The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Town Hall revival Citizens have spent decades working to restore landmark to its former glory Story and photos by Ted Brown Photos courtesy Kay Dills In the 1880s, the Town of Acton was virtually a village compared to today. With a population of nearly 1,000, the town was a collection of shops and some industries--- a self-supporting community. So, like every other small town across Ontario, it was time to take that next step, and erect a Town Hall. Not only would it be a place to administrate the business of the town of Acton, and house a couple of jail cells allowing the village constable to keep the unruly in place, it would also be a rallying point, a place in the centre of town for the local residents to gather, to attend concerts and to hold dances. In 1882, the Acton Town Hall was built for the town council and the town constabulary at a tendered cost of $4,574. It was a proud brick structure in the middle of town, at the corner of Bower Avenue and Willow Street, a short walk from downtown Acton, ready to serve the populace. The structure housed the town council chambers and constabulary in the downstairs, and the great hall with its elaborate stage were built upstairs. For years the Town Hall served the people of Acton, and later had the volunteer fire brigade added to the back of the building. The Town Hall flourished and was the site for various community events, as well as the seat of the local municipal government. Over the years, numerous groups called the building home. Including the council chambers and police station and cells, it was used as a library, the headquarters for the St John Ambulance and the fire brigade, band practices, senior citizens' drop-in and in the early 1920s, it was used as an overflow for the local public schools. The old bell tower was used to ring out the time, and later, to call out the fire brigade to respond to a fire call. The Acton Town Hall as it is today (above) and as pictured in one of A.T. Brown's treasured early images (below). The tree, which was planted by carpenter Josiah Adams when he built the house on the corner, was later moved south but it didn't survive long. A.T. Brown was a pharmacist, councillor and stalwart in the Methodist church as well as a talented amateur photographer. Top photo by Ted Brown/ Bottom photo Courtesy Kay Dills SPRING · 2010 22 S I D E R O A D S H A LT O N H I L L S ·Truck Accessories · Upholstery · Heavy Equipment Glass · All Insurance Claims · Window Tinting N MORE THA JUST SS AUTO GLA 905-873-1655 354 Guelph Street, Georgetown