Souvenir History of Bruce Beach/Preface

by REV. W. A. BREMNER

For well over forty years the Summer Resort known as Bruce Beach on Lake Huron's friendly shore has been the holiday rendezvous for health-seekers, pleasure-seekers and tor those who were just tired. From a very modest beginning the popularity and the population have grown by leaps and bounds. The need of having some sort of historical souvenir which would preserve the happy annals of. the Beach had been keenly felt for a long time. It was not, however, until the year 1915 that the meeting of this need took concrete form.

A committee consisting of the Rev. A. B. Dobson, Dr. Richard Davidson, and Mr. Angus Munn was at that time appointed and charged with the task of gathering up the facts that should find a place in the proposed souvenir. At the next meeting of the newly formed Bruce Beach Association this committee produced a history to date, in loose leaf form, and requested that the Rev. Dr. W. A. Bradley be appointed the official historian.

For eighteen years Dr. Bradley (otherwise known as Erin Go•Bragh) being of frugal mind, kept the records at first in an ordinary school scribbler, but the good doctor's preference for things permanent led him to purchase a more durable book, into which he transcribed the forty year's history of the Beach and at the next annual meeting in 1934 it was decided that steps be taken to secure the publication of an historical booklet which might become the possession of the campers as a souvenir of their sojourn at Bruce Beach.

To bring about this goodly intention Dr. Bradley, Dr. McKerroll and Dr. McNamara were appointed a committee to look into the matter more closely and to bring in a report at next annual meeting. When this report was presented the cost of a suitable book seemed to be prohibitive and yet the Association did not seem willing that the project should be abandoned and decided that the committee should be continued with the addition of the name of Rev. W. A. Bremner.