by Mike Bradley (2005) Norma O’Brien, widow of the late veteran City Councillor Pat O’Brien, is a long-time friend of mine. She, like many others, has been following with great interest, the restoration of the former Sarnia Hotel in downtown Sarnia by local businessman Pat Coutu into four beautiful modern [...]
Courtesy of Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership (2015) Sarnia-Lambton’s Refining and Petrochemical centre has its roots in the oil fields of Lambton County. In 1857 the discovery of crude oil at Oil Springs, just south of the Town of Petrolia, led to the establishment of several refineries. The presence of a large [...]
by George Mathewson for The Sarnia Journal (2014) It’s been climbed on, posed beside and rendezvoused at by half the people in Sarnia at one time or another. But the origins of the cannon in Canatara Park, and how it got there, have long been a mystery. Now, two men [...]
by R.W. Ford (1987) Stretching for over 30 kilometres along the St. Clair River from the southern tip of Lake Huron to the village of Sombra lies the largest concentration of petroleum and chemical industry in Canada. Some 25 kilometres inland ancient oil wells grudgingly yield a few barrels of [...]
by Dan McCaffery for the Sarnia Observer In the early years of its history, Sarnia turned to a doctor to help cure its economic ills. Specifically, the community selected Thomas William Johnston as its fourth Mayor in 1859. And it chose the Irish native to head Council two more times, [...]
by Dan McCaffery for the Sarnia Observer He was the man who helped open Sarnia up to the outside world. Henry Glass, the municipality's third Mayor, took over as Head of Council at a time when the community was extremely isolated. The year was 1858 and Sarnia had to rely [...]
by Dan McCaffery for the Sarnia Observer Call him the forgotten Mackenzie brother. Hope Fleming Mackenzie, Sarnia’s second Mayor, was a man whose considerable political achievements were completely overshadowed by those of a very famous sibling. Indeed, his baby brother, Alexander, went on to become Prime Minister of Canada. Still, [...]
by Dan McCaffery for the Sarnia Observer You might say he was the John A. Macdonald of Sarnia politicians. Or maybe the Richard M. Nixon. Thomas Forsyth was the community's first Mayor, serving from March 28, 1857 until he was forced to resign under a cloud five months later. The [...]
by Lawrence A. Crich (1986) No history of early education in Sarnia would be complete without some mention of the efforts of the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society in Upper Canada on the St. Clair Indian Reserve. The Reserve then covered a much greater area than its modern counterpart stretching north [...]
by Jean Turnbull Elford writing in Canada West’s Last Frontier (1982) With Lake Huron on the north side and the St. Clair River along its western border, Lambton County owes its early development and ensuing prosperity in large measure to its position on these waters. The first settlers came into [...]
