Feds may still want to oversee city farm

From The Charlottetown Guardian, Monday, October 23rd, 2006:

Feds may still want to oversee city farm
Speaker says potential native land claims could impact future of major property.
By Nigel Armstrong
The Guardian

Agriculture Canada may want to remain owner of the 80-plus acre Experimental Farm in the heart of Charlottetown after all.

“I have the feeling that they do,” said Doug Shouldice, president of the citizen’s group that supports Ottawa’s Central Experimental Farm.

He was guest speaker at the annual meeting of Friends of the Farm P.E.I.

Shouldice said after the meeting that he has never been told on or off the record that the federal department wants to back away from plans to abandon the over 80 acres of land in the centre of Charlottetown. Rather it was a gut feeling he gets when dealing with his group’s issues in Ottawa.

For one thing, any change of ownership in the Charlottetown land could well open up aboriginal land claims as suggested by John Joe Sark in 2002.

“At one point, (Agriculture Canada) was going to close it, close it down,” said Shouldice of the Charlottetown farm lands.

“That was three, four years ago but it’s still here. Nothing, at this moment, is going to be closed.

“We went through that same thing in Ottawa.”

Sitting in the heart of urban Ottawa, the nearly 400 acres of the nation’s main experimental farm was being considered as surplus by Agriculture Canada officials.

A group of concerned citizens formed a support group for the Ottawa farm in 1988.

It offered to find groups and people to maintain parts of the farm and soon there were volunteer teams and organizations looking after the arboretum, the peony beds, the lilac trees and now there are plans of hand-planting 23,000 trees in the coming years. Books have been or are about to be published, there are fundraising events, Victorian tea socials, trails and public gardens.

“The most important thing we offer is the daily work we are doing, the labour, all volunteer,” said Shouldice.

In 2003, Agriculture and Agri-food Canada revitalized some research programs at the Ottawa farm and the group feels the land is now more securely in public hands as a working farm and public green space for the long term.

The same could happen in Charlottetown, said Shouldice.

“You can’t just say ‘I want the farm,’ ” he said. “You have to come with something you can add to (the uses for the land). They say no to us, as well, but there is a lot that they let us do. We are giving them 15,000 hours of labour a year and that counts for something.”

There was a strong hint at the meeting that the University of Prince Edward Island may want to use the Charlottetown land in some agricultural capacity.

“We have had meetings with the university and we are keeping our fingers crossed, hoping we will be included in their plans,” said Connie MacKay-Carr, a member of Friends of the Farm.

Annual Meeting

Friends of the Farm Annual Meeting and Lecture

Doug Shouldice will address the annual meeting of the Friends of the Farm(PEI)
on Wednesday, October 18 at 7:30 p.m.. The meeting will be held at the Lecture
Hall in the K.C.Irving Chemistry Centre at UPEI. There will
be a brief business meeting following which Mr. Shouldice
will speak on the topic “Ottawa’s Central Experimental Farm
- Preserved and Flourishing.”

Doug Shouldice is President of the Friends of the Central
Experimental Farm in Ottawa. This is an organization of
approximately 400 volunteers whose mandate is to promote,
maintain, protect, and enhance The Farm.

The Central Experimental Farm was the first of the national
research stations, and has been declared a National Historic Site, and Heritage
Landscape.

Mr. Shouldice has been a career educator, and for the past 20 years a member of
the board of the Central Canada Exhibition Association. He has been a volunteer
board member of the Friends of the Central Experimental Farm for the last five
years. Among his pet projects is the creation of a shelterbelt to protect a corner of
The Farm from a busy, neighbouring thoroughfare. He works with volunteers, the
public and politicians at all three levels of government to protect and enhance The
Farm.

Friends of the Farm(PEI) continues to work toward the objective of to developing
a permanent cultural and ecological landscape on the grounds of the Experimental
Farm. Everyone is welcome and invited to attend the annual meeting and lecture.

History of the Farm

The Experimental Farm was established in 1909 by the Canadian government. Later it was
designated as the “Charlottetown Research Station” and today ( 2006) its official title is the
“Crops and Livestock Research Centre”. However, the popular name is still the Experimental
Farm.

The land on which the Experimental Farm is located was one of the lots of the Common
surrounding the town of Charlottetown in the original survey done in the 1700's. This lot was
granted to the Attorney General for the Island, Sir William Johnston about 1820.Sir William
ordered the construction of a house, Ravenwood, in the early 1820's. When Prince Edward Island
entered Confederation in 1873, the Premier, the Honourable James C. Pope and his family,
occupied Ravenwood. Surrounding Ravenwood, were gardens, a cricket pitch, and a hop garden
to supply Mr. Pope’s personal brewery.

