|
McFarland HouseA Taste of History, a Sip of TeaBy Marilyn Loeser
Located just south of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, the McFarland Tea Garden features home baking, Niagara wines and light lunches in a peaceful outdoor setting. Seated around a wrought iron table, my friend Karen Williams and I enjoyed a cup of specially blended tea in this unlikely haven from the modern world — unlikely because of the house’s association with the War of 1812 and its use as headquarters for British Officers, the location of British and American Artillery battalions protecting the Niagara River and a field hospital for American and British solders.
Visitors enter through a small kitchen and gift shop where tea, delicate China cups and saucers, and finely painted teapots are lined up on bookcases hugging brick walls as smells of chocolate, spice and honey mingle with the flower-scented summer air. Out the back door and onto the covered patio, Karen and I chose a table and ordered English-influenced food and drink as we waited for the next house tour to begin.
McFarland, a widower with four children, emigrated from Scotland in the late 1700s. He and his sons built the house in 1800 on land granted to him by King George III. The bricks used in the construction were made on the property. Soon, McFarland married his neighbor Margaret Wilson and the couple added five children to the household before Margaret’s death in 1809.
When McFarland returned after the war, he found his house badly damaged. It is said the destruction of his home contributed to his death in 1816. He is buried in St. Mark’s Church, Niagara-on-the-Lake.
If you go: The house is located in McFarland Point Park which also features playground facilities and access to the Niagara River Recreation Trail.
A nominal admission is charged, children aged 5 and under are free. For more information check the websites: http://www.niagaraonthelake.com/ and http://www.niagarafallstourism.com/ or call 905-468-3322. If you’re a U.S. citizen, you won’t need a passport to enter Canada or get back into the U.S. by air or sea travel until December 31, 2006 or at land border crossings until December 31, 2007. However, you should carry proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate, certificate of citizenship or naturalization, as well as a photo ID. For more information visit the websites: www.travel.state.gov or www.cbsa.gc.ca. |
|
TM
A
garden of herbs and bright canary, scarlet and purple flowers greeted us as we
walked toward a 19th century adventure, a cup of tea and just-baked scones with
current jelly and fresh whipped cream.
Waiting
to tour the rest of the house couldn’t have been more enjoyable.
Here,
period-dressed waitresses, kitchen staff and tour guides help bring to life the
world of Scottish-born John McFarland, his wife and their nine children.
At
the appointed time — on the half hour — our tour guide, a young lady I’d guess
to be in her late teens, invited our small group of four to enter McFarland
House and the world of the McFarland family and their life here during the early
1800s.
The
house, located on Niagara Highway, is one of only a few buildings in the area
pre-dating the War of 1812.
For
150 years, McFarland descendants lived in the house before it opened as a museum
in 1959. A few of the McFarland-family heirlooms are still on display including
a hanging Waterford Crystal ceiling light and the family’s piano. Other furnishings are representative of
the early 1800s. 
We
followed our knowledgeable guide as she went from room to room and up the
staircase to the family bedrooms pointing out many design and status symbols the
family used to show, although they were middle class, that they were a family of
impeccable manners, good taste and gracious living and that they were trying to
elevate their standing in the community.
During
the war, John McFarland was taken prisoner and sent to Greenbush, NY. A ravine
on the property, marking the launch point for the British attack on Fort Niagara
in 1813, is another reminder of the historic haunts here.
The
Niagara Parks Commission restored the house and grounds, and operates the tea
house and museum.
Guided tours of the house are available during the summer
months, between Victoria Day, the Monday before May 25th and Labour Day, the
first Monday in September. Tours are conducted between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. until
late June and until 5 p.m. the rest of the summer.
