Trent Valley Archives Theatre Returning in 2026
June 4, 5, 6 and 7 — A Fundraiser for The Trent Valley Archives at Market Hall Performing Arts Centre, Peterborough. Click here for more information.
The Kid from Simcoe Street
In our adaptation of this moving World War II era memoir, James Clarke recalls growing up in the poor and alcohol-ridden neighbourhood of downtown Peterborough.
As a boy, his father had been a foot soldier, but after coming home from the battlefields he turned to manic drinking and belligerence, shattering his wife’s dreams, and casting a dark shadow over James’ boyhood.
This story, told with emotion that is unflinching in its honesty, lets us see just how remarkable it is that James Clarke became not only a man esteemed and honoured as a judge of the Superior Court of Ontario, but as a respected poet, too.
Purchase your copy from Exile Editions
Have you seen the updated Heritage Gazette?
We are pleased to continue and expand on the pioneering work of archivist Elwood Jones and Steve Gavard as we explore the near and distant past in this full colour publication.
View the current and past issues
We’re gearing up for our book signing event with Irish historical geographer, author, and Peterborough St. Patrick’s Day Parade Grand Marshall Christy Roche! He will be signing copies of his latest book From Whence They Came: The Peter Robinson Settlers, published in 2025 to coincide with the Bicentennial of the Peter Robinson Emigration. The book chronicles the towns and villages the Peter Robinson Emigrants left behind in 1825, providing the historical context behind each community alongside full-colour photographs of the historic buildings that existed at the time of the emigrants’ departure. A faithful companion to anyone researching their Peter Robinson emigrant ancestors, the book is available in both hardcover (pictured) and softcover, although we only have one hardcover copy left. ![]()
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Our archives building at 567 Carnegie Avenue is all decked out in its St. Patrick’s Day finery and is ready to welcome you tomorrow afternoon (March 14)! Drop by anytime between 1pm and 3pm to purchase a copy of the book, chat with the author, and enjoy some refreshments. You’ll also have the opportunity to explore everything else TVA has to offer, including our 1200+ archival fonds, our extensive research library and genealogy wall, and the other local history publications for sale in our bookstore. We hope to see you tomorrow!
Last Thursday, Madison More (the current president of the Trent Valley Archives) met with Sarah Joore (Sales and Marketing Project Coordinator) and Katie Zatorski (Sales and Marketing Coordinator) at Canterbury Gardens to thank the Gardens Retirement Living for their continued support of Trent Valley Archives Theatre and our upcoming production of "The Kid from Simcoe Street" which will be staged at the Market Hall Performing Arts Centre on June 4 and 5 at 7:30pm and June 5 and 6 at 2pm. ![]()
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We're pleased to welcome the Gardens back as Trent Valley Archives Theatre's Platinum Sponsor for the third year in a row, especially considering this year's production has a surprising connection to one of their residences. Empress Gardens, originally the location of the Empress Hotel, was where both of James Clarke's parents worked - his mother as a waitress and his father as a bellhop - and both his parents and the hotel are featured in the play. "The link to The Gardens is one that we were very pleased to learn about, and we are delighted to bring attention to the TVAs great work and preservation of our region’s history," said Sarah. ![]()
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We're equally pleased to welcome kawarthaNOW back as our Platinum Media Sponsor, who is also returning for the third year in a row. Both the Gardens Retirement Living and kawarthaNOW, along with our other sponsors, donors and community partners, are essential to the success of Trent Valley Archives Theatre. Their monetary and in-kind support will help us mitigate the expenses required to stage "The Kid from Simcoe Street" this year, and in turn increase the revenue generated for the Trent Valley Archives. 100% of this revenue will go to support the work TVA does preserving our community's history and making its 1,200+ collection of archival fonds accessible to the public. ![]()
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It's not to late to become a sponsor! You can follow in the footsteps of The Gardens of Peterborough Retirement Residences and kawarthaNOW and support "The Kid from Simcoe Street" at the Gold, Silver or Bronze level. Each level of sponsorship guarantees you an ad in our Heritage Gazette and "The Kid from Simcoe Street" playbill, and your name and logo will appear in all of our upcoming promotional materials for the play. For more information on sponsorship, email us at tvat@trentvalleyarchives.com or call us at 705-745-4404. ![]()
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[Image Caption: Madison More (left) and Sarah Joore (right) with a copy of James Clarke's memoir "The Kid from Simcoe Street" that this year's TVAT production is based on.]
