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Rich History Down by Old Mill:StreamBOWMANVILLE. ONTARIO, WED- SEPTEMBER 17,1975 Two Stuart Candler is a miler by trade, and a fine authority on local history. For forty years he was employed at the Vanstone Mill until an acci- dent at the dam in the summer of 1974 ended his long career. A great story teller, Mr. Candler possesses a tremen- dous fund of knowledge about Bowmanville as it was in years past, and particularly about the mill He is presently taking therapy to rehabilitate his left leg, which was badly damaged in the mishap last summer. With some time on his hands, he enthusiastically agreed to talk and write about the Inill that has been a landmark at the west end of town for over 125 years. His research and remini- scences provided a wealth of information for use in this article. by Stuart Candler and Liz Armstrong Seeing is believing. Seeing the old mil from the top of tfe dam, looking at its weather-beaten exterior from every angle, and watching the water spray from holes in the huge moss-covered in-take pipe is a special experience, particularl for someone who is more familiar with the concrete and structural steel towers of the big city. Peedring up the wooden stairs poished to a shine by the miller's shoes, poking into bins and around hemp bags frosted with a dusting of flour, and craning to find the source of thelong pine chutes that criss-cross at odd angles from the ceiling is like takng a step back into another era. Sunlight streams through the cobwebbed windows and casts sharp highlights on the huge iron rollers and the circular cogs and wheels of the mill works. Seeing the Vanstone Mill is believing in an era that you may never have been part of. But between Stu Candler and an afternoon visit to the mill, it's easy to imagine. Down Memory Lane Long time residents of Bowmanville will remember the days when they'd call for their friends on a crisp February morning and head down to the frozen mill pond. They'd lace on the old bob skates and play shinny for endless hours. The snow banks served as boards and their shin protectors were old Eaton's catalogues or news- papers wadded into thick.pads and tied to their legs with string. Some nights, a group of Flour dust covers the mill machinery like a heavy autumn frost. This photo was taken on the second floor of the mill where the main transmission shaft is housed. couples would get together for an evening of skating under the stars. The generating plant located at the mil operated till midnight, so there was plenty of light to see the way home. And if they wanted to stay a little later, Joe Fletcher the night watch- man, might oblige the request to keep thelightson though the next day the mii would find itself a bit short of water for power to grind the wheat. Their parents used the pond as a curling rink; this was a popular outdoor activity even in the early days of settlement. In the third week of Janu- ary, the ice cutters would come and saw out great chunks to be packed in sawdust and preserved for the hot weather ahead. Six months later on a steaming July day, the kids would chase the ice wagon down the main street, hopng to get a chip to suck on and relieve the heat. And when the thermometer rose even higher in the afternoon, they'd go down to the pond for a refreshing dip. Those days are past; the coming of artificial rinks and swimming pools spelled an end to the mil pond as a gathering place for the Bow- manville kids of a few years back. The ice man, too, went out of business with the advent of the Frigidaire. In the flats south of the mill one by one the old shops and businesses closed down; Gif- ford's Tannery, William's Carding Mill, the pottery and the ashery all disappeared, and alas, the distillery went too. In the Dim and Distant Past For the past 150 years there bas been a mill on that site beside Bowmanville Creek, known then as Barber's Creek. In 1825, a prominent early settler by the name of John A front view of the Vanstone Miil. The mill and its surroundings have been a favorite subject for artists and photographers for many years. Tom Roberts, one of Canada's outstanding artists, has painted it several times. This photo shows a purifier on the top floor of tne mill. The ladder leads up to the bleaching machinc between chutes that carry the produce to the large wooden bins on the main floor. Byron Vanstone continues to operate the Vanstone Flour and Feed Mill in 1975. He and his brother Morley bought the mill from their father Fred C. Vanstone in 1946. Burke built the first saw and grist mill there, and a year later, one run of mill stones was nstalled to make flour. During the next 23 years it was owned by several men; a Mr. Purdy, Lewis Lewis, the general store keeper, and Charles Bowman, who gave his name to the town. No one knows what happen ed to the original mill, whether it was torn down or destroyed by fire. It operated until 1848, the year that John Simpson and John Burke formed a partnership to build the present mill. The Simpson and Burke Mill came to be known simply as the Big Mill, because it was the largest of the five that were located in Bowmanville at the time. Two smaller mills were also located on Barber's Creek, and another two could be found oq Soper's Creek in the east end of town. A stone mason by the name of Thomas Jewell is the only known person to have worked on the construction of this new' mill. Francis Squair, the local millwright, began to install the machinery in the mill on June 24th, 1849 and he finished the job on June 4th, 1850. In his book "The Townships of Darlington and Clarke Francis Squair's son John documents the achievement. "My father's last important job for others