This ongoing series showcases historic photos in the Collingwood Museum collection, with research and writing by Melissa Shaw, the museum supervisor.
Thanks to the visit of a dignitary 150 years ago today, the likeness of Hurontario Street in Collingwood’s early years of development is captured in surprising detail.
If you are struggling to find something identifiable in today’s featured photograph, don’t be too hard on yourself. Not a single building pictured continues to stand today. The only correlation to Hurontario Street in 2024 is the street’s distinctive width, measuring 99 feet.
As part of a tour of Ontario in the summer of 1874, Lord and Lady Dufferin embarked from Montreal to Kingston by rail, eventually arriving in Collingwood from Parry Sound via the steamer Chicora. Lord Dufferin was Governor General of Canada at the time of his visit, a post he held between 1872 and 1878.
The Dufferins visited many towns and villages before arriving in Collingwood, and they would continue their journey aboard the Chicora to Owen Sound later in the day. For Collingwood’s 3,000 residents, the visit was a grand occasion, and much effort was invested in the Lord’s welcome.
At least three natural arches were erected on Hurontario Street.
Only two known photographs were taken for the occasion and both show arches at the intersections of First, Second, and Third Streets. The arch at Second Street featured three banners. The central banner reads “Canada Our Home” while those on either side read “Atlantic” and “Pacific”.
One short sentence in a publication entitled Canada Under the Administration of the Earl of Dufferin addresses the Collingwood visit: “Upon landing, Their Excellencies were cordially received, and the customary address was replied to, when, after a drive, the party returned to the Chicora and the voyage resumed.”
One hopes that the Dufferins enjoyed a carriage ride through the arches on Hurontario Street.
In Reflections: An Historical Anthology of Collingwood, a bit more detail is given: “In this year, Lord Dufferin, and Governor General, visited the town, and his reception was a decided improvement over the one tendered the Prince of Wales, but not a bit more loyal. A platform at the R.R. depot, on which were several hundred school children, gave way, and though no one was hurt, it interfered somewhat with the elaborate arrangements made for the reception.”
We believe that the referenced railroad depot would have been Collingwood’s newly constructed brick train station on St. Paul Street. At the time of Lord Dufferin’s visit, the train station would have been Collingwood’s most striking building as many of Collingwood’s existing landmarks hadn’t yet been constructed. The original station’s design inspired the construction of the building that currently houses the Collingwood Museum.
Many of the wooden buildings that are captured in the 1874 photograph of Hurontario Street, between First and Second Streets, would be destroyed in the Great Fire of 1881. Following this fire, many of Collingwood’s new buildings would be constructed of brick and the face of the downtown would change significantly.
The pair of original 1874 photographs appear to have been widely dispersed as the Collingwood Museum cares for a number of original copies that were collected by Collingwood’s first museum, the Huron Institute. Each photograph is mounted on cardstock and measures approximately 7.5” x 9.5”.
Perhaps due to the devastation of the 1881 fire, the photograph showing the first block of Hurontario Street was more widely collected. Presently, the Collingwood Museum cares for at least 10 copies of this photograph, which is rare for a photograph taken prior to 1900.
If you have any information to share about Lord Dufferin’s visit, or Hurontario Street in the 1870s, please contact Collingwood Museum staff. To view additional copies of these early photographs, check out the Collingwood Museum’s online collection here.
