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Embro tOEn hail plaques, pictures and also donations were made to chairperson of the town hall centennial committee, Dr. Harold Arbuckle. The cutting of the cake .followed with Florence Ross, the oldest member of the Women's In- stitute and Mary Harrias, granddaughter of the con- tractors who built the town hall. A mock council meeting took place at 1:15 pm. followed by a vintage fashion show. There was something for everyone -- magic ShOWS and running half-scale model 1910 animal ballons kept the younger children entertained at various times of the day. Tea and cake was served in the Embro library in the afternoon along with the his- torical displays at the town hall. At 4 pm, about 35 cars took part in the vintage car parade from Matheson Park to the community centre. tickets were on sale Tin Lizzie. A beef barbecue dinner from 5-9 drew a crowd of about 850 people followed by a dance which attracted about 200 more. Both events were sponsored by the Embro and West Zorra Optimist Club. Sunday afternoon an in- terdenominational church service was held at the Em- Raffle bro Presbyterian Church with for a Mona Pelton, of Embro, as Wednesday September 16 [ 1992 guest speaker. Special music was provided by Killie Crankie -- Andrea Stadt on fiddle, Bill Aitken on guitar and Allison Lupton, 0n flute and pennywhistle. The lot for the Embro Town Hall was purchased from Walter Ross, of Youngsville, in 1892 for $250. By the end of the year, the hall was built by contractors J. L. Youngs, of Stratford. The hall cost just over $4,000 to build and was officially opened Oct. 4, 1893. , The town hall also housed the Embro Public Library from the day it was opened. The library is still located in the building. The hall was'mainly used for public and council meetings, plays, musicals and dances. In the early 19005, it was also used as a jail. There was one cell in the basement to hold those ar~ rested in Embro. In 1917, London's famous Lombardo Orchestra -- Guy Lombardo and his brothers -- performed at the town hall. During the 19405, 1950s and 1960s, the hall continued to be used extensively, however, other community churches and social clubs were be- ginning to build their own halls. In the mid 19705, use of the hall decreased when the Embro-West Zorra Com- munity Centre was built on the outskirts of Embro. Renovations totalling $40,000 to $45,000 were in progress at the hall before the Labor Day weekend's special events. The majority of the money is coming from Zorra Township council and about $15,000 in profits from the community's 125th anniver-- sary celebrations in 1983. At that time the hall got some renovations from residents determined to maintain the building through fundraisers. The upstairs of the town hall has been totally re--wired and insulated. The stage has also been wired to accommo- date theatre lights and fire alarms have been installed along with new windows. The original decor of the upstairs will be imitated. Harold Arbuckle, chairman of the Embro Town Hall Cen- tennial Committee, hopes local theatre groups and organizations will again be able to take advantage of the building in the future.