by Paul Morden for the Sarnia Observer "Restraint" is the word that was used to describe Sarnia's VE Day celebrations, 70 years ago this month. Days after Hitler committed suicide in his Berlin bunker, Germany's military surrendered, bringing the Second World War in Europe to an end. Victory in Europe [...]
by George Mathewson for The Sarnia Journal The Sarnia Farmers' Market supplied residents with food from local market garden for 91 years, until the downtown site was destroyed by a tornado. The current Ontario Street market opened four months later. Photo courtesy of Dorothy Alexander If you’ve been to the [...]
by George Mathewson for The Sarnia Journal (2015) The unveiling of a plaque in Bayshore Park a few weeks ago marked 400 years of Francophone presence in Ontario. It also brought to mind one of Sarnia-Lambton’s most enduring and perplexing mysteries. In the year 1828, a fur trader named Edourd [...]
by George Mathewson for The Sarnia Journal (2014) It’s common knowledge that Sarnia’s airport is named for astronaut Chris Hadfield, the city’s more famous native son. But few know it was actually his father, Roger Hadfield, who first landed a plane at the airport. Or that the First Family of [...]
by Lawrence A. Crich (1986) Any attempt to get a clear picture of education in Sarnia prior to 1860 is met with frustration. This can probably be better understood when one realizes that the first Sarnia Board of Education was formed only in 1851 and the first recorded surviving minutes [...]
by Tyler Kula for the Sarnia Observer (2014) A destination for rock stars and visiting OHL hockey teams alike, a haven for lovers of Canadian bacon, and a proud purveyor of home-cooked meals and stellar service, John's Restaurant has entered its golden years. It was in 1964 that Greek [...]
by Charles Phelps writing in A History of Blackwell Church & Community, 1880-1980 (1980) The Purdy family has been fishing commercially in Lake Huron for more than 75 years. The 1911 Sarnia and Port Huron Directory lists the name, “Purdy, Milton B., fisherman, lives 310 Nelson.” Later, his son, William [...]
by Mike Bradley (2005) Norma O’Brien, widow of the late veteran City Councillor Pat O’Brien, is a long-time friend of mine. She, like many others, has been following with great interest, the restoration of the former Sarnia Hotel in downtown Sarnia by local businessman Pat Coutu into four beautiful modern [...]
Courtesy of Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership (2015) Sarnia-Lambton’s Refining and Petrochemical centre has its roots in the oil fields of Lambton County. In 1857 the discovery of crude oil at Oil Springs, just south of the Town of Petrolia, led to the establishment of several refineries. The presence of a large [...]
Synopsis courtesy of Shell (2015) Shell’s Sarnia Manufacturing Centre is located on the St. Clair Parkway, about ten kilometres south of Sarnia between Froomfield and Corunna. The plant employees 350 full-time employees and has a capacity of 75,000 barrels of crude oil daily. Its products include gasoline, distillates, liquid petroleum [...]
