Pakenham, Ottawa Valley Village 1860-1900

By Verna Ross McGiffin

This is the second volume of a two volume local history of Pakenham, Ontario. This second volume picks up the story at 1860 and carries it forward to 1900. Volume One covered the years from 1823-1860.  

Contents Include:

• Decade of Tension
  • Pakenham Village in 1860
  • Village and Township Government
  • Events Beyond the Village
  • Transportation and Communication
  • The Pakenham Rifles and the Brass Band
• The Interests Broaden
  • Farmers' Activities
  • Social Events, Fraternal Orders, and Sports
  • Schools and Politics
  • The Forces of Good and Evil in Conflict
  • Goodbye to the Pioneers
• At the Tum of the Tide
  • Village Profile at 1870
  • The Timber Trade and the Lumber Industry
  • The Merchants and Tradesmen
  • The Textile Industry
  • Industry and the Farmer
• Victorianism Makes Itself Felt
  • Emphasis on Morality
  • Increased Activity in the Churches
  • The Temperance Issue
  • Education Loses Out
• The Lighter Side of Life
  • The Penny Reading Movement
  • Other Forms of Entertainment
  • Racing All the Rage.
  • Three Phenomena
• The Farm Challenges Industry
  • Industry in the Traditional Village
  • Merchants and Innkeepers
  • Innovations of the Period
  • Upsurge in Agriculture
• Hazards to Life and Property
  • The Village Doctor Fights Disease
  • Runaways
  • Fires
  • Trains
• Increasing Sophistication
  • Education and Government
  • Religious Life in the Community
  • Triumph of the Temperance Forces
  • Fraternal Organizations
  • Agricultural Interests
• The Passing Scene
  • Modem Vogues Emerge
  • Vestiges of Naivete
  • The Great Migration West
• These Nineties Were Not Gay
  • Life in the Traditional Village Threatened
  • Changes in Real Estate in the 1890's
  • Industry Along the River
  • Church-building Boom
  • The Agricultural Society
  • Other Community Organizations
• End of An Era
• Appendix
  • List of residents of, or those who owned property in, Pakenham Township
    in 1867
• Notes 

Background on the era: 1860  to 1900 was a period of profound change in Upper Canada. Lumbering gradually declined in importance, while farming became the principal occupation of the area. Home industries were superseded by factories powered by waterfalls along the Mississippi. Society changed from a state of relative brutality to one of increasing sophistication; and from a classless structure, where all men were equal in their dependence upon their neighbors, to one of distinct social strata. There were now small farmers, tradespeople, factory workers, domestics, and farm helpers. At the· other end of the scale were the wealthier landowners and merchants, mill operators, timber barons, and professionals-clergymen, doctors, teachers, and lawyers. 

Details
216 Pages
6.5 X 10.25
Hardcover (premium binding)
Illustrations; Bibliography
Originally published by Mississippi Publishers, Pakenham,1967 
This edition published by Global Heritage Press, Milton, 2005, ISBN 1-897210-70-1 (Hardcover)