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[The title of Earl of
Carrick was one borne by Robert the Bruce, and now by the eldest son of
the Sovereign of Great Britain.]
Extract from the Report of
County Valuators, 1879.
"This we found to be the
best adapted township for stock and dairy farming of any in the county, on
account of its numerous springs, and its soil, which is mostly loam mixed
with limestone, which is better for grazing and root growing than stiff
clay. There is a strip of very rough, gravelly land running through it,
termed '' The Forty Hills,'' which is very inferior land, but the balance
of the township is mostly ordinary land. It has the best outbuildings of
any township in the county, and has a large amount of village property.
Its average price per acre is $35.25."
Extract from the Report of
County Valuators, 1901.
"There is a great deal of
very good land in this township, and there is considerable quantity of the
roughest land to be found in the county. The latter applies to the
south-western portion of the township, nevertheless the settlers seem to
be very industrious and prosperous, even in the worst sections. Land is
selling readily and at good prices. The township is well watered with
spring creeks, and stiff clay is not to be found. The facilities for
making roads are good, gravel is abundant, and as a result good roads
prevail. Buildings and fences are good and farms well kept and clean.
Carrick has good railroad facilities, and is also close to the county
town. The Elora Road, running diagonally through the township, causes a
number of gores in each concession. The rate per acre is $39.13, of which
the village property is $4.30 per acre."
The township of Carrick was
settled with greater rapidity than possibly any other township in the
county. There were several reasons for this. The lands, being Crown lands,
were to be had at a lower price ($1.50) than School lands. Then a rumor
got abroad regarding the quality of the soil, to the effect that this
township contained the choicest farm lands that were opened for sale in
this district, a fact sufficient in itself to explain why settlers entered
with a rush.
In 1850-51 A. P. Brough
laid out the Elora Road from the north-west corner of Carrick down to the
township of Maryborough, staking out the lots in Carrick on concessions
"C" and "D" on each side of the road; the rest of the township was
surveyed in 1852 by J. D. Daniel. Prior to survey several squatters had
entered and taken up lands in the northerly part of the township. Among
these were John Hogg, [As the first settler in Carrick, John Hogg deserves
a short biographical sketch. John Hogg was a native of Edinburgh,
Scotland. In 1844 he came with his parents, to Canada, being at that time
fourteen years of age. The family settled in the county of Renfrew. In
1850 John Hogg came to Bruce. After working in the vicinity of Walkerton
he, in the following year, squatted on land which, when the survey was
made, proved to be lots 18, on concessions 13 and 14, of that township,
for which lots he subsequently obtained a patent. On entering the bush, of
money he had little, and his outfit consisted of little beyond an axe and
a few necessary cooking and eating utensils. His bed was but a pile of
hemlock brush spread out on the usual single-posted bedstead. (This
backwoods bedstead was always found in the corner of the shanty, the walls
of which supported three corners so that only one post was needed.) The
staple article of his diet at first was potatoes. After he had grown wheat
he had to take it to Durham to be ground. He relates that on one occasion,
after a long and tedious journey with a yoke of oxen, he reached Durham
without any money, so he could not go to the hotel for a meal. By and by a
bag of his grist was filled up and he proceeded to relieve the pangs of
hunger. The process of baking was as follows : The top of the bag was
thrown down, exposing the flour, some water was poured into it and the two
were mixed into a batter; this was kneaded roughly into dough in the form
of a scone and placed upon the top of the stove used for heating the mill,
and baked, first on one side, then on the other. It required the digestion
of a backwoodsman to digest such an article of diet. Mr. Hogg took an
interest in the municipal matters of the township and was deputy reeve in
the years 1864 and 1865. He was prominently connected with the Walkerton
Presbyterian Church. He was married in 1857 to Miss Bell, who survived
him. His end came on February 1st, 1902.''] Andrew Hutton, Louis Fournier
and John Toran-jeaii. These men squatted on their lots in the summer of
1851. Shortly after the survey was finished the rush to locate farm lots
commenced. Although the lands were not in the market, and were not offered
for sale until the "Big Land Sale," held in September, 1854 [See Appendix
K.] long before that date every lot in the township was squatted upon.
