Old Sly's Rapids plaque, Smiths Falls

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Located near Old Slys Road and Queen Street.

Notes

The plaque reads: "Though associated more with Smiths Falls today, Old Sly's began with a history all of its own. The first settler to the site was William Sly (known as Old Sly), who arrived with his family in 1798 and for whom the rapids were named. The property was later picked up by the Ordnance Department for the construction of Old Sly's Lock, completed in 1831. In 1852, Joshua Bates built a grist and textile mill on the rapids, adjacent to his family home which is now the Heritage House Museum. Later in 1893, the rapids also became home to the Smiths Falls Electrical Power Company, a hydroelectric generating station."

For further information see:

Ken W. Watson. A history of the Rideau lockstations. Smith Falls, Ontario: Friends of the Rideau, 2000.

Glenn J. Lockwood. "Smiths Falls: A Social History of the Men and Women in a Rideau Canal Community 1794-1994." Smiths Falls: Corporation of the Town of Smiths Falls, 1994.

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