Bryan Foley is the Dufferin Hi-Land Archivist and will post fascinating facts here regularly.
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Early Days
The idea for creating The Bruce Trail came about in 1959 out of a meeting between Ray Lowes and Robert Bateman of the Federation of Ontario Naturalists.
On September 23, 1960 the first Bruce Trail Association meeting was held. In attendance were the four founding members Ray Lowes, Philip Gosling, Robert MacLaren and Norman Pearson. 
On March 13, 1963 The Bruce Trail Association was formed (renamed The Bruce Trail Conservancy in 2016).
The first Guide Book came out in 1965.
The Creation of the Dufferin Hi-Land Club
A public meeting was called for April 27,1965 at the Shelburne Public Library for all persons interested in hearing a presentation by Philip Gosling regarding the establishment of a footpath from Niagara to Tobermory.
As a result of this meeting The Dufferin Hi-Land Bruce Trail Club was formed. Ronald O’Reilly, postmaster, became our first president; Grace Bell, librarian, Secretary-Treasurer.
In September 1966, Grant Bell took on the role of president, followed by Mary Tweety 1968-1971, Robert Peters 1971-1979.
The interesting thing about Mr Peters is, he was known for designing and building a stile known as the Peters Stile, a climb over with a platform bridging the ladders. As a result the BTA adopted this plan as the official stile of the trail, and these stiles can still be found throughout the length of the trail.
Bryan Foley, Archivist