Early in 1853 the inflow of
settlers into Carrick commenced. Prominent among those who took up land in
the township in this year were Wm. Dickison, Edward Hickling, Wm. Thomson,
who settled in the north-eastern part of the township; Angus, Robert and
John McPhail, Samuel Clendening and his sons, Thomas, William and Charles;
Robert A. Morden, Abraham Johnston, Charles, Thomas and Frederick Jasper,
Alexander and Donald McKay, Robert Wills and Arthur Deacon, who settled
nearer the centre of the township. The first settlers to take up land in
the vicinity of Mildmay were Robert Young, James Grey, Thomas Liscoe,
Andrew Dunbar and his son James, Joseph Young, Samuel Carr, Adam Johnston,
James Clark, James Butchart, John Reddon and his brother-in-law, John
Campbell, Alex. McLaren and Thomas B. Taylor. These were followed by John,
Peter and Thomas Shennan, who settled at Balaclava. The south-western part
of the township shortly afterwards received its pioneer settlers, among
whom were Anthony Wynn, Thomas McMichael, Henry McDermott, George, John
and Thomas Inglis, James and Adam Darling. It may be safely stated that
all of the foregoing entered the county by way of the Durham Road, as the
Elora Road was not chopped out until the summer of 1854, the work being
done by Joseph Bacon, as mentioned in Chapter V.
Carrick is distinct among
the townships of the county in having a large percentage of its
inhabitants claiming either German birth or descent; in fact, in many
portions of the township the German element forms the majority of the
population. The first body of those of this nationality to settle in the
county were those commonly called "Pennsylvania Dutch," Mennonites in
religion, who settled in the township of Saugeen. Carrick received the
next contingent, who settled in 1853-54 in the vicinity of Formosa; these
were largely natives of the southerly part of Germany or from Alsace.
Prominent among them were Michael Fischer, Joseph and Michael Seitz,
Andrew Zettle, Philip Hauck, Anthony Schumacher, J.P. (commonly known as "Baier
Tony"), Michael Mosack and Charles Uhrich. This class of settlers had
resided long enough in "New Germany," Waterloo County, to acquire a
knowledge of Canadian ways of farming, and as a class were well-to-do
settlers. Others who about the same time settled in the eastern part of
the township were Matthias Bickel, P. Binkle, Henry Evers, Peter and Jacob
Eckel, John Bieman, John and Matthias Stroder and Henry Dahmer. In the
centre of the township, in the vicinity of Deemerton, there settled
Andrew, [Andrew built the first tannery and Anthony the first sawmill at
this point.] Anthony and Thomas Diemert, Peter and Joseph Emel, John and
Jacob Wiegand. The earliest German settlers in the vicinity of Mildmay
were George, Frederick and Joseph Weiler, Charles Weis-hahn, Ernest,
Frederick and Henry Zinn, August and Frederick Kleist. It is to the credit
of Carrick that its inhabitants of varied races, different languages and
diverse faiths have lived from the first with an entire absence of feeling
as to race or creed, markedly attested all these years by the composite
character of the Township Council and its officers.
The first assessment made
in Carrick was in 1853. At this time Carrick formed part of the
municipality of the United Townships in the county of Bruce. Carrick's
total assessment for that year was £373, and the amount of the municipal
levy £2 9s. 9d. The rapid development in wealth of the township from this
year may be seen by an examination of Appendix M. In 1854 the union of all
the townships in the county as one municipality was dissolved, and Brant
and Carrick as united townships became a municipality. [An effort was made
in 1854 to have Carrick erected into a separate municipality, as the
following extract from the County Council Minutes of Report of Special
Committee on the separation of union of the townships in Bruce, shows:
''Petition of Thomas Liscoe
and others praying that the township of Carrick be erected into a distinct
municipality. We cannot recommend that the prayer of this petition be
complied with, inasmuch as the gross assessment of the township, upon
which county taxes are applotted, is only £330, and calculating the county
taxes for this year at 2d. in the pound, the whole sum payable by this
township would amount to only £2 15s. We respectfully submit that it is
quite unnecessary that a reeve should be sent here, at a cost of £12 or
£14 to the county, for the purpose of guarding the interests of this
township.'']
