Historical Plaques of
Bruce County

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This monumental Gothic church, erected on a commanding site overlooking Formosa, was built to serve a thriving German Roman Catholic parish. Begun in 1875, it was constructed around and over an earlier log building. Work proceeded intermittently with volunteer labour until 1883 when the old church was finally dismantled and the new structure completed. Designed by the prominent Ontario architect Joseph Connolly and built of locally quarried stone, the church is distinguished by its simple form, boldly-modelled tower and fine spire. Intricate Gothic-style altars carved by Nicholas Durrer, a local craftsman and parishioner, grace the superb interior. Restored and renovated in 1974-75, the Church of the Immaculate Conception remains the focal point of the village and a religious centre for the surrounding area.

By 1855 the first permanent settlers on the site of Teeswater, the families of Matthew Hadwen and Peter Brown, had located here on the Tesswater River, In that year Brown erected a saw-mill and later added a grist-mill. In 1856 a post office was established with Hadwen as first postmaster. Although the settlement's early growth was slow, a tannery, a foundry, two taverns and a pearl-ash factory were in operation by 1867 when the population numbered some 400. The development of the community was spurred by the completion of a branch line of the Toronto, Grey and Bruce Railway in 1874 from a point near Orangeville. Teeswater was incorporated as a Village on January 1, 1875, with a population of about 700.

In 1852, shortly after this region was opened for settlement, the government reserved land for a town here on the Elora and Saugeen Road, at the confluence of the Teeswater and Saugeen Rivers. Already settled on the site were Simon Orchard and Samuel Rowe and later that year John Valentine built a saw-mill here. The townplot, named Paisley, was surveyed in 1855 and within two years a community of about 150 had developed. By 1867 additional industries, including a foundry and a woollen mill had been established and the village's handsome buildings reflected its prosperity. The Wellington, Grey and Bruce Railway was completed through the community in 1872. Two years later, with over 1,000 inhabitants, Paisley was incorporated as a Village.

One of Canada's outstanding artists, Milne was born on a farm near Burgoyne, Saugeen Township, and raised in Paisley. Though largely self-taught, he studied briefly in New York at the Art Student's League, and in 1913 exhibited some of his paintings at the Armory Show which introduced contemporary European art to North America. Milne served as an official Canadian war artist during the first World War. Working mainly in water-colours, he developed a highly personal impressionistic style of painting. Among his better known works are: "Water Lilies, Temagami"; "Painting Places"; "Snow in Bethlehem"; "Rites of Autumn"; and "White Poppy". His paintings are found in many of the public galleries in Canada.

Born in Dublin, Ireland, about 1846, this notable Canadian poet immigrated with her family to Canada, 1857-58, settling at Paisley. Her father practised medicine here for some years and after his death in Peterborough in 1875, Isabella moved to Toronto where she attempted to support her sister and mother by writing. A fine knowledge of classical literature, an intense idealism and a gift for startling imagery pervade her poetry. Like many post-Confederation poets, she was influenced by the English Romantic and Victorian Schools. She brought to the pioneer Canadian landscape vivid images of love and death. Her brief life was marked by poverty and lack of recognition. Isabella Crawford's best-known collection is "Old Spookses' Pass, Malcolm's Katie and Other Poems", published in 1884, three years before her death.

This brick chimney is all that remains of a
foundry which once employed as many as
sixty men. Built in the early 1860s, it
operated for several years as Laidlaw's
Foundry. John Stewart purchased the
business in the late 1860s and changed
its name to the Paisley Agricultural Works.
In the 1900s the business could no longer
compete with large manufacturers and
it finally closed. The foundry buildings
were dismantled in 1923.

While the works manufactured a wide
range of iron products such as pots,
hitching posts, fences and ornate chairs
and tables, it was best known for such
implements as the Harvest Queen Reaper,
the Sellar Plow and the Paisley Wrought
Iron Harvester.

This important Iroquoian village site was discovered about 1900, and named after the family which then owned the property. Subsequent archaeological examinations have uncovered a mid-14th century village, consisting of twelve longhouses, from 42 to 139 feet in length, protected by a double palisade. It was probably occupied for about 10 to 20 years by a group of some 500 people who were predecessors of the Huron and Petun Indians. Although primarily farmers who grew corn, tobacco and probably pumpkins and sunflowers, they also engaged in considerable fishing and hunting. A large number of artifacts have been retrieved from this site including fragments of pottery cooking vessels, smoking pipes, arrow heads, adzes, awls and netting needles.

A small settlement, "Sconeville", developed here following the erection of mills on the Saugeen River by Adam Elliot in 1858-59. A post-office, named after Solomon Chesley, a former Indian Department official, was established in 1865 and three years later village lots were laid out by Elliot's son, John. The hamlet quickly matured into a thriving community. In 1879, with over 900 inhabitants, it was incorporated as a Village and council meetings commenced in 1880. A branch of the Grand Trunk Railway, completed to Chesley the following year, facilitated its development as an important centre for several agricultural businesses and the shipment of produce, livestock, lumber and bark. By 1885, Chesley's popualtion had risen to 1,400 and in 1906 it became a Town.

Port Elgin's development began when, in 1854, Benjamin Shantz, one of Saugeen Township's early settlers, acquired from George Butchart a sawmill on Mill Creek. Nearby he built a grist-mill and within three years a community of 250 people had developed around these mills. Stores, hotels and tanneries were constructed and in March, 1857, a village plot named Port Elgin was laid out. The enterprise of its businessmen, notably Henry Hilker, Samuel Bricker and John Stafford, contributed to the development of the settlement, which had a population of over 600 by 1867. The arrival of the Wellington, Grey and Bruce Railway in 1872 further stimulated the growth of the community and it was incorporated as a Village in 1874 with a population of about 950.

The Anishnabe lived by the mouth of the Saugeen River before Pierre Piché arrived in 1818 to begin fur trading in the region. By 1826, the Hudson's Bay Company established an outpost at Saguingue to compete with independent fur traders like Piché. From La Cloche, its main post on Lake Huron, the Hudson's Bay Company employed First Nations, Métis, French, and British fur traders who largely depended on Anishnabe hunters to supply deer, bear and marten skins. By 1832, the supply of premium furs was exhausted and the company closed its post. Although many Anishnabe gave up hunting and settled in an agricultural village, fur trading continued here until the mid-19th century when Southampton was founded.

In 1850 Joseph Walker came here to the Durham Road where it crosses the Saugeen River. He built an inn and contracted to build two bridges and a part of the road. He and his son William were in 1851 granted free lots and later allowed to buy adjoining property. Joseph Walker built a sawmill in 1852 and added a grist-mill the following year. Two stores were opened and "Brant Post Office" was established. Subdivisions were registered by Joseph Walker and others in 1857 when the name of the post-office was changed to Walkerton. The community was proclaimed the "county town" of Bruce County in 1866, and Walkerton was incorporated as a Town in 1871.

In 1855 a town-plot was laid out here on recently acquired Indian land and named Wiarton, reputedly after the English birthplace of Edmund Head, Governor General of Canada (1854-61). Settlement commenced in 1866 and two years later a post-office was established. Agricultural prosperity, excellent harbour facilities and extensive sawmilling operations stimulated the communitie's growth as an important Great Lakes industrial centre. In 1880, with a popualtion of about 750, it was incorporated as a Village. The operation of the Stratford and Lake Huron line of the Grand Trunk Railway, opened to Wiarton in 1882, facilitated its continued development particularly in milling and the manufacturers of wood products. With over 2,000 inhabitants, the thriving community became a Town in 1894.