A versatile plot of land - Glimpses of the Past with Karen Webster
As the time rolls around for the 2026 International Plowing Match being held near Walkerton in Bruce County this month, we are going to take a look back at a previous match - that is, not the match itself, but rather stories about the site that was chosen.
It was 80 years ago that Huron County hosted its first International Plowing Match 10 miles north of Goderich. The event had its genesis in 1913 in York County. No matches were held in the war years of 1942-1945, so it was with much anticipation that a match was announced for 1946. In addition to the feeling that things were starting to get “back to normal”, the restrictions on the manufacture and sale of farm machinery were starting to be lifted and the tillers of the soil, who had been making do with aging equipment, were anxious to see and buy new farm implements.
The 1946 plowing match was held at the former air base of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan that was called No. 31 Air Navigational School.
In 1940, the Government of Canada expropriated over 400 acres from the farms of Wilfred Stevenson, James McMillan, Mel Dickson, Albert McGee, George Richardson, Dan McKenzie and Roy Maize. Histories of these farms stretched back to 1840 at which time their deeds had been taken out from the Crown.
The lands sought by the government were favoured because the topography was flat and of the proximity of Lake Huron, a large body of water over which flying skills could be learned and, if trouble was encountered, an emergency landing in water was safer than crashing into solid ground inland.
Once the land for the air base was purchased, a small city sprang up with such amenities as a hospital, laundry, dental clinic, bombing range, rifle range, mess hall, barracks, chapel, newspaper, Empire Theatre (rec. hall), officers’ mess, administration building, guardhouse and hangers. In addition to all the airmen employed here, many local people were hired to build and then maintain the base. It was quite a busy place for five years and then, once the war was over, there was no longer a need for the base.
In February of 1945, all the property and buildings came under the purview of the War Assets Corporation which dispersed them. First choice went to the federal government, then the provincial and municipal governments and, finally, to companies and private citizens. Some of the buildings from the former airbase still are in use, such as the Dungannon Agricultural Hall (former fire hall) and the Lucknow Legion (former officers’ mess).
By 1950, the owner of the former air base was Reg McGee, a Goderich car dealer who had grown up on part of the acreage. He used this land to graze cattle. He installed a quonset-type building that had electricity and running water. His cattle were well-trained; when McGee arrived to feed or check on them, he would drive down one of the runways blowing his vehicle’s horn and the animals would all come running to follow him to the building.
A London group of sports car enthusiasts rented the property from McGee in 1958 and, calling it Green Acres Motor Racing Circuit, used the runway system as a racetrack for their autos. A control tower, as well as team pit areas, were constructed. Half tires were used to delineate the sharp curves of the 3.5-kilometre track. There were several races a year and sometimes crowds swelled to 10,000 enthusiasts. In 1962, the club moved on and eventually created the Grand Prix in Mosport.
Cars were not the only vehicles attracted to the runways of the old air base.
Pilots in training would often practise their skills there. Also in the 1960s, an aerial crop spraying company headed by Howard Zimmer from the Chatham area offered its services to area farmers. He and his wife lived in a trailer on site when he was working in the area. And, for a while, some ultra-light enthusiasts flying flimsy-looking gyrocopters used the runways.
This large acreage was used for cash cropping by Auburn-area farmers Jack and Brian Hallam in the early 1960s.
A trio of investors, namely Herbert Owen and Drs. Hugh Allan and George Wong purchased this tract in 1969 going under the name of Halowen Farms. The land was next owned by Mattias and Harold Thoma, Waldraus Schmidt and Edith Starnecker. Large barns for laying hens were built on the site. A subsequent owner was Serenderpal Dhaliwal.
With the advent of wind turbines producing electrical power in the province, the Kingsbridge Wind Farms came into being. Because of its proximity to the project and the large flat surfaces of the remaining runways, the former Port Albert air field was chosen as a storage area for the massive, heavy turbine blades, nancelles and lower segments.
In 2026, a person could drive by this tract of land and not have any inkling of most of the activities that took place there. However, at the north entrance to Port Albert, there is a cairn, dedicated in 1988, that is a reminder of the No. 31 Air Navigational School.
Subsequent to the air school’s closing, the 30th iteration of the International Plowing Match was held on the same site. Many of the plowing matches through the years have earned nicknames. The 1946 version at Port Albert was called the Victory Match. What adjective will the 2026 match in Bruce County inherit?
***
Eugene McGee was a young lad during World War II and he had a front row seat, at his family’s farm, watching the creation, operation and demolition of No. 31 Air Navigational School at Port Albert. In 1987, he published a book about the base. This book was used as a valuable reference for this column.