History
The Beachville District Museum is home to a vast selection of historical artifacts that will delight both young and old.
Aside from numerous displays, luscious parkland and special events that are held through the year, the museum is also home to the First Recorded Baseball Game in North America.
Visit the Beachville Museum website for more information!
Have you ever seen a building that seemed out of place on a quiet country drive? One hundred years ago it very well may have been in the centre of a bustling community. The Township of Zorra has been collecting stories of past towns and hamlets within its borders. For example, did you know the current town name "Embro" most likely came from Embro, Golspie in Scotland? This is the area where many Zorra Scotts emigrated from! Learn more about our historic towns at Tourism Oxford's website.
The Embro-West Zorra History Book was released in 2008 in a two-volume set. Copies are available for sale at the Township Office. Please call ahead to confirm availability 519-485-2490.
Township of East Nissouri: People, Perseverance, Progress started out as a local history book. It quickly turned into more – a record of the lives of ordinary people, whether they achieved fame and fortune beyond the township borders or simply raised their children among friends and family. Given the passage of 150 years, no township history book could ever be complete, but in these pages you’ll read about familiar individuals as well as communities, businesses, schools, and our agricultural heritage.
Copies of this book are no longer available as both printings quickly sold out.
The North Oxford History Book is available for sale at the Township Office. Please call ahead to confirm availability 519-485-2490.
The memoirs of Harvey Beaty is available for sale now at the Township office. Please call ahead to confirm availability 519-485-2490.
What's happening in Zorra? More info and history of Zorra Township including events from 2013. Copies available at the Township office or at JC Graphics in Thamesford for $35 each.
The Harrington Community Club is dedicated to the preservation of rural heritage and the authentic restoration of the Harrington Grist Mill as a functional museum and working educational site.
This restoration work was profiled in the Fall 2010 edition of Zorra Now.
Harrington Grist Mill Restoration Project
Tim Van de Kemp, Chairman
519-475-4376
Email
Watch the YouTube video - Harrington Mill Restored!
A Canadian Hero in Taiwan
George Leslie Mackay (1844 - 1901)
Son of Scots immigrants, Presbyterian missionary George Mackay was born near Embro in Zorra Township. In 1872, he founded the first overseas mission in Tamsui, Taiwan. An unconventional character, but sensitive to local needs, Mackay practised dentistry and trained local clergy. He married a Taiwanese, Tiun Chhang-Mian, and had three children. The "Black-Bearded Barbarian" worked in the Tamsui region until his death, established 60 chapels, several schools and a hospital. In 1881, he raised funds here in Oxford County to help build Oxford College, Tamsui, which later became a university. He was also an outspoken opponent of the Canadian head tax on Chinese immigrants. An inspiration to the evangelical missions movement in Ontario, Mackay remains a national hero in Taiwan. (Ontario Heritage Foundation)
The Oxford County Archives acquires, preserves, and makes accessible inactive public records created by, for, and about Oxford County.
These records include:
- Administrative
- Legal
- Fiscal
- Genealogical records
- Historical and cultural records of Oxford County 1850 to the present, and its predecessor, the District of Brock, 1842 to 1849.
For more information about the Oxford County Archives, visit their website.
The Archives have uploaded the early poll books (1851-1874) to their webpage here.
To visit the weekly blog updates with interesting historical articles, click here.