The Orillia Winter Carnival has been around for many, many years and has evolved with time. No one really knows how long this event has been running but we have seen photographic proof from as far back as the early 1950’s.

According to the Orillia Museum of Art & History, some 25 years ago though, the Orillia Winter Carnival was much different than it is today. To begin the evening on opening night, there was a log-sawing contest and a street dance on Mississaga Street between West and Peter. Music was piped in from a disc jockey’s equipment located at the Bank of Montreal. Simultaneously, a wine and cheese party was held in the Bonthron Memorial auditorium of the Community Centre. And to top off the night, two hockey games were played at the Community Centre as well. The first between the Oro Jets ladies team and the Twin Lakes teachers and the second was the CFTO Bassett Hounds against the Elementary and Secondary School Principals.

With the temperatures we’ve seen over the years, can you imagine having a street dance in February? Other than that, the events were small, simple and few and far between but it was a fun family event that the community enjoyed immensely.

Well, we still hold a dance on opening night but we’re smarter now and we go indoors.

The current carnival was incorporated in 1996 and has remained a group of community members that have made it happen year after year. After a struggle to keep things going due to volunteer burnout, the carnival was cancelled in 1999. But to no avail, it was revived in the year 2000. Carnival was back with a bang. That year, many new people came on board to breathe some new life into the carnival. The favourite events returned, such as the lumberjack show and the midway. And of course the Orillia Winter Carnival wouldn’t be the same without it’s centerpiece, the 1200 square foot ice castle. This ice castle which is home to Shivers the carnival mascot requires over 7,800 specially ordered ice blocks to make and takes several days to build.

With the return of the carnival came new ideas and new leadership. In 2001, the carnival was dedicated to long time supporter and organizer Bill McGill who unfortunately passed away earlier on that year. This dedication brought great pride to everyone involved and it got the attention of the media and local old timers that shared a few stories with us. Pete McGarvey who was a friend of Bill’s for many year’s agreed to give a speech at opening ceremonies and shared a few carnival tid- bits with us. He said that many years back when Bill McGill was organizing the event, they actually had things such as horse race betting on the ice and wine and cheese parties. These are the things that only Bill could accomplish. Bill McGill will be missed by many organizations in Orillia. A plaque that some day will don the walls of the Community Centre was presented to the McGill family during opening ceremonies.

Opening ceremonies didn’t stop there. The 99 Lynx Squadron Air Cadets Pipes and Drums piped in all the dignitaries and we were lucky to have Sarah Makin, Orillia’s Ambassador and Mayor Ron Stevens light the official torch atop the castle. Although it poured rain all day that day, there was a pause in the rain just long enough to allow a few hundred people to venture out to the outdoor ceremony in the mild temperatures to witness the opening of this glorious event.

Dedicating the carnival was thought to be such a good idea that organizers decided to make it a tradition. The 2002 winter carnival was dedicated to Orillia’s Fire Fighters. This is a group of people that have helped out year after year with the carnival and have never asked for a thing in return. The carnival committee was very proud to honour the local fire department and to make it even more special, a story writing contest for all those in grades 4,5 & 6 in Orillia was introduced. Students were encouraged to write stories about the role fire fighters play in our lives and the winning entry was read by the author during opening ceremonies.

2003 for the OPP was this year’s theme and with OPP Commissioner Gwen Boniface taking the plunge in the Polar Bear Dip the proceeds raised for the Lighthouse Men’s Shelter and the Hospital foundation reached a record high of $28,000!!!!! We grabbed the attention of the Toronto Star, the Sun, CTV North and CTV Toronto for the first time ever thanks to the Commissioner being such a great sport. The OPP raised more than $14,000 to see their boss take the plunge and the other 74 dippers including 2 OPP canine members raised the other $14,000. 2003 also saw the introduction of Live at the Bandstand which was a huge success and several secondary school students worked very hard to earn their community service hours with the hopes of winning the Orillia Winter Carnival award in their school.

Over 15,000 people took to Centennial and Couchiching Beach Parks despite the frosty weather. The Ken Jen Zoo, dog sled and horse wagon rides, Leacock Kid’s Tent and of course Shivers’ Ice Castle were once again big favourites. The pancake breakfast was once again popular with our celebrity chefs such as MPP Garfield Dunlop, Mayor Ron Stevens and joining them were rookie cooks, OPP Deputies Pilon and Collins as well as Provincial Commander Gwen Strachan. Close to 1,000 prizes were caught at the OPP Kiddies Fish Pond which proves it was another very successful year!

This history page will grow as time goes on. We’ll add tid-bits from the deep past and add to it as the stories unfold but for now, that’s what we are about.