Canada’s salad bowl, the Holland Marsh, is spoken of with reverence in Southern Ontario, and no wonder, since it brings the province $100s of millions in revenue every year with its abundant crops of celery, onions, lettuce, carrots, and numerous specialty crops. Situated on 7,000 acres of the lowest lying area of the Lake Simcoe watershed, it is roughly oval shaped, approximately 15 kms long and 4 kms wide. Highway 400, which cuts through the marsh, acted as a damn in 1954 when Hurricane Hazel sliced through the area. The land is underlaid with metres of peat which indicates that the area has been marshland since glacial times. The marsh was a source of food for local natives, and early European settlers fished and hunted there. In 1923, William Day, professor of physics at the Ontario Agricultural College in Guelph, proposed a plan to drain the wetlands to prepare them for agricultural use. The canal system, which flows into Lake Simcoe, was completed in 1930. The first crop, grown within Bradford’s boundaries in 1927, began the Holland Marsh garden industry. Currently the area is ‘growing enough carrots alone to provide every Canadian with four pounds each year. The marsh plays a large role in Canada’s food export market and serves a substantial local market in the neighbouring GTA. Marsh farmers also generate millions of dollars in local revenue and create employment for local agricultural processors and packagers. Growers estimate the marsh has a total economic impact of over $1 billion annually, including farm-gate value, packaging, processing and transportation.’ 1 Jack Rupke (Vice-Chairman of the Holland Marsh Drainage System Joint Municipal Services Board, and Councilor for King) is a 3rd generation marsh dweller. His family’s history in the marsh dates back to 1929 when his grandfather moved there from Holland. Rupke remembers his father plowing the lush land for the first time. His maternal grandfather who was a fisherman told him to walk behind the plow with a tin can. “In a couple of minutes I had a can full of 8-10" dew worms.” Ansnorveldt, established in 1934, was the first community on the marsh. The name Ansnorveldt comes from the Dutch words, ‘aan’ and ‘veld’, and the name Snor (Canada’s representative of the Netherlands Immigration Foundation), which means “on Snor’s field”. Both of Rupke’s grandfathers were involved in the development of the town. Land had been drained and pockets were being farmed. The opportunity to expand was seen, and a plan devised to attract Dutch immigrants to the area. The Canadian and Dutch governments worked together to provide 5 acres of land and $500 for each family who made the marsh home. Eighteen families came to Ansnorveldt, and constructed the unique row of identical 1 1/2 storey houses. The first winter on the marsh was severe and the settlement was often isolated from Bradford, the closest source of supplies. Wood was the only fuel. The houses were drafty and swayed when a harsh wind blew. Following the Dutch, Europeans and Asians arrived to the area. They lived in peace on the Holland Marsh, even though their countries had fought each other overseas during World War II. Ten to fifteen acre farms were once common. Now there are fewer farmers with larger acreage. Ninety to one hundred acres are required for survival. Today’s farmers own some land and rent some, in order to cover the cost of equipment such as harvesters and spreaders, and the increased cost of seed, fertilizer, chemicals, and labour. The hard-working pioneers of the past toiled on the land to earn a living. According to Rupke, it is difficult to get farm labour today - local Canadians are unreliable or unable to do the work. An off-shore labour program provides reliable hard-working people from countries like Mexico, and Jamaica. The farmers provide accommodation, transportation, good pay, and medical coverage. It is not cheap labour, but in return the workers are there to work when needed. Rupke once specialized in growing celery, a labour intensive crop. He had no problem with workers in the 60s and 70s; the Italian and Portuguese persevered, “if you needed 10 people, there would be 10 people ready at 6 o’clock in the morning and they would work until we were done.” Later his workers came from Mexico with the immigration program. One individual came 14 years in a row, and eventually became a straw boss. One of Rupke’s son’s, also a farm worker, learned Spanish and later visited a labourer he had befriended, in his hometown in Mexico. One cannot remember the history of the marsh without thinking of Hurricane Hazel, which devastated the area in 1954. After the hurricane, ‘the Holland River would try to reclaim the marsh for its floodplain.’2 And it succeeded, although the west side suffered the most damage and the dykes broke. Highway 400 acted as a dam, saving the east side from some of the storm’s fury. A culvert between east and west was blocked with old cars to prevent water from breaking through, causing the water on the west side to rise higher. In the days after the hurricane, pumps from Northern Ontario mines were used to remove the flood water, and Mennonites came from the Kitchener and Waterloo area to help the locals rebuild. The narrow road in front of Rupke’s house was originally the main east/west highway. When highway 9 was built the tree line was pushed back, a new canal dug and the existing canal simply filled in. Today it is not so simple to fill in a canal. Ministries are stricter about water courses. In order to move a canal a dam must be built, and the fish shocked so they can be moved to the new waterway. The fish are gathered quickly while they are floating (some will die), before seagulls dive-bomb the area. Special equipment and licensed workers are required to complete the safe removal of the fish, the cost of which is in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Work can only be done at certain times of the year because of restrictions to protect the fish population. Fish and other creatures were given little thought in the early years. The following quote reflects the attitudes and knowledge of the early settlers to the area, ‘Until the 1920s, the land produced only marsh hay, frogs, and mosquitoes, as well as extremely large muskrats.’3 . Apart from the muskrats, which disappeared ‘as a result of cultivation of the marsh’, (to the dismay of the local trappers), marsh hay was the only commodity. In the early 1900’s a factory in Bradford harvested the marsh grasses, which were used to stuff mattresses. The development of the area into a vast garden brought prosperity to the pioneers and future generations. However it was referred to as “thousands of acres of marshy wasteland” before it was transformed “into the finest gardens in Canada.”3 The environmental value of the marsh before it was transformed into farmland can be appreciated in “The Holland Marsh - The Heart of Canada’s Vegetable Industry” by Dorothy Cilipka. Cilipka’s book lists 168 bird species that were seen on the marsh, before the expansion of farming in 1953. Today, nearby Miniseng Swamp boasts 206 bird species and 400 plant species, 11 of which are considered provincially rare.4 However, the Lake Simcoe Conservation Authority lists 32 local species at risk on its website. As well as bird, fish and plants there are several reptiles and turtles that are endangered or threatened. The role of a ‘marsh in the ecosystem is one of water storage and flow control, as well as providing a diverse habitat for wetland birds and mammals, young fish, and a wide variety of plants.’5 There are projects currently in the works to maintain the canals and drainage systems of the Holland Marsh. It took seven years to get the $26 1/2 million project off the ground, with the various assessments and approvals required. In some areas where the road and canal are in close proximity the canal will be filled in, and a new canal built to ensure driver safety and maintain adequate drainage. Some small pockets of marsh remain in the area. Ontario’s richest farmland, since my grandparents’ and Jack Rupke’s grandparents’ time, is expected to provide fertile muck soil for farming for another 200 years. |
Footnoted Sources:
1. Holland Marsh Growers Association - www.hollandmarshgold.com/farms
2. And the Swamp Flourished - The Bittersweet Story of the Holland Marsh
3. Early Settlement of King Township, Ontario, by Elizabeth McLure Gillham, first printed in 1975, reprinted c1990
4 Wetlands International - www.wetlands.org
5. Lake Simcoe Conservation Authority - Lake Simcoe our waters, our heritage - Additional Sources: Interview with Jack Rupke, January 2010. The Holland Marsh - The Heart of Canada’s Vegetable Industry by Dorothy Cilipka, 2004
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