Khiva
History

©Jeri Danyleyko
Khiva is one of those strange names that still appears on maps, although no one can quite figure out why.
Khiva was once a busy stopping place and milling centre. Located in Huron County, it thrived from the mid to late 19th century and boasted an average population of around 50.
William Holt must have had ‘location’ on his mind when he moved to Khiva in 1867. Strategically situated at the crossroads of Concession 13 and the Crediton Road, the area saw heavy east-west traffic from Grand Bend to Crediton, as well as traffic north to Dashwood. After obtaining a tavern licence, Holt opened a small log tavern on the southwest corner, known as the “One Horse Inn.” The crossroads quickly became known as Holt’s Corners.
Although Khiva wasn’t an established community, there were a sufficient number of settlers to warrant the opening of an early school. S.S. #6 Stephen opened in 1857, known as the “Khiva School” in later years. Khiva didn’t have any churches. Residents likely settled for one of the churches in Crediton or Dashwood.
Khiva’s fortunes took a definite step upwards in 1876 with the arrival of the Ratz family. John Ratz Sr., the son of German immigrants, was born on a ship enroute to Canada in 1828. The Ratzs eventually settled in the largely German community of St. Jacobs, where John went on to become a successful sawmill owner. As lumber supplies began to dwindle John, along with his two sons, John Jr. and Valentine, headed west to scout out a new location for a sawmill. In 1874, they purchased a mill from William Fulton on Lot 10, Concession 14, just west of Khiva. The mill had been in operation for a number of years.
The business got off to a shaky start. Before the Ratz brothers even took possession, the old mill burned to the ground. In its place, the brothers opened a brand new mill in 1876, which proved to be both versatile and successful.
The mill produced everything from toothpicks, clothespins, barrel staves and building materials. One of their more notable jobs was cutting the pews for the Zion Church in Crediton. In at least a couple of instances, fledgling start-up companies approached offering shares instead of cash as payment. Two of those companies were the Fisher Carriage Company, looking for frames for their carriage bodies, and Seagrams, who, for obvious reasons, needed casks. Both companies eventually purchased their shares back from the Ratz brothers, one hopes at market value. The brothers went on to expand their timber limits by purchasing lots 13 through 16.
Once establishing the mill, Valentine Ratz opened a post office. The small postal outlet, with Ratz as postmaster, opened in 1878 under the name of Khiva. Settlers in the immediate area who included P. Sullivan, P. Rourke, P. Coughlan and D. Collins must have welcomed the new office.
Around the same time Joseph Lorentz opened a blacksmith shop. Two years later he sold the shop and property to William Holt, the tavern owner. Presumably one of Holt’s four sons had the necessary skills to carry on. In 1886, the shop had the job of building seats for the township hall in Crediton.
Speaking of Holt, he could barely keep up with the traffic in and out of the mill. That, along with traffic going east to the brick and tile yard in Crediton, led to an major boost in the hotel trade. In 1883, Holt replaced the tavern with a large hotel on the north side of road, operated by his son, William Jr. He relocated the post office to a more convenient room at the rear of the hotel verandah. The building also served as the local polling booth for municipal elections for a number of years. According to legend, there was a stovepipe hole in the ceiling directly above the polling booth so someone could peep down and see how the voters marked their ballots.
In 1879 Valentine Ratz took the plunge into municipal politics. After winning a seat on the township council he served as a councillor for two years, followed by a stint as deputy-reeve, then going on to reeve for 14 years. That led to his selection as Warden of Huron County in 1886. At some point during his political climb, he turned in his miller’s hat and sold his interest in the mill to his brother John.
Ratz could best be described as a career politician. In 1896, he moved into the federal arena following his election as a Liberal MP in a squeaker of an election. He lost the seat in 1900 but was back again in 1904, following a change in the riding boundaries. In 1909, he topped it up with an appointment to the senate by Prime Minister Laurier. Ratz remained a senator until his death in 1924, at the age of 75.
By the late 1800s, Khiva was in a state of decline. The post office closed in 1894. M. McCann reopened it briefly only to close it again later that same year. Bernard Cunningham reopened it again in 1898 after purchasing the hotel from the Holts. By then he renamed it the Khiva Hotel. Cunningham gave up the post office in 1911. It continued to operate first under William Brokenshire and then under William Witzell until 1914 when rural mail delivery arrived.
Improved roads, the arrival of the automobile and the adoption of prohibition in 1914, led to a sharp decline in the hotel business. Following the closure of the hotel, the building was abandoned and eventually demolished.
John Ratz continued to operate the mill first on his own and then in partnership with his sons from 1907-24. The mill finally shut down and the business dissolved by the mid-30s. The school closed in the 1960s following centralization of the school system.
Today Khiva is little more than an empty crossroads marked by a sign. The area has reverted back to farmland. Other than a number of attractive century homes and a few remaining remnants from the Ratz mill, there is nothing left of this small community.