The Streetsville Historical Society was formed in 1970 primarily as the body to hold the records of the Village of Streetsville (founded 1819) and other organizations as these became part of the City of Mississauga. Incorporated in 1973, the Society continues to hold such archival materials including all the original municipal assessment rolls, minutes of meetings, by-laws etc. as well as the existing records of the Streetsville Public Utilities Commission, the files of the Streetsville Review, the oldest continuing newspaper in the area, and other historical materials which are provided to or purchased by the Society.
The original (1849) grammar school building, which was enlarged in 1872, was converted into a municipal office building in 1961 and contains a large walk-in fire proof vault. This building was again altered to become a seniors citizens building which the Society has helped to decorate with some of its collection of photographs made into wall murals and the vault (jail cell) then became the Society’s storage area.
Most of the documentary material has been placed on microfilm and is now in the Ontario Archives in Toronto. The photographs collection and other artifacts are in regular use in research and in writing. The Society became a registered Charity # 89032 5574 RR0001, in 1973.
Mary Manning, one of the founders of the Society, was the keeper of these archival materials and they were stored in the jail cell of the Kinsmen Seniors centre and in her home until her death in June 1998. Her home collection was donated to the Peel Archives and has remained in their collection to this day. The remaining archives were left in the jail cell until Anne Byard, a member of the Society with archival training, was asked to take over the care of this collection by the Executive of the Society. She accepted the position and the Society received a Trillium Grant to pay her for a year to catalogue the collection into a archival system.
The volunteer members of the Society where trained by Mrs. Byard and they all assisted to finish the project. After the year was up she remained on as a volunteer to care for the archives. The archives began to grow having been kept in two jail cells in the Kinsmen seniors centre on Queen St. for many years. In 2007 a toilet had been built across the door to the cells. Since then, society volunteers had to go through the bathroom to reach its massive collections of photographs, documents and artifacts. Anne’s search was on for a Streetsville location and she was finally rewarded by finding the Leslie Log House on the Pinchin Property which provided a great location. Anne then contacted Councillor George Carlson to enlist his help along with that of Councillor Katie Mahoney. Anne gave them and the City of Mississauga Council and the Museums of Mississauga a presentation with a proposal to restore the building to Museum standard. They accepted her offer to allow the Streetsville Historical Society archives to move into the Leslie Log House , The building would remain under the protection of the Museums of Mississauga and the Society would rent the building for $1.00 a year. The Society would be responsible for the care of their collection and supplying volunteers to open the building to the public Wednesdays and Sundays from 1-4 p.m. The Society raises their own funds to pay liability insurance yearly as well as the up-keep of the collection.
The Society continues to collect artifacts and documents relating to the history of Streetsville. These are catalogued and stored according to archival storage standards. The SHS is presently working on putting the collection on an electronic based system using the Past Perfect program. The Society continues to furnish the building with office equipment and furniture as needed. The Society uses it’s Website and other social media including Facebook to publicize the collection to the public. The Log House is open Wednesdays and Sundays 1 to 4 p.m. and is completely staffed by volunteers. We greet over 1000 guests a year and do not charge an entrance fee.
