It's official! After years of
hard work, the Eaton Corner Museum has opened its doors to reveal artefacts
left by our ancestors. The new exhibition tells the story of the Eaton
Township, especially Eaton Corner, one of the first villages established by
European settlers.
The first families crossed the American frontier in 1797 or
thereabouts, and in 1860, about 93% of the settlers were English speakers who
mostly made their living in agriculture.
The new permanent exhibition sketches the life of these people in broad
strokes. "Two hundred years ago, this was the place that was the most
patronized," said Marc Nault, speaking in French. He is president of the board
of directors of the Eaton Corner Museum. He is passionate about the new project
that brings to life an important tourist attraction. It will be a gateway to
the Haut-Saint-François MRC, via the Townships Trail. "We want to become the
entry point for heritage tourists," he said. "Among other attractions, this
village is where you can find the greatest concentration of original Cape Cod
houses."
After 1860, many pioneers of different nationalities came to the area.
Scottish, English, Irish, French Canadian and other people worked side by side
to develop the region. "This is not the only place where such a melange of
cultures worked well," said Nault.
Based on the journal of Rev. E.J. Sherrill, the team of historian Monique
Nadeau Saumier created a virtual dialogue between settlers Rev. Sherrill and
Joshua Foss, who built the house next door to the Congregational Church.
Inspired by Rev. Sherrill's journal, she created a conversation that the two
men could have had. This audio recording tells visitors about events that
happened in the young colony. Tim Belford and Charles Bury lent their voices to
the two historical figures. Bury also translated the texts in the exhibition
into English. He was president of the Eaton Corner Museum shortly before his
death, and was a strong proponent of the new permanent exhibition.
Artist Denis Palmer created six beautiful paintings which hang in the
Museum's windows. They were transposed onto a semi-transparent support by the
design firm, Pittoresco, which designed and constructed the exposition.
Many collaborators made this project possible. Among others, the Centre
local de développement du Haut-Saint-François (CLD) helped coordinate the
various steps, and invested about $76,000 in the adventure. Dedicated
volunteers gave many hours of work to bring it to completion. From the model
presented not long ago to the official opening, it has been just two years, but
two years of intense negotiations. Nault commented that "the Ministry of
Culture gave us a hard time. Just to install one electrical outlet, it was complicated."
But he noted that it was this same ministry that permitted the conservation of
the building as a whole. That included approving the choice of colours to
repaint the interior of the old church, which was not an easy task.
Marc Nault has real veneration for timber frame architecture. He remarked
that one of the values of Anglophones was work well done. "It had to be built
for their descendents," he said. An example is the Foss House, currently under
restoration with advice from architect David Leslie. Despite the ravages of
time, it is still solid. To see this house alone is worth the trip, especially
if old-time construction techniques are close to your heart.
Robert Roy, mayor of East Angus
and vice-prefect of the MRC, said this achievement demonstrates what community
strength can accomplish. "At the museum, you have the capacity to transmit the
past," he said. Noël Landry, mayor of Cookshire-Eaton, mentioned the work of
Charles Bury. He recalled that in his municipality alone, there are 10 churches
and seven cemeteries. He also said that the Municipality of Cookshire-Eaton
contributed the new parking lot, guaranteed a loan for the museum, and advanced
the funds to pay the salary of Mario Santerre, coordinator of the project. He
worked with Julie Pomerleau of the CLD. The final word went to Jacqueline
Hyman. She said she was proud of this project which highlights the history of
the area through its architecture, the Foss House and the heritage garden.
