Exhibits - Norfolk County Heritage and Culture

WHAM – Swords & Plowshares Revisited

Written by WHAM Staff on 8 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – Swords & Plowshares Revisited

WHAM – Swords and PlowsharesRuns until February 28, 2025 Critical to Canada’s war effort was the battle on the “Industrial Front” fought by the factories of the nation and no manufacturer modeled this better than the Cockshutt Plow Company. The Waterford Heritage & Agricultural Museum in partnership with the Canadian Industrial Heritage Centre presents Swords & Plowshares Revisited to highlight the contributions of the Cockshutt Plow Co. and the Cockshutt family in three distinct periods of world conflict. With a Second World War workforce comprised largely of women, their...

Black and White Photo advertising an archival exhibit of the Norfolk Old Boys and Girls Reunion: 100 Years

NCA – Norfolk Old Boys and Girls Reunion: 100 Years

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 7 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on NCA – Norfolk Old Boys and Girls Reunion: 100 Years

NCA – Norfolk Old Boys and Girls’ Reunion: 100 YearsRuns until May 2025 On September 6, 1923, Town of Simcoe Council started the discussions around organizing an Old Boys and Girls’ Reunion, sometimes referred to as ‘Old Home Week’. By October 4, 1924 an Old Boys’ Executive Committee was established and several other sub-committees were formed to plan for the event, including a Finance Committee, Reception Committee, Music Committee, Decoration Committee and 5 other committees. In the 1924 budget, the Town of Simcoe Council pledged $2000 to the committee to support the reun...

PDHM – Netting the Waters

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 6 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on PDHM – Netting the Waters

PDHM – Netting the WatersFEB 19 – APR 19 Daryl Granger’s feature-length film about Port Dover’s commercial fishing fleet will be screening on a continuous loop at the Port Dover HarbourMuseum this winter along with a display of behind-the-scenes photos. Spending months on the lake in local fish tugs, Daryl’s film provides never-before-seen access to the work of our local fishermen and women – from setting out early in the morning to production and retail at the end of the line. This film saw numerous sold-out screenings at the Strand Theatre in Simcoe, and the museum is proud to...

PDHM – Norfolk’s Stories in Stitches

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 6 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on PDHM – Norfolk’s Stories in Stitches

PDHM – Norfolk’s Stories in StitchesMAY 1 – JUL 1, 2025 For centuries the traditional products of a woman’s life – the children they bore, the food they prepared, the clothing they made – were ephemeral; the children grew up, the food was consumed, the clothing was worn, then worn out, and finally discarded. One significant exception to this was the historical samplers and fancy needlework they created. These samplers were highly valued. They were meant to be displayed and passed down through generations. Today, these samplers are considered both works of art and important...

DTMHC – What’s the Alternative?

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 5 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on DTMHC – What’s the Alternative?

DTMHC – What’s the Alternative?MAY – DEC The sandy soil that is ideal for flue-cured tobacco also lends itself well to a plethora of other crops. The decline in tobacco production and the shift to alternative crops in recent years has made Norfolk County one of the most diverse agricultural areas in Canada. This new exhibit explores the transition from tobacco to crops like lavender, ginseng, and many others that make Norfolk “Ontario’s Garden.”

WHAM – Textile Tenacity

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 5 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – Textile Tenacity

WHAM – Textile TenacityJUN 25 – SEP 27 Quilting is often thought of as a nostalgic hobby with a homey purpose. The truth is far more complicated. Quilts have been used for fundraising purposes for over a century. The funds that community quilting projects have raised have helped to build churches, equip hospitals and win wars. This exhibition explores this other purposeful side of quilting and the tenacity women show by raising money through crafts when their community is in need.

PDHM – Dover Ducks

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 5 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on PDHM – Dover Ducks

PDHM – Dover DucksJUL 10 – NOV 10 Learn about Port Dover decoy carver Thurcil Church and the importance of decoy carvers in Norfolk County.

DTMHC – Delhi’s Team Takes the Lead: Norfolk’s Golden Era of Bike Racing

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 2 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on DTMHC – Delhi’s Team Takes the Lead: Norfolk’s Golden Era of Bike Racing

DTMHC – Delhi’s Team Takes the Lead: Norfolk’s Golden Era of Bike RacingSEP – DEC Bikes blaze around the track at an astonishing 70 km per hour and a 55-degree angle as they navigate the corners of the Delhi velodrome. Local cyclists had one of the most modern indoor circuits in the province and it was built by one of its own. Albert Coulier went on to build tracks around the world and raced in his fair share. This new exhibit explores Norfolk’s champions, builders, and innovators in a sport not for the faint of heart.

