Ottawa Valley History-Focus of 2018 Speaker Series
Posted on Monday, January 8th, 2018
On December 27, 1942 the Ottawa Valley experienced its worth disaster. 36 people were killed and more than 200 were injured when a passenger train, known as the “Pembroke Local,” was struck by a troop train loaded with soldiers at the Almonte Train station. Many of the victims were from the Ottawa Valley, as people who had been home for the holidays were making their way back to Ottawa when the accident occurred.
Well known musician, Mac Beattie, recorded a song about that fateful night some 75 years ago. It tells the story of how the train was packed and running late when it was plowed into by the troop train as it was stopped in Almonte to pick up more passengers. Through a partnership with the North Lanark Museum, the Algonquin College Speaker Series will explore what led to the crash, the aftermath of the investigation, and hear videotaped interviews with survivors of the crash.
The Almonte Train Wreck presentation on February 8th will kick off a year of Speaker Series events that are focused on local history. It will be followed by a March 19th presentation on the Flying Bandit, the story of Gilbert Galvan, an American convict who led a double life in Pembroke in the 1980’s. Galvan would fly from Pembroke, using the regional airline, Pem-Air, to fly to Toronto where he would transfer to larger airlines and commit almost 60 bank and jewelry store robberies before being arrested by the Ontario Provincial Police at the Pembroke Airport.
The reporter who broke the story and co-authored a book on the flying bandit, Ed Arnold, will share details of how Galvan managed to elude law enforcement and will speak about his exclusive interviews with Galvan after his arrest and sentencing. Arnold was the managing editor of the Peterborough Intelligencer newspaper when the string of robberies was occurring. Three of the heists occurred in Peterborough, peaking Arnold’s interest, leading him on a journalistic investigation that led to him uncovering Canada’s most notorious bank robber.
On June 18, 1918, Pembroke experienced a great fire that destroyed several blocks of its downtown. On the 100th anniversary of the fire, local historian Bruce Pappin will lead a presentation and walking tour of the downtown and share details of where and how the fire started, what buildings were destroyed, the investigation of the blaze and how the fire was ultimately deemed to be an accident, despite many claims that it was deliberately set.
Pembroke is known as “Hockey Town Canada,” and for good reason. The first time a Pembroke hockey team played a game was in 1893. It ended badly as Pembroke was beaten 13-1 by an Ottawa club, but it started a love affair with the game that helped Pembroke produce three Hall of Fame players, multiple championship teams, and an interesting mix of players, personalities and politics. On December 5, the speaker series will explore how Pembroke earned the title of Hockey Town Canada.
Tickets are available now for all of these speaker series presentations. It will be a fascinating look back in time, covering some of the most interesting stories of the Ottawa Valley’s past.
Posted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs
- Posted in
- Waterfront Campus Blog