RTHS Bus Excursion to Historic Perth
Article by Sandy McNiece. Photos by Rod Brazier. June, 2019.
Our Rideau Township annual bus excursion took place this year on June 15th and was to the historic town of Perth. We headed off to Perth from the North Gower Client Centre on a sunny day in a large very comfortable coach bus with about 20 people on board.
After arriving at Perth, we had a bit of a walk along the main street and in the farmer’s market area. We then boarded our coach again and met Susan Cole who was our guide for the morning. Susan, who grew up in Perth, is a very accomplished historical interpreter who has an honours degree in history from Queens University. On our tour through the small streets of Perth, she pointed out numerous historic buildings with a short history on each, including who had lived there and how they factored into the life and times of the Perth community in the 18thand19th centuries.
Susan is a superb story teller who entertained our group with a number of fascinating and little known stories of the people and the area. The coach tour took about two hours and left our group with a real taste of historic Perth, first as a military encampment which developed into a prosperous thriving agricultural and industrial community on the Tay Canal waterway.
After our coach tour, we dined at Peter’s Restaurant in Perth and enjoyed some good conversation over an excellent lunch.
After lunch, we had some free time for a short walkabout and then met up at the Matheson House Museum for a presentation and guided tour of the museum. The museum which is set up as an eighteenth century home is a “must see"
The guides were very knowledgeable and gave our group a real sense of the life and times in Perth’s bygone years.
After about an hour at the museum, we boarded our coach for our return journey back to the Client Centre in North Gower. For many of us who have visited or have driven through Perth in the past, I believe we were left with a much greater appreciation of the huge historical significance of Perth and would be interested in returning to explore more of the town at a later date.
For those who may be interested in a detailed historical account of Perth, Susan Cole has written a book called “A Matter of Honour and Other Tales of Early Perth” A good read!
