Sandy Supposes....

I Call Sundridge Home

*Banana* "May 2022 Blogging Challenge ~ Where Do You Live?" *Banana*

Prompt # 1 May, 1st. '22 — A bit about the history of your town/area.

Every place has a history. Some towns were founded to support gold rushes, others were close to oceans.

What's the History of where you live? What was the early industry that made your town the place to be? Who founded your town and when?

         

         

         

         

         

         First may I congratulate your semantics. Where do you live NOT where are you from. That second question is open to interpretation. Some will understand this to mean the place of their birth while others believe it to mean where they currently reside. Of course, those who consider themselves clever answer they are from their mothers.

         So, to answer today's blog query I am living in a village in central Ontario, Canada situated midway between North Bay and Huntsville. Sundridge is its official moniker and before anyone accuses me of misspelling the name, yes, that first 'd' is supposed to be in there. I called southern Ontario home when I attended school(s) and inevitably every September upon return after summer break my teacher would correct my spelling and point out that incongruous letter 'd' that had to be unnecessary in my what-did-you-do summer essay. I reside in Sundridge with a 'd.'

         

         Had the original intention when this spot received incorporation in 1889 been to christen it 'Sunny Ridge?' According to the all-knowing and wise resource Wikipedia this is a possibility and that first 'd' resulted from a postal office error. A bureaucratic bungle could not be amended? How many citizens and visitors have asked, "What's a dridge?"

         Sundridge is classified as a village and according to the most recent census of 2021 938 persons call it home. Yep, it's not a bustling metropolis, not at all. Some may comment we reach the teeming category during the height of the summer tourist season. At that point the two-block long main street, known simply as Main Street, bulges with looky-loos demanding attention and first dibs on the scant parking spots.

         At one time I'd been one of those summer people, a terrorist tourist. My family chose to spend the short season of no snow camping in Sundridge. We'd visit my maternal grandparents themselves Sundridge transplants. We'd swim in Lake Bernard a body of freshwater with the distinction of existing with no island. Long ago, this same lake had been stuck with the name Stoney Lake. True locals mumble a more appropriate title should have been Leeches Lake. ( Not an attraction for tourists?) To be geographically accurate it should be Shallow Lake 'cause the sandbars create an extended area of wading depth water. I've often wondered if Bernard existed and if so did he know he'd become a lake?

         Nope, gold has never settled in our hills. We are no where near an ocean. Oil has never oozed. Maple sap does flow in the early Spring though. Black bears prowl in our forests and rummage through our landfills. Moose saunter along highways and pose for impressed gawkers. Our biting insects are second to none and they appreciate new blood. Occasionally an ambitious beaver will flood a road and destroy a bridge.

         In 1876, James Dunbar earned the honour of becoming the first settler and therefore he's considered the founder. The voracious blackflies and mosquitos did not drive him away. His new home became an extension of the Canadian National Railway, CNR, which completed this route in 1885.

         Freight trains still rumble through Sundridge, but the passenger service ended years ago. There has never been a train station, or depot. At one time, travellers would be dropped alongside the tracks.

         I imagine the early settlers were seeking farmland and abundant natural resources with which to build their homes. Logging still carries on today. Farming perseveres. The area is rich with underwater springs. Tourists are attracted year round, but more so in the summer.

         Industry? I am proud to say that Sundridge is more than a one-horse town. Many residents/riders own more than a single horse. Sundridge has always been a one elementary school village. Teen-aged students attend their high school in a nearby town. Three protestant religions erected churches with two still standing. At the moment, we have one grocery store and one bank. Two car dealerships boast Sundridge to be their homes. Restaurants come and go with a few managing to remain in business. For several years, the village has enjoyed the convenience of two traffic lights installed on the same stretch of road one entire block apart to coordinate traffic as a highway bypass was built. Now, Sundridge is no longer situated on Highway 11 and the vehicles are rerouted elsewhere. We have a new address without the hassle of a move. Sundridge claims to be a new section of Highway 124. Locals refer to it as "the one two four." Of course, it will never be "the real one two four."

         Nope. You can search to your heart's content, but you will not discover a mall, or fast food outlets. We do not have strip malls, but the closest we do have is a multi-unit building housing a few enterprises at ground level. High rises do not exist here.

         Not to deny progress, Sundridge lays claim to both an official website and a Facebook page. High speed internet access continues to expand.

          It's situated within driving distance to far bigger cities such as Toronto, otherwise known as the centre of the universe which is about three hours distant and Ottawa which is about five hours distant. We residents are free to wander off and return at our leisure. We choose to enjoy our rural lifestyle.

( WORD COUNT: 951 minus the 68 prompt intro.?)