C L U T C H C H A T T E R REPORT
RIDEAU VALLEY REGION
HISTORICAL AUTOMOBILE SOCIETY OF CANADA
March 2009

Last Meeting
On Sunday, February 22nd, twenty-six members and guests enjoyed our first outdoor meet of the 2009 season. We met at the OC Transpo Park and Ride on Eagleston Road at the Queensway. From there we were led by our hosts, Bob and Pauline Coupe on a pleasant drive to Fulton's Pancake House and Sugar Bush off Highway 29 and Cedar Hill Road near Pakenham. Fulton's had just opened for the season the day before thus was not at all busy and in no time, we were sitting down to our choice of pancakes, sausages, beans and, of course, Fulton's own maple syrup, in which-ever quantity was chosen, depending on the appetite of the chooser. As we ate and socialized, we were entertained by a young lad on the fiddle, accompanied by step-dancing and singing a fitting background to our meal. Afterwards, some of the ladies visited the gift shop, while other members went for a ride on a two-horse open sleigh before gathering in the parking lot to take our leave. Many thanks to Bob and Pauline for arranging this pleasant outing.

Activities Rideau Valley:

March 22nd:-Tour of the Canadian Mint and supper at Tucker's Marketplace, hosted by Dale and Hilary Faris. See Details in Next Meeting below.

April 18th: -Visit to see Rheal Larose’s Die Cast Collection, and to see a train store. Supper at a restaurant hosted by Hèlene and Rheal Larose.

Activities – National:

April 18th: National Executive Meeting hosted by Muskoka Region.

April 19th : Virgil 26th Annual Automotive and Craft Flea Market, Virgil Arena, 4 Mile Creek Road, Virgil, Ontario, sponsored by the Niagara Region of H.A.S.C., 08:00 to 15:00 hrs. Admission $3.00. For further info call (905) 356-4006. See Klaxon for further details.

Activities – Non-HASC:

April 2nd  to 5th: Charlotte Auto Fair, Charlotte, North Carolina – Spring Flea Market hosted by the Hornets Nest Region of The Antique Automobile Club of America.

April 22nd to 26th: Spring Carlisle 2009 Collector Car Flea Market and Corral at the Carlisle Fairgrounds. Call (717) 243-7855.

Tidbits From the Past:

From CCR9404 ... April 1994:
It was in 1898 that the first gasoline powered car entered Canada, a one-cylinder Winton. By 1904 there were about 600 cars in the country and by 1907, just over 2,000.

Fulton’s Pancake House and Sugar Bush
Fulton's Pancake House and Sugar Bush is comprised of 400 acres of mixed forest (mostly sugar maple trees), a 120 seat cafeteria-style restaurant, a newly renovated gift shoppe, maple sugar camp (production facility) and main office. The forest has a natural predominance of sugar maple trees hence the term sugar bush. Many of the older trees are over 200 years old and have been tapped every year since the 1800's.

John Fulton, along with his two brothers emigrated to Canada from Aberdeen Scotland in the 1840's, and settled on a farm near the village of Pakenham in the small settlement of Cedar Hill. Their descendants still live on the original farms. It is assumed that the three Fulton brothers learned the art of maple syrup-making from other settlers and the aboriginal people.; Successive generations have continued the practice. A rustic maple sugar camp was initially constructed in the early 1900's. Successive sugar camps have been built on the original site, with the latest constructed in 1983.

In the 1940's, Leonard Fulton (3rd generation) and his wife Hazel took over the family farm from Leonard's father. The maple syrup and sugar were initially produced for family use. As the years progressed the syrup was sold in the Byward Market in Ottawa and was also shipped across Canada. In 1969, Leonard built the first pancake house to serve light refreshments (home-made donuts, lemonade and pancakes) so visitors purchasing maple products at the farm could enjoy maple sugar candies, maple butter, maple brittle, and taffy on snow. Leonard and Hazel's three children - John, Shirley and Ross grew up helping in the sugar bush. The pancake house has had three additions, the most recent having been completed in February of 2002.

Shirley Fulton-Deugo is the 4th generation Fulton to operate the sugar bush, along with her grown children, Lorraine, Scott and Pamela. The operation has grown from a small personal production sugar camp to a 4-Season International Canadian Destination. The facility and grounds are now home to national and international group tours, teambuilding/training and personal development camps, corporate retreats and conference center, banquet facilities and special occasions, forest membership programs, a maple shoppe, event planner's favours and of course, the traditional spring maple syrup season. Shirley's husband, George Deugo, sadly passed away on October 6, 2007 and all of his family are now working to keep his dreams and wishes alive. We wish them well.

Next Meeting

The next event will be a visit to the Royal Canadian Mint on Sunday, March 22nd with dinner at Tucker's Marketplace, hosted by Dale and Hilary Faris.

Please meet at the Boutique on the second floor of the Mint, 320 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, at 2:45 PM. The tour, which will begin at 3 PM, will last approximately 45 minutes. Following this, there will be some time to browse around the boutique and their museum. The cost will be approximately $3.00 per person depending on the turnout. It will be interesting to see how our Canadian coins are created. There is parking on side streets in the area or one could park at the National Art Gallery underground parking lot.

Following the Mint visit, supper will be at Tucker’s Marketplace, 61 York Street, at 5:00 PM. Here you will be treated to a lavish buffet – soup and salad bar, breads and rolls, assortment of cheese, at least three choices of meat, assorted vegetables and potatoes, delicious desserts and a beverage (non-alcoholic) of your choice. Certainly the selection is excellent for all! The cost for this feast, including tax and gratuity, is $22 per person (providing there are 20 or more people in our group). Please plan to pay with cash as Hilary will be collecting the money to pay for the meals.  There is a parking lot in close proximity to the restaurant.

We look forward to a great turnout for an enjoyable outing on March 22!!
------------- Dale & Hilary Faris