Joseph Walker, of Brant,
was the reeve of this municipality for the years 1854-55. In 1856 this
last-mentioned union was dissolved, and Carrick commenced its separate
municipal existence. The first meeting of the Township Council was held at
Balaclava, at John Shennan's tavern, on January 21st, 1856. The council
consisted of Michael Fischer, Seth Rogers, Wm. McVicar, Peter McVicar and
A. Diemert, James Gorsline acting as clerk at this meeting, which elected
Peter McVicar as reeve. At the second meeting Edmund Savage was appointed
to the joint office of clerk and treasurer, which position he held until
June, 1872. In a footnote [List of reeves in the township of Carrick:
Peter McVicar, 1856, '57; Michael Fischer, 1858, '59, '60, '61, '62, '63,
'64, '65, '66, '67, '73, '74, '75, '76, 1880; Ignatius Kormann, 1868, '69,
'70, '71, '72; J. Murphy, M.D.. 1877, '78; M. Campbell, 1879; Wm. Dickison,
1881, '82, '83, '84, '85, '86, '87; John Henderson, 1888, '89, '90, '91;
George Lobsinger, 1892; Aaron Mover, 1893; C. Liesemer, 1894, '95; James
Darling, 1896; James Johnston, 1897; R. E. Clapp, M.D., 1898, '99; L.
Lintz, 1900; Moses Filsinger, 1901, '02, '03, '04; Conrad Schmidt, 1905,
'06.] are to be found the names of those who have held the position of
reeve of Carrick from the year 1856 to 1906.
The township of Carrick has
certain natural advantages which have saved it from incurring large
financial obligations necessitating the issuing of debentures. Being in a
great measure free of swamps it has no scheme of drainage to provide for,
and, unlike the township of Brant, to the north, it has no large streams
to bridge, with the involved necessity of expensive structures for that
purpose. The debentures issued by the township have been on account of the
village of Mildmay, for the erection of a school building and to purchase
a fire-engine, for which sectional assessments are made. The issue of
debentures for the school building was $3,200, and for the fire-engine
$4,000.
The settlement commenced by
the three Shennan brothers at Balaclava seems to have been the first to
have taken upon itself the form of a village. John Shennan's tavern there
was the first in the township, and the first store in the township was
there opened by his brother. For a number of years Balaclava was a
thriving little village and was the hub of the township, the municipal
nominations and most of the Council meetings being held there. A
Presbyterian congregation in connection with the Church of Scotland was
there formed about 1861, which along with the congregation at Mount Forest
formed a charge over which was settled the Rev. John Hay, a very gifted
minister. A post-office established there in 1856 bore the name of "Glenlyon,"
of which John Shennan was postmaster, his successor in office being
William Hay. This office, after remaining open for about sixteen years,
was closed in 1872. Balaclava at one time had a population of about 150;
this would be about high-water mark in its best days. The reason for the
decay of Balaclava was that in the contest for the position of the railway
station Mild-may had the good fortune to secure it, as referred to in the
following paragraph.
Mildmay commenced to take
form as a village about 1867, when Samuel Merner had a survey made of part
of lot 26, concession "C." For the first half-dozen years the place was
called Mernersville, although the post-office, which was established in
1868, was known as Mildmay. The first postmaster was Donald McLean, who
also was the first merchant of the place. The three water privileges on
Otter Creek, in or about Mildmay, have all been used to advantage. The
first industry to which water-power was applied was a sawmill erected by
Samuel Carr, near the present railway station. A gristmill is said to have
been established by a man named Stewart late in the fifties; of this the
author cannot affirm, but in 1867 there was a good grist-mill run by
William Murray. The nucleus around which villages form in a new district
is generally a blacksmith shop and an hotel. The first of each of these in
Mildmay was started respectively by John Lenhardt and Charles Schiel.
