Greetings Adland family, hope you had an awesome Christmas, theres holidays still being celibrated out there and i want to wish them happy holidays and a happy New Year! Todays final Showcase of 2008 features a well known about town, classy guy with a good eye for business and might i add , music too lol. Our friend Neil. He hails from Port Dover, Ontario. Canada.
In 1670, French missionaries François Dollier de Casson and René Bréhant de Galinée became the first Europeans to winter at what is now modern day Port Dover. Earthen remains and a plaque mark the spot near the fork of the Lynn River (Patterson's Creek to many older Port Doverites) and Black Creek where they and seven Frenchmen built a hut and chapel.
By 1794 the first settlers, a group of United Empire Loyalists, had established a hamlet known as Dover Mills (named for the English port of Dover) which was razed to the ground by the Americans in the War of 1812. Subsequent reconstruction took place closer to the mouth of the Lynn River, where a harbour had been in use since the early 1800s. In 1835, merchant Israel Wood Powell registered a village plan for Port Dover. Improvement to the harbour during the next fifteen years made Port Dover a principal Lake Erie port. Shipyards, tanneries, and Andrew Thompson's woollen-mill contributed substantially to local economic growth. In 1879, Port Dover became an incorporated village with a population of 1,100.
Port Dover in the 20th century became a fishing village and tourist destination. Port Dover's fishing industry at one time hosted the largest freshwater fishing fleet in the world that employed many of the town’s citizens and continues to be important to the community. From 1906 to 1993, the town was home to Thomas A. Ivey and Sons, one of Canada's largest wholesale florists and rose-growers, and Port Dover's largest employer. In 1974, Port Dover was incorporated as Ward 2 of the former city of Nanticoke.
Willie's Restaurant in Port Dover on Friday, August 13, 2004.
In the summer, Port Dover is busy with thousands of tourists who come to swim in Lake Erie and enjoy the town and surrounding area. Port Dover’s business district is dominated by small shops that cater to the tourist trade with many bars and restaurants that depend largely on the increased traffic during the summer months.
The Port Dover Yacht Club has occupied land purchased from W.F. Kolbe and Co. at the fork of the Lynn River and Black Creek since September 1938. The P.D.Y.C. welcomes visitors every summer from around the Great Lakes region and beyond.
Port Dover has celebrated Canada Day with a parade every year since July 1867. The day starts off with the annual Soap-box Derby, the Boat Parade at the harbour, a Calithumpian Parade down Main Street and a fireworks display after dark.
Since 1981, there has been a tradition of motorcycle enthusiasts gathering in the town for Friday the 13th. Chris Simons and approximately 25 friends, through word of mouth, got together at the old Commercial Hotel. It was in November and it was Friday the 13th. They decided they should do it every Friday the 13th. On June 13, 2008 an estimated 150,000 bikers and spectators converged on Port Dover for Friday the 13th.
Norfolk County's primary tourist attractions are the ports, towns and villages along Lake Erie, which the municipality promotes as "Ontario's South Coast". These towns include Port Dover, Turkey Point and Long Point. Fishing is another key attraction for tourist, as well as birding, hiking, camping and cycling. Main festivals include the Norfolk County Fair & Horse Show (October), Waterford Pumpkin Festival (October), PD13 (the Port Dover motorcycle enthusiasts' event every Friday the 13th) and Simcoe Christmas Panorama (December). Agri-tourism is another expanding attraction for tourists coming to Norfolk County, with a few wineries in development and numerous farmgate retailers.The library system has branches in Delhi, Port Dover, Port Rowan, Simcoe and Waterford. The Simcoe branch, an Ontario Historic Site, was created in 1884 on Peel Street after a mechanics' institute was closed and its property donated for the creation of a free public library.
