Village Squire, 1980-07, Page 6hairdresser and the village archives, capturing the simple beauty
of a small Canadian town with a big city flavor. Pottery,
paintings, antiques and ice cream can all be purchased on a
Sunday afternoon shopping trip into Bayfield. However, a
Sunday visit will not illustrate why so many find the little village
so appealing.
On a clear morning, before the shops are opened and the
tourists crowd in, you can smell fragrant grayish pink and
purple lilacs, mixed with the perfumed scent of early morning
dew. One deep breath sends your head spinning and your mind
dancing back to the hustle and bustle of rural Canada 100 years
ago.
HAUNTING THE STREETS
In the silence of the morning under nature's intoxicating
winds, you can almost hear the rhythmic cry of a violin, haunting
the quiet streets with a whining jig. You hear the rustle of long
skirts sweeping the dusty gravel road and horse drawn wagons
passing the old general store.
A quick glance up to a second floor window or across the street
to a front porch and you can see the ghosts of rural Canada, like a
foggy browning photograph . But then, as hours pass, the
tourists arrive once again and the small Main Street becomes a
maze of people and cars, and the music stops and the ghosts
disappear and your timeless dream drifts away like the exhaust
from each new car that drives by.
It's only been over the last five or six years that Bayfield has
seen sharp increases in the tourist population. What was once
strictly a resort for well-to-do cottagers has become a mecca for
boaters, campers and general Sunday shoppers. During the
summer months, a winter population of 611 more than doubles.
Bayfieldites attribute this change to the new sign on Highway
21 that points traffic off the Blue Water Highway to the
downtown business sections and to the marina that has made
Bayfield one of the biggest sailing towns on Lake Huron, and to
the merchants who have placed ads in daily newspapers across
Ontario, and to the cottagers who have told their friends about
Bayfield, and to the weather, and to the bad luck they've been
having lately, and to change.
OLD JIGS
To illustrate how drastically Bayfield's popularity has
increased over the last 10 years, one merchant, Richard Dick of
the Village Guild tells the story of Jigs, an old half blind, lame
dog, whose only remaining pleasure in life was to lie in the sun.
Mr. Dick explained that at the time (about 10 years ago) the
warmest spot, or at least the one Jigs seemed to prefer, was in
the middle of Main Street.
"And do you know he never got hit, we all knew he was there
and just drove around him."
Mr. Dick said today, old Jigs wouldn't stand a chance.
Like many others, Mr. Dick and his wife Sarah said it was the
peaceful atmosphere that attracted them to Bayfield and
eventually spurred them to purchase the Village Guild one of the
oldest businesses on Main Street. The Dicks, from outside of
Detroit city, are part of the friendly image fitting such a quaint
village. But not everyone casts the same light on Bayfield.
An aura of indecisiveness hangs over the little village like a
cloud over a steel mill. For the first time in the village's 104 year
history, residents are faced with an uncertain future. They're
asked to make a decision -one that wouldhave them continue their
struggle for the anonymity they enjoyed in the past, accept
advantages and disadvantages of change and growth, or strictly
monitor any further development. Like any decision involving
people in a community big or small, talk of Bayfield's future has
caused a volcano of emotions to erupt.
CHANGES
Sweeping away the gray hairs that had fallen from a loose bun
onto her forehead, Elva Metcalf discusses the changes she has
seen in Bayfield since her first visit at the age of 14.
PG. 4 VILLAGE SQUIRE/JULY 1980
The marina development has made Bayfield one of the
largest recreational sailing ports on Lake Huron.