Old Sandwich Town

LaSalle Strawberry Festival Entrance poster

Located in Mill Street Heritage Park you can find some wind-powered gristmills that were used in the 18th Century. 

Another beautiful neighbouring town to Windsor is Sandwich. Old Sandwich Town is only about a 15-minute walk to the west of the University of Windsor campus (basically – go under the Ambassador Bridge and keep walking for a few minutes to get there).

Old Sandwich Town has a lot to offer, including history. The town was founded in 1797 and is still considered one of the oldest and most historic settlements in Ontario. Sandwich was an important site for several significant historical events. The best thing to do is to walk through Sandwich and see some of the old houses, which are still well preserved today. There is for example the "Duff Baby House" which was built by Alexander Duff between 1792 and 1798 for the fur trading post. In 1807 James Baby bought the building, which later served as the headquarters of U.S. General Harrison, Colonel Henry Proctor and General Isaac Brock until it was ravaged by the British during the War of 1812. There is also "Mackenzie Hall", which was built between 1855 to 1856 by the second Prime Minister of Canada, Alexander Mackenzie. This building served as the Essex County Court House and then became the county headquarters. Nowadays it is a cultural centre with various performing arts spaces, theatres, meeting facilities and much more.

Mackenzie Hall Sandwich TownMackenzie Hall Cultural Centre at 3277 Sandwich Street West

Duff Baby House Sandwich TownDuff Baby House at 221 Mill Street 

Be sure to check out the John Muir Branch of the Windsor Public Library (363 Mill St.). This branch of the WPL hosts the regional archives and the building has been converted from an old Firehall.

You'll get a better impression of this beautiful, but sometimes underrated, neighbouring town if you spend some time there.