We can't wait to welcome Peterborough St. Patrick's Day Parade Grand Marshall Christy Roche to the Trent Valley Archives this Saturday, March 14 for our book signing event in celebration of Irish Heritage Month! ![]()
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Christy is an Irish historical geographer and author, and drew upon his background in historical geography to produce his latest book "From Whence They Came: The Peter Robinson Settlers," published in 2025 to correspond with the Bicentennial of the Peter Robinson Irish Emigration. The book highlights the Irish towns and villages the Robinson emigrant families called home in the early 1820s, just before they embarked on their life-changing journey across the Atlantic. Each has been given a dedicated two-page spread that contains historical context about the area and two full-colour photographs of buildings that the emigrants themselves would have been familiar with. ![]()
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Drop by our archives building anytime between 1pm and 3pm to purchase a copy of the book, chat with the author, and enjoy some light refreshments. Both hardcover and softcover copies of the book will be for sale at the signing but inventory is limited, so we recommend you arrive early. Please note that we can only accept cash and e-transfer payments on site so we recommend that you bring cash with you. In addition to Christy's book, we have other books about the Peter Robinson Emigration (like the Nine Ships Bicentennial Souvenir Book) and other local historical topics for sale in our bookstore, so you're sure to find something that interests you!
Today is International Women's Day! The Trent Valley Archives is proud to highlight the history and achievements of women in our community whenever we can, whether that is through preserving documents and other materials created by women (like those in our Martha Kidd Fonds and our Cathleen McCarthy Fonds), our local history walking tours (like our Women's History Tour in Little Lake Cemetery), or articles about local women in our Heritage Gazette of the Trent Valley. ![]()
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We would also like to thank the many women who have chosen to dedicate their time to volunteering and working with us over the years, whether that's through steering our organization in positions of leadership on our board, assisting with accounting and bookkeeping behind the scenes, developing each issue of the Heritage Gazette of the Trent Valley, representing us on our walking tours and at other events, ensuring our website, e-blasts and social media channels are always looking great, or assisting researchers and processing archival fonds at our archives building. We would not be where we are today without your contributions. ![]()
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If there is a local woman who has made a significant contribution to our community that you'd like to highlight, past or present, please share their name and story in the comments. Together, lets amplify the women in our community today!![]()
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[Image Caption: "Trent Goalie Takes Time Out to Talk: Erica Metcalfe, Shirley Farquhar, Terry Tabulentus, players on Trent U. women's hockey team." Published in the Peterborough Examiner on January 20, 1971.]
We're pleased to announce that we will be welcoming Irish historical geographer and author Christy Roche to the Trent Valley Archives on Saturday, March 14 for a book signing! Christy is visiting the Peterborough area to serve as the Grand Marshall of the 26th Annual Peterborough St. Patrick's Day Parade, and has graciously agreed to visit us that afternoon to sign copies of his latest book, "From Whence They Came: The Peter Robinson Settlers." ![]()
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Published in 2025 to correspond with the Bicentennial of the Peter Robinson Emigration, the book examines the history of the emigrations of 1823 and 1825 from the Irish perspective, focusing on the communities the emigrants came from rather than the communities they settled in. The book identifies the towns and villages that were home to one (or several) Peter Robinson emigrant families and provides historical context about what that community was like just before the emigrants' departure. This historical context is further enhanced with accompanying full-colour photographs, two per location, of buildings that would have existed in the 1820s, uniquely linking the past to the present. ![]()
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The book signing is a drop in event and you are welcome to drop by our archives building at 567 Carnegie Avenue anytime between 1pm and 3pm to purchase a copy of the book and chat with the author. Both hardcover and softcover copies of the book will be for sale at the signing. Inventory is limited, so although this is a drop-in event, we recommend you arrive early. Please note that we can only accept cash and e-transfer payments on site so we recommend that you bring cash with you if you'd like to purchase a book. Light refreshments will be provided. We hope to see you there!