MUSKOKA HERITAGE FOUNDATION
BUILT HERITAGE STEWARDSHIP AWARDS 2004

BROOKLANDS FARM

Charles Riley and his family began farming on the property that is now Brooklands Farm in October 1876. A son, George, followed in his father's footsteps, building a large frame house on the property for his wife and family in 1899, and a new barn in 1901.

The third generation of Rileys, Roy and his wife, took over the farm in 1918 and established a dairy business. In 1937, they dismantled the original log house log-by-log and rebuilt it in a new location to house a pasteurizer as was required by new legislation. Following service as a bomber pilot during World War 11, their son, Walker, returned to Brooklands with his English bride Joane and took over the farm while his father continued to operate the dairy.

In 1958, Walker ceased full-time farming and enrolled at Ontario Agricultural College, graduating with his Bachelor's degree in Agriculture in 1962. His career as an agriculturalist took him to teaching positions at Kemptville and Montreal, and eventually to a position with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture in North Bay. During this period, members of the family continued farming on a part-time basis. Following his retirement in 1985, Walker returned to full-time farming at Brooklands with Joane and their son Philip. After Philip acquired his own maple syrup operation near Goderich in 1996, another son, Ken, his wife Katya and their sons Nikhil and Rohan, returned to the family farm.

Over the years, Brooklands Farm has undergone a transition from dairy farming to market gardening and a thriving maple syrup operation. Tile drainage, irrigation and soil improvement initiatives have enhanced and sustained the land, the barn has been restored, and the two houses on the property have been refurbished.
The Muskoka Heritage Foundation is proud to recognize one of Muskoka's longest operating family farms and the six generations of the Riley family who have contributed so much to farming in Muskoka with a 2004 Built and Cultural Heritage Stewardship Award.

SPARROW LAKE UNITED CHURCH

On October 20, 1886 four of the early settlers in the farming community east of Sparrow Lake (known originally as Lethbridge but changed in that same year to Kilworthy) signed the deed for the land on which was built a new church. Within a year a new frame building was erected, heated by a wood stove and lit by coal oil lamps. Supported initially by the Mission Society of the Presbyterian Church, the new church attracted people of several different faiths to form a United Congregation, some forty years before the formation of the United Church of Canada.

In 1923, a Sunday School room was added and later a kitchen. Eventually, the oil lamps were replaced by electricity and the wood stove by an oil furnace. Over several years, the church acquired a hardwood floor and pews and generous donations provided a new pulpit, a fine pump organ, a piano, and other traditional church furnishings.

Following the closing of the Severn Bridge Church, a group of community-minded folks with a sense of their heritage determined that the Sparrow Lake Church would not suffer the same fate. They formed the Save the Sparrow Lake Church Committee and in 1984 acquired title to the building for the sum of $10.00. That summer, the Minister of the day made reference in a sermon to the "Little Church That Refused To Die" and the label stuck.

Today, the refurbished church continues its ministry during the summer months with a congregation made up of most Protestant denominations. Each Sunday, the minister greets them all with the Jewish greeting, "Shalom - Peace be with you". Sparrow Lake Church remains true to its tradition of being a truly "United" Church.

ST. ANNE'S CATHOLIC CHURCH, WHITESIDE

Although there were over 50 Catholic families living and worshipping in the Port Carling, Bruce Lake and Fenn Point area as early as 1885, it was not until the late 1880's that a small frame church was built by members of the Fenn, Kelly and Walker families at Fenn Point and was blessed and dedicated to St. Anne on Sept. 26, 1899.

In 1926, when that original building became too small for the congregation, a larger church was constructed. Happily, the original structure remains today as a small chapel attached to the main church.

On July 30, 1988, St. Anne's was re-consecrated after a major refurbishing of the interior that included new stain-glassed windows, a hand-carved altar, and a new cedar-lined ceiling. Only five years later, the proud old building was found to have serious structural problems. After a series of meetings, a committed church community undertook a major renovation that included a new foundation and a new roof.

On September 26, 1999, a completely renovated St. Anne's, was blessed by Bishop James Doyle on the occasion of its 100th anniversary. For the first time in its long history, it provides for the celebration of Mass on a year-round basis and stands as a tribute to those who persevered to ensure it would continue to welcome both present and future generations to worship.