On that day, I headed over to the Hillary House to meet Elizabeth Milner. I didn’t have the name or a close-up picture, but I had a story, and I knew someone would piece it all together. After family, friends, and neighbours commented on the last post, the barn guide was identified as the remarkable 13-year-old boy, Geoffrey Sharp.
I just wanted to give a shout-out to Geoffrey again and say how great it was to see all the support and encouragement he received from his loved ones.
Visiting the Hillary House turned out to be more than just a tour of the historic building. As the day came to a close, I realized it was the people I met there who made the experience memorable. The Hillary House provided the perfect backdrop for some fascinating interactions that made the day interesting.
As I said, I headed over to the Hillary House to meet Elizabeth Milner, also to meet her for the first time. She had no idea I was coming, and I wasn’t sure if I would even make it. But when I finally arrived, I had my own copy of Elizabeth’s book, Aurora 1945-1965: An Ontario Town at a Time of Great Change, ready to be signed. It was through her book that we first connected, and we’ve been corresponding since last September.
Let me tell you a bit about Elizabeth. Sure, we all know she’s a historian, teacher, and writer, but did you know she’s also incredibly friendly, funny, charming, and charismatic?
I wish all my history teachers had been like her. If they were, I wouldn’t have struggled so much with memorizing dates, events, and leaders. European history is no joke, so maybe that’s why they had us start learning it way back in fourth grade!
It was clear that I wasn’t the only one meeting Elizabeth for the first time. David also met her that day, and I overheard him mention that he had read her book only four times.
As I gaze at the photo of the musician performing at the Hillary House that day, it seems only fitting to share with you an important musical history event that Elizabeth told me about in an email.
She wrote: “The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto is celebrating its 125th anniversary. Louise McDowell, actually Sara Louise McDowell, who lived in Aurora at various times, and was related distantly to the Willis family, was taught piano by Edward Fisher the founder of the Conservatory. She was one of the first students at the Conservatory which opened in September of 1887.
“In her last years she lived on Reuben Street on the north east corner of Temperance Street. I wrote about her in Aurora 1945-1965 on pages 31 to 34. I called her Aunt Louie, but she wasn’t actually my aunt. She died at 93 in 1965 and is buried in Aurora Cemetery.”
This is just a snippet from Elizabeth’s book on Louise McDowell, a talented musician, teacher, and writer. Did you know that Louise McDowell also penned a book called Past and Present: A Canadian Musician’s Reminiscences? It might just be the next book I pick up to read!
Speaking of writing books, Elizabeth Milner is currently working on the second book of stories about Aurora from the years 1945-1965. This upcoming addition to my collection of Aurora books is sure to be a great read. At the moment, my collection also includes AURORA: A History in Pictures by W. John McIntyre.
