Unveiling of North Easthope Cairn with Lord and Lady Tweedsmuir, 1936

Description

Media Type

Image

Item Type

Photographs

Description

Lord and Lady (with flowers) Tweedsmuir pose in front of the pioneer cairn – unveiled May 28, 1936. Behind them – Mary Louise McLennan and to the right of Lady Tweedsmuir (behind youngster) is Katherine McCallum – both women researched and recorded kitchen table-type history of the North Easthope pioneers.

STORY:
In 1934, the residents of North Easthope township planned to build a cairn to honour the early settlers in their area who had emigrated from Scotland and Ireland. After some discussion, the committee chose a 40-foot square plot of land at Lot 21, Concession 1 along highway 7&8 just west of the village of Shakespeare. A designer and an architect were named and the materials for the cairn, such as granite stones, sand and gravel were brought from nearby township properties.
On May 28, 1936 at 4pm, the Governor General of Canada – Lord Tweedsmuir pulled back the Union Jack flags to reveal the twelve-foot high cairn honouring the pioneers of North Easthope township. [Line 34 (hwy. 7/8), Road 107, Perth East, Shakespeare, Ontario]
Following the unveiling, Katherine McCallum, BA. President of Hampstead Women’s Institute presented Lord Tweedsmuir with a leather-bound copy of “History of the Pioneers” in which was recorded the history of the early settlers of North Easthope. Lady Tweedsmuir’s interest in preserving local history led her to honour her late husband and in 1945, she recommended that Women’s Institutes record local history in Ontario and across Canada – thus the beginning of Tweedsmuir histories by Women’s Institutes.

Date of Publication

28 May 1936

Date Of Event

28 May 1936

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