I'm on the map!

[David Tilston]

As you may have guessed from my user name, my last name is Tilston. My family has owned a cabin on Manitoulin Island for five generations now.
Just recently I was showing a co-worker where it was on Google maps, when I noticed the title of the bay across from where the family cabin is. Tilston's Bay. No one in my family told me about this. My sister, who lives on Manitoulin was pretty surprised about it when I told her.
In the attached pictures, the first one is the map I found, the second one is an older picture of the cottage. My dad is the goofy kid between the trees, and my grand father is the figure second most to the right. The cottage was actually the boat house for the place next door. My great aunt got that place, and my grand father got the boat house. The third picture shows the boat house, when it was a boat house.
Looking forward to the family reunion this summer at the cottage. My sister is organizing it and she thinks there may be 150 Tilstons there.

[deryk]

Pretty Cool David! Looks like its a nice quiet area to camp in.


deryk

[Anne H]

WOW - how cool is that!

[CindyL]

It IS a nice place to camp. We stayed on Manitoulin Island a couple of summers ago. We drove on the island from the north, using a bridge that is only open part of the day and then turns for boats at other times. We drove the island, hit the small town museums, found an African import gift shop in one of the small towns, of all things, went to a First Nations museum, and then a First Nations powwow that was huge. The grand entrance at the powow took at least an hour. And then we loaded the camper onto the ferry to leave, so we could go on to Canadian Niagra. Riding the ferry was quite fun, sitting in line to load onto the ferry (and shopping and lunching while we waited), driving the Uhaul into the lower part of the ferry and then going on top to enjoy the ride.

I would recommend the trip.

CindyL

[kootenaigirl]

How neat, looks like a wonderful spot!

[Kevin A]

As Cindy said, we really enjoyed our stay at the island. We even had the chance to play a nice small golf course while we were there. The only bad thing was the rain during the pow-wow, but we didn't melt! Fun trip.

[David Tilston]

Originally Posted by CindyL

First Nations museum, and then a First Nations powwow that was huge. The grand entrance at the powow took at least an hour.

Before my dad retired, he worked as a teacher at the only high-school on the island, in the First Nations reserve.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by David Tilston

. My family has owned a cabin on Manitoulin Island for five generations now.

OT alert. David you dont happen to know any of the Conibear family do you? there another long time cottage family on Manitoulin.

[CindyL]

Originally Posted by David Tilston

Before my dad retired, he worked as a teacher at the only high-school on the island, in the First Nations reserve.

I wish that there was a "like" here. Consider your comment "liked." Kevin and I go to Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota once a year with our fiberglass camper packed with donations. We then spend a week camped there with the Re-Member organization and try to help make living conditions better for a few that week. Manitoulin did not look quite as disadvantaged as Pine Ridge does, but we could tell it was a First Nations reserve as we drove through.

CindyL

[David Tilston]

Originally Posted by Carol H

OT alert. David you dont happen to know any of the Conibear family do you? there another long time cottage family on Manitoulin.

OT alert? Since most of my memories are from childhood, no. My dad was a councilor on the island a couple of years ago, he most likely knows them. The island is however like 150 km long. Not many people, but lots of room.

[papas34]

How cool

Just yesterday my grandson was here at the house and I used Goggle Maps to show him some property I owned in Washington State when his mother was about his age 11.

I moved there and used a P.O. box.....my ex needed a street address so the post master asked me to name the road I had made out to my cabin.....just a trail really.....

I still got my mail at the P.O. box, but now the road and the bay on the lake show up on the on Google Maps

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by David Tilston

OT alert? The island is however like 150 km long. Not many people, but lots of room.

Yup It was the not many people reason I asked. Your fortunate to still have such a family treasure to go back to. Nice area.

[David Tilston]

My dad is getting older and he asked my older brother, (first born) what he would do if he inherited the cottage. With out pause, my brother said "Sell it". Wrong answer. My younger sister, when asked the same question said, "tear it down and build a real house". Wrong answer.
My job is done entirely on line, in fact my boss officially works in Calgary, if you call her Calgary number, you get connected to Prince Edward Island. So when I was asked, my answer was that I would probably move there and raise my two youngest kids. This would be hopefully after three oldest are all over 18. Leave them in Calgary with instructions to pay the mortgage and the utilities. I'm sure it won't be as simple as that, but that is the basic plan.

The attached picture is from the inside of the cottage while my dad was putting on a new roof. The inside wall below the new construction, and the wall opposite it are all that is left of the original boat house. The place has been in constant state of transition for as long as I remember. The latest change is he put a proper concrete foundation under it that goes down to the bed rock, which is only about two feet below where the cottage used to be, but since the concrete walls are about four feet high, the cottage has gone up by two feet, (picture 2 and 3).

[deryk]

honestly if i could telecommute, i would do it from the island. i told my parents if they are still kicking in 19 years when Im ready to retire....their house is going to be sold and we are moveing someplace where the property taxes wont kill us and the neighbors are out of eye sight lol....i dont want to live in an urban area but want to see and hear nature all around me.

deryk

[Francesca Knowles]

That's so cool, David!

I love family histories...Do you have any idea how the name got officially "attached" to the bay?

We've something similar, though much smaller, in our family- it's only a campground in the Mount Hood National Forest named "Keep's Mill", all that remains of my great Grandfather's saw/power/water operation from the early years of the twentieth century. We've had reunions at "our" place, too- though of course we're not lucky enough to actually own any of it any more.

Francesca (Keep) Knowles

[David Tilston]

I had to call my dad in Florida to find out. He was not aware of the name either. It turns out that his uncle used to run a fishing resort in that bay. The resort has long since been sold, and is now called Manitoulin Resort, but I guess the name of the bay stuck.

[Francesca Knowles]

That makes perfect sense- so many places get/got their names just by common usage. I'll bet once your Dad's Uncle had been there awhile, everyone around there called it "Tilston's Bay" so long that finally it just went on the map that way!

Nice that your family still owns property around there- does that mean you're sort of the Local Nobility?

Francesca

[David Tilston]

Originally Posted by Francesca Knowles

does that mean you're sort of the Local Nobility?

That is just not something I have ever been accused of. In fact, my kids tell me that I am a troll. In the internet sense, I think.

[Francesca Knowles]

I'm trying to picture that on your Coat of Arms!

Francesca

[Donna D.]

Good stuff talking about family history!

My story has to do with road signs, when they kept being "swipped." ODOT talked to my grandfather and asked "how many kids do you have and how many signs do we need to make"? When a major highway was named "????" ODOT knew those signs were nailed to some kid's bedroom wall! Okay, so ODOT had to make "XXX" signs. I do believe I have several

North Dakota has heard about us too, with a river and a "mt range" and valley named after us....