Objects Record
Images
Metadata
Catalogue Number |
1976.40.35 |
Object Name |
Ribbon, Membership |
Title |
Membership Ribbon, Guelph Fat Stock Club, 1892-1894 |
Year Range from |
1892 |
Year Range to |
1894 |
Description |
A membership ribbon worn by the director of the Guelph Fat Stock Club at some point between 1892 to 1894. An ornate rectangular metal frame with blue text that reads "Director" is secured to the top of the ribbon. The ribbon is a blue rectangular satin with a frayed bottom. On the centre front is an illustration of a bull in a round silver frame. Silver text is printed above and below the illustration that reads "Guelph Fat Stock Club / Smithfield of Canada". A white company label is stapled to the back detailing the patent dates and company logo. Silver lettering printed underneath the lapel pin reads "The Whitehead & Hoag Co. / Newark, New Jersey". |
Notes |
Historic Context: Ontario Provincial Winter Fair The Ontario Provincial Winter Fair (OPWF) started in 1883 under the Agriculture and Arts Association of Ontario. The show alternated between Toronto, Guelph, and Woodstock until Guelph became the permanent home in 1892. Throughout the 1850s, Wellington County was the centre of the stockbreeding industry in Ontario. Led by local stockmen John Howitt (1805-1881), F. W. Stone (1814-1895), Williams Whitelaw (1815-1895) and Thomas McCrae (1820-1892), Guelph became known as the "Smithfield of Canada", after the famous meat market in England. Due to the establishment of the Ontario Agricultural College in 1874, Guelph's involvement and status within the agricultural community secured the decision of being a permanent home for the Winter Fair. The first Winter Fair was held in Guelph across various stables of the local hotels in the fall of 1886. One acre of land behind City Hall was allocated for a Winter Fair building as construction began on 13 July 1900 by contractor Henry Benallick. The two-storey limestone Fair building was the last construction project of Thomas Dobbie, a prominent Guelph mason. The Ontario government on 29 March 1906 financed a $25,000 extension to the Winter Fair building for the Ontario Winter Fair that later opened on 7 December 1909. The Winter Fair building was used by the military as barracks during the First World War and the Second World War. In 1922, the Ontario Provincial Winter Fair moved to Toronto and became the Royal Winter Fair. The final Ontario Provincial Winter Fair in Guelph took place in 1938. The Winter Fair building in Guelph remained a market building until its conversion to the Guelph Memorial Arena on 11 November 1948. Updated 2025 |
Search Terms |
Fat Stock Club Smithfield of Canada |
Subjects |
ANIMALS - CATTLE SPECIAL EVENTS - ONTARIO PROVINCIAL WINTER FAIR |
Dimensions |
W-5 L-16.4 cm |
Collection |
Textiles |