“The stone house la maison de Pierre, as they call it, a large mansion built of stone by a former agent of the Northwest Hudson Bay Company, who lived there with his family, servants, horses and hounds and gave hospitable dinners in those days when it was the fashion for the host to do so…” William Cullen Bryant
Today the Ermatinger home as well as the Francis H. Clergue block house, is part of Sault Ste. Marie’s most notable National Historic Sites. In the heart of downtown Sault Ste. Marie, overlooking the St. Marys River, it’s a property of historical significance.
The City of Sault Ste. Marie has not only preserved this precious piece of property but has enhanced it and has made it accessible to everyone to enjoy a piece of our past.
With two stone homes and an interactive Heritage Discovery Centre, Ermatinger-Clergue National Historic Site has become a must-see attraction when travelling to the Sault or by rediscovering, with local residents.
While there are an endless number of historical stories and interesting information about the site, along with a fully stocked unique gift shop, I was most intrigued by their culinary programs. I was welcomed to the site by William Hollingshead, Heritage Programmer, who gave me the inside scoop about the what is offered through the programs.
Group of Seven Dinner Theatre
A fun evening in partnership with Theatre in Motion where a theatrical production, “Moments in Algoma” is performed by a one man show. The production is inspired by letters and reflections of the members of the Group of Seven painters during their first visits to Algoma in 1918.
The three-course dinner, served next to the hearth in the Ermatinger Old Stone House, is themed to a “boxcar” menu and even the servers are well versed with stories and tales about the group and their years painting in the Agawa Canyon and along the north shore of Lake Superior.
Authentic food like what the painters would have eaten. i.e. fried onions, baked bread, stew and dumplings, pastries on a painter’s palate are the kind of menu items served during this unique evening.
- Sandra J Trainor
Read the full article about a unique dining experience at the Old Stone House