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Expanding the narrative
Expanding the narrative
This is part of a broader conversation about whose history is being told, about gender, people of colour and the economically disenfranchised, and others whose stories have been overlooked or intentionally omitted from the authorized discussion.
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Francophone heritage
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Intangible heritage
Intangible cultural heritage includes language, traditions, music, food, special skills, etc.
Medical heritage
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MyOntario
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Photo: Curt Clayton

Welcome to the new Heritage Matters!

Explore past issues of our magazine in a new digital format. While we continue to migrate over archived articles, you can still find past issues on our website.

Photo courtesy of Donovan Rypkema

Nine ways that heritage conservation is good for the economy

By Donovan Rypkema. Advocates for heritage conservation have traditionally made their case on the basis of architectural character, cultural significance, social relevance ...

Photo: Richard Adams

Explore our stories about buildings and architecture

Check out the many stories published by the Ontario Heritage Trust about buildings and architecture - from adaptive re-use and conservation activities to iconic structures and the economic impact of heritage ...

Photo: Destination Ontario

Revitalizing communities – The power of conservation

By Beth Hanna. The Trust team has been examining whose stories we tell, and whose heritage we protect through our sites and programs. We are working on expanding that narrative to a more honest, authentic and inclusive portrayal of Ontario’s heritage. These are important and timely discussions ...

Latest features

The Canadian Niagara Power Generating Station was opened for a special Doors Open weekend on October 26-27, 2019. (Photo: Niagara Parks)

01 Oct 2019
Economics of heritage
Buildings and architecture
Community

How Doors Open Ontario activates the province’s communities

The Ontario Heritage Trust’s Doors Open Ontario program works with communities and partners to open the doors, gates and courtyards of Ontario’s most unique and fascinating cultural sites in order to encourage Ontarians to discover the stories inside. From historical houses to modern marvels of construction, Doors Open Ontario showcases the buildings, natural spaces, infrastructure and cultural landscapes that shape and define our communities. The program encourages Ontarians to experience their history up close, behind...

Children from Pelee Island Pubic School helping to collect seeds for restoration projects

01 Oct 2019
Economics of heritage
Environment

Conserving what we value

It was my time to finally get my message across. About 15 years ago, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) was beginning to purchase properties...

Re-saturating calcimine paint on decorative plaster moulding from 1817. Reproduction rosettes at top left. Homemade traditional plasterer’s tools at bottom left. (Macdonell-Williamson House, Chute-a-Blondeau)

01 Oct 2019
Economics of heritage
Buildings and architecture

The case for craftsmanship

One of the greater pleasures of working in architectural conservation in Ontario is the opportunity it provides to work with traditional building materials: the timber...

01 Oct 2019
Economics of heritage
Buildings and architecture
Arts and creativity
Community

Quiet on the set

Shaftesbury is the company behind the hit television series Murdoch Mysteries and Frankie Drake Mysteries, both of which air on CBC in Canada and are...

Photo courtesy of the First Christian Assembly in Philadelphia, USA

01 Oct 2019
Economics of heritage
Buildings and architecture
Community

The economic halo effect of sacred places: Measuring civic impact in an innovative new way

Nestled in the old city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Old St. George’s United Methodist Church is a “mother church” of the denomination and the oldest Methodist...

Photo: Doors Open Brampton

Doors Open Ontario

Discover the story behind every door!

Start planning your excursion today.

SelectedStories

Oct 01, 2019
Economics of heritage
Archaeology
Community
Author: Donovan Rypkema

Nine ways that heritage conservation is good for the economy

Advocates for heritage conservation have traditionally made their case on the basis of architectural character, cultural significance, social relevance, esthetic quality and other values of historical buildings. And those values are as important as ever. In recent years, however, researchers have demonstrated the significant impact that heritage conservation has on the local economy. It is not that the economic value is more important than the other values – indeed it is not. In the long...

This bench overlooks the river and burial mounds (Photo: Chris McEvoy, Rusty Anchor Productions)

Present. Preserve. Protect.

Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre, the Place of the Long Rapids, is a historically significant meeting place located along the banks of Manidoo Ziibi (Spirit River or Rainy River) in Northwestern Ontario. Also known as Manitou Mounds, it is the largest concentration of known burial mounds in North America; it was designated a National Historic Site in 1969. The centre is owned and operated by Rainy River First Nations, and offers interpretive tours and galleries, a collections...

Oct 01, 2019
Economics of heritage
Buildings and architecture
Author: Michael Emory

Heritage buildings and the evolution of workspace

I work for Allied Properties – a leading owner, manager and developer of urban workspace in major Canadian cities. Allied’s units are publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Allied was known initially for its leading role in the emergence of distinctive urban workspace in Toronto. This began in the 1980s and accelerated in the late 1990s. It involved the adaptive reuse of heritage buildings constructed over a century ago for light-industrial use. Properly restored...

Oct 01, 2019
Economics of heritage
Buildings and architecture
Environment
Community
Author: Clare Ronan

Reside: When heritage preservation translates to affordable housing

Raising the Roof is a Canadian charity that provides national leadership in homelessness prevention through various initiatives. Reside is one such project that creates affordable housing by leveraging the availability of vacant and underutilized properties. The overall goal of Reside is to repurpose vacant properties – including heritage sites – into affordable rental units for individuals who are at risk of, or experiencing, homelessness. Currently, Raising the Roof is renovating two vacant properties in Ontario...

Traditional building materials (McMartin House, Perth)

Buildings and architecture
Environment

Building assets

Which is more sustainable – an artificial or live Christmas tree? This is an environmentalist’s conundrum, and it illustrates the paradox of “sustainable” building materials...

Repairs to the Gordon Block, Stratford (2007)

Buildings and architecture
Environment

The guiding principles of sustainable architecture

In the late 1990s, the Ontario Ministry of Culture introduced Eight Guiding Principles in the Conservation of Built Heritage Properties, which are in common use...

Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) – special concern provincially and nationally

Environment
Natural heritage

Sustaining species at risk

Ontario, with its broad geography, is blessed with incredible biologically diverse landscapes. Most of us take this amazing biodiversity for granted and do not fully...

Environment
Natural heritage

Exploring the Beaver River Wetland

In June 2007, the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA) hosted a celebration to recognize the private and public efforts to protect two recently acquired...

Buildings and architecture
Environment

Inside Sheppard’s Bush

Charles Sheppard (1876-1967) moved to the Town of Aurora in 1921, after making his fortune in the Simcoe County lumber industry. Brooklands, his modest estate...

View of the Don Valley Brick Works site, looking south (Photo courtesy of Evergreen)

Buildings and architecture
Environment

Evergreen Brick Works: Rethinking space

Evergreen – a national charity – builds the relationship between nature, culture and community in urban spaces. With its revitalization of Toronto’s Don Valley Brick...

A 1930s view of the town site taken from the north, looking towards the mill (Photo courtesy of The Ron Morel Memorial Museum, Kapuskasing)

Buildings and architecture
Community

Discovering the City Beautiful

On July 25, 2007, the Ontario Heritage Trust and the Town of Kapuskasing unveiled a provincial plaque to commemorate the town plan that helped shape...