The Lighthouse Festival Theatre Company has produced live theatre at Port Dover's old town hall (under the clock tower) since 1981. The Theatre is open year round and provides a variety of events, including concerts, public meetings, community fund raisers, dance recitals, workshops, band rehearsals and classes. Annually, more than 36,000 people now attend events at Lighthouse Theatre. In addition to enriching the cultural fabric of Norfolk and beyond, Lighthouse bolsters the local economy, drawing tourists from out of town who then dine, shop and stay over in the community.
The Port Dover Harbour Museum, housed in an original fisherman's net shanty, commemorates Port Dover's fishing industry. The galleries present exhibits on the days of commercial sail as well as Lake Erie shipwrecks, ship building, Long Point, the War of 1812 and other aspects of lakeside life in this community. The museum is also active in the preservation and presentation of local folklore and living traditions, particularly in the areas of fishing and lakeside history. Since 2002, the museum has been the home to a collection of artifacts from the 1852 wreck of the steamer Atlantic.
The Eva Brook Donly Museum features displays of local history.
The Teeterville Pioneer Museum is a museum devoted to pioneer life in the 19th century. It includes antique farm equipment as well as home and garden tools.
The Spruce Row Museum is a historical museum that is located in Waterford. It recounts local history and also acts as a land registry. During Pumpkinfest, the museum becomes a haunted house, brought to life by the drama students of Waterford District High School.
The Delhi Tobacco Museum and Heritage Centre displays the agricultural and cultural history of the former township. Despite a province-wide smoking ban, the museum still guarantees its patrons the benefits of viewing the artistry and science of tobacco farming during the Golden Years of growing tobacco. It is located near Quances Dam. There is also a park nearby that is enjoyed by the local residents for picnics, barbecues, and for walking around with. It is closed on Sundays and major holidays.
Port Dover is the location of a biker rally which takes place every Friday the 13th.
Simcoe is well known for annual community events including the Friendship Festival, Simcoe Panorama, and the Norfolk County Fair and Horse Show that is held every October.
Every October the weekend of the third Friday of the month, Waterford hosts a Pumpkin Festival. This includes a fireworks display, parade, home decorating contest, pumpkin chuckin' contest, chicken chariot races, a small carnival, street vendors, pyramids of jack-o-lanterns carved by the local school children and businesses, and a spook house. The event is centered around the pumpkin harvest. Tourism reaches a peak during this time for Waterford. The Pumpkinfest was the backdrop for a national ad campaign featuring President's Choice Pumpkin Cheesecake. Pumpkinfest is consistently listed on Ontario's List of Top 50 Festivals.
The Donnybrook Fair in Walsh is an annual two-day event. The fair has been held every year from 1857 until the present, making 2007 the 150th Fair. This mid-September event involves the children of Walsh Public School and St. Michael's School entering projects and many agricultural commodities, grown locally, for prize money and ribbons. Over $1200 was paid to the elementary children in 2006. The fair has grown every year with the help of many volunteers. Fundraising events are held all year to finance the fair. These events include an annual barbecue dance, a Victoria Day brunch, food booths at every "Friday the 13th" event in Port Dover, and numerous raffles. The most popular event at each fair is the demolition derby. These were sponsored for a long time by the Horsepower Unlimited Car Club from Simcoe but are now sponsored by the Vittoria & St. Williams Fire Department Auxiliaries. 2007 was considered to be the 34th consecutive year of the demolition derbies.
Throughout the year, the fairgrounds and the Community Centre Hall are frequently used for weddings, funerals, and buck and doe events. The name "Donnybrook Fair" comes from an early settler of Walsh, who said the fair reminded him of an annual horse fair in Donnybrook, Dublin.
Port Rowan hosts an annual Bayfest.
WE LOVE YOU NEIL SPERLING 5'10" - slim - single and ambitious. :-) I end most of my posts with the statement "Love Light and Laughter" for a much deeper reason than just a greetings end. "To go within, to touch unconditional love, to experience a moment of ineffable light and laugh at life ---is a new beginning I pray everyone has the chance to experience!" http://community.adlandpro.com/go/MassiveBucks/iHaveWant.aspx http://community.adlandpro.com/go/MassiveBucks/default.aspx