About the Visual Past

• About Us
• Credits
• Sponsors
• Submitting Articles
• Submitting Models

Reconstructing Ontario's Past is the prototype for a more ambitious website that explores Canadian history through articles and 3D interactive environments.

The site is under continuous development, changing on a regular basis depending on our research and the information provided by our viewers. Our goal is to provide extensive, accurate, and in-depth information on Canadian history. Your contributions help us achieve that goal. For example:

Each 3D environment currently illustrates just one interpretation of an historic site. Other ways of reconstructing the site are possible. If you have done research in the area, you may have a different interpretation and we would be pleased to either modify our model or build a new model based on your arguments.

The articles are based on the research we have done, but we know that there is a wealth of documentation in the world and we may not know about something you have studied in-depth. Send us an article or a handful of factoids and we will update our articles to reflect your knowledge, with the result that Canadians are better informed about their past.

If you do provide information that helps us create more accurate models or articles, you will receive credit on our credits page or be listed as a contributor at the bottom of the article that you helped correct.

The Value of 3D

This site uses interactive 3D models to help visitors visualize Canadian history. 3D models have the advantage that they are

• easily updated
• alternative interpretations can be placed together for comparison
• modern backgrounds such as electrical wires and highways are removed
• buildings and other features that were altered to meet modern safety standards and the needs of tourists can be restored to their original form
• sites can be constructed to show how the area changed over time

Three historical sites have been recreated online and are supported by text articles. We are soliciting comments so please write us with your reactions.

The 3 environments are:

• Ste. Marie among the Hurons. Wander around this 17th c. mission site in the wilderness.
• Toronto 1810 explores the early settlement of York, the newly founded English dominated capital of Upper Canada, quite unlike the city of Toronto that succeeded it.
• Schneider Haus, a German farmstead in Waterloo County, now located in the heart of Kitchener, once a thriving farm of 65 acres with its own mill.

This Site Grows when You Send Us Your Comments

If you have specialized knowledge of Canadian history that you would like to share with our readers we would lke to hear from you. Send us comments or articles and we will post them after an editorial review. We especially seek answers to the questions we raise on Q&A pages and elsewhere.

If you are a 3D modeler with an interest in architecture, furniture, technology or history, you can contribute to the site and gain recognition for your work. We will post smaller items in our gallery after a review. Be aware that historians and researchers may want to comment on your work. We accept jpegs and brief turntable movies in avi format.

If you have visited any of these sites and have fond memories you would like to share, we would like to include them as well.

We welcome your support.

The Visual Past currently can be reached through C.R.Visuals Inc.:

visualpast@crvisuals.com
52 Eby St. S., Kitchener, ON