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Tom Tennant with Hudson Stone1990
Chalk River, Ontario, Canada
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BY VANCE GUTZMANHenry Hudson may have become lost, but the stone which is fabled to bear his initials has finally found itself a home. Chalk River residents Tom Tennant and Ray Brisebois, along with help of other volunteers, have mounted the Hudson Stone in a small park at the intersection of Church and Wilson Streets. The mounting of the stone is the culmination of a long road travelled by the stone, beginning 38 years ago when it was discovered by a road crew repaving Highway 17 at the eastern end of Deep River.
The large rock, weighing about 150 pounds, has words etched into it which read HH 1612 CAPTIVE. Some people believe the message was inscribed by famed explorer Henry Hudson. It is believed he was set adrift in James Bay in 1611, following a mutiny while on his fourth attempt to discover the Northwest Passage.
There is speculation that the explorer may have made his way south following the mutiny, and was then captured by Indians. Glenn Cuthbert was a member of the road crew that made the initial discovery of the rock. He had it moved to his home in Prescott, where it piqued the interest of Tennant, who is Cuthbert's brother-in-law. Tennant was able to persuade Cuthbert that the stone should be returned to this area. Cuthbert agreed, and for the last few years, Tennant, along with Brisebois, has been trying to find a proper setting for the stone in the village. Village council told Tennant earlier this year that it had no money to spare for the project. Unfazed, Tennant and Brisebois went ahead with their plans anyway. The first thing they did, was pour a cement slab. Into this they sank the base of a large slab of fieldstone, which weighs about 450 pounds. On top of the fieldstone, they mounted the Hudson Stone. One of the hardest parts of the whole experience was when the two men had to manhandle the Hudson Stone from Brisebois' backyard to its present location. Now that the historic rock is in a place where everybody can admire it, Tennant is lobbying the Ontario Heritage Foundation for help in erecting a plaque at the monument. he hopes to have that. phase of the project completed by next spring. "It's a relief to finally have it in a location where people can see it," Tennant said. "Now we can see it and work around it to improve the community park."
Vandals Smash Hudson Stone
BY VANCE GUTZMAN
Tom Tennant's dreams are shattered, and so is the Hudson Stone. Less than a month after Tennant and Ray Brisebois succeeded in mounting the stone in a park-like setting in Chalk River, vandals have demolished their work. The historic rock was pushed off its mountings sometime over the course of Saturday night. The 150-pound stone had been mounted on top of a 450-pound piece of fieldstone, which in turn had been sunk into a cement slab.
When the Hudson Stone was pushed off its moorings, it landed on the slab, and broke into four pieces. When the Hudson Stone was mounted in the park, at the intersection of Church and Wilson Streets, it signalled the end of along road that had been travelled by the stone, ever since it was discovered 38 years ago by a road crew repaving Highway 17 at the eastern end of Deep River. The rock has words etched into it which read "HH 1612 CAPTIVE." Some people believe that message was inscribed by famed explorer Henry Hudson. It is believed he was set adrift in James Bay in 1611, following a mutiny while on his fourth attempt to discover the North-west passage.There is speculation that the explorer may have made his way south following the mutiny, and was then captured by Indians. Glenn Cuthbert was a member of the road crew that made the original discovery of the Hudson Stone. He had it moved to his home in Prescott,where it piqued the interest of Tennant, who is Cuthbert's brother-in-law. But now the hard work put in by Tennant, Brisebois, and other volunteers in the village appears to have been in vain.One bright side to the otherwise sad story is that, although the stone is broken into four pieces, the writing on its surface remains intact in one piece. "It can be mounted and still have an historic function," Tennant told the NRT on Monday, adding though that he is not sure what his immediate plans are for the rock "I hope we find out who it is, and that the person who did it has the guts to say I'm sorry,' " Tennant said.
The Upper Ottawa Valley Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police. are investigating the incident. If anyone has any information about the act of vandalism, they should contact the local QPP detachment at 735-0188 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
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