WHAM – Leaving Their Mark: Folk Artists of Norfolk

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 1 January 2025. Posted in Current Exhibits, Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – Leaving Their Mark: Folk Artists of Norfolk

WHAM – Leaving Their Mark: Folk Artists of NorfolkNOV 29, 2025 – MAR 15, 2026 Folk art has come to represent the storied identity of the everyday person – from the people, to the people. The naivety, in various forms and functions, is captivating, as are the makers. Leaving Their Mark showcases two centuries of diverse and notable folk art through a comprehensive assembly of uniquely Norfolk pieces.

WHAM – A Disappearing Landscape: The Townsend Barns Project

Written by Norfolk Heritage & Culture on 16 July 2024. Posted in Virtual Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – A Disappearing Landscape: The Townsend Barns Project

A Disappearing Landscape: The Townsend Barns ProjectCombining the Historical Society’s 20 plus years of research and hundreds of photographs with an online interactive portal, the project highlights the rural landscape through historic barns and agricultural outbuildings. Click the image below to access.

WHAM – Norfolk County Cabinet Makers

Written by headperson on 19 July 2023. Posted in Virtual Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – Norfolk County Cabinet Makers

Virtual Exhibit WHAM – Norfolk County Cabinet MakersThe following represents documented individual makers and factories in business between 1840 and 1965. While not complete, it is the most comprehensive list currently available. The date indicates the year the maker/factory was recorded as being in operation and not the year established. If you have information about a maker from Norfolk County not listed, please email the Waterford Heritage & Agricultural Museum with details. (Sources: WHAM files, Norfolk County Archive files, and “The Cabinet Makers of Norfolk County” published by...

Archibald Reid Walnut Sideboard in the late-Empire style c.1850

WHAM – Archibald Reid, Vittoria

Written by headperson on 19 July 2023. Posted in Virtual Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – Archibald Reid, Vittoria

Virtual Exhibit WHAM – Archibald Reid, VittoriaArchibald Reid is credited with making some of the most beautiful and finely crafted furniture in Norfolk County. He learned his trade in Scotland, immigrating to Canada and setting up a cabinet making shop and undertaking business in the village of Vittoria around 1847. Photograph of Archibald Reid Archibald Reid Walnut Sideboard in the late-Empire style c.1850 (collection of Norfolk County Heritage and Culture) Advertisement from the O.L. Fuller Business Directory Rod-Back Windsor side...

Judd Showroom from an advertising postcard (collection of WHAM)

WHAM – James William Judd, Waterford

Written by headperson on 19 July 2023. Posted in Virtual Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – James William Judd, Waterford

Virtual Exhibit WHAM – James William Judd, WaterfordOne of Norfolk County’s more contemporary and perhaps most recognizable furniture manufacturers was James William Judd who, in 1968, officially launched Judd Gunstocks Limited in Waterford, Townsend Township. Judd Gunstock started on “the road to success” by producing what were described as the finest hand-crafted gunstocks in the country. The company distributed to major firearm manufactures throughout Canada and the United States. Judd Showroom from an advertising postcard (collection of WHAM) Judd DisplayIn...

Detail of Barber’s classic “sun” motif carving

WHAM – John L. Barber, Waterford

Written by headperson on 19 July 2023. Posted in Virtual Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – John L. Barber, Waterford

Virtual Exhibit WHAM – John L. Barber, WaterfordJohn L. Barber was the youngest of five sons and three daughters, children of John Sr. and Elizabeth Barber. He was born in Townsend and spent most of his life in the area. At an early age he went to Simcoe and learned the trade of cabinet making. Around 1829, he married Abigail Shaw and settled in Waterford. The J.L. Barber firm, also known as the Waterford Furniture Factory, was established soon after and operated for nearly 40 years. The factory produced a wide arrange of finished pieces as well as providing undertaking services....

McCall Furniture (collection of the Port Rowan/South Walshingham Heritage Association)

WHAM – McCall Factory, St. Williams

Written by headperson on 19 July 2023. Posted in Virtual Exhibits. No Comments on WHAM – McCall Factory, St. Williams

Virtual Exhibit WHAM – McCall Factory, St. WilliamsThe McCall Furniture Factory in St. Williams, was one of the largest producers of furniture in Norfolk County. Daniel McCall founded what would become a family firm in the 1860’s and worked in partnership with both William McBurney and later John Mason. For a time, the business was known as McCall, McBurney & Company and also McCall’s Planing Mill. McCall Factory c.1910 (near the corner of Townline St. & Queen St. East McCall Furniture (collection of the Port Rowan/South Walshingham Heritage Association)...