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Fun & Frivolity: Coboconk’s Wonderland Dance Hall

Black-and-white image of large vintage car parked in front of building with enormous wooden roof

Paul Zaborowski Collection
Date: ca. 1940

Many a Saturday night road trip in northwestern Kawartha Lakes ended at the famous (or infamous!) Wonderland Dance Hall on Highway 46. Opened in 1939 by Nate and Hattie Pearce, Wonderland attracted both locals and vacationers alike. Dancers could purchase Coca-Cola and British Consols cigarettes inside. While the dance hall was officially “dry,” stories abound of drinking and other illicit activity that transpired in the parking lot outside.