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Fieldhouse Photography
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Fanshawe Pioneer Village
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Fieldhouse Photography
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Fieldhouse Photography
By Jeanette Elliott, photos courtesy Fanshawe Pioneer Village
Surviving the 19th Century
Imagine for a moment that it is 1820 and you are a new settler arriving in the untamed wilderness of Southwestern Ontario. You’ve brought very few possessions or money with you on your journey so you will have to grow your own food, make your own clothes and build your own house and barn. Will you survive? Follow the struggles and innovative achievements of these early settlers as you walk in their footsteps at Fanshawe Pioneer Village.
Nestled in the heart of a lush 3,000-acre conservation area, Fanshawe Pioneer Village is a hidden gem located on the edge of the City of London and just minutes from Highway 401. Stroll down shady lanes and past country gardens as you visit our heritage buildings and learn about the story of rural communities in Middlesex County and the London area from 1820 to 1920. Join us as we celebrate our 57th season with a full slate of events and activities designed for family friendly fun.
Your journey begins at our entrance tollgate, a building which harkens back to a time when settlers would pay a ‘toll’, or fee, to travel on a road, with the funds being used for the upkeep of the route. Follow the marked trail to the Elgie Log Cabin and experience what everyday life was like for an immigrant family starting their new life in a primitive one-room cabin in the early 1800s. Watch as costumed interpreters demonstrate the art of open-hearth cooking, or try your hand at carding and spinning the wool used to make clothing and blankets.
Down the road the smell of a wood fire and the clanging of metal can be heard coming from the blacksmith shop of William Weir. Blacksmiths were an essential part of early rural communities, fabricating farming implements, creating household tools, shoeing horses, and repairing wagon wheels. Watch as our resident blacksmith works in the forge to hammer and shape red hot metal into a variety of creative and utilitarian objects.
Just around the corner is Dr. Jones’ house where you can pay a visit to the treatment room, view 19th century medical and surgical instruments or peer into the apothecary. Access to medical care was critical to the settlers so it was common for a rural doctor of this period to see patients in his own home or make a ‘house-call’ to treat the sick in their own residence.
Farm animals were highly prized by the settlers as they provided a valuable source of food – meat, milk, cheese, eggs – and other by-products such as wool, leather, and feathers. Meet the village’s heritage breed sheep, pigs, and poultry at our “Day on the Farm” weekend June 18th and 19th. Watch sheep shearing demonstrations, churn butter, or take a leisurely horse-drawn wagon ride around the village. Experience the sights and smells of a 19th century rural fair at the “Fanshawe Agricultural Fair” on August 20th and 21st. Watch live agricultural demonstrations, enjoy musical entertainment, and play traditional fair games. Enter your own homegrown produce, handmade craft, or fresh baking in our rural fair competition.
Put on your dancing shoes and join the villagers on July 30th and 31st for the “Fanshawe Frolic” Dance Weekend featuring the “Victory Bond Ball”. Dance instruction will be provided and no previous experience is required. Check our website for more details. You can also learn more about Canada’s role in the First World War, at home and abroad, on Sunday, July 31st. Visit several activity stations including tours of our onsite trench, a First World War Fashion Show, and Suffragette Rally.
Fanshawe Pioneer Village is also your destination for Summer Theatre. We are pleased to partner with AlvegoRoot Theatre who will premiere two new productions entitled “The Cheese Poet - A Dairy-ing Melodrama” by Adam Corrigan Holowitz, and “Chicken Feather” by Jeff Culbert. Staged onsite in the quaint setting of Dr. Jones Frame Barn, the plays will run in repertory from July 6th to July 28th.
Visit the Village Café for a delicious selection of homemade soups, sandwiches, daily specials and delectable desserts and ice cream. Don’t forget to stop at Denfield General Store where you’ll find old-fashioned candy and fudge, handmade and reproduction toys, and unique gift and jewellery items.
Fanshawe Pioneer Village is located inside the Fanshawe Conservation Area, located at 1424 Clarke Road in London, Ontario. This ‘outdoor playground’ offers camping facilities, boating, canoe rentals, hiking, picnicking, mountain biking, bird watching, fishing, and so much more! Fanshawe Pioneer Village is open from May 21, 2016 to October 10, 2016, Tuesday – Sunday and holiday Mondays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and there is plenty of free parking for cars and campers at the village. For more information check our website at http://fanshawepioneervillage.ca/