God's Big Acre: Life in 401 Country

Bruce Grainger is head of Public Services at the Macdonald Library,
McGill University.

The premise is intriguing — to observe life in the countryside as one speeds along Highway 401 from the Quebec border to Windsor. Much of southern Ontario’s farmland lies within a few miles of this superhighway. Elliot, therefore, has chosen to make “401 country” synonymous with rural, small-town Ontario.

The book consists of brief vignettes based on chance encounters with individuals and families.

With the possible exception of a young hitchhiker, these people are all portrayed as solid, family-oriented citizens, self confident, competent, hard-working, and successful. They are mainly farmers, although other trades and professions are represented. Their lives and lifestyles are illuminated with many interesting facts and descriptions, and captured on numerous black-and-white photographs.

It is refreshing to see a dynamic and positive side of rural life, although the author’s selection does not seem to represent a cross-section of the population; for example, there does not seem to be a single unemployed or disadvantaged person in “401 country”! And further, Elliot sometimes exaggerates to the point of distortion with such claims as “there’s no such thing as a fat dairy farmer,” or “everybody who visits the (Ontario Agricultural Museum) has a farm background.” A comment such as “... farming is no longer an endurance contest. Today’s generation of farmers has not experienced a depression,” could perhaps be challenged by those who have experienced declining incomes or even lost their farms. Despite these few reservations, however, there is a tremendous amount of information here, which anyone interested in modern rural life should enjoy.