The Upper Canada Village

Upper Canada Village tours are a fascinating experience that transports you back to the 1860s. The actual structures that make up the village, the events that take place around the site, and the historic interpreters who bring history to life are all important parts of the experience.

Upper Canada Town is a heritage site in Morrisburg, Ontario, that portrays a historical Upper Canadian village.

With more than 40 historic buildings, traditional trades, farming, music, and 19th century social life, Upper Canada Village provides an authentic experience.

Every day, historical interpreters bring Upper Canada Village to life by demonstrating daily life in the 1860s via activities such as blacksmithing, tinsmithing, cabinet-making, printing, weaving, spinning, dressmaking, and traditional food preparation and cooking. Farmers raise heritage cattle and operate machines driven by horses. The Woolen Mill, Grist Mill, and Sawmill use water and steam power to turn wool, grain, and logs into yarn, flour, and lumber for the community. The Village Store sells products created in the Village, including the popular fresh-baked bread from the wood-fired oven, which is available daily.

Upper Canada Village is one of Canada’s largest living-history museums, depicting life in a rural English Canadian setting in the year 1866. It was formed in 1961 and is home to more than 40 historic structures, many of which were relocated from the “Lost Villages” in order to preserve them prior to the flooding for the St. Lawrence Seaway development project. Every day, talented historical interpreters bring these buildings to life, recreating old trades, farming, music, and 19th century social life – providing an immersive guest experience that is unlike any other.

Upper Canada Village tours are a fascinating experience that transports you back to the 1860s. The real structures that make up the village, the activities that each contained, and, of course, the people that lived there, are all important parts of the experience. Upper Canada Village, founded in 1961, is one of Canada’s largest living-history sites. We are attempting to show life in a rural English Canadian setting in the year 1866 in this work. Over forty antique structures are on display, many of which were relocated prior to the flooding of the “Lost Villages” during the St. Lawrence Seaway development project.

Beginning in 1954, the St Lawrence Seaway project intended for the flooding of a major stretch of the ancient river “front,” one of Ontario’s original settlement zones. The Ontario-St Lawrence Development Commission was founded in 1955 by the Ontario government to preserve part of this legacy while also developing the new riverbank area. This helped fund the establishment of Upper Canada Village, which aims to preserve historic structures and commemorate life along the waterfront. The commission also built 800 hectares of adjacent parks and relocated the historic Crysler’s Farm war monument.

History:

Upper Canada Village was built as part of the St. Lawrence Seaway project in 1958, which entailed the permanent drowning of 10 villages known as The Lost Villages. The project’s heritage protection strategy included Upper Canada Village. Many of the structures in Upper Canada Village were directly transferred from the villages to be submerged.

The St. Lawrence Parks Commission owns and operates the park, which first opened to the public in 1961. 

Other Lost Villages structures have been relocated to Ault Park, where they are part of a living museum maintained by the Lost Villages Historical Society. 

A memorial to the Battle of Crysler’s Farm, a War of 1812 battle that also took place on territory buried by the Seaway project, is also included in the park.

The Lumber Mill:

This village is unique in that it is still very much a working historical community from the 1860s. Beach’s Mill is a lumber mill that mostly processes pine.

Wood is placed outside to dry before being utilised on site by the cabinetmaker and other trades to construct items such as windows and new structures. The mill employs a muley saw, which is a sort of vertical sawmill with a slow-moving, straight-bladed blade that is not in a frame. The saw travels along rails, with precise timing used to keep the log moving in time with the reciprocating blade. This reduces friction by causing the saw-teeth to cut the lumber on the downward thrust and run clear of the lumber on the upward thrust.\

The Church:

This Christ Church in Upper Canada Village provides its own special atmosphere and is available to be rented for actual weddings.

The Dry Goods Groceries Store:

Businesses in the nineteenth century, such as Cook’s Tavern, assisted visitors and itinerant labourers by providing lodging and food. Crysler’s Store sold medicines, food, and a variety of hardware, tools, and household products. One of Canada’s first major export items was cheese, which was handled and stored at the Cheese Factory. You’ll probably smell the Bakery before you open the door because bread is baked daily in a wood-fired oven. You can take home a delicious loaf of bread or cheddar cheese cooked in Upper Canada Village.

Visiting the Village:

Authentic buildings, historical activities, and costumed interpreters bring the late Victorian era to life at Upper Canada Village, about one hour south of Ottawa. Meet the jovial baker, the pleasant blacksmith, and the cheerful cheesemaker as they go about their everyday tasks.

Upper Canada Village opens May 21 for the 2022 season and runs until September 18. Tickets are available for purchase online now at www.UpperCanadaVillage.com and purchasing tickets prior to arrival is highly recommended.

• General adult admission is $24 (plus HST)
• Hours are 9:30am-5:00pm (with the last ticket sold at 4:30pm), 7 days a week.
• Parking is available at no charge onsite.

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