The first of a series of stories on Canada’s history
Written by my cousin Chris with pictures by Andrea. They live in Ontario.
“So where are you taking me anyways?”
It was probably the fourth or fifth time as we rode in the SUV that my wife, Andrea, had asked that question.
When we left the house on that beautiful morning last August, I had told her simply to pack her camera, to bring water for herself, and that we would stop along the way to pick up some coffee for the journey.
It was going to be a surprise trip, I had said, knowing that as an avid photographer, this rare monument we were heading to would be fun for her to gain a few captures.
Not only would it be a photography exercise for Andrea, but the day trip was going to be a micro-pilgrimage for me, someone with an interest in the German-Canadian heritage drawn from my mother’s side of the family.
Coming off the Ontario provincial highway called the 401, one heads north up regional road 8 towards the city of Kitchener for about 2 km before taking a series of short runs through a newly developed residential area and then onto Pioneer Tower Road.
It is there, along the east bank of the Grand River that the unique 18.9 metre-high monument called the Waterloo Pioneer Memorial Tower will come into view.
A designated National Historic Site of Canada, it was completed in 1926 by descendants of the original Mennonite families who had come from Pennsylvania to settle in the Waterloo area, along with members of the Waterloo Historical Society. As the commemorative plaque reads:
“In the year 1800 a small number of Mennonite families arrived from Pennsylvania to settle Block 2, former Six Nation land along the Grand River. Others, mainly Mennonites, following during the next three years until problems regarding ownership of the land curtailed the migration.
Representatives were sent back to Pennsylvania to raise the money necessary to secure clear title to the land, with the result that a joint stock company was formed and 60,000 acres purchased. Pennsylvania Dutch settlers quickly took up this land, creating the first sizeable inland settlement in Upper Canada.”
It was these people who contributed to the beginning of the tangible German character of Waterloo County and surrounding area, pioneers who spearheaded further German immigration into the region and which eventually culminated in cities and towns with names such as Berlin, Hespeler, Heidelberg, Baden, New Hamburg, Jakobstettel (St. Jacob’s) amongst many others.
When it was built, the Tower stood as a unifying monument to all these German-Canadians and was also considered a symbol of presence, identity and reconciliation at a time when anti-German sentiment was still present in post-Great War Ontario.
The Tower itself conveys a picture of Old World blended with New World. One sees the field stone courses, typical of the construction material employed in the building of German-Canadian farmhouses in the area.
The traditional Swiss-style roof is built of copper and at the pinnacle there is a small but clearly-visible wind vane: a Conestoga waggon, the historic symbol of the Waterloo immigrant pioneer.
Although it is no longer possible to ascend up the stairs to the observation level anymore (the door is locked at the base due to vandalism and other youthful mischief), the bank upon which the Tower stands still overlooks the Grand River and the trails which run beside it.
Bicyclists and hikers passing by generally seemed oblivious to us, but some interest by a young couple was piqued as they observed Andrea circling the Tower, capturing angles and showing overall fascination with the monument.
As for me, I was stuck in pensive contemplation, considering the history behind it and feeling a sense of connection.
We strode back to the SUV, and I asked Andrea if the surprise trip was worth it. Yes, she enthused, happy as she was with the pictures and the enjoyment of the overall serene setting under a blue summer sky.
Although it was a further drive northwest of Kitchener, we journeyed to the Olde Heidelberg Tavern, in the crossroads village of Heidelberg, where we feasted upon Waterloo-style schnitzel and pork hock dinners, for which the Tavern is famous. I relished every bit of the delicious sauerkraut that came with my pork hock and complimented the host on the house brew.
All in all, it was a wonderful and significant day trip and was one more fun excursion into an Ontario county which I have become more interested in spending time in.
© Chris Pember
Pictures; of the Tower, August 2013, © Andrea Pember
Written by my cousin Chris with pictures by Andrea. They live in Ontario.
It was probably the fourth or fifth time as we rode in the SUV that my wife, Andrea, had asked that question.
When we left the house on that beautiful morning last August, I had told her simply to pack her camera, to bring water for herself, and that we would stop along the way to pick up some coffee for the journey.
It was going to be a surprise trip, I had said, knowing that as an avid photographer, this rare monument we were heading to would be fun for her to gain a few captures.
Not only would it be a photography exercise for Andrea, but the day trip was going to be a micro-pilgrimage for me, someone with an interest in the German-Canadian heritage drawn from my mother’s side of the family.
Coming off the Ontario provincial highway called the 401, one heads north up regional road 8 towards the city of Kitchener for about 2 km before taking a series of short runs through a newly developed residential area and then onto Pioneer Tower Road.
A designated National Historic Site of Canada, it was completed in 1926 by descendants of the original Mennonite families who had come from Pennsylvania to settle in the Waterloo area, along with members of the Waterloo Historical Society. As the commemorative plaque reads:
“In the year 1800 a small number of Mennonite families arrived from Pennsylvania to settle Block 2, former Six Nation land along the Grand River. Others, mainly Mennonites, following during the next three years until problems regarding ownership of the land curtailed the migration.
Representatives were sent back to Pennsylvania to raise the money necessary to secure clear title to the land, with the result that a joint stock company was formed and 60,000 acres purchased. Pennsylvania Dutch settlers quickly took up this land, creating the first sizeable inland settlement in Upper Canada.”
It was these people who contributed to the beginning of the tangible German character of Waterloo County and surrounding area, pioneers who spearheaded further German immigration into the region and which eventually culminated in cities and towns with names such as Berlin, Hespeler, Heidelberg, Baden, New Hamburg, Jakobstettel (St. Jacob’s) amongst many others.
The Tower itself conveys a picture of Old World blended with New World. One sees the field stone courses, typical of the construction material employed in the building of German-Canadian farmhouses in the area.
The traditional Swiss-style roof is built of copper and at the pinnacle there is a small but clearly-visible wind vane: a Conestoga waggon, the historic symbol of the Waterloo immigrant pioneer.
Although it is no longer possible to ascend up the stairs to the observation level anymore (the door is locked at the base due to vandalism and other youthful mischief), the bank upon which the Tower stands still overlooks the Grand River and the trails which run beside it.
Bicyclists and hikers passing by generally seemed oblivious to us, but some interest by a young couple was piqued as they observed Andrea circling the Tower, capturing angles and showing overall fascination with the monument.
We strode back to the SUV, and I asked Andrea if the surprise trip was worth it. Yes, she enthused, happy as she was with the pictures and the enjoyment of the overall serene setting under a blue summer sky.
Although it was a further drive northwest of Kitchener, we journeyed to the Olde Heidelberg Tavern, in the crossroads village of Heidelberg, where we feasted upon Waterloo-style schnitzel and pork hock dinners, for which the Tavern is famous. I relished every bit of the delicious sauerkraut that came with my pork hock and complimented the host on the house brew.
All in all, it was a wonderful and significant day trip and was one more fun excursion into an Ontario county which I have become more interested in spending time in.
© Chris Pember
Pictures; of the Tower, August 2013, © Andrea Pember
