The Oakville Historical Society is run by a group of dedicated volunteers who work hard and take pride in helping to preserve, protect and present Oakville's history in a fun and educational way through various activities and events. The Society volunteers conduct extensive ongoing historical research and maintain our collections of historical documents, photographs and libraries.
What We Offer
The Oakville Historical Society provides many opportunities to engage with Oakville's history including:
Our Story
In 1827, a prosperous merchant and entrepreneur, William Chisholm, purchased 960 acres of land around the mouth of the Sixteen Mile Creek and established a new community called the Town of Oakville.The Chisholm family built and expanded a family home, named Erchless, on land on the Eastern side of the harbour between the 1830’s and 1850’s. In 1855 an addition was built off the southeast portion of the house, closest to Navy St. and the pier, for use as a bank and Customs House.
The Oakville Historical Society's collection began when Hazel Chisholm Mathews, great-granddaughter of William Chisholm, discovered historical papers and documents in the Customs House and additional documents under boards in Erchless and other locations. In 1953, she and several citizens founded the Oakville Historical Society to discover, preserve, and disseminate knowledge of the Town's history.
At this time, another Chisholm family property, the Thomas House, was moved from its earlier location to its new permanent spot nearby in Lakeshore Park and Hazel deeded the property to the Town of Oakville. The Oakville Historical Society had its first home there.
In the early 1970s, a developer sought permission to build a high-rise apartment building on the Erchless Estate which now consisted of the Erchless family home, the Coach House and two properties known as The Cottages which has been built in the 1950's for Hazel and her sister Juliet. As a result of representations to the Town Council by the Oakville Historical Society and others, the Town, under the leadership of Mayor Harry Barrett, purchased the land and buildings in 1977 for $550,000. The Oakville Historical Society renovated Erchless, restoring it to its appearance in the 1920s and then ran it as a Museum, on behalf of the Town, until 1991.
In the 1990's, the extensive collection that had been amassed by the Oakville Historical Society was shared with the Town of Oakville, with most of the historical items and documents about the Chisholm Family going to the Town, who took over the operation of the Erchless Estate and the historic Post Office.
Most archives pertaining to the history of the Town, remained with the Oakville Historical Society who reached an agreement with the Town of Oakville for use of The Cottages as their offices, archive and exhibition space.The Oakville Historical Society also retained the operation of the Thomas House and continues to run it as a historical museum on a seasonal basis.
The OHS Memorial Bursary for Royal Canadian Army Cadets
The Oakville Historical Society is very proud to be the official sponsor of the 1188 Lorne Scots Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps.
The sponsorship recognizes the Scottish origin of the town’s founder, William Chisholm, and celebrates the fine work being done by this organization and their long history with the town.
Each year the OHS awards the Bursary to a deserving cadet in honour of a long time OHS volunteer.
Bursary Winners
2024 - This year's recipient is Cadet Chief Warrant Officer Jillian Alwyn who will be studying neurobiology at Brock University starting in the fall. She graduated from St Ignatius of Loyola High School in June.
This year the bursary was presented in honour of Greg Munz, a long-time director of the Society and former peacekeeper who served in Cyprus as a young signaller. Greg was the creator of the four sets of banners which are displayed at George's Square on Remembrance Day and which cover the following four topics: Oakville during the First World War; The Second World War; Peacekeeping, and Oakville's role in pre-1914 conflicts.
The following cadets have also been recognized for their outstanding achievements:
2023 - Master Warrant Officer Abigail Garcia
2021 - Master Warrant Officer Darren Zhao
2020- Master Warrant Officer Gabriel McQueen
(Regimental Sergeant Major of 1188 RCACC 2019-2020)
2019 - Cadet Warrant Office Douglas Chang
Congratulations to all our Bursary winners!
Acknowledgement of Support
The Oakville Historical Society gratefully acknowledges the financial support received from the Government of Canada through the Canadian Council of Archives, the Young Canada Works Program, and the Canada Summer Jobs Program, which have funded (in part) the digitization program at the Society. We also acknowledge the financial support from the Government of Ontario through the Heritage Organization Development Grant Program. Further, we acknowledge the financial and other support provided by the Town of Oakville.