Virsa/Sikh Heritage Through My Family Presentation: Wednesday, March 29, 2023!

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The Saran Siblings, photo provided by Savrup Kaur Saran

Hello Everyone,

Please join the Oxford Historical Society for a special presentation celebrating Sikh Heritage Month on Wednesday, March 29, 2023 at the Woodstock Museum, NHS. Doors open at 6:30pm. This is a free public event open to everyone.

Tonight’s presenter will be Savrup Kaur Saran, a former co-op student at the Woodstock Museum. During her placement Savrup had the opportunity to research Sikh heritage:

“To see the Sikh community represented through the Museum was nice and then connecting that with my own life was really cool,” she said. “I know a lot about Sikh heritage in general from my parents, but not as much about Canadian Sikh history, so it was really interesting to learn more about that.”

The month of April was proclaimed as Sikh Heritage Month by the Ontario government in 2013, as April is when the Sikh community celebrates Vaisakhi, a spring festival that also marks important events in the religion’s history.

During her presentation Savrup will not only focus on her own family’s history, but that of the Sikh’s in Canada:

“I wanted to focus on that common immigrant Sikh story. There’s so much heritage and so many stories,” she said. “Sikh heritage is different for each family, but in my family, it goes back so far and in so many different locations from India to Fiji to Canada, and that same heritage lives through me and my brother today.”

This presentation will take place at the Woodstock Museum, NHS. The meeting will start at 6:30pm. This is a free public meeting, all are welcome to attend.

Information for this blog post was provided by the Woodstock Museum, NHS.

National Tartan Day April 1, 2023!

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Hello Everyone,

Please see this guest post from the Zorra Caledonian Society!

The Zorra Caledonian Society would like you to join us for a “Pub Night” with live music & a wee bit of Scottish fun on Saturday, April 1st, 2023, as we celebrate National Tartan Day!

A few fun facts:

  • National Tartan Day originated in Canada in the 1980’s, when just over 15% of the population was of Scottish descent
  • The date of April 6th was chosen as it was the day on which Scotland in 1320 became an independent country at the signing of the Declaration of Arbroath
  • Every province and territory of Canada with the exception of Nunavut has its very own tartan & that Canada also has a national tartan
  • 9,500 jobs in Scotland are provided by Canadian Companies
  • Canada is a top 10 export partner for Scotland
  • 5 million Canadians claim Scottish heritage

For questions directly contact the Zorra Caledonian Society at events@embrohighlandgames.ca.

Middlesex Centre Archives Heritage Fair!

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Hello Everyone,

This guest post is provided by the Middlesex Centre Archives.

There annual Heritage Fair will be held on Saturday, April 1, 2023 from 10am – 4pm.
The event will take place at the Delaware Community Centre, 2652 Gideon Dr., Delaware ON N0l 1E0

If you wish to participate in the fair complete the Registration Form.

For information about the event contact the Middlesex Centre Archives.

Ontario Historical Society Podcast Series – In Hindsight: Half a Century of Research Discoveries in Canadian History!

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Guest post information provided by the Ontario Historical Society.

Announcing a New OHS Podcast:
Dr. Donald B. Smith’s
“In Hindsight: Half a Century of Research Discoveries in Canadian History”
A new year brings a much anticipated new venture, and a landmark for The Ontario Historical Society (OHS). The OHS is excited to announce the launch of our partnership with one of Canada’s most renowned historians, Dr. Donald B. Smith, to bring you our first in-house produced 20-episode podcast series, In Hindsight: Half a Century of Research Discoveries in Canadian History. 
A long-time OHS member, Dr. Donald B. Smith is a Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Calgary who has focused his career on the history of Indigenous Canada, Quebec, and the history of Calgary and Southern Alberta. Dr. Smith’s first academic article, “Grey Owl,” was published in the OHS’s Ontario History journal in 1971. In Hindsight is a weekly series (following the model of old-fashioned radio) through June 2023 on different personalities in 19th and 20th century Canadian history. Please enjoy the introduction (4 mins), presented by Chief Dave Mowat of Alderville First Nation, Second Vice President of the OHS. The tone will be relaxed, with an abundance of anecdotes. Canadians of the past were prisoners of their cultural values just as their latter-day judges are of today’s beliefs. In each episode Dr. Smith will try to understand, and to help the listener understand, the individual in the context of their own times.

In addition to the informal talks, substantial written summaries of each episode will be provided, exclusively on the OHS website, including a short bibliography and/or the “back story” as to how the “discovery” was made, a terrific resource for students and those interested in learning more.
In Hindsight recordings and episode summaries may be found on the OHS website at: https://ontariohistoricalsociety.ca/podcasts/in-hindsight/
You may subscribe to the podcast at: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, etc. Closed captioned videos of each episode are available on:YouTube
Please help us by sharing these links with family, friends, colleagues, and anyone interested in learning about these important stories in Canadian history, from a master storyteller.
Email: inhindsight@ontariohistoricalsociety.ca

Ingersoll Library: Black History Month Event!

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Hello Everyone,

Please see this guest post from the Ingersoll Library:

Curious about the new Underground Railroad Sculpture in Ingersoll?
Join us at Ingersoll Library Saturday, February 18, 2023 from 1-3PM

Meet local artist Duane Kumala-Thomas and discover the vision behind an Ingersoll art installation recognizing significant dates in town history.

Join local historian, Heather Rennalls and explorer her knowledge of Ingersoll’s Black history.

Ingersoll Town Councillor, Khadijah Haliru, will speak about her story from Nigeria to Brampton to Ingersoll.

Special Guests including: Town Councillor, Mike Bowman, Oxford Caribbean Canadian Association and more.


“Using the familiar theme of the underground railroad as a focal point, the sculpture aims to represent Ingersoll’s involvement in accepting, aiding and growing amongst a new and increasing black population in the 1800’s and beyond. The visual of train tracks breaking through the soil and springing up into the Ingersoll air will present viewers with the emphatic feeling of a journey to this place, where travellers came up for air, settled and planted new roots”.

Duane Kumala-Thomas

Feel free to spread the word about this special event via social media or by printing and displaying the attached posts: Ingersoll Library Event Duane Kumala-Thomas

The Ingersoll Library can be reached at:
The Town Centre, 130 Oxford Street Ingersoll ON N5C 2V5
Email: ingersolllibrary@ocl.net
Phone: 519-485-2505