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Early live music around Pelham

BY CAROLYN BOTARI Special to the VOICE L ong before radio , TV or the digital age arrived, residents of Pelham spent their leisure time in a variety of ways. Baseball, cricket and shinney could all be played with simple stick, ball or chunk of ice.

BY CAROLYN BOTARI Special to the VOICE

Long before radio, TV or the digital age arrived, residents of Pelham spent their leisure time in a variety of ways. Baseball, cricket and shinney could all be played with simple stick, ball or chunk of ice. Sleigh rides, skating and bobsledding were fun activities in winter.

Dalton’s Hall (originally located on the second floor of 4 Highway 20) was a popular place to stage plays and concerts and drew neighbours from far and wide. In 1861, Fonthill boasted a brass band, which later became the band of the 44th Battalion. The Fonthill Fife and Drum Band also formed and provided music for Orange celebrations. Band concerts were held on Saturday nights in the summer in the bandshell that was located in front of the Temperance Hotel (near the intersection of Highway 20 and Pelham Street).

In the early 1900s, the Ridgeville Band took centre stage on Saturday nights and concerts became wildly popular in Ridgeville. Crowds arrived on foot, by horse and buggy and later by car to hear the full trumpets, high-pitched clarinets, booming horns and echoing drums.

Band members dressed in formal uniforms performed on a bandstand and their music could be heard across the countryside. The band’s first leader was George Lymburner of Fonthill. By 1907, the band membership exceeded 12 members when girls were allowed to join. Concerts continued into the early 1930’s, until sadly the Depression made it financially too difficult to fund the band. Instruments were packed away and the wonderful Sousa marches became a memory...until now.

This Saturday, November 17, the Pelham Historical Society will be hosting an afternoon of “Music and Entertainment in 19th Century Ontario.”

Robert Young prepares to tickle those ivories this Saturday, Nov. 17. SUPPLIED PHOTO

Robert Young, President of the PHS, will discuss how music was used as entertainment in 19th century Ontario, as well as the early decades of the 20th century. Robert, the great-grandson of George Lymburner and an accomplished musician himself, will also be entertaining visitors will some of the hits of the day, such as “Everybody Works But Father,” and the “Civil Service Gallop’.”

Drop by for a toe-tapping trip down memory lane this Saturday, November 17, at 2:30 PM, Kirk-On-The-Hill Presbyterian Church, 1344 Haist Street. Attendance is free.