North of the present buildings, there is a row of trees along what was once “Pottery Lane”. In
1880 the Charlottetown Brick and Pottery Works was established near here. This site was
apparently chosen because of the presence of a deposit of brick clay. This pottery was in
production for about 15 years. However, the pottery clay did not glaze well, and ultimately the
plant closed.

A painting by Robert Harris illustrates Mount Edward road between Ravenwood and Ardgowan
about the time of Confederation. This painting
is owned by the Confederation Centre Art
Gallery.

In 1909, the Canadian Government assumed control of the property to establish an Experimental
Farm.

Historical Sites

RAVENWOOD

Ravenwood is an example of the type of houses which the ‘landed gentry’ built in the lots
surrounding early Charlottetown. Only a few such houses remain. It was built for Sir William
Johnson in the early 1820's. It occupies an imposing site, and at the time of its construction, one
could see the harbour in the fall when the foliage had gone.

In 1909, when the Government of Canada assumed responsibility for the land, Ravenwood was
in need of repair. A verandah which was on three sides of the house was removed. The bay
windows, the belvedere and the portico were added in 1910. Because of the many alterations
which have been carried out. Ravenwood is a recognized historic site; rather than a designated
historic site.

Ravenwood was a home for the various directors of the Experimental Farm/ Research Station.
Dr. and Mrs. Lloyd MacLeod and their family were the last occupants. Today, Ravenwood is a
home for the offices of the Island Nature Trust.

In the concept plan prepared for this site. Ravenwood occupies a central position.


THE ROYAL FOREST

In front of Ravenwood is a large group of tall trees, and this area has been called the “Royal
Forest”. Various members of the British royalty have planted trees here when visiting Prince
Edward Island. Many of the Governor Generals of Canada have also participated in tree planting.
The first such tree is an American elm, planted on July 30th, 1912, by the Duke of Connaught,
then Governor General of Canada. H.R.H. Charles, Prince of Wales planted an English oak on
June 27th,1983.
Many of the Farm/Station directors have also planted trees here. A total of 29 trees have been
planted in this manner.

North of the Royal Forest is the picnic area and here a number of trees have been planted by
Premiers of PEI, and others.


The Lily Pond

One of the interesting attractions on the Experimental Farm has been the large lily pond. When
the Experimental Farm was established in 1909, there were three such ponds on the site. Clay for
the pottery had been extracted along the ridge located on the west side of the buildings. Two of
the sites were filled in, and water lilies were introduced into the remaining pond.

History of the Friends of the Farm

Friends of the Farm began with a few people who were concerned about the future of the
land occupied by the Crops and Livestock Research Centre - still referred to as the
‘Experimental Farm’ by the people in Charlottetown. Katherine Clough, Dianne Griffin, and
Bert Christie, inspired by the Friends of the Farm in Ottawa, organized a group in 1994 to
consider the future of the land.
In 1996, a document, “A Vision for the Home Farm” was produced, and a public meeting
was held at the Research Station. Memberships were sold to generate some revenue. In the
succeeding years, a small group, representing an informal executive, met from time to time. This
group met with successive directors of the research station; and with mayors of Charlottetown.
Besides Katherine, Dianne and Bert, others involved in these discussions were: Catherine
Hennessey, George Kells, Barry King, Karen Lips, and Kate MacQuarrie. With limited funds,
and no indication that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada would be giving up the land in the near
future, the committee became inactive.
In January, 2002, it was announced that Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada may declare
88 acres of the land as surplus and that this land would be turned over to the Canada Lands
Company, a crown corporation. At the same time, the Mayor of Charlottetown announced that a
recreational complex would be built in the centre of the site - between Barrymore Court and the
Confederation trail. The Friends of the Farm Committee organized a public meeting on February
20th to present information and discussions.
On March 4th, 2002, there was a meeting of all members of Friends of the Farm and the
following members were elected to the executive:

Chair - Lloyd MacLeod
Vice-Chair -Ken MacDonald
Sec.Treas. -Bert Christie
Directors -Connie MacKay Carr
-Catherine Hennessey
-Laura Lee Howard
-Gordon MacInnis

Today, 2006, there are over 200 members and the members of the Executive are:

Chair -Lloyd MacLeod
Vice-Chair -Catherine Hennessey
Sec.Treas. -Bert Christie
Directors: -Connie MacKay Carr
-Mike Conroy
-Laura Lee Howard
-Nora Jenkins
-Ken MacDonald
-David Morrison
-Errol Nicholson
-Janice Simmonds