Fort York!

We went on an overnight field trip to Fort York last week!  This was a really fun outing :)  Here is a little information about Fort York:

The settlement of modern Toronto began in 1793 when Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe built a garrison on the present site of Fort York. Fearful of war with the United States, Simcoe planned to establish a naval base at Toronto in order to control Lake Ontario. Simcoe also moved the Capital to Toronto from the exposed border town of Niagara. Civilian settlement followed and a community named York began to grow two kilometres east of the fort (York was renamed Toronto in 1834). 

In 1812, the United States declared war and invaded Canada. On the 27^th of April 1813, the U.S. Army and Navy attacked York with 2,700 men on 14 ships and schooners. The defenders put up a strong fight but fell back to Fort York in the face of overwhelming odds, eventually abandoning the fort and town to the enemy. In the autumn of that year, the British returned to Toronto and built the fortification that stands today. Fort York’s cannon and earthworks became obsolete in the 1880s, although the army continued to use the fort for training, barracks, offices and storage until the 1930s. 

Fort York opened as an historic site museum in 1934.Today, Fort York is home to Canada's largest collection of original War of 1812 buildings. The Fort is open year round and offers a number of services, including tours, exhibits, period room settings and seasonal demonstrations. During the summer months, the site comes alive with the colour and the pageantry of the Fort York Guard. The Fort also provides a wide variety of education programs for groups of all ages.

Here are some pictures of the fun!

That lady is real LOL  We all thought it was a statue!!

The end result of all that hard work, and they were delicious!!!

The most brilliant bowl EVER!

Soldiers barracks

 

Officers Barracks ~ MUCH nicer!

Archeology Study

 

This was a lot of fun, who would have thought a whiteboard could be so exciting.  The children got to play out the battle of the War of 1812.  In our game the Canadians actually won!  The organizer said that was a first ever for him!  The kiddos leading the Canadian side did exactly as they should have in the actual battle and stopped the Americans getting a foot hold.  They were all pumped LOL

 

Marching practice!  This was a lot of fun for the kiddos...  The Solider kept saying, 'I'm yelling at you but I'm not angry!' LOL

Little Miss had her rifle upside down most of it, so funny!

Attention!

 

The next few pictures are of the children and the Man Hunt game they created on their own with their free time!  They all played so well together and most of the kids didn't know each other.  This is one of the many benefits to homeschooling that I see.  Children playing with each other and no drama involved :)

YUMMY Dinner! And with friends it's even better!

In the bunkhouse!

The morning after!  It's such a contrast of old and new with the highrises all around the Fort!