The Bulgarians are coming... to North Frontenac

Jeff Green | Dec 14, 2022

In the summer of 1877, the battle for control of Pleven, a city in Northeast Bulgaria, had been raging for months. By the end of the summer, three phases of the battle had already taken place, each more bloody and costly for both the invading Russian forces and the Ottoman (Turkish) defenders. There were 100,000 Russian troops in the third Battle of Pleven, and they were successfully resisted by 30,000 Ottoman troops.

All of this in a city that had a population of under 15,000 at the time. (The population of Pleven was 14,307 in 1887 – it peaked 100 years later in 1987 at 115,000, and is now at about 90,000.)

After the third battle, the Russian forces circled Pleven and laid siege to it. The Ottomans eventually surrendered the city in December, 1877, but by then the Ottoman stand at Pleven (also known as Plevna) was renowned across Europe, and had implications for the survival of the Ottoman Empire.

According to the historian AJP Taylor, as quoted in the Wikipedia page on the siege, “most battles confirm the way that things are going already; Plevna is one of the few engagements which changed the course of history. It is difficult to see how the Ottoman Empire could have survived in Europe... if the Russians had reached Constantinople in July; probably it would have collapsed in Asia as well. Plevna... gave the Ottoman Empire another forty years of life ...”

The battle also marked a turning point in terms of military hardware, with some of the Ottoman success in resisting the Russians even though they were badly outnumbered, being attributed to the use of new, repeating rifles in the face of the single shot muzzle loader the Russians were using.

The only connection between the battle for Pleven and the history of North Frontenac has to do with the postal service in the new country of Canada at that time, and with a family feud in Clarendon-Miller Township, now part of North Frontenac.

The village that had cropped up near Buckshot Lake in about 1860, was called Buckshot at the time. But the Canada Postal Service had only accepted the name on an interim basis, insisting the community come up with a more suitable name. At the time there were family based factions in the community, and despite the fact that the postal service had set a deadline for a new name, no consensus emerged.

Until, that is, according to the account in Away back in Clarendon-Miller, Sam Barton said the situation was as bad as the situation that existed in Plevna, Bulgaria. Somehow this turned into a suggested name to submit to Canada Post. Not being connected to any faction, nor being any of the family names in the settlement that were so contentious, the name was submitted, and accepted by the postal service on November 1, 1877, 6 weeks before the fall of Plevna.

According to the book, it is unlikely that Sam Barton knew about the raging battle for Pleven at the time, given that news did not travel that fast between Europe and Clarendon-Miller in the 1870s, but was probably referring to earlier battles in the same region.

Nonetheless Plevna emerged as the largest settlement in Clarendon-Miller, which it remains to this day, even with only 170 post boxes to its name, and no post office.

This little known fact of North Frontenac lore is now having its moment in the sun thanks to Velislava Panova, the Bulgarian Consul-General in Toronto. She has been combing the map looking for connections between Ontario and Bulgaria, in order to foster connections between the two countries.

This summer she visited the town of Varna, in Huron County, which was named for Varna, the third largest city in Bulgaria.

And now she wants to come to Plevna.

In a report that will be coming to this week's busy, first real council meeting of the new North Frontenac Council, a report from Brooke Hawley concerns an event being planned for next month.

“Velislava Panova, Consul General of the Republic of Bulgaria contacted the township to arrange a 'Day of Bulgaria and Romania' in Plevna.

“Ms. Panova mentioned the name of Plevna has its origin from our beautiful country Bulgaria it will be our pleasure to have the next meeting in Plevna. We want to meet the local community and to know more about the people that live there” The date has been scheduled for January 28, 2023 at the Clarendon Miller Hall. Times and details are not confirmed at this time.

“The day will consist of food and wine tasting; dancers and singers; and questions and stories. This will be a free event open to the public.”

Details about the event will be forthcoming, but Consul General Panova is looking to the township for support in promoting the event.

“It is exciting to be chosen for an event in Plevna,” wrote Hawley, the manager for community development for the township, in her report.