Flashback February

Celebration of County history continues this week

Flashback February got off to a rousing start with a concert by Tragically Hip tribute band Grace 2 last Saturday night at the Regent Theatre. Alexandra Seay, executive director of the Regent, welcomed the audience. “Tonight is opening night and we are thrilled that it’s happening here. Flashback February is a celebration of heritage, and in order to look forward we have to look back to where we came from, and we are grateful to the ancient caretakers of this land who made it possible for us to gather here today to share stories and sing songs,” she said. “In the spirit of ongoing Truth and Reconciliation, the proceeds from tonight’s performance will go directly to Indigenous artists who are creating work that will support Tsi Tyónnheht Onkwawén:na (TTO), who will be participating in the creation of a curated exhibit at Macaulay Museum called A Path Forward, which is being created in a partnership with the County Museums and the Downie-Wenjack Fund.”

Grace 2 describe themselves as simply fans of the Tragically Hip who want to celebrate and keep the music alive. “If we are doing a good job here, it’s reliving the memories of everyone having a good time,” said lead singer Andy Wehrspann. And channeling the Hip’s energy and distinctive sound, the group certainly delivered. They opened with Fifty- Mission Cap followed by Courage and Bobcaygeon. Just before the end of the first set, Wehrspann read an excerpt from Gord Downie’s statement about Secret Path, informing the audience of Chanie Wenjack’s short and difficult life.

Chanie was an Anishinaabe boy from the Marten Falls Reserve. At age nine, he was taken from his home and sent some 600 kilometres away to the Cecilia Jeffery residential school, which was operated by the Presbyterian Church of Canada. In October 1966 Chanie, who was then 12 years old, and nine other students ran away from the school. All but Chanie were caught within a day. Chanie’s body was found a week later beside the railway tracks about 60 kilometres away from the school. He had died of exhaustion, hunger and exposure. In his pocket was a slim glass jar containing seven matches. In a sombre moment in an otherwise uplifting performance, Wehrspann reminded the audience that this concert was a fundraiser in the spirit of Truth and Reconciliation, and sang Gord Downie’s Seven Matches. The band returned to the Hip’s catalogue for the second set after a short intermission and kept the energy high and bubbling with songs like Ahead by a Century and Nautical Disaster. Responding to the calls for an encore, the group came back on stage to play three more Hip songs.

On Sunday, the Wellington Museum was the site for another Flashback February event. Museum Collections manager Liz Fennell gave a presentation on the Museums’ collection of vintage quilts and how they are being catalogued. Many of the quilts were at Rose House Museum and were subsequently moved to Macaulay for cataloguing and storage in better environmental conditions, where temperature and humidity can be better controlled, as well as being protected from rodent damage. Many of the quilts, which date from about 1820 to the 1920s, appear to be made by groups of people, each person contributing a section. Fennell said there were basically two types of quilts: crazy quilts made with random-sized pieces of fabric, and geometric quilts with a regular pattern, which she subdivided into “fans”, “pineapples” or “log cabins”. She explained how some of the early silk material, which was dyed with metallic pigments, have become brittle with age and can crumble at the slightest touch. There are about 40 quilts in the collection, only a few of which have a known provenance. Other Sunday events were the County Jam at the Waring House and the screening of the silent film Carry On, Sergeant at the Regent. The film was accompanied by live music played on the Regent’s piano that was purchased in 1928 specifically for this movie.

On Monday, museum curator Jessica Chase gave a magic lantern slide show, using slides from the mid to late nineteenth century. She said the magic lantern shows were very popular during Victorian times, and even in the century before, and could be considered the equivalent of today’s movies in terms of entertainment. The slide shows were often quite elaborate affairs, using multiple projectors and sound effects to tell a compelling story. She showed some glass slides of early Picton, and there were a couple of audience members who were able to add details of which families owned the buildings. She finished the evening with a 12-slide “morality tale” called The Drunkard’s Progress, which warned viewers of the dangers of alcohol consumption.

Flashback February events continue for the remainder of the week. This evening, Steve Campbell hosts a Trivia Night at the Waring House. On Thursday, the South Shore Joint Initiative presents a screening of Suzanne Pasternak’s documentary A Vanishing Legacy on Zoom. There will be an Evensong service at Macaulay Church on Friday afternoon, and Flashback February ends on Saturday with the readings of the Macaulay Letters at Macaulay House. For more information, please visit visitthecounty.com/flashback-february.