Canadian Branch Gathering

CMA Canadian Branch 69th Annual Gathering

London, Ontario, September 28, 29 and 30, 2018.

Conveners Janet McCredie (our new Hon. Secretary) and assistant Ewan Macpherson have been working to plan an interesting Gathering for 2018 that has kept to our Canadian Association's Clan Macpherson traditions. Everyone is welcome!

Hotel and meeting venue

The Gathering will be held in London at the Best Western Lamplighter Inn. The address is 591 Wellington Rd, London, ON, which is easily accessed from the 401. We have rooms set aside for the Clan and these need to be booked early. Call the Lamplighter at 519-681-7151 and identify yourself as a Macpherson Gathering participant for the special rates.

Gathering registration

Please register by September 6th using either

Gathering details

The Gathering weekend of September 28 to 30, 2018 has been chosen to coincide with the American Branch Gathering the following weekend. We hope this allows ease of travel for visitors from the other branches.
General Schedule: Morning Afternoon Evening
Friday, Sept 28     Informal get-together
Saturday, Sept 29 Council & General meetings Exploring London Highland Dinner
Sunday, Sept 30 Church service

We shall follow our tradition with an informal evening gathering on Friday night. We are hoping to add a trivia game component to our usual Scottish dancing and sing-song. This, as well as our other sessions, will be in the Oak Lounge of the hotel.

The executive and Clan meetings will be held on Saturday morning in the Oak Lounge.

During your free time on Saturday afternoon there are many options. You may want to consider a place that has had a Macpherson connection in its history! There are likely many spots but, two of London's most prominent Museums have clan members in their history!

  1. The London Museum of Ontario Archeology and the Lawson site on Attawandaran Road was originally called the Wilfrid Jury Museum. It houses artifacts from Wilfrid Jury's many archeological excavations as well as First Nations artifacts and history. It also has a recreated Neutral longhouse on site. The Macpherson connection occurred on Wilfrid's first major dig. It was at a Neutral village site in Clearville near Duart, Ontario. Throughout the excavation he stayed at the home of Dr. J. R. Macpherson. The doctor's oldest son Don assisted with the digging. The London Free Press covered the story and had a picture of young J. Donald Macpherson (our former Canadian Branch Chairman) on site with Wilfred. This picture was recently republished in "Out of the Vault" a retrospective of London Free Press photographs.
  2. The second clan connection is with the Banting House Museum in downtown London. It is a National Historic site and internationally known. It celebrates the history and achievements of Dr. Fredrick Banting and his discovery of insulin. One of his lab assistants at the time was Grace Macpherson. She was proud to be part of that exciting discovery.

Dr. Barbara C. Murison will be joining us to speak at the Highland dinner Saturday evening. She is a member of the history department at UWO and one of her specialties is the Scottish diaspora or Scots who have emigrated from Scotland! We look forward to her insights. Our dinner will be held in the Oak Lounge. The dinner selections are noted on the paper and online registration forms.

On Sunday the New St. James Presbyterian Church located at Oxford and Wellington Street North will be enthusiastically welcoming the Canadian Branch's "Kirking in the Tartan" at their service. We shall gather for a group picture following the service.

The planning committee is pleased to have the clan gathering back in London and look forward to seeing everyone this fall!