Friday, December 30, 2016

Major James M. Walsh Plaque

In Brockville, Ontario, 207 King Street East on the south side of the street between Bennett Street and Murray Street stands the former residence of Major James M. Walsh. A plaque in front of the house commemorates him.


INDIAN CLIFF
Residence from 1884 to 1905 of
MAJOR JAMES M. WALSH
Superintendent of the North-West Mounted Police
Major James Morrow Walsh was a Canadian hero and a figure of national prominence in the second half of the nineteenth century. With his experience in the local volunteer militia of the time, he was appointed by Sir John A. MacDonald as one of the ten original officers to form the North-West Mounted Police. He proceeded with the force to the Canadian North=West in 1874.


After Chief Sitting Bull and other Chiefs defeated General George A. Custer at the Battle of the Little Big Horn in 1876, they fled with their bands to Canada. They crossed the border near Fort Walsh in the Cypress Hills (south-western Saskatchewan) where they remained for four years. Walsh was instrumental in controlling a violent situation. More than any one man, Walsh prevented warfare in its most violent form from spreading across the prairies. He became known as Sitting Bull's Boss.


Walsh purchased his home here in 1884, and named it Indian Cliff, in recognition of a large outcropping of rock which he had used as an orientation point in the difficult Cypress Hills territory.

In 1897, Major Walsh was appointed the first Commissioner of the Yukon Territory by the Canadian Government and was also Superintendent of the North-West Mounted Police Force in the Yukon, thus he was able to bring law and order out of chaos during the Klondike Gold Ruch. Retiring in 1898, he retained his political interests in Canadian affairs until his death in this house on July 25, 1905, at the age of 65. Prior to his death he had entertained Sitting Bull at Indian Cliff. His wife, Mary, and only daughter, Cora, remained in the house for many years thereafter.

Erected by: Heritage Brockville




Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Robert Shepherd Grist Mill

Now occupied by The Mill Restaurant the former Grist Mill in Brockville, Ontario stands on the south side of Water Street West at the south end of John Street.


Daniel Jones' Saw Mill
Robert Shepherd's Grist Mill
The first United Empire Loyalist settlers began to occupy this part of Upper Canada in 1784. Daniel Jones UEL (1744-1820) a miller from Kingsbury, N.Y. (Near Glens Falls) took up land here about 1790 and erected a saw mill. It was the first of eight mills which used the water power of Buell's Creek.

In 1836 Robert Shepherd and a partner acquired this saw mill property. In 1852 Shepherd added the grist mill standing here to grind feed and flour. In 1883 the grist mill was then vacant, the saw mill was torn down, and the mill pond was drained in order to provide land for the new CPR spur line to the waterfront.

The Samuel Rogers Oil Co. purchased the property in 1893, using the building and nearby land for a coal oil depot. From 1911 to 1978, the Imperial Oil Co. occupied this site.

Erected by the City of Brockville, 1999












A BROCKVILLE LANDMARK
Designated Under
The Ontario Heritage Act


Robert Shepherd Grist Mill
c. 1852

ERECTED BY LACAC.
FUNDED BY THE BROCKVILLE FOUNDATION.

 

Monday, December 26, 2016

Thousand Islands Secondary School Millennium Sculpture

In Brockville, Ontario, on the north side of Parkdale Avenue, east of Stewart Boulevard and just north of the Macdonald-Cartier Freeway (Highway 401) stands the Thousand Islands Secondary School Millennium Sculpture.






The Thousand Islands Secondary School
Millennium Sculpture
This sculpture symbolizes the strength and confidence of our students entering the new millennium. With cooperation, creativity, and communication, accomplishments may only be bound by the limits of our own imagination. In this case the integration between the Arts Department, Manufacturing technology, and Co-operative Eductaion have produced this fine sculpture and time capsule. We recognize the guidance and generosity of Henderson Barwick for enriching our students educational experience and the generous donations of Rasco Specialty Metal Inc., Thyssen Marathon Canada Ltd., and the T.I.S.S. Student Council 1997/98. This experience will provide a benchmark for those students who seek greater challenges in the new century.

