Object Archives | "Are We There Yet?" Highway-Based Tourism In Kawartha Lakes

On the Road Again After Taking a Trip Down Memory Lane

Located in the village’s former Presbyterian church, the Kirkfield & District Historical Society’s museum is more than just an exhibit space; it’s a gathering place for the community. […]

Greetings From Rosedale

This postcard captures the essence of what it was like to drive into the natural beauty of northwestern Kawartha Lakes.

A Local Legacy: Vintage “GAS” Sign at the Balsam Lake Park Store Celebrates the Heritage of Highway-Based Tourism in Northwestern Kawartha Lakes

This vintage porcelain sign was originally decorated in Texaco markings. Installed in front of a gas station on Highway 46 west of Balsam Lake Provincial Park in the […]

Robert Wires Reflects on the Future of Highway-Based Tourism In Northwestern Kawartha Lakes

Recorded at the Kirkfield Museum, February 26, 2022 Interviewer: Ian McKechnie Videography: Ekaterine Alexakis Duration: 2:22 Robert Wires sitting in front of white wall. Text on screen reads: […]

Tourists Enjoy Branson’s Gallery in Rosedale

In 1952, the Lindsay Daily Post ran an editorial which urged every town or hamlet in the municipality to open a small museum or other roadside tourist attraction. […]

Changing Times: Demolition of a Gas Station, Coboconk

At one time, Coboconk was home to half a dozen gas stations. Due to changes in technology and consolidation among oil companies from the 1970s onward, that number […]

Overgrown Gas Pumps at the Former Shell Gas Station, Coboconk

As many of Ontario’s privately-run gas stations closed during the last quarter of the twentieth century, derelict buildings and overgrown gas pumps became common sights along the highway. […]

Information Sheet, “This Abandoned Car Is On The Road To Recovery,” Ontario Ministry of the Environment, 1975

By the 1970s many of the thousands of cars which took to the open road between the 1930s and 1950s had been traded in, scrapped, or parked in […]

The Dangers of Excessive Speed: Ontario Department of Highways Advertisement

This dramatic advertisement was developed by the Ontario Department of Highways in 1957 to warn motorists about the dangers of excessive speed. The ad was unique in that […]

Keeping Northwestern Kawartha Lakes Safe: Provincial Constable William Kennedy (1909-1986)

Provincial Constable William Kennedy was born in 1909, the same year in which the Ontario Provincial Police was formed. Hired by the OPP on August 16, 1937, Kennedy […]

Keeping Kids Off the Road: Gate Separating Falcon Lodge From Highway 46

This gate was used to keep children and pets staying at Falcon Lodge from darting out onto busy Highway 46. “Remarkably as a kid, I took it for […]

Full Speed Ahead! Widening the King’s Highway (Highway 35 North)

By 1970, parts of Highway 35 North had become so well-travelled that they required widening. This Ministry of Transportation photo was taken between Norland and Minden, and shows […]