Saturday May 4, 2019:

Signal Tower raising ceremony tentatively 12 Noon.

This will be a spectacular event; the 30 foot station signal tower will be hoisted by a large heavy duty construction crane (provided by Double D Crane Service) from the back of the station, over the roof and then connected to its permanent foundation. Its signal lights will then be activated by a special Guest of Honour.

The public is invited to this exciting event. Donations gratefully accepted.

Plaque Dedication Ceremony at site in honour of the original railway workers who gave their lives in Burlington during the early days of rail.

During this Construction note the following restrictions:
-No access to the site before 12:00 Noon
-No parking allowed on site
-No washrooms will be available on Site

FOFS Board of Directors Meeting Wednesday April 10th 7:00 PM at Freeman Station, all welcome.

Hello Freeman Supporters 

You may have seen the January 15 2019 Hamilton Spec Newspaper front page featuring the Freeman Station. 

A terrific article to get our message out, and we thank Jeff Mahoney for that. 

Now we really need your help in 2019 to gather the last bit of funding to reach our goals. 

Can you help us by becoming a member. 

As Lord Kitchener would have said, “Please visit our website at   www.freemanstation.ca/store/  ”  and become a member.  

Or have your name added to our wall of Winstone donors by purchasing a stone for $100 

Prefer to come in person?

The Station will be open on February 16 2019 from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm where we invite everyone to drop by.

Sponsor a BENCH $500.00

Sponsor A Large PLANTER $250.00

Each of these will bear a stainless steel plate with a commemorative inscription…
…And they will all add much needed funds for the continuing restoration of Burlington’s historic Freeman Station. Just mail a cheque to Friends of Freeman Station, PO Box 91536, Roseland Plaza, Burlington. ON, L7R 4L6; or click on the “Donate” link in the header.

Click Book on the History and Restoration of Freeman Station

To date, more than 6,000 hours of volunteer labour have gone into the project, and more than $ 390,000 in cash and corporate/ private donations and pledges has been raised. On the Station’s Lower Level, we’re planning to install a computer-driven, museum-quality interactive diorama depicting life in the hamlet of Freeman, which is now part of Burlington, in the early Twentieth Century.

We’re looking for volunteers to join the building restoration project and/or the diorama construction project. Depending on your interests, there are many opportunities for you to get involved in this historic legacy.

Volunteer opportunities:

• Curriculum development- writing teacher material for class visits

• Bricklaying and carpentry

• Accounting – simple, spread sheet, income & expenditures

• Photography – amateur (digital!)

• Computer – correspondence, spreadsheet data input and management

• Web site – assistant Web master using WordPress (we’ll teach you)

• Email database – adding/editing contact information

• Gardening – grounds maintenance, flower beds, mowing, weeding

• Community relations – arranging and staffing public appearance events

• Publicity – news stories and media relations

• Model railroading – garden scale design, layout, and operation

• Steam boiler certification – live steam locomotive operation

• Videography – video documentation and editing

• Artistry – scene and mural painting

• Docents – volunteer staffing to receive and brief the public

• Artifact management – logging, documenting, photographing, data entry

To any extent that you can help, please email us — info@freemanstation.ca — and let us know your interest.

We’ve been working with local families to capture their stories  about life in the village of Freeman and early Burlington.  The first of these are now published under the “Families of Freeman/Stories” link above (or click here) and include “A.D. McMillan, Fruit and Vegetable Grower,” “Memories of Freeman,” “The Freeman Family and the village of Freeman,” “The Smith Family (Smith’s Funeral Home),” and the life story of “Theo Bullock.”  There are many more family histories and anecdotes which could be added to this collection, and we’d very much like to hear from you, to add your family’s memories.  Just drop us a note to info@freemanstation.ca and we’ll work out the details.

Christmas came early to the Station, as the masons from Thorstone — including Joel Thorstone and his staff — Colin, Mark and Mitchell — have now completed the work of re-installing the Whinstone facade across the front of the Station.  Work proceeded notwithstanding the cold weather and they finished in five days.  Beautiful job, guys.  We are thrilled to see the result!

…so here we are again, Friends of Freeman Station volunteers in the 2016 Burlington Santa Claus Parade.  Nice day, mild temperatures, no rain.  What more could the intrepid volunteer parade participant ask for?  Well, a reliable ride, what else?  And a good time was had by all…

_{(Intrepid photos:  Bob Miller)}

Leslie Dawe and her Mother arrived at the Burlington Junction Station from England by ship and train in 1956.  To celebrate the 60th anniversary of that occasion, Leslie invited 35 of her closest friends and relatives to meet her at the Freeman Station.  The rest, they say, is history.

She was greeted this time by the Mayor of Burlington, Rick Goldring, and Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed-Ward. Greetings were also read from Hon. Karina Gould, Member of Parliament for Burlington, and Hon. Eleanor McMahon, MPP for Burlington.

The family presented Leslie with a Whinstone named in her honour, and Friends of Freeman Station endowed her with a Lifetime Honourary Membership.  “I remember arriving at the Station warmly dressed in fur-lined coat and boots, expecting to step out into a cold Canadian November,” Leslie said.  “That’s what Grandma had prepared us for.  Instead the temperature was in the 60’s, and we were sweltering!”

Well, Leslie, we couldn’t quite replicate that day’s weather for you, but we did pretty good:  temperature around 45 degrees F and partly sunny, so really a nice day.  So congratulations and thank you for thinking of Burlington Junction Station as the venue for your 60th commemoration!

P.S.  If you, dear reader, or someone you know would like to come past the Freeman Station on your nostalgic occasion, we’ll be happy to accommodate you.  Just send us a note to info@freemanstation.ca and we’ll arrange it.