14
WIlf managed to convince the University of Western Ontario and the provincial government to support an annual archaeological field school, which Wilf operated in Huronia as the University of Western Ontario Summer School of Archaeology from 1950 through 1963. In 1950 the students participated in the excavations at Sainte-Marie I, but from 1951-1953 Wilf had the students excavating at the nearby St.Louis site.15
Excavating at the Forget sitecirca 1954-1963
Midland, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
16
During the final ten years of the school, WIlf and the students totally excavated the Forget site. Each year as part of the curriculum, Wilf brought in a wide range of specialists to talk on different topics. These speakers included Elsie, who could talk on any number of topics based on her extensive archival files about the Huron and the Jesuits of Huronia. For some years the Summer School utilized as its base of operations the Officers' Quarters at Penetanguishene, and thus it was also appropriate for both WIlf and Elsie to speak about the important naval and military establishments there.17
Reconstructing Sainte-Marie Icirca 1963-1967
Midland, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
18
In the winter of 1953-1954 Wilf had another accidental meeting with someone and that meeting would ultimately lead to two other major developments. The man was Victor Edwards of the Midland YMCA Y's Mens Club, and together he and Wilf cooked up a scheme to recreate a Huron Indian Village at Little Lake Park in Midland. The basic recreation consisting of longhouses surrounded by a palisade was put up in the fall of 1954, largely with donated and salvaged materials and a workforce of Y's Men Club members. Major additions and improvements were put in place in 1955, and Wilf continued to improve and oversee the operation of the village for many more years.19
Recreating Sainte-Marie Icirca 1963-1967
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
20
The second consequence of Wilf's accidental meeting with Victor Edwards was the excavation of the Forget site. In 1954 the Y's Men purchased the Oliver Forget farm outside of Midland on which they planned to grow Christmas trees to sell as a fund-raiser for their activities. It so happened that there was an important archaeological site on that Christmas tree farm, and Wilf and the Summer School students succeeded in totally excavating that site over a ten yearperiod (1954-1963). The total excavation of this pre-contact Huron village was a milestone in North American archaeology, but it's significance will not be fully realized until a detailed site report is published. All of WIlf and Elsie's notes and detailed maps, and the artifacts, remain today at the London Museum of Archaeology.
21
Wilf and John Robarts, Ontario Minister of Education, at Sainte-Marie I1966
Midland, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
22
During the winter of 1963-1964 there was a long series of phone calls, letters and meetings about the further development of Huronia's historic resources. These culminated in the provincial goverment announcing, through Premier John Robarts, that the province would fund "The Huronia Project". This major new initiative included plans for the reconstruction of Sainte-Marie Among the Hurons, the reconstruction of the Penetanguishene Naval and Military Establishments, the development of a museum and interpretive facilites at Schoonertown (Wasaga Beach) where the schooner HMS NANCY had been sunk in the War of 1812 and the possible excavation and reconstruction of Sainte-Marie II on Christian Island. To oversee the coordination and operation of the projects, the Huronia, Historical Development Council was created. The Council included some of the individuals who had earlier been active on the Huronia Historical Sites and Tourist Association. The Council specifically included Martyrs' Shrine Director Rev. McCaffrey, University of Western Ontario President G. Edward Hall and Wilfrid Jury as "archaeologist-in-charge".23
Wilf and Elsie standing at the northeast bastion of Sainte-Marie Icirca 1949
Midland, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
24
One could not begin to estimate the amount of time Wilf and Elsie spent on the reconstruction of Sainte-Marie I. Even as Kenneth Kidd in 1941-1942 and Wilf in 1947-1951 were excavating the site, plans were being made for the eventual reconstruction: the stone bastions had been partially restored; drawings were made; models were built; and archival research was undertaken. Late in 1963 the provincial goverment announced that it would fund a major reconstruction project, to be coordinated by the University of Western Ontario. In the spring of 1964 Wilf was on-site to put up his flag pole, hire a crew, arrange for the delivery of materials and start the reconstruction in earnest.25
Wilf with Hon. John Diefenbaker at Sainte-Marie I1968
Midland, Ontario, Canada
Credits:Museum of Ontario Archaeology
26
In December 1964, part-way through the Sainte-Marie I reconstruction project, Wilf and Elsie returned to Europe to conduct further research. While there, they purchased a range of furnishings for the reconstruction. It was on this trip that Wilf had an audience with Pope Paul VI, who gave his blessing to the Ontario government and to all of the people involved in the Sainte-Marie I project. Although all of the press coverage of this event mentions that only Wilf metwith the Pope, Elsie's own written record of that day clearly indicates that she was right beside Wilf all of the time. As with most of his projects Wilf helped orchestrate an opening ceremony, although in this case it was delayed until there was considerable visual evidence of the reconstruction in terms of there being in place the frameworks for several structures. The August 12th ceremony featured Premier Robarts and other dignitaries. Robarts and his successor William Davis would have several further occasions to assemble at Sainte-Marie I and other Huronia sites to celebrate heritage and to pay tribute to Wilf and Elsie for their roles in revealing that history.
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