February 28, 2024 Update – The Second print run has now sold out and a Third Edition will be available in mid March.

The initial print run of The Land at the Crest of the Hill: Clues to Niagara History from Upper Fonthill has sold out. A second print run is now available at several local Fonthill area outlets (Shoppers Drug Mart, J&J Florists, Font Coffee Bar, Nature’s Corner Cafe, One of a Kind) and at Someday Books, 21 King St., St. Catharines and Alphabet Bookshop, 145 Main St W, Port Colborne). See below for reviews or mentions of the book.

Local Online Media Coverage

MyPelham, October 5, 2023 – https://myniagaraonline.com/mypelham/new-local-history-book-focuses-on-upper-fonthill/ (press release)

PelhamToday, October 30, 2023 –
https://www.pelhamtoday.ca/local-news/wonder-why-pelham-has-zig-zaggy-roads-and-little-heavy-industry-7754173

Brock University Library, November 1, 2023 – https://brocku.ca/library/2023/11/01/community-researcher-letter-of-gratitude/

Brock News, December 11, 2023 –
https://brocku.ca/brock-news/2023/12/local-author-taps-into-brock-archives-to-trace-pelhams-history/

PelhamToday – February 2, 2024 –
https://www.pelhamtoday.ca/local-news/book-sale-proceeds-go-to-lathrop-nature-preserve-8195698

Historical Niagara on Facebook – February 6, 2024 – https://www.facebook.com/HistoricalNiagara/posts/pfbid02EPZnoyT8j1NMbY4f56gv8xVpXchkXfnfNzcJDDT4CQaWQwG3Ueq8fX4Vzh71r6TLl

PelhamToday – February 6, 2024 –
https://www.pelhamtoday.ca/local-news/preserving-tales-of-pelhams-past-8214210?utm_source=PelhamToday.ca&utm_campaign=c72748a235-DailyPEL&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_65184df39c-c72748a235-324134106

The Pelham Historical Society has published my latest local history book which addresses the history of the Upper Fonthill area of Pelham, Niagara Region, Ontario. Below is the Press Release which has accompanied the book.

New Local History Book Focuses on Upper Fonthill

Pelham resident Graham Segger’s latest book, The Land at the Crest of the Hill: Clues to Niagara History from Upper Fonthill, was published by The Pelham Historical Society on September 30. In it Mr. Segger describes the history of the area at the top of the Canboro and Highway #20 hill known variously over the years as Riceville, Pelham Heights, Upper Fonthill and at least a dozen other lofty names. 

The book begins with a chapter on the last ice age in which Mr. Segger explains why the popular phrase the “Fonthill Kame” may not stand up to scientific scrutiny. That is quickly followed by a chapter describing the archaeological evidence of extensive Indigenous activity on the heights dating back 5,000 years. The Pelham and Thorold Land Surveys and land grant processes are explained, including why Pelham has those wonky jogs where the east-west concession roads intersect with the north-south lot-line roads. Many of the early nineteenth century families and their religious affiliations and backgrounds are profiled including surnames such as Rice, Price, Willson, Crawford, Canby, Church, Ward, Frazer, Haist, D’Everardo and Buchner, among others. Some of the twentieth century contributions of families such as Railton, Mawhinney, Hansler, Stirtzinger, Davis, Derreck, Stevenson and Lathrop are mentioned. The origins of each of the more recent residential subdivision developments on either side of Canboro, Haist and Highway #20 are also explored. There are a myriad of vignettes about early Riceville, which pre-dated Fonthill, some well worn and others new, including the stories of the 1825 proposed Military Fortress, the 1840s Observatory Tower, religious debates, land disputes, succession planning and tales of 1830s vice at the Eber Rice Tavern.

Mary Lamb, author of Pelham: The Making of a Community, has said “thanks for this book, which provides so much new information for past and future students of local history.”  Brock U. Professor Dr. Anna Lathrop has described the book as “meticulously researched and accessibly written, this history is filled with surprising new discoveries about the land that I called (and still call) my home.”   

An eBook colour version is available for digital download for $20 through www.pelhamhistoricalsociety.ca. Print copies of the book are available at a variety of local Fonthill retailers for $25 (Shoppers Drug Mart, J&J Florists, Font Coffee Bar and Nature’s Corner Cafe).

All net proceeds are donated to two local charitable organizations.

As some of you will know, I’ve been working on a local history project for the last couple of years. It involves documentation of the history of the 100 acre lot which surrounds our home in Fonthill and the area of Upper Fonthill in general. In late May I gave two seminars summarizing some of my findings:

May 25, 2023 – Probus Club of Pelham – A Guide to Learning About Fonthill and Pelham History

Many of the members of Probus are relatively new to the area. My presentation focused on various research sources available to those who may wish to learn more about the history of Fonthill and Pelham, Ontario, interspersed with a few interesting stories about the history of the area. The sources included books, internet websites, and local museums, archives and historical societies. See following link for a copy of the research guide handout – Fonthill and Pelham Ontario History Sources

May 27, 2023 – Pelham Historical Society – The Land at the Crest of the Hill – Part 2

This presentation was a summary of some of my research into the area formerly known as Upper Fonthill, focusing primarily on the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. It was a follow-up to Part 1 delivered to the same group on October 15, 2022 which addressed the nineteenth century and earlier.

October 30, 2023 Update – Three more Pelham history presentations were delivered in September and October.

• September 3, 2023 – The Haist Family Reunion and Picnic at Pelham Community Church
• September 20, 2023 – Ontario Genealogical Society – Niagara Peninsula Branch (Zoom webcast)
• October 18, 2023 – Lookout Ridge Retirement Community – History Club

Those who have visited this site before will have noticed a new photo banner at the top of the home page. This is an early morning May 6, 2021 view from our northern home’s deck. It was cropped from a 1.5 minute slide show which I created containing 30 images of this view over the four seasons of both 2021 and 2022 (initially posted to the Davis Heights Group Facebook page).

