Grand Bend Place (Huron Shores United Church), 25 Main Street (may be upstairs or downstairs – tbd)
What:
Cecile Muller, a Shipka resident for 41years, has a passion for its history and will share that knowledge with us.
Notes:
Part of our local history series.
Shipka Historical Plaque
In front from left are Katherine Renner, Allan Barnes and Cecile Muller, while back from left are Bill Finkbeiner, South Huron Mayor George Finch, Panova, John Muller, Joe Laurie, Jim Southcott and Roger Ratz.
Excerpts from a Post Media article Oct.16, 2024
Shipka, the last community in South Huron to be cleared of bush, was originally called Slabtown after the large piles of wooden slabs created during its clearing. Muller said a Bulgarian woman was passing through the village in about 1878 and suggested the village’s name be changed to Shipka after a community in Bulgaria.
“There must have been about 22 businesses thriving,” said Cecile Muller, adding she hopes eventually to place historical plaques in the spots where former businesses once stood, such as the late Harvey Ratz’s hardware store.
She said many of the buildings that housed the village’s former businesses were destroyed by fire or torn down, and Shipka’s lone existing business is the drive-in.
The village’s community centre, formerly a one-room schoolhouse, closed in the 1990s.
Partners In Learning 