The old county courthouse was built at the corner of James and King streets in 1849. Three years later, town council approved putting a clock into the tower. The clock remains a working engineering marvel and is one of the many landmarks from St. Catharines’ past. As part of Digital Doors Open, watch the video below to learn more about the history of the clock. Today, the courthouse is used by the City of St. Catharines as municipal offices.

The shorelines of the Lakehead have been populated with elevators since the early 1880s, with the construction of Port Arthur’s King Elevator beginning in 1883. The grain industry fuelled much of the development of the twin cities, with the first elevators being built by the Canadian Pacific Railway at Fort William in 1885. Construction of grain elevators proceeded so rapidly that Fort William was called “Elevator City” during the early 20th century. Today, there are seven operational grain terminals at the Port of Thunder Bay. One of these is the Superior Elevator. Grain arrives here by rail where it is offloaded, inspected, cleaned (if needed) and stored until its journey continues east by ship. Watch the video below to see this terminal in operation and learn more about its role in transporting grain to market.

Reputed to be among the oldest dwellings in Colborne, this was the home of Scottish immigrant John Steele and his wife Mary Spalding from 1831-43. Some feel that the house pre-dates 1820 because of a letter from Mary Spalding arranging for a housemaid. Steele, a founder of Queen’s University, held many other posts — including a magistrate, a newspaper man, a member of the local Board of Education, and with various agricultural societies. In 1843, the Steeles moved to Grafton and sold their house to Cuthbert Cumming. Cumming in turn sold it in 1858 to the Scougale family, who lived there for over 100 years, next door to their haberdashery business. As part of Digital Doors Open, learn more about this house in the video below.

The United States has had an official diplomatic presence in Canada since 1827. Built in 1969, the current building creates a bridge between places, peoples and ideas. Symbolizing a bridge, the building stands for partnership and alliance. As a work of architecture, the magnificence of the building is indicative of the significant relationship that the United States has with Canada.

The Barrie Historical Archive’s new, interactive walking tour explores downtown Barrie in a whole new way – revealing a surprising number of historical hotels and sites that have catered to railway and lumber workers, politicians and tourists since the 1800s. For Digital Doors Open, follow along with local historian and storyteller Mary Harris in the video below as she describes the history, colourful proprietors, scandals, fights, grand events and unusual guests from years gone by.

The Belleville Wastewater Treatment Plant is located by the Bay of Quinte in Belleville’s east end. It deals with wastewater that goes down drains in our homes, public buildings and commercial facilities. Wastewater travels through the city’s sanitary sewer system to the Water Pollution Control Plant at the same complex. Wastewater then goes through an extensive treatment process and is returned to the Bay of Quinte. Biosolids are used as fertilizer for agricultural purposes. As of 2020, city water staff have been testing a new odour-control product to break down and control sulfur compounds that can fill the autumn air surrounding the city’s wastewater treatment plant. A storm sewer is a pipeline designed to direct stormwater to a stormwater management pond or receiving stream or body of water. Stormwater is rainfall and melting snow that soaks into the ground or runs off surfaces into storm sewers and nearby waterways. As part of Digital Doors Open, learn more about this treatment plant here.

Olivetti. Olympia. Remington. Royal. Smith-Corona. Underwood. Typewriters are enjoying a big revival and Waterloo resident Currie Russell is swept up in the nostalgia revolution. What began as a pandemic passion project has evolved into a thriving side-hustle for this Waterloo collector. Russell is one of a handful of people in Ontario currently equipped to buy, sell and repair these majestic machines, but he is also part of a global movement spanning all corners of the planet where enthusiasts are connecting to share knowledge and learning that will keep these vintage marvels alive for others to discover into the future. Learn more about these machines and about Russell's passion as part of Digital Doors Open through the video below.