Before the railway had reached the county of Bruce there were established
at Mild-may a woollen factory by Edmund Berry, and a pottery by I.
Bitschey, besides grist and sawmills. Having these industries located, and
also having good water-power for further industries, the village of
Mildmay presented greater inducements to the railway company for the
fixing of their station at that point than could Balaclava, and therefore
obtained the coveted prize. Since the opening of the railway Mildmay has
made very rapid progress, so much so that it is doubtful if there is
another unincorporated village in the province of its size and activity;
certainly it can rightly claim to possess a larger amount of trade than
several of the incorporated villages within the county. It has its local
newspaper, The Mildmay Gazette, established about 1893, a system of
electric lighting and banking facilities, the Merchants Bank having
established an agency there in 1900. No village in the county is more
loyally supported by the surrounding country than is Mildmay, which fact
seems to assure its continued prosperity.
Next to Mildmay the most
important village in the township of Carrick is Formosa. Its situation is
unique, being in a valley through which runs Stoney Creek, supplying
water-power to the mills. In this valley there are places where low, rocky
cliffs picturesquely intrude themselves upon the line of the highway, to
avoid which the street has to forsake the usual straight line until the
rocks are past. A settlement was formed at this point in 1854, but the
village did not take form until some years later. John B. Kroetsch started
a sawmill here in the fifties, which was the first industry of the place;
some ten years later he added to this a grist-mill. The first store was
kept by A. Schick, and the first hotel by John Kartes. The post-office was
established there in 1862, the first postmaster being F. X. Messner. It is
not too much to say that Messrs. Anthony and F. X. Messner were the
leading spirits of Formosa for about thirty years as storekeepers and
private bankers. In a footnote is given a biographical sketch of F.
X. Messner which will enable the reader to see why he will be remembered
in connection with Formosa as long as the present generation of the
village are alive.
[Footnote: The death of Mr.
Francis X. Messner, which occurred March 10th, 1906, removes a prominent
pioneer and philanthropist. In 1862 he, with his brother Anthony, settled
in the locality of Formosa, then a dense forest, and started several
business enterprises, encouraging settlers and helping them to establish
the homes they are now enjoying. An earnest promoter of Catholic
education, he built two convents, one in Formosa and another in Walkerton.
His philanthrophy was not confined to Bruce; he was ever ready to assist
charities throughout Canada. He was most successful in business until an
unfortunate enterprise caused him great losses and saddened the last few
years of his life, owing to the fact that some of his friends were
involved with him. Mr. Messner was a prominent Liberal, and on one
occasion received the unanimous nomination in East Bruce for the House of
Commons, an honor which he declined He is survived by his widow. —The
Globe, Toronto.]
The inhabitants of Formosa
are almost entirely of German or Alsatian birth or descent, and are
members of the Roman Catholic Church. The church they have erected is by
long odds the finest ecclesiastical building in the county. It is built of
stone. Its dimen-tions are 160 by 60 feet, and its lofty spire, glistening
in the sunlight, may be seen for miles around. During the erection of the
building services were held in the old frame church erected some twenty
years previously, the peculiar feature being that the new building was
built around and about the old one, until at last but glimpses of it only
could be had through the windows of the building which was being erected.
This fine church was opened December 9th, 1883. The first church services
at Formosa were held in the old log school-house, that stood on the site
of the present school building. The first priest to be stationed at
Formosa was the Rev. Father Stier. The Rev. Father Gehl is the priest at
present in charge of the parish. After the church the next prominent
building in the village is the convent, under the charge of the Sisters de
Notre Dame. This building, the gift of A. and F. X. Messner, was opened by
Bishop Farrel, October 20th, 1872. A boarding-school conducted by the
sisters has been well patronized.
