A History of Cottagers

The man behind the lens, caught behind the lens.  Giving credit to where credit is due, means recognizing that all of our old photographs on this account were taken by my Great Papa Baker, William Douglas Baker.  Having served in WWII, the Royal Canadian Air Force trained him to be a photographer. When the war ended, my Great Grandparents, spent much time enjoying the finer things in life with unparalleled appreciation for being by the water. Whether it was camping, cottaging or anything in the outdoors, my Papa Baker would be there with his camera.    …or should I say,...

T H E   P O S T M A N I’m the proud great granddaughter of “Dougie the Postman.” My Papa Baker, (The face behind the camera of all of our beloved old cottage photographs) was also the jolly post man who delivered mail by foot pre and post WWII. His route was in High Park @torontolife @cityofto and back then, mail was delivered twice a day. My Nana (his daughter) remembers that his busiest days were spent delivering on Christmas Eve & Christmas Day. She remembers him arriving home after his holiday shifts with all sorts of gifts from...

7 / 1 1   Seven Eleven - where the juicy jumbos cook all day and the slushie machines are the #1 attraction.ORSeven Eleven - the name our gramp & his fishing mates used to represent the SEVEN men who stayed in Cabin 11 at the Memquisit Lodge for decades. Their 7/11 club was formed by neighbours on a small crescent built in the 60’s in Toronto. For over 35 years, they travelled on the west arm of Lake Nipissing at the mouth of the French River. The seven of them, always staying in Cabin 11.Instead of saving for luxuries...

F I S H I N G T R I P T I P SIt’s 1998 and your favourite cousins are up for a visit. You are ready to go fishing and there’s only 1 way to prepare.A) Raid the lifejacket stash Fill every seat in the boat so that the younger 2 can’t fit (sorry about this now H & A)C) grab your paper bag of marina candy & new cardboard box of NERDS because #prioritiesD) have your orange crush handy in the cup holder because nothing beats THIS life and THINGS are going to get WILDE) Get Matching haircuts (not...

C L O T H E S L I N E S“This must be Monday, because that was laundry day.”According to my Nannie, they only had hot water on Monday for laundry & on Friday to have Showers.Nothing like cottage chores that have stood the test of time. We can’t wait to share more of our clothes line photos, but for the mean time, we’ll be thankful that the model of clothes pins have evolved.Fun Fact: My Nannie’s parents had a cottage they called GAIMAR, named after their girls: Gail & Marlene.Photo: Lake Simcoe, 1941