Family-friendly event featuring live entertainment, escape room, scavenger hunt, and (of course!) free raspberries and raspberry shortcakes
Township of King, Ont. (July 25, 2025) — Life’s a picnic in King Township! In celebration of King Township’s 175th anniversary, the age-old Raspberry Social and Community Picnic is making a comeback! The King community is invited to attend the free family-friendly event on Saturday, Aug. 9 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the King Heritage & Cultural Centre (KHCC), located at 2920 King Road in King City.
Bring your own picnic and non-alcoholic drinks (BYOP) and set-up your spot outdoors on the site’s scenic greenspace: don’t forget your blanket and lawn chairs! Picnic tables and outdoor tents will be available first come, first served, and a cooling station with seating will also be available inside Laskay Hall. The KHCC has limited parking space; guests are encouraged to carpool or park at the King Township Municipal Centre, located at 2585 King Road, and take the free shuttle bus service.
Here is a lineup of the family-friendly entertainment:
- The Opening Act, a musical duo performing a variety of acoustic hits from the 1950s onward from 1 to 2:30 p.m.
- Playground scavenger hunt for children (with prizes) and face painting
- Museum exhibits including ON TRACK: How the Railway Connected Communities and Created a Country
- Lawn games such as badminton, croquet, cornhole toss, Jenga and more!
When life hands you raspberries…
King City Seniors Centre members will be hard at work baking raspberry shortcakes, free for all guests. Attendees can also sample locally sourced fresh berries (and choose to top with whipped cream) and stay hydrated with lemon and raspberry infused water (or fill their reusable water bottle from an on-site water truck).
Live History, a Governor General’s Award nominated international touring theatre company, is hosting a unique escape room in the KHCC's newly restored King Railway Station. Bringing King's history to life through theatre, they present "In Time": giving you—the audience—a chance to be in charge! Complete tasks, discover clues, and solve puzzles, while interacting with actors to escape the train station.
The experience should take an hour to complete; new groups will be accepted every 20 minutes and all ages are welcome.
Tour the newly renovated King Railway Station and King Christian Church
Two designated heritage buildings located at the King Heritage & Cultural Centre have been restored to their original glory following a $250,000 grant from the Rural Economic Development (RED) Fund, delivered through the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.
The King Heritage & Cultural Centre Restoration Project sees the rejuvenation of the King Christian Church, built in 1851 on Lot 31, Concession 5 (now Jane Street) and the King Railway Station, built in 1852 and believed to be the oldest surviving railway station in Canada (originally located in Springhill 37km north of Toronto). Both mid-19th Century buildings were relocated to King’s tourism hub in the 1980s by volunteers from the King Township Historical Society.
Funding went directly towards structural improvements, repairs, and restoration to make the facilities accessible year-round for arts and cultural programming and events. Work started in the fall of 2024 and included installing heating and electrical lighting, repainting interior walls and exterior wood paneling, and restoring physical attributes to be in line with their heritage designations.
King 175
The Raspberry Social and Community Picnic is one of several free events marking King Township’s 175th anniversary in 2025, supported by the Government of Canada’s Building Communities Through Arts and Heritage program.
To celebrate King 175, the King Township Historical Society will be on-site selling the commemorative book The History of King Township: A Community Shaped by the Land. The historic, 476-page hardcover tells the story of King from the Ice Age to present day and is authored by local writer and long-time resident Ann Love and researcher Sharon Bentley, the retired Deputy Chief Librarian of King Township Library. Copies are $40.
King Township merchandise will also be available for sale inside the museum, including magnets, postcards, tea towels, King 175 Chilly Moose reusable, insulated water bottles and a limited-edition Raspberry Social tea towel.
For more information on the Raspberry Social and Community Picnic, visit kingheritageandculture.ca.
To receive updates on King Township news, follow the official corporate social media channels on X and Facebook and Instagram, subscribe to the King eNewsletter or visit king.ca.
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Media Contact
Township of King
Rebecca Streef, Communications Intern
Township of King | Phone: 905-833-5321 | Email: media@king.ca