showcase the garden and quill writing! These are just two of the many videos we have created - so come out to the museum to see the rest!

 

The Garden Video

 

Quill Writing

Service Saturday- Betty Ann Bobier

This weeks Service Saturday features Betty Ann Bobier from West Lorne. Betty Ann got involved with the Backus-Page House Museum through her daughter-in-law, Angela. She has been volunteering with the museum for about 3-4 years. Betty Ann helps out with any task needed. She does a lot of quilting and cleaning for the museum. Some of the events that Betty Ann has volunteered at include, the farm show, War of 1812 as well as selling tickets as a fundraiser. Betty Ann likes the history involved with the Backus-Page House Museum. She especially likes the house. Betty Ann says she could live in the house because she enjoys the peacefulness of the life style that the Backus family would have experienced. 

Thank you Betty Ann for all of your hard work! It is truly appreciated!  

Betty Ann at the Fermentation Workshop

Kelsey 

Backus-Page House Museum

Foodie Friday- Apple Dumplings

Apple Dumplings

Ingredients:

• 125 mL brown sugar
• 6 medium apples, peeled and cored
• Pastry for 2- crust 23cm pie
• 125mL raisins
• 25 mL butter 
• 2 mL cinnamon 

Instructions:

1. Roll out dough 3mm thick and cut in 6 squares. Place apple in centre of each square and fill core cavity with raisins, cinnamon and butter. Draw up the four corners of the pastry and seal the edges.
2. Bake at 425 F until pastry is lightly browned and apples are tender (about 25 minutes depending on the size of apples used).

• Serves 6

Kelsey Conway

Backus Page House Museum 

Catching Up With Catie!

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

This past week at the museum, we had a special guest come and walk through the house, sharing interesting information with us.  A friend of Kelsey’s, Julie, has the special gift of feeling the energies and activities of those who are no longer with us.  As she walked through our beautiful farm house, she felt a number of presences, however we do not know if they were former residents of the home or perhaps have found their way to us attached to the items that have been donated to us.  We are also having a group go through the house later this month to track the activity out here.  So neat to hear about those others who call the museum home at the moment.

Our day camp is next week and so Kelsey and I have started doing more preparatory measures so that we are ready to go.  Yesterday we tried making taffy and though it tasted good, we are going to try again today for a better result, as we cooked it too long the first time.  This week will also be filled with Kelsey and I making  craft exemplars and trial and error craft sessions. 

Last night, Kelsey, Sarah and I also attended a meeting of the Antique Club in St. Thomas at the Military Museum.  The topic of the evening was measurement.  Though the math of it all confused us at times, we learned quite a lot about how certain measurements came to be and about a number of tools that are or were used to measure clothing, feet, lobsters, etc.  Very informative!

The last topic of today is our watermelon progress.  It has gotten even bigger!  It is about the size of a standard ruler and I will be laying the ruler next to it from now on to show its progress, because it is easier to see the transformation in photos with something to gauge it with J  Our watermelon plants are growing so well that the fines have found their way our of the garden, under the fence.  Also we have corn in the back!  Not only do we have one stalk, which is what we all wanted, we have many!  I hope everyone has a great week.  Take care,

Catie!

Toolbox Tuesday - Drawknife

Drawknife

First called a "drawing knife" because you drew it toward you. It consisted of a blade with handles on each end at a 90 degree angle to the blade.  This tool was used to taper the sides of shingles, to rough-size the edges of the floor boards and rough-trim paneling before planning them. The draw knife is also used to fashion axe, rake and other tool handles, stool legs, ox yokes, and wheel spokes. The final finishing on most drawknife work was done with a chamfer knife. The drawknife was a popular tool back in the day.

Curved drawknife                      

 

 

Come out to the Heritage Farm Show at the

Backus-Page House Museum September 13th and 14th to see our antique drawknife and other farm implements featured on our Toolbox Tuesday blog posts 

Media Mondays

Hello there!
I am happy to announce that our QR code signs are posted around the grounds and buildings of the Backus-Page House Museum. There are 8 locations throughout the property that now have signs describing them as well as QR codes that can be scanned to receive more information! Here is a quick video describing the self-guided outside tour of the museum and where all the signs are located. Enjoy!

