14

City of Dresden Steamship
Circa 1910
Pelee Island, Ontario

Credits:
Institute for Great Lakes Research

15

City of Dresden Steamship
Circa 1910
Pelee Island, Ontario

Credits:
Institute for Great Lakes Research

16

Telegram Steamship
Circa 1890
Lake Erie

Credits:
Institute for Great Lakes Research

17

Steamship Erie Belle
Circa 1890
Lake Erie

Credits:
Institute for Great Lakes Research

18

Steamship Imperial
Circa 1890
Lake Erie

Credits:
Institute for Great Lakes Research

19

Steamer Imperial Advertisement
1896
Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Amherstburg Echo, 1896

20

About this time, the transportation problem was helped out in the forming of the Kingsville-Pelee Navigation Company. A rail line linked the dock in Kingsville to the Lake Erie and Detroit River Railroad. Now the grape growers could go across to the mainland and take the trip into Windsor and be back in the latter part of the day. Also, grapes or wine could be transported to London, Brantford or Toronto from Kingsville via the LEE & DRR and then onto the Great Western Railway. There is an account of James Srigley shipping a carload of Concord grapes to Winnipeg by rail. This made the marketing of their wines easier and its distribution.

21

Lake Erie and Detroit River Railroad Locomotive
1885
Windsor, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
University of Windsor. Leddy Library.

22

Lake Erie and Detroit River Railway time schedule
7 June 1890
Windsor, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Walkerville Mercury, June 7th, 1890

23

Windsor Train Yard
Circa 1880s
Windsor, Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Windsor Public Archives

24

So, the 1890's the transportation on water issues had been lessened but the transportation issues by road were still being addressed. Hauling the grapes to the docks to be taken off the Island was difficult as the shore roads were susceptible to erosion and high water levels from the Lake. The roads upkeep was taken charge by appointed pathmasters. They were responsible for the managing of repairs of the roads so that they would not pose a great inconvenience to farmers in getting their product to the steamers.
With all the challenges and problems that grape growers had to overcome, it was the issue of communication to the mainland that was the most persistent through those decades. Even though the Island had 4 post offices by 1885, the mail was only delivered to the Island twice a week. In 1886, a petition was sent to the Dominion Government for a sub-marine telegraph cable to be laid down in Lake Erie between the mainland and Pelee Island. This was granted and again the effect was immediate as new buyers were found and more grapes shipped. But this was still not adequate. In 1893 saw telephone communications come to the Island. Unfortunately, there was no switchboard so individuals could not put them in their homes. Because of this, the old status quo continued. Grape farmers felt that the main problem of doing business and marketing their product was the lack of communication. Insomuch, that in 1895 Henry Rehburg made plans to move off the Island to conduct business in Kingsville instead because of this continued communicational encumbrance.

25

Shore Road
Circa 1940
Pelee Island, Ontario

Credits:
Pelee Island Heritage Museum

26

If the question of, how and where to sell their grapes wasn't big enough of a problem, then when they did find the buyers the volatility of the market also played a heavy factor in their livelihood. In 1888, the prices for grapes were going from one and three quarter to two and one-quarter cents per pound. J.S. Hamilton, one of the biggest buyers of the grapes, was offering the lower price. By the late fall prices were even lower. A lot of grapes hung on the vine and would eventually be made into wine on the owner's premises on account of the low prices.

The problems of the market were constant and even a decade later, in 1898, the grape crop was very good that year but there was no market for them. It persuaded several grape growers to pull out their vines, possibly in favour of tobacco.
By the turn of the Century, the tide was slowly turning against the planting of grapes as an abundance of other crops were being grown on the Island. In 1908, it was noted in the Pelee Island column of the Amherstburg Echo, "We produce grapes, corn, tobacco, Pelee Island marsh potatoes, apples, peaches, plums and pears, also peanuts, walnuts, chestnuts, hickory and hazelnuts, and sweet potatoes. These all grow to perfection".

Sources:
The Vinedressers, Ron Tiessen, Pelee Island Heritage Center, 1997
Thaddeus Smith, Point au Pelee Island, The Echo Printing Company, Ltd., 1993
Amherstburg Echo

27

Girardot Winery
Circa 1900
Sandwich (Windsor), Ontario, Canada

Credits:
Dr. Larry Kulisek