Seguin Falls

Introduction

Seguin Falls started out as a tiny village on the Nipissing Road. It began as a camp and stopover town where weary stage travellers disembarked for a meal and overnight rest at Burk’s Hotel. That business was only viable until the arrival of the railways but the lumbering industry quickly moved in and filled the gap.

Following the arrival of the Canada Atlantic Railway (CAR later CN) 25 years later, Seguin Falls’ businesses relocated 2 kilometres south in order to be closer to the rail line and station. Following the establishment of a sawmill near the tracks and station, a new Seguin Falls came into being.

The saw and shingle mill provided employment for the village’s workers. The village continued to grow, adding two stores, a post office, a church, the brick school and the King George Hotel. A number of attractive homes were built on the south end of the road. A group of worker’s cabins were built on top of the hill.

Then a couple of things happened to irrevocably reverse Seguin Falls’ fortunes. First the mill shut down and then in 1933 an ice floe destroyed a railway trestle in Algonquin Park, ending through service on the CAR line. The post office and railway both shut down forever in the 1950s. By the time the 1960s rolled around, almost every building in town was vacant. Today, a few people continue to live in Seguin Falls on a seasonal basis. Learn more