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Postcard Memories

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Skating craze ramped up in Bradford in 1880s

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Skating craze ramped up in Bradford in 1880s

Dedicated skating rink was 'more convenient than visiting a pond and far safer than skating on the Holland River'
POSTCARD MEMORIES: The remarkable bravery of Myra Wood

POSTCARD MEMORIES: The remarkable bravery of Myra Wood

During the First World War, more than 2,800 trained civilian nurses enlisted with the Canadian army, including a 'driven' and 'very bright' Bradford resident, columnist says
POSTCARD MEMORIES: The life and sacrifice of ‘Willie’ Nightingale

POSTCARD MEMORIES: The life and sacrifice of ‘Willie’ Nightingale

Clearing mines from shipping lanes during First World War was a monotonous but dangerous job, as young Innisfil resident found out
POSTCARD MEMORIES: Bradford-born soldier knew life was fragile

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Bradford-born soldier knew life was fragile

Jack Sutherland boarded a ship for Britain in early May 1917; he'd be dead within the month
POSTCARD MEMORIES: Innisfil's Percy Spring served in two world wars

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Innisfil's Percy Spring served in two world wars

Spring was born in Innisfil in 1894, one of four children from the union of Peter Spring and Margaret McConkey; the farmhouse in which he was born and raised still stands at 1878 Innisfil Beach Rd.
POSTCARD MEMORIES: Citizens transformed into soldiers at Camp Borden

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Citizens transformed into soldiers at Camp Borden

Soldiers also frequented Innisfil’s many dance halls and partied with local girls, columnist writes
POSTCARD MEMORIES: Dutch farmers cultivated Holland Marsh

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Dutch farmers cultivated Holland Marsh

Reclaiming the soil from wilderness was only the first step in creating the bountiful cropland we know today, says columnist
POSTCARD MEMORIES: Story behind draining of the Holland Marsh

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Story behind draining of the Holland Marsh

It wasn’t until the mid-1920s, several years after Dave Watson’s death, that the process of draining the marsh overcame municipal intransigence
POSTCARD MEMORIES: Sir Edmund Osler left an enduring legacy

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Sir Edmund Osler left an enduring legacy

Born and raised in Bradford West Gwillimbury, Osler bettered his adopted city of Toronto and all of Ontario
POSTCARD MEMORIES: Marsh hay was big business locally

POSTCARD MEMORIES: Marsh hay was big business locally

Wild grass was cultivated in Holland Marsh between 1880s and 1920s