The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

ThtBanmrrthtEra ONTARIO HERITAGE WEEK A3 MS I I MA- The former Church Street School is Auroras newest cultural jewel yet at one time the historic building faced the wrecking ball Heritage not just bricks mortar Enthusiasts work to preserve traditions as well as buildings Ontario Heritage Week is in full swing and local history buffs agree Aurora has plenty of which to be Many residents have gone to great lengths to keep the past dint- over the decades local historian author and heritage advisory committee vicechairperson John Mclntyre said The town boasts a sizeable heri tage district in the downtown core has numerous historic buildings throughout the municipality and was even awarded the prestigious Prince ofWales Prize for Municipal Heritage Leadership in 2008 he said adding the award was a boon as it brought some greater attention to Auroras preservation work On the whole were pretty fortunate On the whole were pretty for tunate Mr Mclntyre said Heritage week has been an annual event in die province since an initiative of the Ontario Heritage Trust It builds upon Heri tage Day in Canada the third day in February which was started by the Heritage Canada Foundation in 1974 Only British Columbia and New Brunswick hold similar week- long initiatives To get people into the heritage week spirit Mr Mclntyre gave a free lecture at the Aurora Public Library Tuesday on our changing landscape Its an apt theme Mr Mclntyre said given many heritage buildings face the threat of demoli tion as time goes by The Church Street School which is now our cultural centre was once threatened with demoli tion in the 1970s and the 1980s Mr Mclntyre said JOHN Local historian says Aurora has plenty of which to be proud Hillary House is i national his toric site but it could have had a different fate if not for the efforts of the Aurora Historical Society Parks Canada and die Ontario I leritage Trust he added However not every itucmpi to preserve the past lias met with suc- some aged buildings In the town have been spared destruc tion others have been lost Mr Mclntyre said Many important buildings such as Joan Hall Castle which reportedly housed die first post office and the second post officegeneral store all tied to Auroras first reeve postmaster general and die man who gave the town its name Charles are all unfortunately gone he said Such examples only serve to show heritage buildings are vulner able he said adding once theyre gone theyre gone longtime resident and local history endiusiast David Heard goes far beyond bricks and mortar While buildings are an impor tant piece of the puzzle in keeping the past alive they arc not the only ones he said adding various local traditions and attitudes transcend the built form and help make the town the special place it still is In the early days of Aurora neighbours would help one another and would not let their neighbours fail Mr Heard said That seems to be true in the present day as the amount of char ity going on in seems to be on the rise Various initiatives such as Neighbourhood Network keep ing Auroras neighbours-helping- neighbours roots alive and well Mr Heard said 1 his extensive research into the towns past he has learned much about the spirit of Aurora including the fact the town sold more war bonds during the first World War than any other com munity I seem to have a radar for the warm and fuzzy stories and I like to find the good news because I am so sick of the of the world he said adding such positive tales are plentiful in Auroras past We really do a great history In the research Ive done Ive found many examples of Aurora being put out on to the global stage We realK do have a great Its the wonderful story of Mr Heard tries to impart with the tours he leads from the Aurora Farmer Market each week during the summers and more recently with his spirit walk which is shap ing up to be an annual event I or Mr heritage week is a gxd time for people who might not know much about the com munity in which they reside to do some research on the town learn something about the local history and perhaps even develop some o the Aurora spirit learning a little about the towns rich heritage could do a lot to foster the smalltown friendly feel he said adding his advice on how to spread it is as simple as get ting involved in the community or wearing a smile I would say honour our forefa then smile and say hello to people Mr Heard said No one will think youre crazy Reenactor suits up for heritage day Take the time to experience a little history during Newmarket Heritage Day Robert Buchan a member of the local historical society and the Upper Canada volunteer regiments organization recreates several different time periods and military units to make history come alive One of those units is the York Battalion of Infantry also once known as the 12th York Rangers and now the Queens York Rangers which was formed and headquartered in Newmarket in 1866 There is so much history in Newmarket of which people arent aware he said We wanted to bring it to life to pass on the legend We wanted to bring it to life to pass on the legend While litde is known about the individuals who made up the unit society members dug into the his tory of the local militia unit and with some financial support from the town were able to make his torically accurate uniforms shakos a military cap badges and buttons first setting up a display in 1990 at the festival where the reenactors perform annually Many people are surprised to know about the history of the town are living in he said Bringing it to life captures the attention of the community while educating residents on those who built Newmarket from the ground up lb Mr Newmarket is alive with tales of how the town evolved into what it is today My Newmarket is the forma tion of die Battalion of Infan try in September 1866 due to the fear of the invading Fenians he said with a spark of passion My Newmarket is a Sec ond World War basic training camp with a capacity of 1000 men a month built in the old fair ground In 1800 Timothy Rogers looked down the trail that would become ROBERT BUCHAN Main Street while envisioning the future farms and businesses In August 1837 William Lyon Mackenzie King expounded his first rebellion speech to a crowd of men at the corner of Main and streets before setting off for Ottawa to serve his first term as prime minister Robert Simpson set up shop in Newmarket before taking his suc cess to Toronto to found a retail empire Newmarket has such a rich his tory he said To see all die hopes and dreams all the triumphs and the heartache makes me proud to be pan of this community to be a per son adding my story to die history books for my children to see Mr will host a display at the I Day event Saturday from noon to pm at the New market Community Centre 200 Doug Duncan Dr You can enjoy guided tours of historic downtown by horse and wagon starting at 1 pm experi ence die culture of the Nin Tin dancers and drummers and take in heritage cooking demon strations and more Aurora wins heritage award Aurora has another reason to celebrate I leritage Week the town is one of four to win a Lieutenant Governors Ontar io 1 leritage Award for Community Leadership In heritage conserva tion or promotion Apart from Aurora Oakvillcand lTiorold will receive the award The municipalities are setting a great example for others Ontario David Onley said delighted to see comrnuni ties leading efforts to conserve the unique of this province he said I hey establish a high benchmark that becomes a model for others to follow Mayor Phyllis Morris said she was delighted to learn the town had been honoured people of Aurora are of their town ami us she said I lomes and ire beautifully kept historic build ings respected natural environ protected and cultural activities Aurora is truly honoured to receive this meaning nil award recognizing all efforts to preserve the past while preparing for our future lhe awards will be presented to the winning municipalities by Mr tomorrow Ontario Trust chairperson Alexan der will also be on hand for die cer emony pari of the heritage week festivities Ijdutenani Governors Ontano Awards were instituted in created through a partnership with the Ontario Heritage ANNI LEATHER SALE SOFA CHAIN1 OTTOMANS THEATRE SEATING gj chesterfield shop BIG SCREEN FLAT PANELSale SAVE ON OUR LARGEST SCREEN HDTV SETS AND C THE SPORTS ACTION HDTV PLASMA TV Top performing SAMSUNG is ideal for all sport action movies and more FEATURES million to 1 contrast ratio for uftra bright image 600hz subfieW tor smoothest motion ever GAME MODE for smooth high quality game play ENERGY STAR RATED for consumption ANTI BURNIN technology for trouble free operation USB input HDMI full equipment compatibility SAVE also available In 63 screen size LIPTOnS AUDIO VIDEO- Newmarket Ptam Cava Drive