CCM History at Bedford Hall Open House

Feb 25, 2016

In an effort to widen their offerings of all things historical, members of the Bedford Historical Committee invited some special guests to their open house at the Bedford Hall on February 20.

One such guest was John McKenty of Perth, who had on display a wide array of CCM memorabilia including one very funky yellow and blue pair of hockey skates, one of the company's famed matched sets.

CCM stand for for Canada Cycle and Motor Co. Ltd. The company was established in 1899 and operated until 1983 before selling the business name to Reebok, which is still producing hockey skates, gloves and sweaters under the CCM name. In fact Pittsburgh Penguin Sydney Crosby wears the brand and advertises it.

CCM also made bicycles and cars, and the first line of chromium steel skates they put out were originally called automobile skates. They were simple blades that screwed onto a separate boot that was made elsewhere.

McKenty tells the story of how back in 1905 the CCM company was building and selling a car called the Russell (McKenty says there is one at the Science Museum in Ottawa).

They were no longer making bikes in the winter months and began using the steel from the Russell car bumpers to make skate blades. In the late 1920s, they began producing their “matched sets”, where the blade and boot were manufactured together at their factory and sold as one piece. Decades later, in the 1940s and 1950s, CCM used to claim that all the players on the NHL championship team wore CCM skates.

Fans of Gordie Howe would like one piece in McKenty's collection, a CCM poster circa 1952 with a picture of the players of the Detroit Red Wings, the team who won the Stanley Cup that year. The poster proclaims: “CCM matched sets, chosen by champions everywhere”, with a small disclaimer at the bottom stating “All players except one”, that player being Gordie Howe.

McKenty has written a book about the history of CCM titled "Canada Cycle and Motor: The CCM Story", which was published in 2011. He has varied interests and included in his collection was memorabilia relating to the James Brothers of Perth, who were CCM dealers. The store operated from 1893 until recently.

McKenty was not the only special guest at the Bedford Hall on Saturday. Committee chair Gerald Stinson and past chair Pat Barr were also on hand, making the committee’s archives available to many local families who stopped by to check out their family history. As well, Marion Hart, a genealogist and family historian was there.

Local history is alive and well in Bedford thanks to the late June Quinn, one of the founders of the Bedford Historical Committee. Quinn always hoped to have a permanent museum at the hall, which has not happened; however she would be happy to know that many locals continue to make good use of her hard work and are finding out more about the local history of Bedford.