Some few years ago it was
asserted that there were indications of the existence of coal oil at
Formosa. An artesian well was sunk over a thousand feet deep, and at one
time it was thought that they were on the point of striking oil. but only
to be disappointed. Another well not far off was sunk with like result. A
fine flow of water comes from these wells, which is all the unfortunate
shareholders have to show for their expenditure. A German settlement
without a brewery would be incomplete. This need was supplied to Formosa
about 1869, when Andrew Rau built his brewery, which, under different
owners, is still in operation. In a purely German settlement lager beer is
partaken bf as one of the ordinary and necessary things of life. How much
this is so has been evidenced at Formosa in days now past, where every
Sunday morning, after hearing mass, the hotels were filled by the
church-goers having a quiet mug of beer before starting on their drive
back to the farm; and, strange as it may seem, the license inspectors did
not think it advisable to enforce the law there in regard to prohibited
hours.
Another of the villages of
Carrick is Carlsruhe, which derives its name from the capital of the Grand
Duchy of Baden, in Germany. Its location is elevated and healthy, and its
inhabitants are said to be noted for their sociability. (Deutscher Anstand
und Gemuetlich-heit.) A post-office was opened there in 1864, Ignatius
Korman being the first postmaster and also the first merchant. His
successor was Ernst Seeber. [Mr. Seeber filled the office of postmaster
from 1869 until 1906, excepting four years which he spent teaching school
at Neustadt. During this interim Albert Goetz held the office.] The Roman
Catholic church in the village is one of the foremost in the diocese. It
is modelled after the cathedral at Roermonde, in Holland, and is of the
Romanesque style of architecture. It was built in 1873, at a cost of over
$15,000. Its numerous stained-glass windows are artistic and worthy of
inspection. The first resident priest was the Rev. Franz Rassaerts,
M.I.H.S., a man of scholastic attainments and large-heartedness. His death
occurred in October, 1886. The present incumbent, the Rev. J. E. Wey, P.L.,
possesses the affection and respect of his parishioners. There are in the
village both a public and a Roman Catholic separate school. Carlsruhe,
although not a populous village, has many of the luxuries of larger
places, such as electric lights, two daily mails, and is connected with
the outer world by both telegraph and telephone.
Otter Creek, although not a
large stream, has been made the most of as a source of power. After
driving the mills at Mildmay, it is next used to furnish power to the
Saugeen Valley Roller Mill, now owned by Jacob Steinmiller & Son. This
mill was originally built in the seventies by Wm. H. Clendening and Wm.
Brown. He failed to make a success of it, and the mill passed into the
hands of the Merchants Bank, who sold it in 1886 to Mr. Steinmiller.
[Jacob Steinmiller came to this county from Germany, in 1867. His
experience as a miller extends over half a century. He claims to have, in
1875, set up the first roller machinery in the province, the machinery
being imported from Vienna by Messrs. Snider, of St. Jacobs.] Under his
management the mill has obtained a wide-spread reputation for the high
grade of flour produced. It was awarded a bronze medal at the World's Pair
at Chicago in 1893. It also carried off the Grand Prix at the Paris
Exposition of 1900, and a diploma at the International Exposition at
Glasgow in 1901. This mill has a capacity of 125 to 150 barrels a day. A
large proportion of the flour Mr. Steinmiller grinds is exported. Further
down the stream, near where it empties into the Saugeen River, George
Harrington in 1862 erected a gristmill. This was run for about twenty-five
years by different proprietors, when it unfortunately was burnt down, and
has not been rebuilt.
One of the first
congregations of any denomination to be organized in Carrick was that of
the German Evangelical Association on the eleventh concession, which event
occurred in 1855. The Rev. D. Dippel was one of the pioneer ministers of
this denomination in Carrick; through his efforts, and those of other
workers, not only this church was established, but also one of the same
denomination on the seventh concession, and another in Mildmay. The
Lutheran church on the eleventh concession was early organized. It is
claimed that this was the first Lutheran congregation formed in the
county. The first minister was the Rev. Mr. Wunderlich.
The farmers of Carrick were
heavy losers by the failure of F. X. Messner in 1897, and of the Carrick
Banking Company in the following year, many having deposited their savings
with these two firms. These losses have been more than made up during the
subsequent years of prosperity, for the farmers of Carrick are thrifty and
successful agriculturists. With such characteristics as these we may
always expect to see Carrick among the premier townships of the county of
Bruce. |