Catching Up With Catie!

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

Sadly, today is my last blog post as I fly back to Nova Scotia for my last year of school this Friday.  It is crazy how fast this summer has gone!  You may have noticed that I missed my post last week because it was Day Camp week last week.  It was a very busy, but very fun and successful week here with the 8 campers that came out.  We had presentations on Rug-Hooking from Stacie Littlejohn, and on the railway that was booming in this area back in the day, by a wonderful Railway Museum volunteer named Ron.  We also had Marg Hulls take us through the trails and Kim Lundberg teach us about the aboriginals that lived here before it was settled.  We made taffy, clay bowls and bouncy balls too!  The weather wasn’t the nicest at the beginning of the week, but the sun came out eventually and though it was cool, the days were perfect for being outside, which the kids loved.  I am definitely glad that I was able to be involved in Day Camp this year and getting to know the children is one of the best parts. 

Watermelon update: I think it is has gotten a bit longer, but it has definitely become rounder and when I gave a knock on the side and it was hollow, so I think it’s ready.  So exciting!

I am really going to miss working here and my awesome fellow employees!  This beautiful place is one of my favourites, and I plan on visiting in the future and volunteering when I am back home next year as well.  Backus-Page now has its own piece of my heart J  Take care everyone and enjoy what’s left of your summer. 

Catie!

 

Behind The Scenes Sunday

This is a card the children from History Camp for Kids left us on Friday.  Glad they enjoyed themselves.  Special thanks to our sponsors Jerry Galbraith - Investor's Group and Rodney Lions Club. 


David Ford, Janice Ellis, and Betty Ann Bobier are here today making sauerkraut from our heritage gardens.  You can purchase these jars at our Heritage Farm Show on September 13-14 and they will be ready to serve by Thanksgiving! 

Service Saturday- David Welch

This weeks service Saturday features David Welch! David is from Dutton and has been volunteering with the Backus-Page House Museum for three years now. He became involved with the museum through a friend. David has helped out with events such as the War of 1812 event, farm show, and whatever maintenance is needed around the museum. David enjoys the Backus-Page house museum because he thinks it is neat to have something in the area that teaches the historical background of our community. David also likes the atmosphere at the museum, he says it is a great place to visit. Although David helps out with whatever is needed, he particularly enjoys the farm show because he grew up on a farm.

Thank you David for all of your hard work and help you provide to the museum!

 

David Welch with his son, Michael and daughter, Catie.



 

Kelsey Conway

Backus-Page House Museum 

 

Foodie Friday- Split Pea Soup

Split Pea Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups green split peas
• 1 ham bone
• 2 quarts cold water
• cayenne pepper 
• 2 diced carrots
• 1 onion diced
• 1 diced celery stalk

Instructions:

1. Soak peas overnight. Put ham bone in a large kettle, tightly closed, and simmer 1 1/2 hours in cold water. Do not boil. Add peas, carrot, onion, celery and seasonings and continue to simmer 1 more hour. Remove the ham bone. Rub soup through a sieve, return to the pot. Season with salt to taste. 
2. You may also add potatoes and green peppers. 

Recipe from "Waste Not, Want Not, A Booke of Cookery". 

Kelsey Conway

Backus Page House Museum

Tourism Talk

August 16

3 Port Cycle Tour
Ride the challenging routes of Southern Ontario through Port Burwell, Port Bruce and Port Stanley. Choose from 160 km, 100 km and 50 km routes with lunch provided in Port Bruce. Your entry fee gives you breakfast, road support, lunch, rest stop refreshments, map and t-shirt. Any proceeds from the tour go to the Forest City Velodrome and the Environmental Leadership Program at East Elgin Secondary School.

• Time: Start at 7:15 to 8:30am for 160km, 7:30-9am for 100km, or 9-9:30am for 50km
• Tickets: $60
• Venue: All routes start and finish at the East Elgin Community Complex
• Address: 531 Talbot Street West, Aylmer
• Contact: 519-697-0018 or 1-800-465-9433
• Email: brett@aylmerexpress.ca
• Website: www.threeporttour.ca

Night Walk With The Spirits 
Take a guided tour through the Ska-Nah-Doht Village at night. The "Spirits" have waited 1000 years to tell you their story!

