​Great reading stories about family history in Bruce County

To the Editor:
RE: “Remembering our horse, "Lady," who had a reputation for speed”

I love reading Ruth Anne Hollands Robinson's stories about her family's past in Bruce County. Such interesting events! I wonder if Ruth Anne, and others with similar stories, are aware of the People's Archive of Rural Ontario (PARO), an accessible, on-line, ever-growing repository of stories for, and about, the people of rural Ontario.

The goal of PARO is "to organize, preserve, and make freely accessible the records and voices of rural Ontarians."

PARO was initiated at the the Department of History, University of Guelph. Its counterpart and model is PARI, the People's Archive of Rural India. PARO is currently actively seeking stories from all people.

The PARO website is very easy to navigate and offers information about submitting stories: People's Archive of Rural Ontario | Stories. Just click on 'More' on the top line. The website also has lots of great stories from people living and working in rural regions throughout the entire province.

Another fascinating resource for anyone interested in Ontario's rural history is the Rural Diary Archive, also from the University of Guelph: ruraldiaries.lib.uoguelph.ca/home. This is also an accessible collection. Many of the diaries have been transcribed and are available to read on-line, anytime.

It is my hope that rural people who want to preserve Ontario's rural past for current and future generations, will visit these websites and take advantage of the opportunities they offer to enlarge the rural history of Ontario.

Sincerely,
Pat Bowley
Kincardine