Tenaga History Project
Every family has a story to tell. Tenaga is filled with wonderful stories of the cottage families who settled here from the early 1900s on. Many arrived for the summer season by train from Ottawa and Montreal and the Northeastern States. A mass exodus of Chelsea Island at the flooding of the Gatineau River in 1926 drew a whole community of cottage families up to Tenaga, bringing a rich tradition of summer fun centred on the Clubhouse with its clay tennis courts, bowling greens, Friday night dances and Saturday night skits in which everyone participated. To this day the Regatta on the August Bank Holiday weekend brings far-flung generations home to celebrate this annual event. As I interview the families and gather photos of the times, the Tenaga History Project is slowly evolving into a treasure of shared memories. The hope is that a dedicated website will soon keep the archive alive and growing for Tenaga families to honour and savour the unique character of this remarkable little village community.
My grandmother Louise (right) and her sister Dorothy
at the family cottage, Tenaga, Quebec