Port Glasgow in Elgin County, Ontario — Central Canada (North America)

Port Glasgow Summer Dance Pavilion

Photographed by Tim Boyd, August 23, 2024

1. Port Glasgow Summer Dance Pavilion Marker

Inscription. In 1921 the Aldborough Old Boys Association constructed this summer dance pavilion.

The first dance was held Wednesday, August 3, 1921 with the music supplied by a local group: Vernon "Hubby" Morris - violin, Ada (Johnson) Murray - piano, and Henry Gray - drums.

The first dances held were "Jitney" dances. Dancers paid 5 cents per dance, with the floor being cleared after each number.

In 1937 the pavilion was expanded, adding twenty feet of floor space and a spacious promenade, constructed around three sides. After completion, the first dance was held Wednesday, June 2, 1937. The music was by the Casa Royal Orchestra from Strathroy.

This pavilion has been in continuous use every summer since it was constructed in 1921.

This grand old pavilion is the oldest summer dance pavilion in continuous use on the shoreline of Ontario's Great Lakes.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Entertainment • Parks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical date for this entry is August 3, 1921.

Location. 42° 30.62′ N, 81° 36.604′ W. Marker is in Port Glasgow, Ontario, in

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Elgin County. It is on Furnival Road 0.4 kilometers south of Gray Line, on the left when traveling south. The marker is in Memorial Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 8609 Furnival Rd, Port Glasgow ON N0L 2C0, Canada. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Southwest Ontario Area

and in Southwestern Ontario.

It is also in Central Canada.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once a British colony,

the Viceroyalty of New France,

the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

and Rupert’s Land.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 18 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Aldborough Pioneers/ Pioneer Parliamentarian (within shouting distance of this marker); Aldborough Pioneers’ and Soldiers’ Memorial Park “Historic Stone” (within shouting distance of this marker); Burning of the Mills, 1814 (within shouting distance of this marker); Brock’s Creek (approx. 5.9 kilometers away); Tyrconnell (approx. 15.8 kilometers away); Raids on the Talbot Settlement, 1814

Photographed by Tim Boyd, August 23, 2024

2. Port Glasgow Summer Dance Pavilion Marker

(approx. 17.2 kilometers away); St. Peter’s Church 1827 (approx. 17.6 kilometers away); Ellis Wellwood Sifton, V.C. (approx. 17.6 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Port Glasgow.

Also see . . . The Old Boys Movement (westelgin.net).

In 1920 an Old Boys Association was incorporated and six acre on the bluff at Port Glasgow was purchased - becoming the Soldiers' and Pioneers' Memorial Park. The first "official" Old Boys picnic was held August 12, 1921.

(Submitted on August 30, 2024, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario.)

Port Glasgow Dance Pavilion ca 1940 image. Click for full size.

3. Port Glasgow Dance Pavilion ca 1940

Source: westelgin.net (public domain)

Port Glasgow Soldiers' and Pioneers' Memorial Park image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tim Boyd, August 23, 2024

4. Port Glasgow Soldiers' and Pioneers' Memorial Park

Credits. This page was last revised on August 31, 2024. It was originally submitted on August 30, 2024, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. This page has been viewed 198 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 30, 2024, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.