was on the Simpson Mill at Bowmanville, where be worked for about a year. He often spoke of that job with pride. He hung every wheel in the mill and he was proud to know that they all ran rue to the rest of his life." Contradicting Facts Details of what happened to the mill over the next 30 years are contradictory. John Squair maintains that it "pas- sed through a succession of hands until 1878 when it became the property of Sam- uel Vanstone who had been a partner of Francis Squair in Clarke" and was owner of the Tyrone Mill. The Bowman papers at the Museum tell a different and probably more accurate story. hey state that at some point brio r to 1874 the Simpson- urke Mill came back info the possession of the Bowman amily. For three years (1874- 77) the papers say that the mill was Ieased from Bow- man's daughter Elizabeth Ra nes b William Burns and Robert Mitchell and Sons for $1 000 per annum. In 1877 this partnershiÊ was dissolved and William urns leased the Mill from the Raynes and called the opera- tion The Bowmanville Flour- ing Mills. According to the papers, J. C. Vanstone bought the mill from the Raynes estate in 1886. Both sources agree on this date. During thesyears 1884-86 the Big Miii was ciosed, and when J. C. Vanone acquired it, he converted the machinery from the old grindstones to rollers to increase the output of flour. The Big Mill Expands The year 1896 was perhaps the emostsignificant in the Mill's history. With exports and local demand for flour increasing, a major expansion was undertaken to provide for the larger market. Tbesmaii miii roils mnstaled in 1886 were replaced by larger ones and backed by more efficient machînery. The new works consisted of six double stands of rolls two universal bolters or sifters, four purifiers and four centri- gugais. t Wihthese replacements, the miii required more power and a new water wheel producing 125 horsepower was installed to run t he larger machines. As a result of the expansion, the dam, too, had to be enlarged to provide more water to generate power. At the same time a larger s illway was added to carry off theexcess. The Stratford Mill Building Comanyhmanufactured and insta led th e new miii works and the smalier rols were sod to the Hampton Mill where they produced flour until about 20 years ago when the mill ceased production. The changes made in 1896 were a miiestone in the development of the Vanstone operation, and the mil machi- nery, the turbine and the pond remain virtually unaltered since that year before the turn of the century. Through the Generations In 1902, F.C. Vanstone bought both mills from bis father and -kept the one in Tyrone until 1908 when it was sold to Thomas Goodman, whose grandson Clarence pre- sently lives in Bowmanville. In 1935, Morley Vanstone joined bis father in the business and il years later, he and bis brother Byron bought the Big Miii from their father. After the death of bis brother Morley in 1962, Byron Vanstone contmnued tbe operät tion of the family business under the same name, and the Vanstone Flour and F2eed Mill remains in bis bands to this da.The Three Millers It is a remarkable fact that since tbe 1860s, there have been only tbree men employed as millers for the Vanstones and their predecessors. As Stuart Candler points out. this fact speaks well for the Vanstone family as good emolovers and fine eople. A Scotsman by the name of George Pearson came to work as a miller in 1864, and stayed until he was an old man early in this century. While the miii was closed in the 1880s, he left to learn the art of milling with rolls instead of stones and returned after it conversion. William Cole succeeded Mr. Pearson in 1914 and continued to work for the Vanstones until 1936. Stuart Candler came to the mill during the Depression vears. He worked as a truck In Early Days of Milling No Money Changed by Liz Armstrong In the early days of milling, a local farmer would bring his grain to havea supply of flour ground for the winter. No money would change hands between the farmer and the m~iler; all transactions were done by barter. The wheat was tested by the miller and the farmer receiv- ed a quantity of flour depend- ing on the quality of his wheat. As payment, the miller kept a portion of the flour and the by-products 'as his remunera- tion. The by products from the wheat included shorts, mid- dlings, low-grade flour, red- dog and bran. The by-products were used as stock feed for cattle, pigs and chickens. Red-dog was the name given to a type of flour that was not as highly refined as the regular variety. The Indians bought il partly be- cause it was less expensive and partly because it had a more pleasing taste. Tests of the nutritional value of highly refined flour and red-dog prove that the Indians were getting more nutrients from their bread long before the whole wheat product became popular with the white man. There were two brands of flour that the Vanstone Mill became well known for Eclipse Pastry Flour is used by bakers and housewives to make pies, cakes and tarts; it is produced from fall wheat or soft wheat. Cyrus Bread Flour is manu- factured from hard spring wheat grown in Western Canada. It is high in protein and is used in the making of bread and buns. A versatile flour, it can also be used in the making of pastry by adding more shortening. The feed department at the mill can supply meal for a wide range of farm and zoo animals. Farmers grist is ground by an attrition mill into a fine, medium or coarse meal depending on what stock it is going to be fed to. Nearly 50 years ago, a ne-ton feed mixer was instailed to mix high protein feed such as oil- cake meal, cotton seed and meat meal with ground grain. Following a Sottish tradi- tion, the