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from the township of Thurlow, states Belleville Portrait of a City by Nick and Helma Mika. By the mid-1950s, the book noted the city had a population of 20,673 people and occupied 2,200 acres. "With the completion of Highway 401, it was expected that the acquired land would prove attractive to industrial developers, bringing job opportunities and a more youthful population to the city." The"annexations, they noted, were however finalized only in 1959, and Highway 401's competition wasn't until the early to mid-'60s. The Scott brothers and Peake sold the livestock sales barn to John Preston and his partner Ken Monzon. The partners continued operations for another 18 years under the same name, specializing in auctioning cattle and hogs for shipment to packers in Montreal and Toronto. They closed business operations in 1977. From then on, area livestock sellers had to travel to other barns in Pictpn, Newburgh or Hoards Station in Campbellford. The Belleville sales barn was demolished shortly afterward to make way for North Front Centre, a shopping plaza which featured such stores as Mother's pizzeria, Safeway and Baskin and Robbins. · You can reach Benzie Sangma at bsangma@coQe.co.ca I