Now celebrating its 10th year, Doors Open Ontario 2011 begins on April 30 with an event in Guelph.
This season, participants will have the opportunity to explore iconic landmarks, natural wonders, architectural gems, and hidden heritage treasures at 56 community events across the province.
Seven of the events in 2011 are new. Deseronto-Napanee, Grimsby, Highlands East, Kapuskasing, Middlesex, Merrickville, and Pickering have now joined the program.
“Looking back on 10 years of Doors Open Ontario, it is clear that when we come together to showcase the landscapes, architecture, and traditions that make us unique, we demonstrate the distinctive identity of each and every community,” said Dr. Thomas H.B. Symons, chairman of the Ontario Heritage Trust. “This annual event will shed light on the province’s many stories for years to come.”
Minister of Tourism and Culture Michael Chan, said, “Doors Open Ontario is a great program, giving Ontarians an opportunity to access and explore our unique heritage. Since its inception in 2002, Doors Open Ontario has grown significantly in popularity, generating positive social and economic impacts for local communities across the province.”
Each year, hundreds of historic buildings, places of worship, private homes, industrial areas, and heritage gardens – some of which are rarely accessible to the public – open free of charge as part of Doors Open Ontario.
Many of the participating sites offer special activities, such as tours, exhibitions, and demonstrations. For more information, pick up a free Doors Open Ontario 2011 Guide – listing each event along with a selection of participating community sites.
The guide is also available by calling 1-800-ONTARIO (668-2746). For a complete list of participating sites, visit www.doorsopenontario.on.ca.
Doors Open Ontario offers a variety of sites across the province to suit all interests.
Some of them to explore this year include:
– Sleeman House, a Queen Anne-style house built with state-of-the-art facilities in 1891 for Guelph politician George Sleeman and his large family;
– The Circle, built in 1921, one of the best examples of Kapuskasing’s formal street patterns as influenced by the City Beautiful movement;
– The Cleeve Horne House, built by Cleeve and Jean Horne in the 1950s as an artist’s getaway, the architectural treasure is described as a hyperbolic paraboloid (Pickering);
– Old St. Thomas Church and Churchyard, constructed in 1824 in the early English Gothic revival style and surrounded by a picturesque graveyard, it is the oldest church in the Talbot Settlement; and,
– the Wabi Iron & Steel Corporation, with a history spanning more than 100 years, the company produces an extensive range of iron and steel castings and fully machined products for the global marketplace (Temiskaming Shores and Area).
Doors Open Ontario is a program of the Ontario Heritage Trust. The Trust also coordinates Trails Open Ontario. Information on this year’s Trails Open Ontario program will be available soon at www.heritagetrust.on.ca and in the Doors Open Ontario 2011 Guide.
Approximately 89 per cent of Ontarians live in a community that has hosted a Doors Open Ontario event. Since the program’s launch in 2002, over 3.8 million visits have been made to Doors Open Ontario sites.
By the end of the 10th anniversary season, spending by out-of-town visitors in Ontario’s communities will surpass the $20-million mark.