mill bought an oat roller to provide feed for horses. By rolling the grain, the size of the oat is reduced, making it easier for the horses to digest. Many rolliers later, the mill continues to roll oats for horse feed. For five years, the Vanstone Mill supplied Colonel Sanders with the flour to mix with the famous spices used in Kent- ucky Fried Chicken at the local Scott's Chicken Villa. Along with a complete line of Shur-Gain and Purina products, the Mill also acts as an agent for Windsor Salt and carries a stock of veterinary supplies for farm animals. Seeks National Vice Presidency 'Tiger' leads the way on a tour of the basement. He is heading toward a take-up wheel that tightens the belt to drive the elevator. driver for two years before taking a iob inside the mill, After about three months, the old miller became ill and young Stuart took over his position. Jobs were scarce and often short-lived in those years, and Stuart likely wouldn't have predicted back in the early years that this tenure at the mill would stretchover a span of four decades. FullCircle Miling has come full circle in Bowmanville over the past 150 years. The first mill (1825-48) supplied the needs of the pioneers. The larger mill built in 1850 was not only able to feed the settlers, but was able to produce asuplus forexport purposes, especially after con- version to rollers in 1886 and '96. However. two factors helped to turn the tide against the millers of Eastern Canada. As the great wheat producers of the prairies began moving their product to eastern mar- kets, the price of grain was depresse pd, adocàl farmers were forced to convert fror wheat production to beef and pork farming and dairying. At the samne time, huge roller mills were built in Western Canada right in the heart of wheat producing" country. In 1894, the Lake of the Woods Milling Company in Keewatin and Portage la Prairie was producing 2,700 barrels of flour per day. The combined output of all the mills in Bowmanville at the time was only about one fifth of that total. In most cases these deve- lopments spelled the end for small local mills, but by m orting large quantities of whepat by sbîp and rail, the Vanstone Mi was able to carry on. calour for the War Effort The coming of World War Il in 1939 gave new life to the eastern millers and put them back into the export market once agan. Half of England's mills were bombed out and with thou- sands of soldiers added to ber opulation, Canada was the ogical place to turn for flour to feed the troops and civil- ians. The Ontario Flour Millers Association placed the mills in Ontario on a quota system, and thousands of tons were supplied to Britain and the Allies this way. The flour shipped for the war effort from t he Vanstone Mill was packed in heavy jute bags weighing 10 stone or 140 Into the Present After the war, there was a hun ry world to feed and the local mill shipped flour to Egy t, Ceylon, Israel, Ire- land, England and other nations. The great Russian pur- chases of Canadian.wheat and flour starts in the sixties, and the Vanstone Mill had a share of this business too. Cuba was being fed by ber Russian ally, and a great deal of flour from the Vanstone Mill was destin- ed for Havana via New York. In 1975, the miii macbinery bas become too old to compete in day to day operations witb big business. As agents for Purina and Shur Gain, it still supplies local residents with a complete stock of pet food and prepared feeds for farm animals. It custom chops grain for local farmers, and in addition to roviding flour, the Vanstone Mill can suit the palate of a wide range of animals from monkeys to mink! Ha1ythe good old days are s redown by the old mill stream. While on the subject of productivity, it is interes- ting to note that there are about 400,000 more people drawing unemployment insurance payments than there are unemployed. Don Masterson, Past District 8 Governor of the Kinsmen Club, will seek election as the National Vice-President of the Association at the Vancouver Convention next August. The first generalmeeting of the Bowmanville Kinsmen Club for 1975-76 was held at the Flying Dutchman on Tuesday, September 2nd. Don Masterson, Past Dis- trict Governor, announced that he will be seeking election as National Vice President at the 1976 Kinsmen National Convention in Vancouver next August. He was nominated at the 1975 National Convention held in St. John's, Newfound- land last month. The highlight of Mr. Master- son's year as District 8 Governor came at the conven- tion in St. John's Newfound- land when he was selected as the recipient of the Decew - McRobbie Photo Shield, awarded annually to the Governor who demon- strates the highest standards in areas of efficiency, leader- ship, reports, co-operation and handig of Council meetings during his administration. Along with Mr. Masterson and his wife Ginny, Dave and Linda Crawford and Jim and Pat Schell also attended the Convention as representatives from Bowmanville. Three prominent guests joined the Kinsmen for their first regular meeting. They were Kirk Entwisle, Charlie McIlveen and Doug Moffatt, the three major party candid- ates in the upcoming provin- cial election. Elmo Ashton's Mini Buildings on View at Museum This collection of 'mini-buildings' ýwas designed and constructed by G. Elmo Ashton, formerly a resident of Enfield now living in Michigan. Mrs. Clifford Swallow, R.R. 2, Bowmanville, seen here holding a miniature version of a covered bridge, is Mr. Ashton's sister. The combination house and general store in the second row on the left is a copy of the Ashton family home as it once existed in Enfield. The buildings will be on display at the Museum until it closes for the season at Thanksgiving.