Ermatinger Clergue National Historic Site facts for kids
Ermatinger-Clergue Heritage Discovery Centre
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| Location | Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada |
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| Type | Museum |
The Ermatinger Clergue National Historic Site is a special place in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. It's both a historic site and a museum. Here, you can explore old buildings and learn about the past.
What You'll Find at the Site
This historic site has three main buildings. These are the Ermatinger Old Stone House, the Clergue Blockhouse, and the Heritage Discovery Centre. The Ermatinger and Clergue houses are believed to be the oldest buildings in the area northwest of Toronto.
The newest building, the Heritage Discovery Centre, was finished in 2014. It was built to offer more space for learning and fun activities. The city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, takes care of the entire site.
The Ermatinger Old Stone House
The Ermatinger Old Stone House is the very first building on this site. It was built a long time ago, between 1814 and 1823. Many people think it's one of the oldest houses still standing in Northern Ontario.
A man named Charles Oakes Ermatinger built this house. He was a fur trader for the North West Company. He lived here with his wife and children until 1828. The house was made a national historic site in 1957.
The house was built using local stone and wood. It faces the St. Mary's River. For its time, it was a very large and impressive building. After the Ermatinger family left, the house was used for many different things. It was a mission, a hotel, a tavern, and even a post office. It also served as a dance hall, a tea room, and an apartment building. In 1965, the City of Sault Ste. Marie bought the house. They fixed it up and opened it to the public as a museum.
A historian named McNeice started researching the house in 1956. She learned a lot about the Ermatinger family and the house's history. Her work helped people understand the importance of this old building.
The Clergue Blockhouse
The Clergue Blockhouse started as a powder magazine. This was a safe place to store gunpowder for the North West Company's trading post. Later, the North West Company joined with the Hudson's Bay Company. The trading post was no longer used, and only the foundation of the powder magazine remained.
An American businessman named F.H. Clergue bought the property. He changed the old powder magazine into a home. He lived in the blockhouse from 1894 to 1902.
In 1979, the City of Sault Ste. Marie made the blockhouse a local historical site. Years later, in 1995, the St. Mary's Paper Mill planned to build new things. This would have put the blockhouse in danger. So, in 1996, the City of Sault Ste. Marie bought the building. They moved it from the paper mill to the Ermatinger Old Stone House site. This created a group of important historic buildings all in one place.
