Muskoka Mills

History

Willam Hamilton, a merchant from Penetanguishene, purchased a 75-square mile timber limit in the mid 1850s near the mouth of the Musquash River and erected a sawmill. For Hamilton however luck would hardly be on his side. With the lumber trade, waning economic circumstances quickly turned against him forcing him to suspend operations indefinitely. Much of the lumber produced remained at the mill site, destined to sit and rot.

Eventually Hamilton was able to sell some of his timber, but payment was not always assured. In one instance, the town of Owen Sound re-planked a good portion of its sidewalks on poor Hamilton’s back, thoroughly stiffing him in process. Finally he sold the mill and limits for $16,000 to Charles Kelly of Hamilton, who had backing from investors in Chicago and Buffalo.

As unbelievable as it sounds, Hamilton’s streak of bad luck didn’t end with the sale. Kelly defaulted on the mortgage payments resulting in repossession of the property. With a $12,000 loss at hand, Hamilton found himself ruined financially. At a later date, J. Tyson of Collingwood purchased the mill and some of the timber limits but the mill remained inoperative.

Eventually Lewis Hotchkiss and J.C. Houghson jointly purchased some of the limits. By then the mill was in a poor state of repair and received extensive refurbishment and enlargement. The newly revamped mill quickly proved so successful that the owners expanded by adding shingle and lath mills. In 1872, Anson G.P. Dodge, better known as Alphabet Dodge within Ontario’s lumber circles, replaced Hotchkiss by buying his share for $40,000. The additional piece of real estate enabled Dodge to secure a cheaper transportation rate for his own timber. This he achieved by gaining the floating rights on the Musquash and Gordon river systems and hence a quicker route to the Georgian Bay, and his chief milling interest situated in Waubaushene. Dodge was also active in the Byng Inlet area. After Anson Dodge became insolvent his father, William Earl Dodge, acquired his share in the interest.

They finally incorporated the venture as the Muskoka Mills Lumber Co., on September 1m 1873, with operations capitalized at $300,000. The firm’s leadership changed as A.H. Campbell became president, while J.C.Hughson became superintendent of operations. Within three short years the firm would change hands again as Campbell and Hughson purchased Dodge’s share in the mill. In 1884 Campbell became the principal owner of the company and increased the mill’s productivity. By then the mill maintained a steady workforce of 125 men.

In 1867 as the mill reopened, the townsite contained less than 20 company homes. The community counted approximately 130 souls. As production gradually stepped up, they added more homes along with supporting buildings. By the time Campbell took over operations in 1884, Muskoka Mills contained a two-story schoolhouse, a company store and post office which opened in 1879. The school’s top half doubled as a Union Church. Reverend William Melmer, a missionary, was posted at the site to attend to the flock The Rossin house, the community’s guest house was Muskoka Mills only “hotel.”

The mill property contained sheds, stables, a sawdust burner, an office and the company docks, which extended 20-30 feet (10 metres). The main dock spanned 800 yards (720 metres) and docked 11 tugs, as well as numerous scows. By the 1890’s, 250 residents called this isolated spot home. Steamers called daily in the summer months, while during the winter months a weekly stage connected the community with the outside world.

However a dark cloud lay on the horizon. Sawdust dumped by the mill into the surrounding lakes and streams eventually decimated the spawning beds of the local fish population. With the rapid disappearance of the fish, angry residents complained to the government. After taking over complete ownership of the mill in 1884, Campbell faced charges for polluting. By 1895, with all the pine harvested, Campbell, instead of obtaining new stands to cut, wound up his affairs and closed up the operations at Muskoka Mills. The following year the village was completely deserted.

For years afterward smoke and occasional fires broke out in the old village slowly consuming the old structures, one by one. Some locals believed a fire was smouldering underground. This was not as farfetched an idea as it seemed. The sawdust, left in a humid and packed environment eventually began to decompose and generate heat that became trapped and eventually culminated into a form of spontaneous combustion. Today the overgrown site offers some rotten timber, pilings, cellar holes, dock peers and a great deal of sawdust. The site is not accessible by any roads.