Preserving Caroline East’s Home

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Caroline East’s Home
685761 Hwy 2, RR #5, Woodstock ON N4S 7V9
Photo by Doug & Kathie Richards

Caroline East’s house, pictured above, was built in 1839 by Henry Vansittart, for his sister Caroline East. It is a brick 14 room Georgian style house in Eastwood, ON. In June of 2020, the City of Woodstock purchased the property from Dr. R. Corlett and are planning to develop the area as the Northeast Industrial Park.

There are many concerns about conserving the house as it is the last remaining house that Vansittart built. Henry Vansittart’s house in what is now called Vansittart Woods was torn down in the 1950’s, and his son John George Vansittart’s house, which was located at the corner of Lansdowne & Dundas, was torn down when Commercial Print Craft bought the property in the 1980’s. It would be a shame to have the last Vansittart house also demolished. More information about Caroline East and Henry Vansittart can be found in the book “The Governor’s Road”, by Mary Byers & Margaret McBurney, on page 239. The book is available from the Woodstock Public Library.

The City of Woodstock has commissioned a study of the Northeast Industrial Park, https:// www.cityofwoodstock.ca/en/city-governance/municipal-studies-and-plans.aspx#Northeast-Industrial- Park-Planning–Servicing-Study

The Oxford Historical Society is asking for the public support in helping to preserve this lovely home. To voice your support please use the above link to read about the proposed land use and how to contact city representatives.

Doug Symons’ Tribute

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Hello Everyone,

Please read this guest post from the Woodstock Museum, NHS.

Give a shout out to historical stories!

In honour of the re-release of Doug Symons’ popular book “The Village that Straddled a Swamp”, the Woodstock Museum would like your help in reminiscing about a favourite piece of writing or photo from the book, and also if you have memories of Doug personally you’d like to share.

Please look through the book, choose an article, a photo, a quote or two about a certain local history site or story you find meaningful or interesting to you and share that story with the Museum. We would like to do a short bit of filming to pay tribute to Doug’s writings in a specific local history way. Some memories may be included in an upcoming exhibit related to “The Village that Straddle a Swamp”.

If you want to participate but are unsure of what to highlight we have some prepared prompts for anyone not familiar with the book. A voice recording may also be an option. If possible, we would like to set up a time for you to come into the museum during the first week or two of November.

Contact Kerrie Gill to set up a time at (519) 537-8411 ext. 2903 or kgill@cityofwoodstock.ca    

Forest City Murder: A Wordsfest Online Event

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Hello Everyone,

The following post is provided by Words, The Literary and Creative Arts Festival. This is a literary event featuring a list of onsite and online events. It is hosted by Western University and runs from November 5 – 19, 2021.

On Friday, November 12, 2021 at 7pm, via Zoom they will explore two notorious cases of homicide in 19th-century Ontario. The event details are as follows:

Zoom Registration: https://westernuniversity.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_b0-czODtQ-ePiVKmV1pe3w 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/918336352423829 

The story of the Black Donnellys has become a fabled piece of Ontario history. The Donnelly family emigrated from Ireland to the township of Lucan Biddulph in the Ontario countryside. They found themselves, after a few years, in conflict with the local people. In February of 1880, an organized mob murder four Donnelly family members and burn their house to the ground. Another sibling is shot to death in a house a short distance away. William Donnelly and a teenage boy are the only witnesses to the murders. The surviving family members seek justice through the local courts but quickly learn that their enemies control the jury and the press. Two sensational trials follow that make national and international headlines as the Donnellys continue to pursue justice for their murdered parents, siblings and cousin. 

We will visit with John Little who has published a two-volume historical account of the Donnellys (The Donnellys, Volume I: Powder Keg, 1840–1880 / The Donnellys, Volume II: Massacre, Trial and Aftermath, 1880–1916). We will also visit with Keith Ross Leckie whose new novel, Cursed! Blood of the Donnellys, is a fictional account of the notorious family and that time in Canadian history. 

Around the same time, Thomas Neill Cream is suspected of killing a female patient in London, Ontario. He flies to Chicago where he would kill as many as four people. After serving ten years in an Illinois prison, Cream was set free in 1891 – and headed for England to unleash his wrath on the prostitutes of London. In his new book, The Case of the Murderous Dr. Cream: The Hunt for a Victorian Era Serial Killer, Dean Jobb explores the story of how Dr. Cream killed as many as ten people in three countries, a rampage that eclipsed the crimes of the notorious Jack the Ripper. The Lambeth Poisoner, as he was dubbed, became one of the most prolific serial killers in history. Jobb reveals how bungled investigations, corrupt officials and failed prosecutions allowed Cream to evade detection or freed him to kill.

Biographies: 

Dean Jobb is an award-winning author and journalist and a professor at the University of King’s College in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he teaches in the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Nonfiction program. He specializes in true crime and my monthly column on the genre, “Stranger Than Fiction,” appears in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine. His articles and book reviews appear in CrimeReads, Inside History magazine, the Chicago Review of Books and the Washington Independent Review of Books. During my 35-year career as a newspaper staff writer and freelance journalist he has written features and commentaries on an array of subjects – history, current events, law, business, politics, media ethics, science, travel, and the craft of nonfiction.

Keith Ross Leckie, author of Coppermine (Viking, 2010), has worked in the film and television business as a dramatic scriptwriter for more than thirty years. His credits include multiple movies and miniseries, including Everest!, Shattered City, Milgaard, The Arrow and Lost in the Barrens. He is currently working with Bell Media to develop a dramatic series based on Blood of the Black Donnellys. 

John Little is the bestselling author Who Killed Tom Thomson? He has authored over 40 books on subjects ranging from philosophy and history to exercise and martial arts, in addition to being an award-winning filmmaker. Little is a contributor to Salon.com, the Toronto Star, and has been interviewed by CNN, Canada AM, NPR, A&E, People Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, and the Family Channel.

For more information about the above event or to find out about other Wordfest events, please contact them through their website: wordsfest.ca

Tonight: Zoom Meeting – Wednesday, October 27, 2021

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Please join the Oxford Historical Society at our next Zoom meeting as Elaine Becker discusses the research and stories that went into So They Came: Young Men Farmers.

Excerpt from the book: “Destination Woodstock – The stories of young men who left home and family to make a new way of life in Canada is both thrilling and encouraging. They were not outstanding in any other way than that they had a hope for the future. They came from families facing untold challenges of unemployment, illness and death, as well as the lack of hope for the future”

Learn about the role that the Salvation Army played in bringing the immigrants to Canada, what was involved in researching Burnside Lodge, tracing family members, creating the list of immigrants and many other aspects of the book.

Old St. Paul’s Online Auction 2021

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Hello Everyone,

Please see this guess post provided by Joanne Birtch, Chairperson of the Ways and Means Committee at Old St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Woodstock.

Old St. Paul’s is often referred to as Old St. Paul’s Woodstock’s Heritage Church as it is the oldest church building in Woodstock and it contains some of the city’s most valued monuments. It is also host to The Inn, Oxford County’s shelter for the homeless.

Due to Covid restrictions they are not able to host the an in-person auction so this year they have moved the auction on-line. The above poster lists the website and auction date for Old St. Paul’s.

If you have any question please contact Old St. Paul’s directly through their website.