Cantire

History

Cantire was one of the many farming hamlets first settled by Scottish immigrants in the early 1850s. Original settlers included the Taylor and Blue families, widely considered to be the first families. After arriving in the dense, unfamiliar wilderness with very few belongings, these families must have received some measure of solace by naming their new home after their old community in Scotland. Kintyre, Scotland, the original home if the founding families, was the inspiration for Cantire’s name.

As the settlement grew, school was undeniably uppermost in the minds of the majority of the residents. There were no schools anywhere in the nearby vicinity. Given the poor condition of the roads in those days, parents were understandably concerned about their children having to travel long distances on foot. Some of the children attended the Gillies Hill school, while others attended U.S.S. #2, Elderslie and Brant, originally located on the third concession.

The school issue continued to fester for many years. By the early 1870s, residents had enough. Around 1873, they began to circulate a petition to present to the Town Council requesting a school on the 4th Concession. Then they discovered a new kindred spirit in the form of the 10th Concession residents in the community of Salem. Like the Cantire residents, the Salem residents had a similar grievance. By comparison, their children were also attending either the Gillies Hill school or the Snell school, S.S. #9, up on the 12th concession.

Numbers translated into strength and in 1873 the residents of Cantire and Salem presented the Township Council with a petition requesting schools on the 4th and 10th concessions. Their request went nowhere. Then the two groups joined forces and hired a lawyer, Alexander Shaw of Walkerton, and proceeded to sue the township. The issue never went to court. An arbitration panel, comprised of Elderslie officials, reviewed the claim. Finally they decided in favour of both groups of residents.

Lot number 10 became home to Cantire’s new school, S.S. #1. Alexander McKay generously donated the land. S.S. #1 was an unusual choice. However, the village of Paisley had just relinquished S.S. #1 after recently obtaining municipality status. Cantire snapped it up. The first trustees of the new school section included Neil Stewart, who owned property on Lot 18 and J.C. McIntyre, a former teacher and principal from Lockerby. Janet Oswald was the first teacher. S.S. #1 was a frame building clad in board and batten siding with interior plastered walls. Years later, they covered it with brick facing. Classes began in 1876 and by 1879 enrollment had grown to 67.

Cantire’s residents made excellent use of their new school. The community had no other official buildings and very little to offer in the way of amenities. As a result, the school also served as both a social centre and a meeting place for the Grange Lodge.

As well, there was no church in Cantire. Most of the residents worshipped in various churches in nearby Paisley. Once again, the Cantire school came to the rescue for Sunday School classes during the summer. Superintendent Hugh McIntyre taught bible classes. Other Sunday school teachers included John McKay, John Ewing, John Petrie and J.C. McIntyre.

Cantire never had a post office of its own. Whether the residents wanted one or not is unknown. As a result, Gillies Hill served as the official post office for Cantire’s residents. Much like today, residents used a row of mail boxes located on the 5th concession, one concession south of Gillies Hill. That became their drop-off point. It lasted until 1909 when rural mail delivery arrived. Other stop off points in Cantire included Peter Reid’s blacksmith shop, also on Concession 5. Reid operated the blacksmith shop for many years and his shop also became a communal meeting spot for the farmers to exchange gossip and chit-chat.

One of the big success stories in Cantire was the Elderslie Cheese Company. The company was first formed in 1884 by James Isard and John McKellar, who opened factories in both Cantire and Williscroft. James Blackburn donated the land for the sturdy, yellow brick building. By comparison, Williscroft’s factory was a simple frame building. Nonetheless, the farmers didn’t care what the building looked like. They were just thrilled at the prospect of having a factory so close by. Everyone assisted in helping to remove the stumps and clear the land.

Upon completion, the community proudly hoisted a flag and erected a sign that boldly displayed the name of “CANTIRE.” The cheese company went on to win many awards in competitions held at the Chicago World’s Fair, the Pan-American Exposition, the Canadian National Exhibition, and the New York World’s Fair. D.N. McIntyre was secretary of the Cantire branch for about eight years. In 1904 James Isard sold the business and the factory closed.

By the early part of the 20th century, agricultural practices began to change. Improved transportation and the trend towards specialization eventually led to much larger farms. Organizations such as the Farm Forums became active during the 1940s and bound the community together for a while. Nevertheless the population continued to decline as residents became more dispersed.

Practically nothing remains of Cantire today. The school survived until 1946. Originally it stood in the area just before the road sign to the west of the former townsite. The only thing that remains is a small hand water pump that stood in the schoolyard. The remainder of the area has now reverted to farmland.