KAWARTHA LAKES-The winter of 2024-25 has been more wintery than in recent years, especially with the heavy snowfalls that have blanketed Ontario in the last few weeks. While shovelling snow has been the talk of town recently, it pales in comparison with what was endured in the nineteenth century—without central heating, motorized snow moving equipment or modern insulation to help. Imagine waking up to find your front door literally buried in snow or sleeping in a room that was literally below freezing. Few residents of Burnt River in the mid twentieth century would forget the night that it was -54 Fahrenheit.
Through the mid twentieth century, many local lakes were used as ice roads in the winter. Snowplows would head out onto the waterway and clear thoroughfares which greatly reduced the distance between waterfront communities. Each year, a Fenelon Falls service club put a car on Cameron Lake (after removing everything they thought was concerning with respect to water pollution) and local residents would guess which day it would plunge through. In many recent winters, it probably would not be practical to drive the car out onto the lake at all.
For kids who grew up on a farm prior to 1950, being able to ski over the fences was not an uncommon occurrence. Nor was being able to literally bury a car in the ditch. In that era, after a bad winter storm, bulldozers might be sent out to help clear the roads. When the snow was deep enough that kids could reach the telephone wires, then it was worthy of comment!
In the first half of the twentieth century, many waterways froze over that are now open water. One example can be seen at Fenelon Falls. In the original picture, taken in 1935, the canal was literally filled with snow, and the Fenelon River was frozen over almost all the way to the tip of Fenelon Island. In more recent winters, the river is typically open water as far as the eye can see from the main street. Imagine how people today would react today to enduring a winter from a century ago!
This story is part of our partnership with Maryboro Lodge, The Fenelon Falls Museum and was written by Glenn Walker.
If you want to make a donation to the museum, you can e-transfer to: [email protected] or mail a cheque to :
Maryboro Lodge Museum
Box 179
50 Oak Street
Fenelon Falls, ON
K0M 1N0
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