History
Welcome to The Farmstead! This beautiful property has a rich history we look forward to sharing with you. The limestone farmhouse was built by an Irish settler named Thomas Davidson in the 1860’s … a time in history before the Canadian Pacific Railroad was built, a time before automobiles and electricity lit up our homes, a time when Drive-In Road, was nothing more than an old wagon road. The farmhouse is completely constructed of limestone, with the walls built to a thickness of 24”, from a quarry about 1 kilometre from the house. Each piece was hand drilled, cut and delivered to the site by a horse drawn wagon. It was then hand shaped and set in place with lime mortar, where it stands today, unaltered for over 160 years.
The farm stayed in the original family line of the Davidson, Shea and Whelan families for over 120 years, when in 1987 it was then sold by brothers Manley and Frank Whelan to David and Adele Dagenais (Francine’s Uncle & Aunt), whom extensively and beautifully restored the house.
The subsequent property owner, Terry Reid, an avid horse lover built the Stable Barn in 1997. The farm has been bought and sold several times since then. The Stable Barn has received many updates and upgrades by Jarred and Francine and is now used and adored as the main special events building.
When the property came for sale again in 2017, Francine dreamed of the beautiful property she loved and visited as a child when her aunt and uncle owned it. David and Adele were amazing and inspiring hosts and many fond memories with family and cousins and great times were had. In October 2017, Jarred and Francine successfully purchased the property, and have called the farm home since then. Here, they have continued a traditional farm and homesteading lifestyle with their 5 children, from growing their own food, raising chickens for eggs and meat, learning new skills together everyday. This has been a special experience for the Dagenais family to have the beloved stone farmhouse and property full circle to return to the family’s enjoyment.
Jarred and Francine have always had a lingering dream of starting a wedding venue on the property, to share with others the enchanting beauty and energy that they’re fortunate enough to experience every day. Their first five years here, was a labour of love spent rejuvenating gardens, creating new gardens, repairing and straightening the century old Granary barn, and converting the 1997 Horse Stable into an elegant, country atmosphere for future weddings. It’s not all a fairytale, it was quite the process to navigate the important and necessary requirments such as re-zoning the property, and navigating building codes, architectural drawing and and change of use permits for the buildings. Yet with determination and passion, they successfully opened the doors in 2022 welcoming their first full season of weddings.
“To open the doors to the community is a very heartwarming feeling and we are humbled to make this dream a reality. We wish all of our guests to be engulfed in the rich history, and take some time to slow down, breathe and enjoy the present moment… for it’s all we will ever have. We hope you enjoy the company of your loved ones, amongst the sound of the bird’s song, enjoy a delicious meal and evening together at The Farmstead.”
