Town of Georgina
An Icy Tradition
By Jeanne Hopkins
Ice fishing was learned from the natives who would spear lake trout or whitefish through holes which they had cut through the ice. In the early days, fishermen squatted near the holes, with nothing more than warm clothing to protect them from the cold winds. The fishermen sometimes wrapped themselves with animal skins to shelter them from the cold. This tent-like arrangement also helped the spotting of fish by eliminating overhead shadows.
Later, the fishermen built win screens, then portable huts. These houses were of ves light construction so they could easily be lifted onto sleighs and hauled out onto the ice by hand or, later snowmobile. The first huts had floor spaces of about four feet by six feet, and were equipped with a bench running the length of the but. Some were heated by small stoves.
As early as 1908, over 80 huts could be seen on any day off Jackson's Point that number had risen to over 800 huts in 1949, and by 1970, there were 42 commercial fish hut operators on the lake. Most ice fishermen came from Toronto and the surrounding area.
Today, the favourite fishing grounds are the same as over the years - on the east shore of the lake between Island Grove and Jackson's Point.
Every year , Georgina hosts the Great Lake Simcoe Ice Derby. Cash prizes are awarded for the largest fish being caught in each of five categories. This derby, considered to be the largest its kind in North America, has the town of Georgina claiming the title, "Ice Fishing Capital of Canada".
Source: Georgina Advocate - Our History December 1992. Reproduced with permission