• Time: 9pm (one show only)
• Venue: Longwoods Road Conservation Area
• Address: 8348 Longwoods Road (6.5km west of Delaware, 10km east of Melbourne)
• Contact: 519-264-2420

August 17

When You Believe: Concert In The Park For ALS
Charity BBQ, Believe Army Swag Tent and music schedule as below. Free admission- donations directly support ALS patient care for Steve Barber
2:00pm- Meg McTaggart's Music Studio
3:00pm- Dennis E Wiley
3:30pm- Lindsey Hull and Eric Walker
4:00pm- Laura Palumbo
5:00pm- The Justin Maki Band
6:00pm- The Stanley Brown Blues Band
7:00pm- Sarah Smith

• Time: 2:00-8:00pm
• Venue: Pinafore Park
• Address: 95 Elm Street, St. Thomas

Sunday Summer Tea

Enjoy tea, baked goods and a guided tour of the Backus-Page House Museum for only $10.00

• Time: 1:00-4:00pm
• Venue: Backus-Page House Museum 
• Price: $10.00 a person 

August 20

Touch A Tractor 
Come out and see farm equipment up close and learn about farm safety. Enjoy some glitter tattoos, crafts and lots of activities for everyone. Please call to register.

• Time: 10:00am-1:00pm
• Venue: Shedden Keystone Complex
• Address: 35921 Talbot Line, Shedden
• Contact: 519-631-9496

Food and Flavour Extravaganza Open House at the Bank 

In conjunction with the St. Thomas & District Chamber of Commerce, the Arts and Cookery Bank invites you to take your taste buds on a trip along Lake Erie's north shore. Spend an evening with Chef Gerry Brandon, tasting and talking as you enjoy the rich flavours of the summer harvest. Please phone or email to RSVP.

• Time: 5-7pm
• Venue: The Arts & Cookery Bank
• Address: 242 Graham Road, West Lorne
• Contact Phone: 519-768-9986
• Email: tammy@theartsandcookerybank.com
• Website: www.theartsandcookerybank.com

Toolbox Tuesday - Froes

Froe 

To split shingles, laths, staves and clapboards a knife-type wedge called a froe was struck with a short maul known as a froe-club. A froe and a froe-club were used by wedging the froe in the wood, going with the grain, and using the froe-club to strike the froe away from the body, all while twisting the froe to split the wood. A froe could be used for many jobs including splitting wood for kindling, splitting willow logs for gates and hurdles and splitting fresh oak for lathing. A saw was almost never used for cutting with the grain, splitting a length of wood was much easier. Old men who were too feeble to swing an axe could still easily make kindling from logs. A craftsman could split square inch length from a large piece of wood in a fraction of the time that it would take them to saw it.

Come out to the Heritage Farm Show at the Backus-Page House Museum September 13th and 14th to see our antique froes and other farm implements featured on our Toolbox Tuesday blog posts.  

Media Monday

Hello Everyone!

For this Monday I would like to share with you our new idea for children visiting the museum. We find that some children get distracted during the tours of the museum and therefore we would like to be able to offer them something fun while they visit - an activity book! We are trying to design reusable activity books geared towards a variety of different age ranges that children can use when they visit the museum. Firstly we would like to design a "busy book" for younger children. This busy book will be made of felt and fabric and include pages from the barn, gardens and the house. Areas throughout the book will be moveable, for example: the garden page will have removable vegetables that children can play with and "plant the garden." The busy books will provide children with puzzles, games and play areas on every page. As for older children we would like to design laminated activity books that can be worked on with dry-erase markers. These books will have an incentive - as children travel through the museum there will be a variety of questions they need to answer… answer all the questions during the tour and children will have the chance to win a prize! Hopefully by the end of this season we will have mock-ups of how these books should look and be able to offer them during the upcoming season!

Below is an example of what we would love to create!