Dedication Date: May 21, 2000






Saturday, December 24, 2016

Senator George T. Fulford Plaque

In Brockville, Ontario, the plaque commemorating Senator Fulford stands in front of the Fulford mansion on the southeast corner of King Street East and Rockliffe Road.



SENATOR GEORGE T. FULFORD
1852 - 1905

Born and raised in Brockville, George Taylor Fulford
apprenticed at his brother's drugstore and took charge of
it himself at age 22. Five years later, he was elected to
the first of 12 terms as alderman. Fulford entered
the patent-medicine trade in 1886, and in 1890 acquired the
rights to his most famous product, "Dr. Williams' Pink
Pills for Pale People." His use of large-scale newspaper
testimonial advertising helped expand his business
internationally. His headquarters remained in Brockville
and Fulford himself maintained a local presence, as
businessman, polititian and philanthropist. His mansion,
Fulford Place, reflected his social status. He was
appointed to the senate in 1900. In 1905 at the heigt of
his career George Fulford was fatally injured in an
automobile accident.

Ontario Heritage Foundation, an agency of the Government of Ontario

LE SÉNATEUR GEORGE T. FULFORD
1852 - 1905

George Taylor Fulford, né et élevé à Brockville, est
apprenti à la pharmacie de son frère, dont il prend la
direction à 22 ans. Cinq ans plus tard, il est élu échevin
pour la premier de douze mandats. En 1886, Fulford se
lance dans le commerce des médicaments brevetés et, en
1890, achète les droits des fameuses « pilules roses pour
personnes pâles du docteur Williams ». Grâce à des
témoignages et une énorme publicité dans les journaux, son
affaire devient mondiale. Le siège social reste à
Brockville où il est actif comme homme d'affaires,
politicient et philanthrope. Son manoir, Place Fulford,
reflète son rang social. George Fulford est nommé sénateur
en 1900. En 1905, à l'apogée de sa carrière, il est
mortallement blessé dans un accident d'automobile.

Fondation du patrimoine ontarien, organisme du gouvernemtne de l'Ontario


Thursday, December 22, 2016

Fulford Place

Fulford Place occupies an estate on the southeast corner of King Street East and Rockcliffe Road in Brockville, Ontario. I found the exterior of the main building and the grounds about it very interesting. A frequent visitor there told me I would find the interior even more interesting. I didn't have the time to take the tour. I will go back next summer and will have more photographs of this site after I do that.


Fulford Place Museum
A National Historic Site

Musée de la Place Fulford
Un lieu historique national


287 King Street East | 287, rue King est
heritagetrust.on.ca



FULFORD PLACE

Built in 1899-1900, this eclectic mansion evokes the opulent lifestyle of Canada's industrial elite at the turn of the century. Designed by American architect A. W. Fuller, it was the spacious residence of Senator George T. Fulford (1852-1905), who made his fortune in patent medicines. The remarkably fine period interior includes most of the original furniture, fixtures, dinnerware, linens, and objets d'art. The grounds, of which significant elements survive, were landscaped by the prestigious Olmstead Brothers' firm.

Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada
Government of Canada


FULFORD PLACE

Cette belle et spacieuse résidence de style éclictique de la belle époque au Canada est l'oeuvre de l'architecte américain A. W. Fuller. Elle témoigne de façon remarquable de la manière de vivre de l'élite des entrepreneurs canadiens, dont le sénateur George Fulford (1852-1905), qui fit fortune dans les médicament brevetés. Elle a conservé une grande partie des meubles, des appliques, de la vaisselle, du linge et des objets d'art d'origine, évoquant ainsi l'époque dans ses moindres détails. Les jardins, dont subsistent d'importants éléments, avaient été aménagés par la prestigieuse firme d'Olmstead Brothers.

Commission des lieux et monuments historiques du Canada
Gouvernement du Canada 




FULFORD PLACE

A property of
the Ontario Heritage Foundation

Une propriété de
La Fondation du patrimoine ontarien

ONTARIO
HERITAGE
FOUNDATION

FONDATION DU
PATRIMOINE
ONTARIEN

A not-for-profit agency
of the Government of Ontario
Un organisme à but non lucratif
relevant du gouvernement de l'Ontario

PLACE FULFORD