By Ron Realesmith, opinion for The Sarnia Journal (2016) I was walking into a local coffee shop the other day when I saw my old grade 7/8 history teacher, John Lawton. I have kept in touch with John over the years as he was one of my favorite teachers. We [...]
John Morgan, a descendant of Alexander Mackenzie reached out to us and provided a Youtube video about his life. Alexander Mackenzie was a self-educated stonemason who rose from humble beginnings in Scotland to become Canada’s second Prime Minister. He fought passionately for equality and parliamentary democracy and for the elimination [...]
Original Story here Phil Egan for the Sarnia Journal When the French explorer La Salle and his tiny ship reached what’s now Point Edward in the late 17th century he found Lake Huron entering the St. Clair River through three separate channels. To the indigenous people, the island between them [...]
JANUARY 23, 1957 – A HOCKEY NIGHT TO REMEMBER IN SARNIA By Randy Evans While only in their third year the 1956-1957 hockey season was a heady one for the Sarnia Legionaires. Led by coach Stu Cousins and G.M. Tom Norris the Legion started the year by signing on as [...]
Original Story here Phil Egan for the Sarnia Journal I have a distinct recollection of my first unusual experience with Canada Customs. It cost me three beers. When I was in my early 20s, you couldn’t buy beer in Sarnia on a Sunday (don’t ask me to explain Canada’s backward [...]
Original Story here Phil Egan for The Sarnia Journal The Vidals, for whom Vidal Street was named, were navy men. During the War of 1812, Lake Erie was the scene of numerous heated naval battles between British and American warships. One of the vessels involved was the four-gun schooner USS [...]
Original Story here Phil Egan for the Sarnia Journal David Cooke was puzzled, and more than a little dubious. Sitting in a barber shop on Lakeshore Road he listened to an older gentleman describe a Lake Huron shipwreck located just over 100 feet off the beach at Canatara Park. “I [...]
Original Story here Phil Egan for The Sarnia Jounral Today, we panic if we leave the house without one. But there was a time not that long ago when very few Sarnians owned a telephone. Invented by Brantford’s Alexander Graham Bell in 1876, the telephone replaced the telegraph as the [...]
Original Story here Phil Egan for The Sarnia Journal There couldn’t have been more excitement in town if George Clooney, Tom Cruise and Ryan Gosling had been spotted strolling together down Christina Street. No, it’s hard to imagine today the sensation Ned Hanlan created when he visited Sarnia twice more [...]
Original Story here Phil Egan for The Sarnia Journal With two Grey Cups to its credit, Sarnia has a long football tradition. The Imperials began playing in the Ontario Rugby Football Union in 1928 and had almost instant success, finishing first in its division and winning the ORFU final ten [...]
