KAGAWONG—A larger venue may be needed in order to accommodate the ever growing audience attracted to the annual History Night event. What started out with 15 people at the Old Mill five years ago has literally become a standing room only event.
Old Mill Heritage Centre curator Rick Nelson welcomed upwards of 200 people to the evening’s program which featured a video and presentation relating to the mysterious, and much discussed, 1946 disappearance of Stanley Richards.
In recognition of the 100th anniversary of the OPP (in 2009), Manitoulin Expositor staff writer Michael Erskine penned an article about unsolved murders on Manitoulin, among them the Richards case which led to the case being re-opened.
OPP (Ontario Provincial Police) Detective Constable Patty Smith, a 20-year veteran, has been working on this cold case with the UHIT (Unsolved Homicide Investigation Team) since July of 2010.
On October 13, 2010, Mr. Nelson, Detective Smith, Stan Gordon Jr., who acted as their guide, and Mr. Erskine visited the site of the cabin where Mr. Richards made his home on Maple Point.
Back in 1946, the 40-person search party included (Mayor) Austin Hunt Jr., Mr. Gordon and his younger brother and lasted several days but produced no sign of Mr. Richards.
OPP Community Services Officer Constable Al Boyd provided a bit of a back story into the Richards disappearance and stated the case “may never be solved” as everyone who was involved in the original investigation has since passed away.
“The case,” shared Detective Smith, “is not active but ongoing.” The limited information the OPP has on Mr. Richards is that he was born in 1903, worked for the township and was a trapper and guide. He lived in a cabin near the Dodge estate and was a self proclaimed conservation officer who “did not like trespassers.”
Mr. Richards was married briefly to Lucy Perreault (who died in 1991) and had a daughter, Betty Ann Laffin, in 1941.
As the story goes, neighbour Richard Hammond drove Mr. Richards to town for groceries on November 1, 1946. When his cabin was searched following the report of his disappearance, the grocery bags were found on the kitchen table and the house undisturbed. There was no sign of foul play found during the investigation, the police explained.
When Mr. Richards failed to show up for work on Monday morning, it prompted Mr. Hammond to check on him. That is when the search party began. All reports indicate that Mr. Hammond was the last person to see Mr. Richards alive.
An uncashed cheque in the amount of $59.40, written by Stan Gordon Sr. (also employed by Billings Township as a payroll clerk), was one piece of physical evidence in the decades-old case.
Both Ms. Perreault and Ms. Laffin agreed to provide DNA samples to police and ground penetrating radar may be used in the investigation, however nothing has been scheduled to date. Detective Smith advised, “we don’t close unsolved cases, they remain inactive but not closed.”
Many rumours and versions of what may have happened to Mr. Richards ran rampant in the village and to date, his disappearance remains a mystery.
A front-page Expositor story published July 14, 2010, written by then-editor Jim Moodie attempted to shed light on the mystery through an interview with Lyman Corbiere of M’Chigeeng who said, in 1947, when he was a boy of two his family lived at Maple Point and he has burned into his memory a fatal skirmish that involved Stanley Richards, his grandfather Narcissus Corbiere and his uncle Dan Corbiere.
Mr. Corbiere said that while the two members of his family set out to jack-light a deer that November night, they inadvertently shot someone’s cow and set out to quickly bury the evidence, fearing the consequences.
Mr. Richards happened upon the scene (he’d probably heard the gunshot, Mr. Corbiere noted in 2010), there was a confrontation and “my grandfather whacked him in the head with a shovel.”
Mr. Corbiere felt his grandfather “didn’t plan to kill him,” but struck him “too hard,” and that blow proved fatal, “so now they had to bury him as well so they buried the cow and him together.” Mr. Corbiere said in the 2010 interview that “I remember them coming back in the house and really screaming and hollering away. I know it was Mr. Richards they were talking about because I heard what they were saying.”
Some other featured historical bits throughout the evening included photos of Danny Dodge, son of the co-founder of the American Dodge Motor Company, who perished following an accident while on his honeymoon at the family cottage (known locally the Dodge Lodge) with wife Lorraine McDonald. An interview with former staff member Lyla Chatwell of Manitowaning was shown as she returned to the Lodge for the first time since working for Danny’s widow.
Mr. Nelson shared that a new resident to the township has a large collection of military artifacts that he is eager to share with board members and the general public. The Old Mill has a large military collection.
Old photos of the Old Mill, the Havelock Hotel, Elliott’s Garage (home of Manitoulin Chocolate Works) and what is now the Villager were also viewed with great interest.
Home movies of the Lamb family, who have had no less than five generations and spend their summers in Kagawong, were also shared with the audience.
The shipwreck of the India, known as a timber hooker, was 220 feet long and weighed in at 500 tonnes, was featured as a “fun and easy dive” as it is handily accessed being in only 20 feet of water.
Sandy McGillivray of Little Current, a Manitoulin historian, was in attendance and shared a well-known rumour that the sinking may have been “an insurance job.” While some were setting a fire on board, others were trying frantically to put it out.
The 45th anniversary of the first moon walk was recognized with a viewing of the launch of Apollo 11 (July 16, 1969). Neil Armstrong’s, who was the first man to walk on the moon, niece was in the audience. Newspaper articles and photos on display were enjoyed by the public during a refreshment break.
Draws were made for a DVD of Georgian Bay, a Kagawong walking tour map created by Jenna Carter (available at the Old Mill Heritage Centre) and a table donated by Dig & Doug Cedar Furniture.
Mr. Nelson thanked members of the Museum Board for their efforts in making the evening a success and invited members of the audience to donate teddy bears for their Christmas in Kagawong (held in November) display as it is their goal to have the largest collection.
The Old Mill Heritage Museum is open daily from 10 am to 4 pm until Labour Day. Fall hours Wednesday to Sunday 11 am to 4 pm. The museum will have a special military display from November 1 to 11 in recognition of Remembrance Day.
Visitor numbers are “way up from last year,” according to Mr. Nelson. The total to date (Sunday August 17) is 2,540.
For more information visit www.kagawongmuseum.com or check out their facebook page at www.facebook.com/oldmillheritagemusum.