Foodie Friday- Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

 

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup and 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• 2 large eggs
• 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup raspberry preserves
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds

Instructions:

1. Pre heat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour the bottom and sides of a 9 inch pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine the flour and 3/4 cup of the sugar. Using a pastry blender or fork, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve 1 cup and set aside.
3. To the remaining crumb mixture, add the baking powder, soda, salt, sour cream, almond extract and 1 egg blended well. With oiled hands gently pat the dough over the bottom and 1 1/2 inches up the sides of the pan, the mixture will be a bit sticky.
4. In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese, the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1 egg. Blend well. Pour into the batter-lined pan. In a small sauce pan warm the raspberry preserves. Carefully spoon the preserves evenly over the cream cheese mixture. Stir the sliced almonds into the reserved crumb mixture and sprinkle over the preserves.
5. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until the cream cheese filling is set and the crust is deep golden brown.
6. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes, then remove from the pan. The cake can be served warm or cool.

Kelsey Conway

Backus Page House Museum



Tourism Talk

Thursday August 7

School Aged Summer Reading Club

• Venue: Dutton Library
• Time: 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM

Courtesy of Elgin County Archives

Friday August 8

Elgin Historical Show
The Elgin Historical Show, presented by the Kettle Valley Pioneers, is always the second full weekend in August. The antique show demonstrates how farming was done in the pioneer days. Runs from Friday August 8 to Sunday August 10.

• Venue: Dan Patterson Conservation Area, Highbury Ave, just north of St. Thomas 
• Time: 9 AM to 5 PM 

Horseshoe J Dude Ranch Children's Mini-Camp

This is a mini-camp for those who aren't sure about being away from home for an entire week. The 2-night camp is new for 2014. Check the website for information about these and other summer camps available. Runs from August 8 to August 10.

• Venue: Horseshoe J Dude Ranch, 32553 Erin Line, Fingal
• Contact: 519-762-5402
• Website: www.duderanchontario.com

Saturday August 9

HMCS Ojibwa Greater Depth Tours
Participants spend three hours aboard the submarine with qualified submariners, going to parts of the boat that are off limits on the regular tour, all the while hearing hair-raising stories of life on a submarine during some of the darkest days of the Cold War. The evening starts with dinner catered by Port Burwell's Schooner's Galley Restaurant. Participants receive a certificate of completion and a special gift from HMCS Ojibwa. Other times and dates be possible for groups of 4 or more.

• Venue: HMCS Ojibwa
• Time: 6 PM to 9 PM
• Tickets: $172 per person (ages 16 and over; $100 charitable tax receipt issued)
• Contact: 519-633-7641
• Email: info@projectojibwa.ca
• website: www.projectojibwa.ca

Sunday August 10


Canadian Snowbirds Air Show "Smoke On The Water" 
The Canadian Snowbirds precision flying team will be putting on an exciting 45 minute show over the water. Enjoy the show and "SHOP, DINE, STAY" 

• Venue: Port Stanley Main Beach

Backus Page House Summer Sunday Tea

Receive a guided tour, baked goods and tea.

• Venue: Backus Page House Museum
• Time: 1PM to 4PM
• Price: $10 a person
• Contact: 519-762-3072

Monday August 11

Backus Page House Museum History Camp for Kids
The focus of presenters, activities, crafts and games will be on the history of Dutton Township from the Neutral Indians to Colonel Talbot and the early settlers, through Confederation and the coming of the railroad, life during both World Wars and ending with the 50s and 60s. Campers must bring their own lunches, but two nutritious snacks will be provided daily. 

• Venue: Backus Page House Museum
• Time: 9AM to 5PM (8:30 to 5:30 extended care available for $50)
• Contact: 519-762-3072
• Email: admin@backuspagehouse.ca
• Website: www.backuspagehouse.ca 

Lego Monday's

• Venue: Dutton Library
• Time: 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM

Wednesday August 13


Elgin Teddy Bear Picnic
Lots of fun Teddy Bear activities hosted by the Elgin Teddy Bear Picnic Committee. Please bring your teddy bear and a picnic lunch. Desserts and drinks will be provided. Call to reserve your picnic spot.

• Venue: Miller Park, West Lorne
• Time: 10AM to 1PM
• Contact: Ontario Early Years Centre, 519-631-9496

Alex Goos

Elgin County Tourism and Economic Development

Tourism Assistant