Today, I headed to my mom's farm for a day of exploring the past. Our plan was to visit Archives Lanark, which houses historical and genealogical documents about Lanark County.

But first, my mom had an errand to do in Lanark village. While there, I decided to take some photos of Sacred Heart Church and Sacred Heart School, both of which I had attended in my youth. When we got to the school, we ran into an old schoolmate of mine—Robert (Bob) Milotte—whom I hadn't seen in 45 years. It was serendipitous, as he was a font of knowledge about Lanark and our days in the tiny Catholic school, and I was an eager listener. He's one of those people I admire for being able to easily recall not just stories but also the full names of the people in the stories. He regaled us with anecdotes of the teachers and students at Sacred Heart Separate School: a teacher who would discipline a student and then, five minutes later, hug that student, the kids who routinely picked on others, the home run he batted with the bases loaded to win the baseball tournament, the day we got lost in the forest and were rescued by men on skidoos. I could have stood there talking to him for hours; as it was, we chatted for a good 20 minutes. In the past, I might have wished him well and gone on my way. But this time, I asked for permission to take a photo of the two of us (and to publish it) and for his coordinates on Facebook so that I could stay connected with him.

We returned to my mom's for lunch. I told my brother, Bryan, about having met Bob in Lanark, which got us onto the subject of memories. Bryan shared that he recalled reading a book called The Busy Bulldozer as a kid. He loved the book, which would foretell his future using a bulldozer on my mom's farm.

Then my Mom and I headed to Drummond Centre, site of the former municipal building of Drummond Township and current home of Archives Lanark. Though it serves all of Lanark County, Archives Lanark is conveniently located just 12 minutes from my mom's farm, accessible through quiet, country roads.

When we arrived, we were greeted by Wendy Roberts, the volunteer who has been bringing Archives Lanark materials to the monthly By the Falls Musical Social events in Ferguson Falls Community Centre. Wendy gave me a copy of the Rural Schools Lanark Township book, which I had won as part of a draw at the Musical Social. I decided to buy the Rural Schools Drummond Township book, since both volumes contain entries on the Ferguson Falls School just up the road from my mom's farm. Known as SS #8 Lanark and SS #19 Drummond, the union school served families in both townships, and my older siblings attended it before it closed in 1968 and they moved to Sacred Heart Separate School in Lanark.

Wendy showed me around the archives, explaining what resources they have on site. They included compilations of local birth, marriage and death notices, Lanark County land records, collections of local newspapers, and historical books. Another volunteer, Marilyn Snedden, pulled books that had been put together by the Women's Institute in Ferguson Falls. I had thought that such books would have been devoted to the meetings and activities of the Ferguson Falls Women's Institute. However, they contained all sorts of information about the community and its residents. Marilyn explained that Lady Tweedsmuir, wife of Canadian Governor General Lord Tweedsmuir (1935-1940), encouraged Women's Institutes to document rural history.

This evening, I went in search of information about Lady Tweedsmuir. The Federated Women’s Institutes of Ontario (formed in 1919) provides a summary of what became known as the Tweedsmuir Community History Books. According to the organization's website, Tweedsmuirs varied in the information they collected, but often included details on the local Women's Institute branch, earliest settlers in the area, profiles of individual farms, industries important to the local economy, social institutions and public buildings (such as churches, schools and community centres), and local personalities. The idea that Women's Institute members would write the histories of their communities dates back to 1925, when the Committee for Historical Research and Current Events supported the study of local history to gain insights into the lives of ancestors. "By the mid-1930s, Lady Tweedsmuir, wife of Lord Tweedsmuir, Governor General of Canada, took a great interest in the Women's Institutes in this country," the site says. "As an active WI member in England, she suggested that Ontario Women's Institute Branches follow the example of their English counterparts and keep detailed local history books." By 1964, more than 1,100 Women's Institute branches had produced Tweedsmuirs.

As with my conversation with Bob in the morning, I could have stayed at Archives Lanark long past their closing time of 3:00 PM. The volunteers are incredibly nice and helpful. It also helps that my mom is as keen on local and family history as I am.

My day in Lanark—Lanark village, Lanark Highlands Township, Lanark County—was just the kind of day I love: one focused on family and stories.