Fairfield’s Wily Investigators
Case #1: Finding a Women’s Institute Hall, Plaque or Project
It was a typical February day – cold, windy, rainy and snowy – when the Fairfield Wily Investigators set out on their first case.
Chief investigator Debbie Findlay having done some preliminary research, the WIs, as they like to call themselves, knew that Junetown Women’s Institute had been involved in a major restoration project and that there was also a large sign on the site recognizing its community involvement. They had arranged to meet with one of the Junetown members that morning.
Excited and not the least bit worried by the weather, the WIs set out for the village of Mallorytown, with Jean Dowdall, aka Mrs. Sherlock Holmes, at the wheel. Her excellent driving and navigational skills brought them safely to the Mallory Coach House Museum, where they were greeted by Barbara Morrison decked out in her 1850s period costume.
A tramp through snow took them to the Junetown Women’s Institute’s huge sign in the park-like grounds behind the coach house. This vibrant WI branch has been serving the community since 1942.
Back in the warmth of the Mallory Coach House Museum, Barb gave the investigators a tour upstairs and down, along with the story of the restoration:
In 2005, Front of Yonge Township purchased the home and one-acre property of Tony Kall at 1523 County Road 2, Mallorytown, intending to restore the circa 1853 stone building to house a local artifacts collection. A committee of four groups, including Junetown WI, signed an agreement with the township to renovate and maintain the building and to start collecting local artifacts. Over the next several years, the house was gutted and completely restored, painted, and turned into a fascinating museum highlighting, among other things, the history of the Mallorytown Glassworks, the first in Canada.
During the restoration an extension of the building was renovated and turned into a kitchen and meeting area, where Junetown WI met monthly until the pandemic began. Branch members are active in cataloguing museum artifacts and co-hosting annual social events at the museum and the adjacent Tony Kall Gardens and Mallorytown Community Centre.
In 2010, four members of the Junetown WI got together to discuss the possibility of starting a Mallorytown Village Fair at the site, with local artisans and vendors, heritage demonstrations, competitions in flowers, vegetables and baking, and live music. This coming summer they will be hosting their 11th summer fair. It has been a roaring success!
The museum is open Sunday afternoons from mid-May to mid-September. The Wily Investigators plan to return – and they encourage all WI members in Ontario to include a visit in their travels through Eastern Ontario.
After thanking Barb for all of her help, the Fairfield WIs headed home, successful in the completion of their first case and looking forward to their second in April.
