On a chilly February afternoon in Riverfield, people shuffle into The Riverfield Curling Club. Riverfield is not quite a town; some would say it is a scattering of houses with a single church standing beside a silent cemetery. However, on this day, one building is lit up and alive as groups of people file in, greeting friends as they shake off the cold. The doors continue to open and close, and inside there is laughter and conversation as children run around playing hide-and-seek throughout the building. It is an important day for the club. It is the final of the Craig Commemorative Wooden Block Bonspiel, marking the 200th anniversary of the Riverfield Curling Club.
The beginning
Riverfield Curling Club is the third-oldest Curling Club in the area. Nineteenth-century Scottish immigrants brought their love of curling to the Chateauguay Valley, but the game can be traced back further to the later part of the sixteenth century when Flemish merchants introduced it to Scotland. At that time, it was called “khuyten”; the Scots called it “kuting.” The stones were made of channel stones weighing five to 25 pounds, and these were thrown through the air towards a target.
When heavier stones replaced these, the game changed: stones called “loofies” were slid across ice to hit a target. Games would often take place on New Year’s Day if the ice was suitable, and they lasted until one team scored 31 points. Sometimes these games would last all day. Lots of hearty food and perhaps large quantities of Jamaican rum or local whisky fueled the curlers.
When the Scots arrived in Canada, they saw that the game would be a perfect way to embrace the Canadian winter, as the frozen rivers provided an ideal setting. Riverfield Curling Club was originally called The English River Curling Club because of its location. Soon there were five different clubs scattered along the river between almost every concession. In 1825 the Scots played on the English River. They then chose a safer alternative: Templeton Pond.
Because there was no iron or granite for the stones, the settlers fashioned wooden blocks from beech trees and inserted iron handles. Iron stones were eventually introduced to the game; these were made by melting down cannon balls. These “irons” were the favorite of the Scottish businessmen who formed The Royal Montreal Curling Club in 1807, the oldest club in North America. However, wooden blocks were for the longest time the only stones used in many rural areas, including the Chateauguay Valley.
The Wooden Block Bonspiel
In 1975, the Wooden Block Bonspiel was created as a part of Riverfield Curling Club’s 150th anniversary celebration. Wayne McKell, who was president of the Chateauguay Valley Historical Society and an avid curler, and Roy Angell, Riverfield’s icemaker, saw the opportunity to create an annual event that would honour Riverfield’s past and embrace the club’s legend. The story goes that in 1825, James Davis challenged William Miller to the first game of curling to settle an argument. Both men lived on the Scotch Concession. No one seems to know what the argument was about, but Miller won the game. The Wooden Block Bonspiel in 1975 was a success, with Howick resident James D. Lang, a descendant of both Miller and Davis, throwing the opening block.
For the last 50 years that same “J.D.Block” sat waiting in the attic of the original Templeton homestead, owned by Alec Templeton, cousin of Riverfield Curling Club president Scott Templeton. He dug it out in the past couple of years; and, along with Tyler Buchanan, refurbished it so it could make its big appearance for the 200th anniversary celebration. The “J.D. Block” was launched onto the ice this year by Judy Donna Lang, a seventh-generation descendant of Miller and Davis.
In 1975, the winning team was skipped by Phil Wood. He moved to Kelowna, B.C., but mentioned to Templeton that he would be back for the 200th anniversary. Sadly, Wood had a heart attack and died on his B.C. curling club’s ice. But his son, Bob, travelled to participate in the Wooden Block Bonspiel in his father’s place. His team won. The team’s name was Phil’s Legacy.
Hard times
Riverfield Curling Club has had its troubles throughout the years. In 2020 the season was cut short by the pandemic. It remained closed throughout 2021 and into 2022, but club members saw this as an opportunity to renovate the clubhouse. “I have been involved with the club for 50 years,” says Scott Templeton. “Through COVID our membership was really low. It was discouraging. People thought that we had a financial problem; it was not so much a lack of money, but a lack of interest,” he says. Then he received a message from Joanne Henrico, who had started curling two years before. She asked if she could help out, “and the rest is history,” laughs Templeton. Henrico brought organization and a troupe of helpers to the club, and it has grown from 40 to 150 members in the past year.
On Saturday, March 29, the compressor for the ice was turned off for the season; but the last bicentennial celebration will take place on Saturday, April 26, at the Bicentennial Banquet. Tickets are available online at riverfield.curling.io/en/products.