September 28, 2025
By Rob MacKenzie
The final Minto Farmers’ Market event of the 2025 season took place on Saturday, Sept. 27 in Palmerston — a beautiful sunny autumn morning and a perfect finale for the market and for the Palmerston Observer “Redux Edition” project.
The two-section, 28 page broadsheet newspaper was published for the occasion of Palmerston’s 150th Anniversary and Homecoming this past August. It was a revival of the community’s longest serving weekly newspaper, which ceased publishing in 2000.
The Observer was on hand at the market with papers available to those who hadn’t yet picked up their copy of the special souvenir issue. Farm-fresh seasonal produce, home-baking, craft items and a hot breakfast were all on offer by local vendors. It was a perfect fall day and a glorious setting, beneath the historic overhead pedestrian bridge with vendors set up alongside the former railway station. It was also an ideal time to chat with readers who had already supported the project and reflect on the return of Palmerston’s newspaper and how well it was received.
While the Redux Edition was a one-time venture, it brought back sentimental recollections of a time when Palmerston had its own local voice in the Observer — a medium that devoted readers turned to for news and opinions on community issues of the day. The revived special issue brought back that sentiment once more, telling some of the stories that shaped Palmerston as it stands today and the people who made it all happen.
With the final market day of the season and Homecoming events behind us, the paper now becomes a piece of Palmerston’s history once more.
A limited number of copies will remain available through the Palmerston Railway Heritage Museum, and copies may still be ordered through the Palmerston Observer Redux Edition website. In addition, the paper has been archived at the Wellington County Museum and Archives, along with Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa.
This project was generously supported by the Palmerston Homecoming committee, the Minto Cultural Roundtable and by every individual who purchased a copy. As a result of this community support, printing and production costs have been covered and surplus funds are being donated to the Palmerston Railway Heritage Museum. A $1000 donation has been made on behalf of the Palmerston Observer.
As publisher and editor, I am grateful to everyone who participated in this undertaking and all who helped to make it happen. With the final Observer printed and delivered, I will respectfully close in the traditional newspaper manner.
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