Cultural diversity might not be the first thing that springs to mind when visiting Stanstead, but this community (which includes Rock Island and Beebe) hugging the border with Vermont is home to a myriad of talented folk, who are proud of their mixed anglophone, francophone and American heritage.

John Mahoney's story is fairly typical. His family has been marrying and making a living back and forth across the border for more than two centuries. A photographer and journalist by profession, Mahoney was born in Vermont but moved to Canada more than 30 years ago to become, like many other folk during that era, a back-to-the-lander. In 1995, he launched the Log Cabin Chronicles, a quirky, online magazine (www.tomifobia.com) covering eclectic topics whose regular contributors include personalities such as CBC's Tim Belford and Ricky Blue (of Bowser & Blue fame). Lesser known writers also can submit their work.

Literary Trail 

Characters like Mahoney lend spice and colour to the region, and following the literary and cultural trail through Stanstead can take weekend visitors in surprising directions. The community is, for example, home to two recently arrived script writers who have worked in Hollywood, and the town's most famous attraction, the Haskell Free Library and Opera House, is one of Canada's more curious oddities. The building stradles the border; most of the audience sits in the United States, while the performers, on stage, are in Canada.

Matthew Farfan, another writer and editor based in Stanstead, runs an online publication for the Townshippers Association called Townships Heritage WebMagazine. The Web site - www.townshipsheritage.com - includes reviews of books about the Eastern Townships and notices of coming cultural events in the area.  It also highlights five themed driving tours (schoolhouses, covered bridges and so on) with maps and descriptions.

The former Notre Dame school, built in 1920, is currently being converted into an multimedia arts centre for creative folk who want to share their ideas, according to owner Bashar Shbib, a Syrian-born film director. The classrooms are being converted into 11 apartments with studio space where writers and artists can create new works and attend workshops under the guidance of Shbib and other professionals.

The complex is scheduled to open in May, and Shbib will run week-long workshops from May 15 to Sept. 15. Shbib, who grew up in the Townships, moved back nine months ago from Los Angeles where he produced and directed documentaries and feature films, including Julia Has Two Lovers.

Notre Dame Cultural Centre, 43a Railroad St., Stanstead, (819) 876-1167 or (514) 762-9591, or www.oneira.com

In nearby Beebe, Railroad St. turns into Canusa St., which follows the border and is half in Canada and half in the United States. The Writers' Retreat at 15 Canusa is a cosy clapboard house with three study rooms and a small private reference library. The Writers' Retreat is one of three (the others are in Colorado and Mexico).

The Writers' Retreat, 15 Canusa St., Stanstead, (819) 876-2065 or

www.writersretreat.com

Check In

Accommodation in Stanstead is limited to a handful of B&Bs. The most elegant is the Manoir Victorien. Built in 1866, this Italianate villa, with its distinctive tower and tall, arched windows, showcases the superb craftsmanship typical of the Victorian era. The interior has wood panelling, carved staircases, faux grained doors and six fireplaces fashioned from Carrera marble - the translucent, veined stone favored by Michelangelo. There are four bedrooms, prices for a double room, with breakfast, start at $122 per night.

Manoir Victorien, 470 Dufferin St., Stanstead, toll-free 1-(866)-

876-5625 or (819) 876-5625.

Entertaining Diversions

Also on Dufferin St. is the Colby-Curtis Museum, an elegant granite home built in 1859 by Charles Carroll Colby, a member of Parliament for Stanstead and president of Sir John A. MacDonald's Privy Council. The house, which belonged to the Colby family through four generations, is filled with paintings, books and antique furniture.

Colby-Curtis Museum, 535 Dufferin St., is open Wednesday to Friday,

10 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m., and on Saturday and Sunday from

12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Call (819) 876-7322.

A couple of minutes' drive away is the Haskell Free Library and Opera House, which celebrates its centenary this year. The auditorium, ceiling and balcony - a frothy confection of plaster scrollwork punctuated by plump cherubs - is being restored to its original condition. The theatre opens in April, and events throughout the summer will highlight entertainment from 1904 to the present. Call (819) 876-2020.

The Haskell Free Library is open Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The library has a collection of more than 20,000 books, and weekend visitors (you don't have to be a member) can while away a couple of hours in the elegant reading room. A diagonal line on the floor marks the border between Canada and the United States.

Sup With the Locals

Artistic types hang out at Café Santé Antiquité (237 Dufferin St., (819) 876-2576). Owner Linda Goodsell, who specializes in modestly priced, fresh, organic food, opened her eatery two years ago because most of the restaurants in the area were of the fast food and burger variety. Housed in a former general store, Café Santé now includes a bakery (the bread is made by Sony Benchimol) and a patisserie and chocolaterie (Les Petites Douceurs) run by Sue Davies.

Café Santé serves mostly breakfast and lunch but starting March 27 and continuing through the summer, it is open Fridays for dinner when it's a BYOB. From time to time, there is live entertainment (jazz and folk music) on Saturday evenings. The fixed price buffet dinner accompanies the concert and costs between $25 and $35 per person. A three-course lunch starts at less than $10.

Getting There

Stanstead is just under two hours' drive from Montreal. Take Highway 10 east, head south just past Magog on Highway 55, until just before the U.S border (you'll see the immigration booths) and swing off onto Highway 143, which turns into Dufferin St. To get to Rock Island, continue on Dufferin, then follow Highway 247 North (Railroad St.) to Beebe.