Take an audio tour of Jewish Northern Ontario

Robert Walker went hunting for this history—from Iroquois Falls to Wawa and beyond.
One of the last vestiges of Jewish life in Iroquois Falls. (Photo by Robert Walker)

In October 2020, Robert Walker scratched a lifelong itch: he embarked on a road trip across Northern Ontario, from the major hubs of North Bay and Timmins to the smaller towns of Iroquois Falls, Chapleau and Wawa. Along the way, Walker—a religious Jew—sought out as many landmarks, old synagogues, store names and museum artifacts as he could find that brought to life these small, local Jewish communities.

On this week’s episode of Yehupetzville, The CJN’s podcast about small-town Canadian Jews, Walker joins to share stories from his incredible trip.

Yehupetzville is hosted by Ralph Benmergui. Michael Fraiman is the producer and editor. Our music was arranged by Louis Simão and performed by Louis Simão and Jacob Gorzhaltsan. Our sponsor is PearTree Canada, which you can learn more about at peartreecanada.com. This show is a member of The CJN Podcast Network—find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

Author

Support Our Mission: Make a Difference!

The Canadian Jewish News is now a Registered Journalism Organization (RJO) as defined by the Canada Revenue Agency. To help support the valuable work we’re doing, we’re asking for individual monthly donations of at least $10. In exchange, you’ll receive tax receipts, a thank-you gift of our quarterly magazine delivered to your door, and our gratitude for helping continue our mission. If you have any questions about the donating process, please write to [email protected].

Support the Media that Speaks to You

Jewish Canadians deserve more than social media rumours, adversarial action alerts, and reporting with biases that are often undisclosed. The Canadian Jewish News proudly offers independent national coverage on issues that impact our audience each day, as a conduit for conversations that bridge generations. 

It’s an outlet you can count on—but we’re also counting on you.

Please support Jewish journalism that’s creative, innovative, and dedicated to breaking new ground to serve your community, while building on media traditions of the past 65 years. As a Registered Journalism Organization, contributions of any size are eligible for a charitable tax receipt.