Stage Door News
Stage Door News
They’re influential personalities from the past, and while they’ve long been dead, don’t be surprised if you run into them at the Victoria Lawn Cemetery.
John C. Ball, Hannah Frey, Abraham Hostetter, William Hamilton Merritt, John C. Clark and Peter Yocum all came back to life in the Queenston Street cemetery last weekend, for the opening of A Walk Through History: Memories of the War of 1812 in St. Catharines. The event, which wraps up with three more performances on Friday, Sept. 14 and 15, is an 1812-themed spirit walk in the cemetery, where guests run into actors portraying the ghosts of local War of 1812 personalities.
“Anyone who is anyone in the history of the city is in this cemetery, so all the history is here,” said Kathleen Powell, supervisor of historical services and curator of the St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre. “We thought this would be a great way to bring to life some of the history of the community, and the stories of the War of 1812.”
Adrian Petry, who portrays a 1912 journalist that digs up the history of the ghosts from 100 years prior, helped write the script for the project, which is presented by the museum in partnership with the St. Catharines War of 1812 Bicentennial Steering Committee. He said the spirit walk brings out a part of the community’s history that is accurate, based on historical documentation.
“The most interesting part of the tour is that it provides an overview of how the War of 1812 in Niagara related to St. Catharines,” said Petry. “People figure there was nothing that happened in St. Catharines, but there were small skirmishes here and there, and stories that we thought we could bring to life because of how they impacted some of the St. Catharines residents.”
Petry leads guests to stops throughout the cemetery, where the various characters are buried. There, their personal stories are brought to life by actors portraying the ghosts.
“We had a number of volunteer researchers help put it together,” said Petry, adding the script took about four weeks to put together.
The walks, said Powell, are about an hour long and were designed to make it friendly for those of all abilities.
Tours cost $8 per person and start at the Victoria Lawn Cemetery parking lot at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 14 and 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 16. You must pre-register to attend. You can call the museum at 905-984-8880 to reserve your spot, or you can register online at the city’s website, www.stcatharines.ca.
A Walk Through History: Memories of the War of 1812 in St. Catharines is a project of the Niagara Cultural Capital of Canada 2012 program and funded by the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Region of Niagara.
“We’re excited to be a partner in this region-wide project to promote the historical connections our communities have to the War of 1812,” said Powell.
By Paul Forsyth for www.niagarathisweek.com.
Photo: Adrian Perry and Brett Greening. ©2012.
2012-09-11
St. Catherines: “A Walk Through History: Memories of the War of 1812” ends this weekend