Did you know that County folks have their own rendition of the English language?
Given its island status, Prince Edward County has enjoyed a degree of seclusion, allowing its residents to cultivate their distinct dialect. Below, we've gathered a collection of County expressions — but if there's a "County-ism" we've overlooked, don't hesitate to sprinkle it into the comments section!
Upstreet
Picton only has one main street, and no matter which way you approach from, it’s always uphill. Rather than saying “downtown” County residents go “upstreet” to go shopping.
For example “I took my ma upstreet to buy a newspaper.”
Acrost
Off the island, this is pronounced “a cross” but in the County, drop the extra ‘s’ and substitute with a ‘t’. No logical explanation. Also heard as a regular part of speech in parts of Windsor and Essex County.
For example “Did you see that elephant go acrost the road?”
We’ve also dropped the ‘t’ from other words …
• Comment by Lesley: It’s pronouced The Coun-EE NOT Coun-TY, at least in our house.
• Comment by Phil: This PEC glossary of terms is terrific. Been here 11 years and pretty much know the lingo. The “t” we add to “across” is the one we dropped from “county”. As in: “I grew up in The Couny, eh?”
• I am County born and raised and this just made my day.
Might Better
The County version of helpful suggestion.
For example “Since Ethel lost her teeth she might better stay away from the corn.”
• Comment by Cathy: “Might Just As Else” – an option for “Might Better”
• Comment by Amy: Had no idea “might better” was County. I say that all of the time. LOL.
Right Ready Comment by Janice: Right ready. …. “I’ll be right ready
Pretty much Pretty much, Pretty good, Pretty near (or abbreviated to pret’near). For example “I’m pretty near ready.”
Death notices at the post office
Death notices are posted on the bulletin board at the post office. Many times I’ve heard locals say, “I saw him dead in the Post Office.”
- Comment by Heather “I am from Toronto and used to have a part-time place in the county. During the years we were in the county we made some really great ‘local’ friends and neighbours. My husband and I used to tease our friends about some of the things they would say as it sounded so strange to us being from the city. One of the things that comes to mind is our friend telling us that the Consecon Lake used to be a “crick”. We weren’t sure what that meant until we figured out that what they were actually saying was ‘creek’.”
- Author’s note: Same applies to Black River, or Black Creek – known to the locals as Black Crick.
- Comment by Lesley: Going to Black River. You don’t need to explain you’re going to get curd
- Comments by Wayne: We used to go fishing at the CRICK (creek). In the spring dad trapped MUSHRATS (muskrats). A TOURIST is someone that has moved into the county but they haven’t lived there for 3 generations. If you are going to the POND you are going to Gull Pond at Pointe Petre. We drove to POINT PETER to go fishing not (Petri).
For example “What’d you do Saturday night?”
“The Hayloft was full so we went Horn Tripping”
Comments:
- .. by Jim: Should note that a “Horn Trip” extends from Picton down to Cressy back thru Waupoos to Picton. To be official, it requires not just any beverage, but beer. A case of 24 to be exact. Take as much time and as many people as you need. LOL
- .. by R Cooper: One thing missing from the official “Horn Trip” description…there must be a stop on the way out at Black Crick for a bag’o’fresh curd.
- . by LGM: I’ve been coming to the County for vacation (holiday) for the past 45 years and horn tripping with our friends in the 80s was our favorite pastime.
- .. by Jock: to Jim…24 beers in a case..24 hours in a day…Co-incidence??…mmmm I think not..
- .. by Justin: Also known as the six and six lol
- .. by Tony: Now, while ‘horn trippin’ you may find yourself ‘pot hole inspecting’. Which can go on for hours. You’ll know when you might better go home when you start cow tripping and horn tipping, resulting in peeing on your own shoes! God bless the promised land!
When the Hayloft is closed or full of tourists, or if you’re flat broke and can’t afford beverages for horn-tripping, recreation takes on a different attitude. The annual unofficial tournament of mailbox baseball was the scourge of rural residents in the 60’s and 70’s, but popularity waned when the province imposed its seatbelt legislation, making the physical act of swinging a baseball bat out the passenger window of a moving vehicle physically next to impossible and pricey if you got caught by the local cop.
Locals will tell you how long it will take to get to a destination, rather than the kilometres or miles.
- .. Gilles: Coun’y folk refer to the roads by local names, rather than the assigned numbers. Fer instance: “Big Swamp Road”, “East Lake” or “West Lake Road”, the “Demorestville Road”, “Anderson Road”, “Glenora Road”, “Long Point Road”. etc.
