This will be a fun tour to one of the top day trip spots in the province.
We're starting off with a quick museum tour to learn about Mennonite culture then visiting the famous St Jacobs market. It's huge with plenty going on. We'll get lunch there then move into town to check out St Jacobs itself.
08:50 - Those getting a ride meet up at the Petrocanada next to Keele Subway Station
09:00 - Shuttle leaves. Please note, we leave dead on time and cannot wait for latecomers!
10:15 - Meet self drivers at The Mennonite Story, on the grounds of the market
10:30 - 11:30 - Visit The Mennonite Story Museum
11:30 - 13:00(ish) - Explore the market, have lunch
13:30 - 15:00 - Explore St Jacobs village
16:30 - Anticipated return to Keele Station
This custom map is georeferenced, meaning it will show you where you are on the map in the right software and lays out the rough path that we’ll be following. It’s opened with the Avenza app which must be downloaded and installed in advance of the adventure.
You should also download the What3words app - this makes it easy to share and find locations in the unlikely event that you get lost.
This is one of our rare trips that doesn't require special equipment! Dress comfortably and be prepared for a bit of rain.
We'll eat there.
The land was first inhabited by the Neutral Confederacy (Attawandaron), who were one of the earliest known Indigenous nations in the region in the 1500s. The Neutral were the largest Indigenous society in the Eastern Woodlands in the early 1600s, numbering about 40,000 people. However, by the 1780s their numbers had dwindled as the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) became dominant in the area.
In the late 1700s and early 1800s, the Mississaugas of the Anishinaabe peoples inhabited the region. The Anishinaabe had originally lived on the north shore of Lake Huron but some groups migrated to southern Ontario in the 17th and 18th centuries.
The Haldimand Proclamation of 1784 granted the Six Nations of the Haudenosaunee a tract of land six miles on either side of the Grand River, which included the area around present-day St. Jacobs, in recognition of their alliance with the British during the American Revolution.
In the early 1800s, Mennonite settlers, many of Swiss-German descent from Pennsylvania, began arriving in the St. Jacobs area. While many Indigenous peoples were displaced, some traditions survive today through organizations like the Waterloo Aboriginal Centre at St. Paul's University College.
The ten First Nations that have historical and contemporary ties to the broader region include the Mississaugas of the Credit, Six Nations of the Grand River, Haudenosaunee, Anishinaabe, Oneida, Mohawk, Cayuga and others. Today, Waterloo Region still has the largest population of Mennonites in Canada, particularly around St. Jacobs and Elmira.
This will be a fun tour to one of the top day trip spots in the province.
We're starting off with a quick museum tour to learn about Mennonite culture then visiting the famous St Jacobs market. It's huge with plenty going on. We'll get lunch there then move into town to check out St Jacobs itself.
08:50 - Those getting a ride meet up at the Petrocanada next to Keele Subway Station
09:00 - Shuttle leaves. Please note, we leave dead on time and cannot wait for latecomers!
10:15 - Meet self drivers at The Mennonite Story, on the grounds of the market
10:30 - 11:30 - Visit The Mennonite Story Museum
11:30 - 13:00(ish) - Explore the market, have lunch
13:30 - 15:00 - Explore St Jacobs village
16:30 - Anticipated return to Keele Station
This custom map is georeferenced, meaning it will show you where you are on the map in the right software and lays out the rough path that we’ll be following. It’s opened with the Avenza app which must be downloaded and installed in advance of the adventure.
You should also download the What3words app - this makes it easy to share and find locations in the unlikely event that you get lost.
This is one of our rare trips that doesn't require special equipment! Dress comfortably and be prepared for a bit of rain.
We'll eat there.
The land was first inhabited by the Neutral Confederacy (Attawandaron), who were one of the earliest known Indigenous nations in the region in the 1500s. The Neutral were the largest Indigenous society in the Eastern Woodlands in the early 1600s, numbering about 40,000 people. However, by the 1780s their numbers had dwindled as the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) became dominant in the area.
In the late 1700s and early 1800s, the Mississaugas of the Anishinaabe peoples inhabited the region. The Anishinaabe had originally lived on the north shore of Lake Huron but some groups migrated to southern Ontario in the 17th and 18th centuries.
The Haldimand Proclamation of 1784 granted the Six Nations of the Haudenosaunee a tract of land six miles on either side of the Grand River, which included the area around present-day St. Jacobs, in recognition of their alliance with the British during the American Revolution.
In the early 1800s, Mennonite settlers, many of Swiss-German descent from Pennsylvania, began arriving in the St. Jacobs area. While many Indigenous peoples were displaced, some traditions survive today through organizations like the Waterloo Aboriginal Centre at St. Paul's University College.
The ten First Nations that have historical and contemporary ties to the broader region include the Mississaugas of the Credit, Six Nations of the Grand River, Haudenosaunee, Anishinaabe, Oneida, Mohawk, Cayuga and others. Today, Waterloo Region still has the largest population of Mennonites in Canada, particularly around St. Jacobs and Elmira.