The former photo of our sailboat Soulstice has been retired as we sold her to new owners in September 2022. See article titled Two Happiest Days: I Don’t Think So! under the Baggywrinkle Blog for the story of Soulstice’s sale – https://grahamsegger.com/sailing-logs/2014-and-subsequent/2022-two-happiest-days-i-dont-think-so/.

(updated April 18, 2023)

During the second half of 2022 and into 2023 I continued to submit occasional articles to the Burnt Store Marina Beacon and also worked up a local history presentation for the Pelham Historical Society and contributed to a Centennary book for a local golf course.

May 2022 – Article on the Cuban Tree Frog (Beacon)

June 2022 – Reflections on the homophones Key/Cay/Caye/Ki/Quay (Beacon)

Summer 2022 – Lookout Point Country Club in Fonthill is one of the most prestigious and challenging golf courses in Niagara. Diane and I are dining members and get to occassionally play the course as guests of our grand-daughters. In 2022 the club marked its100th anniversary and decided to produce a high quality coffee table book celebrating its long history. I was recruited by the production team to assist with the early history of Pelham / Fonthill. This turned into a very interesting 50+ hour project. The final product is a great credit to the many people involved in this big undertaking.

October 2022 – PowerPoint presentation to the Pelham Historical Society in Fonthill, Ontario titled The Land at the Crest of the Hill
Part 1 – The early years to 1900. This material was drawn from my extensive research of the early history of the area of Upper Fonthill where we have a home.

December 2022 – Two Happiest Days – I Don’t Think So! – This is a reflection on the mixed emotions of selling our beloved sailboat Soulstice. We had spent 12 wonderful years sailing around Lake Ontario in her. (Beacon)

January 2023 – Burnt Store Road Real Estate in 1887 (Beacon)

February 2023 – The World’s Greatest Navigational Feat (the story of the 1899 voyage of the Warrimoo (Beacon).

February 2023 – The Lines of Latitude and Longitude – book reviews of biographies of Gerard Mercator and John Harrison (Beacon)

February 2023 – Richard S. Hackley: His Ownership and Survey of the Charlotte Harbor Area Two Hundred Years Ago. This was a blog entry for the Punta Gorda History Center –

https://puntagordahistorycenterblog.blogspot.com/2023/02/the-story-of-man-who-owned-charlotte.html

March 2023 – Birthday Greetings – reflections on messages in birthday cards.

April 2023 – In the April Beacon I submitted a series of three related articles on the topics of ChatGPT and Golf Books.

ChatGPT-Are Writers Becoming Obsolete? – this was an overview of this revolutionary new artificial intelligence software.

Golf: If You Can’t Master It, How About Reading About It Instead? – article written by me.

Golf Books by ChatGPT – article generated by ChatGPT based on query composed by me.

April 1, 2023 – The Strange Case of Bill Zurich – blog entry for April Fools day in the Punta Gorda History Center website. One hundred year old tall tale set in the Burnt Store area. Believed to have been written by Wallace Chadman.

https://puntagordahistorycenterblog.blogspot.com/2023/03/

May 2023 – Good Samaritans in Our Midst – The Grand Isles I & II Hurricane Ian Recovery Story (Beacon)

Below is a list of writing projects I’ve worked on over the past year. Several of the articles are included elsewhere on this website.

• In December 2020 the Burnt Store Marina Beacon published my article titled The Mighty Mosquito. It discusses the different types of mosquito present in SW Florida and also provides some historical perspectives on man’s interaction with this insect, both globally and in the local community.
  
• On January 4, 2021 the Punta Gorda History Center published my blog entry describing the visit by George Franklin Thompson to Charlotte Harbor and the Peace River 155 years ago that week. The blog was based upon Thompson’s account of the visit in his journal and provides quotes about his meeting with shipping magnate James McKay, Sr. and cattle baron Jacob Summerlin. Link to the blog is here – PGHC.

• In January 2021 the BSM Beacon published an article I had written about the Protein Products Corporation which operated on the Burnt Store Marina property in the late 1960’s. Included are three wonderful vintage aerial photographs of that enterprise. Part 2 of this story about Protein Products Corporation was published by the Punta Gorda History Center on February 15, 2022 – Protein Products – Part 2

• In February 2021 Ontario Sailor Magazine published an article I co-wrote with Mimico Cruising Club (MCC) Commodore Will O’Hara which describes how MCC managed its operations during the Covid crisis. It describes how the Board and members reengineered club operations to allow for a successful summer of socially distanced boating.  The article also provides a comprehensive list of lessons learned throughout the crisis. Link to the article is here – Ontario Sailor.

• On April 21, 2021, the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Charlotte County, James Abraham of Book Broker Publishers in Port Charlotte released a book he had conceived and edited titled Century: A People’s History of Charlotte County. James asked that I submit a chapter about the people and communities of Burnt Store Road which I was happy to do. It begins at page 50. Century is available at Charlotte County bookstores and online.

• On June 1, 2021 the Beacon published Nautical Writing – O’Brian and Macomber which was a book review of the two series of naval adventures written by these authors. The Aubrey & Maturin novels by O’Brian describe the Royal Navy in the age of sail and the Peter Wake novels by Florida author Macomber focus on the expansion of the fledgling US Navy in the second half of the nineteenth century.
  
• For the January 2022 issue of the Beacon I helped with a “History of PPYC” article and contributed a new Snowbird article titled “Wow, That Was a Long Summer Away”.

I have recently started work on a new “Where Do We Live?” style Canadian project which is currently taking up much of my research and writing time. It will likely not be complete until later in 2022.