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* Original Surface: some minor wear with labeled name on handle
* Titled on Handle: " The Trading Post Horseshoe Lake Ontario Aug.1951
* Overall Size: Depth 7 in, handle height 15 in, width 10 in, length 16 in.
* Type of Basket Material : Oak or Ash splints and ribs.
* Its Age and Maker: Maker is unknown and its dated Aug. 1951
Rare Mid 20th century buttocks basket
A Note of Interest: A "buttocks basket" is a traditional, ribbed, hand-woven basket, so named for its distinct rounded, often double-lobed shape that resembles the buttocks. Originating in Europe and popular in North American and Canadian First Nations basketry, these decorative and functional baskets were traditionally used for gathering eggs or produce, as their shape helped to keep items like eggs or fruits from rolling around inside. They're also known by other regional names, including melon baskets, fanny baskets, gathering baskets or gizzard basket.
During the mid-20th century, as Ontario’s highway system expanded and cottage country in Muskoka grew into one of Canada’s premier summer destinations, roadside businesses sprang up to cater to the surge of motorists heading north. Among the most recognizable of these was the Muskoka Trading Post, a craft and souvenir shop situated along Highway 11 in Gravenhurst and Horseshoe Lake, Ontario. By the early 1950s, it had become both a practical stopover and a visual landmark for generations of cottagers and tourists bound for the region’s lakes and resorts.
The Trading Post was part of a wider tradition of roadside attractions that flourished in Muskoka during the postwar boom. Positioned on the main highway corridor, it welcomed travellers with bold signage and rustic architecture that promised a taste of the North. Its stock in trade reflected the cultural currents of the time: Native-inspired crafts, postcards, small carvings, and tourist mementos that offered visitors a way to carry a piece of Muskoka home. Surviving examples of these souvenirs, along with numerous vintage postcards depicting the shop itself, testify to its popularity and its role in shaping the visual identity of the region.
While exact records of ownership are scarce, the Trading Post’s operation coincided with a period when Muskoka’s economy was shifting from resource-based industries to tourism. Shops like this not only sold trinkets, they also marketed a romanticized vision of northern Ontario—canoes, teepees, and rustic motifs—that aligned with mid-century ideas of wilderness adventure. For many families travelling north for the first time, the Trading Post provided an accessible introduction to Muskoka’s character and served as a marker that the cottage country holiday had truly begun.
Equally important was its function as a community hub on the main highway. The Trading Post offered refreshments, directions, and conversation in addition to its shelves of souvenirs. Locals recall its role as a place where summer residents and permanent Muskoka families mingled, reinforcing the sense of a shared seasonal economy. The building itself, captured on brightly coloured linen postcards, has become a nostalgic image of a Muskoka era defined by station wagons, motor courts, and lakeside cabins.
Though the Trading Post eventually faded from prominence as larger retail chains and modern travel patterns changed the roadside landscape, its legacy remains etched in our memories and in the ephemera that came from this wonderful shop. Today, collectors of Muskoka memorabilia value the postcards, the souvenirs and the crafts that survive as charming artifacts of a time when a simple roadside shop could symbolize the magic of arriving in Ontario’s cottage country.
Rare Artifacts Ref No:8UX25OVB-S/AEEX
1920's Hand Polychromed Cast Iron Door Wedge
Updated October 12, 2025 |
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