Name/Title
Van Vlack School and The Village of Van VlackEntry/Object ID
2020.31.2Scope and Content
Typewritten account of the history of Van Vlack Village and Van Vlack SchoolContext
John Barrett Van Vlack arrived in the area circa 1869 when he purchased 69 acres of land and began building the Village of Van Vlack. Van Vlack was a commercial fisherman, built a shingle mill, ran a general store and became the first postmaster of the Van Vlack Post Office. A wooden bridge was built in 1872 with a grant in the amount of $400 from the County of Simcoe. The bridge was located approximately the end of Beck Street at River Road East and spanned across approximately to where the Park 1 Gate House entrance is located. This is also near the location where the Allistonia Hotel was located. By 1896, about 70 people lived in the village that included a local school and the Presbyterian Church opened in 1894. In the late 1800's, a bunkhouse was erected on the north bank of the Nottawasaga River to accommodate workers from the shingle mill and lumber mill across the river. The wooden bridge allowed workers to cross the river and provided residents and visitors access to the beachfront which at the time was the main road in the area. The bridge was operational until 1909 when due to deterioration of the wooden bridge, a steel bridge was constructed a few hundred feet west of the original bridge in the location where the current Main Street bridge is located.
Van Vlack School was built in 1883 , at a cost of $228.22 with a 10' addition added 4 years later at a cost of $105.00. The Van Vlack School was one large room, about 22' x 30' and was heated by a wood stove. The school had about 50 students. The first teacher was John Gilchrist who earned $275 per year.
The school continued to thrive over the years until in 1922, it was determined that most of the students came from the eastern part of the school section and the controversial decision was made, by a very close vote, to move the school 2 miles east to S 1/2 Lot 21, Flos Township at the corner of Highway 92 and County Road 20. The school was loaded onto skids and hitched to a team of horses. A group of men opposed to moving the school, built a bonfire in the middle of the road in attempt to stop the move but eventually the move continued to the new location. The school was then formally known as Van Vlack Public School No. 12, Township of Flos. The school operated until June 29, 1965 when it was closed.
(Note: information gathered indicates both 1883 and 1886 as the dates the school was built.)Acquisition
Accession
2020.31Source or Donor
UnknownAcquisition Method
Gift