O'Leary

O'Leary is named for one of its earliest Irish settlers, who came to the area in 1837. An agricultural community in the heart of Prince County, it became an incorporated town in 1951.

In 2017 O'Leary won Kraft Hockeyville competition, beating out 3,000 other communities across Canada to host an NHL pre-season game between the New Jersey Devils and the Ottawa Senators.

In 2021 the population of O'Leary was 876. I visited O'Leary two weeks ago, and this is what I found:

1. Selfie with the town's welcome sign: Grabbed a pic on the Town's welcome sign on O'Leary Road.

2. Visitor's Centre: No Visitor's Centre in O'Leary, but you can find one in nearby Mount Pleasant. However, near the Confederation Trail running through the town you can find a bulletin board with some information on the Town and the surrounding area.

3. Museum or heritage centre: It was to be the highlight of my summer...visiting O'Leary's iconic Canadian Potato Museum. But alas, COVID had other plans. The day I went to O'Leary the Museum was closed due to a COVID exposure. Total respect for management's decision to close, but still, heartbroken.

4. Public space: Not far from the Potato Museum you will find Centennial Park, and I took a stroll around in an attempt to mend my broken potato-loving heart.

Centennial Park

5. Local restaurant: Just a few options in O'Leary, so I popped into Bakin' Donuts on Main Street and grabbed a double chocolate muffin. The chocolatiest of all chocolate muffins.

6. Locally produced spirit: No producers in O'Leary, but I did stop by the local PEI Liquor Store in O'Leary and acquired a Maple Liquor from Deep Roots Distillery made in Warren Grove, PEI.

7. Art in Public Places: While my attempts to visit the Potato Museum were thwarted, I did enjoy the murals outside the building, depicting scenes from agricultural history in PEI.

8. Town swag: While I couldn't visit the Potato Museum, a lady in the parking lot attempted to soothe my sadness with a Potato Museum postcard, for which I was grateful.

A little bit of trivia: Potatoes have been grown on PEI since the 1700s. They are the largest commercial crop grown on the Island, with over 100 varieties of potatoes shipped to 20 countries around the world.