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The pioneers and the creation of Elliandress

It all began in 1972 when Mr. Joel Max Andress, an American citizen and geography teacher who spent several summers of his childhood on the family farm nearby, bought a piece of land of about 30 acres, which he considered exceptional, in the municipality of Ogden. From then on, this land would be known as the "Marlington Bog". In 1992, Mr. Andress decided to bequeath his property to the Nature Conservancy of Canada. At the instigation of a group of nature-loving citizens, an organization, named Elliandress Corporation after Joel Andress and Albert Elliott, was founded to protect and animate the bog. The first board of directors consisted of John D. Henderson, president; Ed Emmons, vice-president; Enid Elliott, treasurer; Betty Howell, secretary and Katherine MacKenzie, assistant secretary. For more than 25 years, Elliandress was run by volunteer citizens, often amateur botanists and ornithologists, but above all, nature lovers.

Building a boardwalk: access to an exceptional environment

One of the first decisive actions of the new Elliandress Corporation was the signing of an exclusive 40-year lease with the Nature Conservancy of Canada for the protection and animation of the peat bog. To make the bog accessible, Albert Elliott built a boardwalk that today winds through the bog. He collected cedar trees on his own land, cut it to the right size in a small sawmill near his home and transported it through the woods all the way to the bog.
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This work, spread out over a few years, provided access to this exceptional site. The infrastructure includes a 550 meter (1800 foot) sidewalk, a small bridge and an observation platform. The boardwalk provides access to an elevation from which a pond and its winged fauna can be observed. A second version of the boardwalk was installed over the existing one in the early 2000s, again by Mr. Elliott.

Society for the Conservation and the Education
​to Nature Nature​

Notre logo

In 2016, the leaders of Elliandress, feeling the weight of the years, asked the municipality of Ogden to take over the lease signed with the Nature Conservancy of Canada. The municipality made it a condition of its acceptance that a new organization take over from the Elliandress Corporation. In July 2017, citizens joined together to found the Society for Conservation and Education of Nature (SCENE).

The goals pursued are more broadly aimed at "ensuring the protection of the environment through the conservation and enhancement of wetlands"; "bringing together people interested in promoting and organizing guided tours of these environments"; "promoting nature education by carrying out awareness and training activities on the fauna and flora of wetlands" and "raising funds through public or private subscriptions, sponsorships, government grants and others".

To date, SCENE has several members actively involved in infrastructure work, wildlife data collection and management of the organization in various capacities. Friends of nature have also contributed to the vitality of SCENE through donations.

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Members of the SCENE Board of Directors

Name	Role
Michel Hébert	President
Jean-Blaise Bourque	Vice-president
​Marie-Andrée Courval	Secretary
Janet Cowan-Weber	Treasurer
​Serge Mailhot	Administrator