- .. by Bev: And continuing that, so many of us long timers also say, “you know, the place where ________ used to live”.
- .. by Lesley: If you tell anyone that you’re just past Grumpies they know exactly where you are (even though it no longer exists)
- .. by Kirstyn: Saying a street is “something” way as in “Go down Belleville way and turn left” or if someone isn’t from the County, they “come from away”
- .. by Sharon: “Up the line”. As in they live somewhere west of county towards Tarana.
- .. by Terry: Mary St. Dead End Mary
- .. by Jeff: The most famous saying in the county and only in the county” -- DOOR YARD “
- .. by Amanda: I don’t know if it’s just my family but we call our front yard our door yard lol
- .. by Jane Ann: I had never heard of door yard until we moved to the county in 1986. The neighbour two doors down used it toward me. I had no idea what she was talking about lol
- .. by Ronnie: SHIVAREE: Lived in County 22 years, got invited to only one Shivaree on a farm near Bloomfield! It’s a Party to celebrate a Wedding. Takes place after the Honeymoon? Everyone welcome! Bring your gift whatever it might be. The Shivaree I attended included turning a young pig loose in the house and then trying to catch it. You can grease the pig to make it harder to catch. Turn ‘em loose and have a good time, get to know everyone especially the pig, Help clean up at the end after food shows up and beer is gone. Enjoy a life-long marriage if Groom survives Shivaree!
- .. by Jackie: How the word “half” is used often…..ie: Billy was about half drunk last night. That corn and tomatoes was about half good.
- .. by Wayne C: In the spring dad trapped MUSHRATS (muskrats).
A TOURIST is someone that has moved into the county but they haven’t lived there for 3 generations.
If you are going to the POND you are going to Gull Pond at Pointe Petre. We drove to POINT PETER to go fishing not (Petri). - .. by Wayne W: We drove down to the end of the point to drag race, drink or make out. Everyone knows fishing is done elsewhere.
- .. by A PEC-er: My 4 th great grandfather settled in the County before 1800 and along with his wife are buried in the Conger Burying ground just off hwy 41 near Picton. Many’s the time I heard one or other of my male relatives talk about “peeing off the back stoop” or, when asking about something say, “now answer me this”.
- .. by Tammy: Oh my gosh! I say all of those things and didn’t know they were unique to the County lol
- .. by Judy C: I am from the County & have been told we have a distinctive accent. I say all those things, I am proud of my heritage.
- .. by Thomas: Hey Reggie, Any domers near them chimleys ! (county dormers)
- .. by A: I always say let’s header up street lol. Point Peter is the best place to be in the summer…county is couny and the horn trip route indeed goes through Cressy and Waupoos. I’m almost certain every single couny saying I’ve said daily
also, I’ve always said door yard. - .. by Kathy: My County friends don’t go for a country walk, they go, “back the lane.”
- .. by Wayne: you didn’t almost…you probably “near bumped your bean”. Maybe this is an Athol saying.
- .. by Barb: I resided in Prince Edward County for 26 years until I moved away to London Ontario. Yes, I used those redneck sayings as well, now, looking back on those sayings they are hilarious !!! When I come back home to visit I still hear many old sayings & have a lot of laughs, we city folks are no different with our lingo. I hear a lot of redneck talk while riding on London transit. Here is one to add to your list …. I was boarding the transit and I almost bumped my beaner!! You can take this gal out of the country but you cannot take the country out of this gal.
- .. by Seymone: Dad always had some interesting sayings. He would say that he “was fixin” on going into town to get something. Would prefer to go “fishin’ when it was “cam” out. Cow tippin was real as did when he was a kid. Always went to the crik to get some cheese.
- .. by FD: How about “runs with “, meaning are friends with, or ” a do”, meaning a function or get together.
- .. by Andy: What about “He traveled by shanks mare”? Meaning: “He travelled by Foot (use of his own legs”. Shanks mare refers to the part of the leg between Knee and Foot.
- .. by Chris: A common couny greetin -- ‘How she goin?
Did we miss any "county-isms"? Be sure to add them in the comments below.
I grew up in Belleville and my mother used to say..”they live different in the County”
The “upstreet” expression also had a Belleville connection. Because from both the east and west hills you went down to the business area many locals when I was a kid in the 40s and 50s said they were going “downstreet” instead of the universal “downtown”.
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