By Chad Ingram
Published Oct. 2 2018
During an update of Haliburton County’s civic addressing bylawat a Sept. 26 council meeting councillors said they’d like to includein the resolution encouragement for private road owners to use namesthat pay tribute to the heritage of the community.
Algonquin Highlands Mayor Carol Moffatt said that while private road owners can obviously name their roads whatever they want “Isthere any consideration for directing people to potentiallyheritage-related names in order to retain the heritage of thecommunity?”
Moffatt pointed out that each of the county’s municipalitieshave cultural plans heritage-related organizations and museums thatwould be able to provide historical information relevant to variousparts of the county.
“Not to get into telling people what they have to name theirroads – they’re their roads” she said but added that perhaps if people had access to some heritage-related choices they might choose them.
Moffatt said a number of roads have arbitrary or banal names.In one case she said there had been a proposal to name a road nearBeech Lake using a First Nations word for the waterbody.
“The county denied that saying it was too difficult topronounce and I can’t say out loud what I would call that in thismeeting” she said. “But now we’ve lost a piece of history.”
Moffatt’s colleagues agreed with the idea.
“I know the historical society did a study on historical namesand I think it would be pretty easy to get that list” said Dysart et al Mayor Murray Fearrey.
“There’s historical context” said Minden Hills Mayor BrentDevolin. “Can we coach give a grocery list if that can be included.”
“In the end it’s their decision” Devolin said but agreed that people might choose historical names if they access to them.
Public works director Craig Douglas said there was a list ofnames that could be modified and some wording encouraging the use ofheritage names is to be included in the bylaw.
Moffatt said people may be unaware of interesting things that have transpired on or near their property in the past.
“There might just be something where the property owner says ‘that’s cool’” she said.
