![]() ![]() Police continued to pull people over on a weekly basis – in a respectful manner so they wouldn’t be alarmed – for the rest of 1968 and for another 40-plus years.ĭozens of visitors from across Ontario and other provinces, as well as Michigan, Ohio and other states, were surprised to be arrested and showered with gifts and friendly smiles from town officials. Have a safe journey and return again to ‘The Friendliest Town in Ontario’.” We sincerely hope you enjoy your stay in our town. You have pleaded guilty to this charge, and We, the Merchants, sentence you to sign our guest book, be photographed for our files, accept these gift certificates on behalf of the merchants, and be our guest as Ridgetown Tourist of the Week. “You have been duly charged with entering the Friendliest Town in Ontario, Canada. The Tuckers were presented with gifts and certificates from town merchants and received a summons which read: Sales, President of the Chamber of Commerce, Smith and other town officials. They received a police escort to OPP headquarters, where they were met by A.J. ![]() The Tucker family, from London, were the inaugural ‘Tourist of the Week’ arrested visitors after OPP officer Tim Larkin pulled their vehicle over at the Main-Erie intersection. ![]() The late Doug Smith, the town’s recreation director, was instrumental in getting the Tourist of the Week program started in 1968, and later with the assistance and cooperation of Elsie Reynolds, the town’s event coordinator and Ridge House Museum curator, the Chamber of Commerce and the Ridgetown OPP. The promotion only takes place every other week this summer, intending to return to a weekly format next summer. “We’re going to give them a gift basket and take their picture to be put in an album,” Brown stated. “We’ll give them a ‘citizen’s citation’ that they’ve entered the friendliest Town in Ontario.” “It could be someone stopping in at Pinnell’s for a coffee or someone driving through town,” said Jim Brown, BIA board member. Instead of police stopping a vehicle, East Kent Councillor John Wright and BIA members will be walking down Main Street looking for candidates to be the ‘Tourist of the Week’. ![]() However, the Ridgetown BIA is bringing the Tourist of the Week out of hiatus.Īt some point this week, a random vehicle or family visiting from out-of-town will discover they are indeed in the Friendliest Town in Ontario. But instead of being hauled into the police station, the arrested parties would be escorted to a predetermined location where they were greeted by a welcoming committee and showered with gifts from several businesses in the ‘Friendliest Town In Ontario.’Ī number of obstacles forced the Ridgetown Chamber of Commerce and town officials to suspend the promotion around 12 years ago. The Tourist of the Week started in 1968 when Ontario Provincial Police officers from the Ridgetown detachment would ‘pull over and arrest’ random drivers going through town with out-of-town identification stickers or out-of-province and American license plates. The Ridgetown Business Improvement Association (BIA) is resurrecting the Tourist of the Week program, which drew national and international attention in its heyday, including Reader’s Digest magazine. The promotion that earned Ridgetown the distinction as the ‘Friendliest Town In Ontario’ is making a comeback. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |