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125th.A.nn'iversary Suppl-r Te ý en t 2a'< r Jtcbr 3,1979 borRecails Life Ilere Mr Dec~i~er lth, 1954 Editor's Note - We are indebted te uenC sey mece-a, Se Treas. e teoor Dariington Hrb' Company, rnew lvn Toronto, for lIngr the 115 year oldmnut boenks et thiscopn 1.rom thesereodou popular cimitat feature wrieMs Elsie Caý7rrtes Lunney, bas dle trubits many fae pages and ce-rneuwt i ta f~. ~î~t~ti î~ oîste~ il Y y ~nic~ ru~w r ~.y £erera 10h W ~' On ~ut ~. a' eru ~en, 1839, vh"cb ~va~ the secenfi yet' t th. rcign et the ~ «~en Y »cc~ ~veî antI tru~ a ~ ~î ihe cav~mn et ~. ~ it bewm~ lJVlJ'~ '& Lite, purpose tJrrxÂfg ~ instck cornpany te ev pa ba bor f or arigon Township. Th ames oetgtose wb -st dewn around i. indes' table on cew YearIs Day,,mîght hcnsdered the rester et our pineers, for Darint1 was still vYoyung and these wver'e solid citizens ail. Here are their names. Fo Jowmanviile: C. l3eman J. Simpson, Jon umpter, John ~tI r~ames; the frîîinJ 1 eI tir 3ôKng%.V ~Žrrv1di ly Y ~ I~ly 623-54,08 Lister, James Stephens, Peter Coleman, Luther Price, John Gray, Alex Fletcher, C harles Tiffany. For Port Hope. David Smart. For Darlington: Donald Cameron, H. S. Reid, William Warren, Daniel Galbraith, John Smart, D.F. Burk, Robert Fair~- bairn, A. Hindes, John Tait, Arcby Tait, Timothy Soper, George Loveman. Fer Clarke: Allen Wilmott. Today, with the great St. Lawrence Seaway project under way, the thoughts of many an old-tîmer along the north shore et Lake Ontario turn back te the days when every little port saw the great fleet schooners put in witb their cargo et ceai or sail eut with their load et grain; when the steamboats p lied, their way regularly te American ports with various experts, and passenger boats weuld take you te Toronto in ease and comtort in a momning - if the weather wasn't rough. Port Memnoriesi Bowmanvilie, or Port Darlington, bas, its share et memories, for the joint stock company se auspiciously begun on New Year's Day, 1839, (115 years age) witb eacb et the 24 sharebolders subscrib- ing 24 peunds apiece, centinued through many busy and prosperous years. Schooners such as the Oliver Mowat and William Jamiesen, steamers sucb as the Erindale, Argyle, Garden City, and ethers continued te eall at Port Darlington till on in the present century, tbougb the big boom etfrad was over with the passing et theMKle Bill in 1897 which plae a tariff on Canadien barley te preteet Unit'd States growers. In the hey-day' et the barley and grain trade when Oswego brelwerles WC ianrig for Ontahi copsit s said that wagos sretched tren he el-known Rag~ ~~t, aleCretothe turu~~ teulada he two bîg levaorswhicb' once steed'tee At this t' e tvo ier stetcbed eutine th lke with a 1'gtîîuse waiting- reo a idoffceat the end~ ~~w eteestpe.and elvtrs reou Ses an-d a Custon ;buse n te land sîie of the sanie. Thes buildings and the piers-hve gradualiy been rernoed as their da s etusfulness were dn Bnew the barbor n'et s ail but f iiled iîh ad and nothing rranste tell modemn Cettger fetthe once buydys et the Port ;xct a breakwater on teest sîdcet the pier. Four Generations ut the Harbor Cepay stili conines wîth J. GuernseyMeCleilan, g~eat~i dnden)etthe tn~ waitngrJames Metielan, ts s~crtary treasurer. F ii gner tins of the I~ ~ ~ L cCia miyhave PLaya i mnt part in the 3t arsetthe compnytr ithe tirst dyeApril, 1854, when Ja~sMcClellan was apinted wharfinger -n arbormaster, te the1 p resent, one hunredyears later, when J Guernsey MeClelan elpateoguide trie ~ c atar etthe cempan wh-1hnow censîs m -7iiyoetland renas te cottage ower t the beach. JonMeClellan, son et~~.. th irtwartinger, Je~ ~ Is ndwaaieHarbor Matrfr 60 years and w wn B~vral schoon- ers l~atsaied the. lakes. On bis usiness er~veepes n theleftt Xle ppereda beauîtullitte îtur-e et a tt e nîc td choon- w d b~eathit bis ime -addres, John McClellan was also the senior member of the firm of MeClellan &~ Co., dealers in grain, lumber, wood and coal, predecessors of the Sheppard & Gi Co. here. The company for many years had a huge coal storage shed at t he wharf. Next in the MeClellan line was James Alexander, son of John, who was so well known in Bowmanville district as the kindly and respected manager of the Bank of Montreal. Though entering upon a banking career as a young man, J. A. MeClellan carried on the Port Darlington harbor tradition as the secretary-treasurer of the company, which position he helci until his death in 1934. The old tradition cropped out too in his love of making model schooners for small boys, particularly his only grandson at that time, Harry Hyde. And s0 we arrive at the present day with J. Guernsey MeClellan of Toronto, eider son of J. A. McClellan, as secretary-treasurer of the more than century old company. His son, John Guernsey, now 12 years old, is next in line. Early Days Going back to the beginning, the Port Darlington Harbor Company was incor- porated on March 4th, 1837, the year that saw rebellion f lare up briefly against the government in both Upper and Lower Canada. It was the seventh, and last, year of the reign of King William IV. In- that same year upon his death, t he young queen, Victoria, entered upon her long and successful reign. Complaints and wrongs were gradulally ironed out in the Canadas and the young country began the long ascent to Confederation, maturity, wealth and - I. BOWMANVILLE TRAVEL AGENCY ~ ' J ~ ~e!Centre (former! y Jury & Love il Tr-l gny) was esfbf~ i ~ wranvilealmost 30 years ago. In JuIy, 192,th Ic d on was ch ~ ~ ~ ýà n'do2KigSre East, then part of the Jury &1oe!Du Store. In Febîary~V ~it;y Loe!! Travel moved across the t ef o19Kngn Street Ea'Qb~ co w~cr l -ker. On November22nd, 1972, the , elgecyoved ~~ ~ocafo t 47 King Street West. The nai '!MAVILLE ï't/EL CETRE was offîiily adopted on January 13f, 17 A PPOIN TMEN TS: 1 ATAAULL415 TAPSO - May 8,1962 Ti-P,-January29, 1970 IPSAý-Uune22, 1972 c ~cddIe (o complete self- government. The Port Darlington Harbor Company, which became a joint stock company as we have seen in 1839, was in on the ground floor of this era of expansion and development. H.S. Reid was the first presi- dent, John Simpson treasurer and John Smart secretary. According to the record provided b y the minutes of company meetings from its inception, John Smart was very active in the affairs of the company and laid out plans for the wharf, being instructed to get prices for building a wharf. Prices for the various comodities are scatter- ed through the records 50 that no estimate of the original total cost can be arrived at. But the price of timbers at this time shows how plentiful and cheap were products of the forest. Timers 30 feet long and 20" x 12" were 10 shillings each or roughly $2.50. The same length in 12" x 12" was $1.25. These would likely be the virgin pine of this area. Costs Today Today, there is no pine avaîlable thicker than 4" in this length, and to get a compara- tive price we have to consider British Columbia fir. A timber 30 feet long and 12" x 12" (the widest listed) costs today $57.60. For many years the steam'boats were wood burners, and on Oct. 4, 1840 it is recorded in the minutes of the company that tenders were called for 1,000 cords of fire wood. On Oct. 24 we have an entry noting that this was purchased at 5-9 and 6- per cord, or about $1.43 and $1,50 per cord. Considering the quantities of wood consumed by steamers and early railway engines, it is littie wonder that the seem- ingly limitless forests were soon depleted. Two other interesting items appear in the annals of 1840, the company's second year in business. The presi- dent, H.S. Reid, journeyed to Toronto to see about establishing a Custom House at Port Darlington, which was apparently done after a proclamation had been issued by the Attorney- General establishing Port Darlington as a port of entry, and a dividend of 71/ per cent was paid for that year. On Feb. 6, 1841, William Mitchell was appointed wharfinger at a salary of 30 pounds a year and in 1847 we find tenders being received for building a ware- house at the wharf. In 1847 also we find the Company presenting John Simpson with a silver snf box suitably inscribed in recognition of his valuable services since the formation of the company. Business was so good in this decade that a dividend of 24 per cent was declared in 1848 and 1850. John Milne was wharfingeýr at this time. Huge Increase During its first ten- years the Company increased business by 32,370 pounds according to actual figures taken from the records. Commodities shipped in 1850 were flour, wheat, oatmeai, lumber, 9 otatoes, whiskey, bran, utter, wood. pork, ashes and barley 100 pounds was voted to help repair Cartwright and Manvers roads and the road to the wharf to facilitate the flow of business. In 1852 Peter Hambly was. appointed a second wharfinger to assist John Mme, and Samuel Hoar was hired as laborer. By 1851 the meetings of the directors were adver- tised in the Bowman- ville Messenger instead of the Port Hope Advertiser, and in 1853 the meetings began to be held in "the Office at Port Darlington", instead of in the various taverns, inns and hotels such as Hindes', Kellogg's, Brodie's, Foley's Inn, Mitchell's Inn and others. Apparently these were very numerous at the time. The Grand Trunk Railway must have come through about this time for in 1854 the Company set the dues collectable for railroad iron and other railroad material being received at the wharf. In 1856 another pier, parallel- ing the east pier was built and a dividend of 20 per cent was paid. In 1856 also, Mr. John Simpson, president of the Company and a prominent citizen in Bowmanville affairs was elected to the Legis- lative Council for Queen's Division (we are not sure what terri- =tory this comprised) adin 1867, the year of Confederation, .he was called to the S<.ate ofý the Dominion of Canada. Fire At Dock During the 60's busi- ness must have declin- ed, possibly due in part to the railway, for dividends were only 4½/ per cent and 6 p&~ cent. Misfortune struck on August 15, 1870, when the warehouse on the, dock was destroyed by fire. But at a meeting of the directors called the samne day in the Ontario Bank, it was moved that a new building 75' x 25' be erected with a light- house on top and office and waiting room below in the south end. Old residents will, recaîl this lighthouse, painted white, its outer wall almost entirely covered with rude cary- ings of entwined hearts, and other romantic symbols, together with the initiais of the jack' knife artists and their inamoratae. It was a favorite pastime of the younger generation to try to decipher these hieroglyphics and refer them to the romances which they were intend- ed to perpetuate. No doubt many citizens, stili living of that era, could recaîl many, human interest stories- which would make amusing, as well as- startling reading. We will gladlly publish themn in a future article if we are made acquainted with the facts. In 1871 it was decided that at the next annuial meeting the stockho.l- ers of the Company ,wouid offer to seil Port Darlington Harbor te the Town of Bowman- ville for $66,000. The idea was in connection wîth a proposed railroad fromt Port Darlington to Bobcaygeon, which, it was probably thought, would increase trade the best ~~Thk~' Besi Wishes tb the James Publishing Companiy Limited on the occasion of their i 25th Anniversary Sc hwarz ros. Lnivés tockLtd. R.R. 6 - Bowmanvll Telephone 623*é289 5 .Serving Bovw ,,L,ý,ýan ville and area s in ce 1947