I had the old photograph on the left so it was fun to find the church on the right. There has been a new front added to the building, but I could still easily identify it as the same building from the windows on the side and front. The family moved to Port Stanley in 1884.
I have had a copy of this etching for years so it was exciting to find the building still standing today. It once had 22 rooms, but recently it has been turned into apartments. It is shaped like an "H" with the middle part being a large room where my great great grandfather sometimes held church services. At the local library in Belmont they have a number of documents about him. He is considered one of the founding members of the town. We were able to exchange copies of documents since I brought copies of the etchings and my photos with me. The town historian seemed almost as excited as I was about the document exchange.
I have wanted to see this house since 1993 when I first saw the etching so this was very rewarding for me.
We did not see much inspiring architecture and the old part of the city lacked historical buildings that we had hoped to see.
It seems to be a city caught up in the process of rapid growth. I would estimate that 80% of the people walking the streets were under 40 years of age and most in their 30's so they probably enjoy the youthful community.
I was particularly impressed by the work of Tom Thomson and marveled that he created all of these works in a period of under four years. His work made me want to get out my paints!
I decided to include an abundance of paintings from the Group of Seven so as to give my artist friends lots of work to view.
This artist's "massive forms of the human figure demonstrate his fusion of historical styles and the futuristic elements. These stylized male and female archetypes are integrated with the land which acts as their inspiring muse. The Sculpture Garden represents a deep appreciation of the poetic relationship between art and nature."