Explore our stories

A tour of the Bayfield Cemetery reveals much about our local history. The cemetery was established in December 1861 when John Esson, the Stanley Township Clerk, bought an acre of land from Andrew Bronson. Bronson purchased the first burial plot for $3. The land was then divided into shares, with the first 10 purchased by James Gairdner, Andrew Rutledge, Thomas H. Bateman, William H. Hall, William W. Connor, William Bengough, James Thompson & Co., and George Erwin, the village’s undertaker. 

Information about the cemetery originates from the Corporation of the Village of Bayfield History, 1876-1985, by the Bayfield Historical Society. 

 The following cemetery records are available at our Archives & Heritage Centre: 

•     Bayfield Public Cemetery  

•     Baird’s Cemetery  

•     Bayfield Memorial Cemetery 

•     Varna United Cemetery 

•     Varna Memorial Cemetery

 The majority of headstones are photographed and their inscriptions entered into Find-a-Grave.

In 1836, Baron von Tuyll, a Dutch nobleman responsible for the establishment of Bayfield, donated two lots to the village to build a school. The first school was made of cedar logs and was built on Bayfield Terrace (lots 12 and 13). The school was known as “The Hut,” and is today a residence, the oldest building in Bayfield. (Information about “The Hut” was provided by Lucy Diehl.)

As the population grew, two more lots (236 and 237) were donated to the village for a brick schoolhouse built in 1862.

A new public school opened in 1955. Although children started attending classes on November 14. the official opening did not take place until May 30, 1956.   

In 1967, a larger and more central school, Huron Centennial Public School, was built outside Brucefield.

Union School Section No.1 – Hay & Stanley
S.S. No. 1, Stanley – Baird's
S.S. No. 3, Stanley – Front Road School
S.S. No. 4, Stanley
S.S. No. 5, Stanley
S.S. No. 6, Stanley – Varna School
S.S. No. 7, Stanley
Union School Section No. 9 – Blake
S.S. No. 10, Stanley
S.S. No. 13, Babylon Line
S.S. No. 14, Stanley
R.C. Separate School, Stanley
Lakeview Christian School

Information come from the following books: Corporation of The Village of Bayfield History 1876-1985 by the Bayfield Historical Society and Township of Stanley History 1836-1986 by the Stanley History Committee.

Our Archives & Heritage Centre maintains assessment rolls for the village of Bayfield. These rolls were compiled annually and identified the head of the household and the number of occupants.

We also maintain an extensive collection of ephemera, such as broadsides, newspaper clippings, prints and postcards for research purposes.

Families who have played significant roles in shaping the history of Bayfield have donated photos, papers and other materials to our Archives, providing a glimpse into their lives and events that contributed to the character of our community.  We take great pride in honouring the legacy of these families through the preservation and cataloguing of these records. 

Do you have items you would like to donate? Please email us at bhsmembers@gmail.com to speak with our archivist about whether your items fit our collecting policy. We thank our archival donors for contributing to our enduring legacy.

Our Archives & Heritage Centre has a small library of township histories, Huron County atlases and more to help you with your local history search. We can also consult Bayfield Council minutes dating from 1876 to 1965, including directories. 

The digitized Huron County Newspapers are an excellent resource for local history research. You can search them at this link.