Almonte, Ontario
Encyclopedia
Almonte is a Canadian exurb and former mill town
Mill town
A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories .- United Kingdom:...
located in Lanark County
Lanark County, Ontario
Lanark County is a county located in the Canadian province of Ontario. As of 2006, the population is 63,785. Its county seat is Perth.The county took its name from the town of Lanark in Scotland.-Geography:...
, in the eastern
Eastern Ontario
Eastern Ontario is a subregion of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario which lies in a wedge-shaped area between the Ottawa River and St. Lawrence River...
portion of Southern
Southern Ontario
Southern Ontario is a region of the province of Ontario, Canada that lies south of the French River and Algonquin Park. Depending on the inclusion of the Parry Sound and Muskoka districts, its surface area would cover between 14 to 15% of the province. It is the southernmost region of...
Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Formerly a separate municipality, Almonte is now a ward of the town of Mississippi Mills
Mississippi Mills, Ontario
Mississippi Mills is a town in eastern Ontario, Canada, in the County of Lanark on the Mississippi River. It is located within Canada's National Capital Region.-History:...
, which was created on January 1, 1998 by the merging of Almonte with Ramsay and Pakenham townships. Almonte is located 46 kilometres (29 mi) south-west of downtown Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
. Its population as of 2011 is about 5,000.
First settlers
Almonte's first European-bred settler was David Shepherd, who in 1819 was given 200 acre (0.809372 km²) by the Crown to build and operate a millMill (grinding)
A grinding mill is a unit operation designed to break a solid material into smaller pieces. There are many different types of grinding mills and many types of materials processed in them. Historically mills were powered by hand , working animal , wind or water...
. The site became known as Shepherd's Falls. That name was never official however, and Shepherd sold his patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
after his mill burned down. The buyer of the patent, Daniel Shipman, rebuilt the mill and the settlement became known as Shipman's Mills by about 1821.
The majority of Shipman's Mills' early settlers were Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
and later Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
. A textile town almost from the start, by 1850 it was the home of seven busy woolen mills. It was one of the leading centres in Ontario for the manufacture of woollen cloth.
The construction of a railway line to Brockville stimulated the economic growth of Almonte. By the 1870 the town could boast thirty stores and forty other businesses.
Origin of the name Almonte
During this time of rapid expansion the town changed its name from Shipman's Mills to Ramsayville, and then to Waterford. When in 1855 the newly created Canadian post office pointed out there was already a Waterford in Ontario, the town needed yet another name change.Relations between the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
had been antagonistic since the Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
and later the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. Border wars between Mexico and the United States in the 1830s increased this antagonism. Mexican general Juan Almonte
Juan Almonte
Juan Nepomuceno Almonte was a 19th century Mexican official, soldier and diplomat. He was a veteran of the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution...
had fought honourably in these latter wars, and by 1853 had become Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
's ambassador to the United States.
In the ensuing climate of Canadian mistrust of American territorial ambitions, General Almonte's name would have been well known to Waterford's citizens. Though there is no decisive evidence as to the final motive for the name change, it appears likely that Waterford saw the General as a "principled David fighting a Goliath interested in swallowing up all North America."
The proposed name change was accepted by the Combined Counties of Lanark and Renfrew in June 1855, although the post office didn't record the new name until 1859. Whenever the name may have been formally accepted, it led to Almonte being the only community in Ontario, and likely Canada, to be named for a Mexican general.
Almonte train wreck, 1942
On December 27, 1942, a troop train rear-ended a passenger train standing in the station at Almonte. Thirty-nine people were killed and more than 150 were injured. This local genealogy page provides photos and a contemporary newspaper report of the wreck.Present day
After the last textile mill closed in the early 1980s, Almonte no longer had a dominant industry. It has since turned its attention towards tourismTourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
. It offers museums and several historical spots, such as the home of James Naismith
James Naismith
The first game of "Basket Ball" was played in December 1891. In a handwritten report, Naismith described the circumstances of the inaugural match; in contrast to modern basketball, the players played nine versus nine, handled a soccer ball, not a basketball, and instead of shooting at two hoops,...
, the inventor of basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, and the Naismith Museum & Hall of Fame.
Almonte retains much of its 19th century architecture. The former Almonte post office, designed in 1889 by Thomas Fuller
Thomas Fuller (architect)
Thomas Fuller was a Canadian architect.He was born in Bath, Somerset , where he trained as an architect. Living in Bath and London he did a number of projects. In 1845 he left for Antigua, where he spent two years working on a new cathedral before emigrating to Canada in 1857...
(the architect of the Parliament Buildings), and the Rosamond Woollen Mill, the largest 19th-century textile mill in Canada, are both designated as National Historic Sites of Canada.
Festivals
Almonte is home to several festivals and events, including Puppets Up!, the North Lanark Highland Games, Naismith 3-on-3 Basketball Festival, Almonte Celtfest and Busfusion.
Puppets Up! International Puppet Festival
The Puppets Up! International Puppet Festival is held annually in Almonte.The Festival attracts puppet performers from various parts of the world. The 2009 Festival included acts from Canada, the U.S. and Iceland. The Festival also features buskers, musicians, clowns, magicians and dancers.
North Lanark Highland Games
The North Lanark Highland Games have been held annually in Almonte since 1982.The Games
Highland games
Highland games are events held throughout the &Highland games are events held throughout the &Highland games are events held throughout the &(-è_çà in Scotland and other countries as a way of celebrating Scottish and Celtic culture and heritage, especially that of the Scottish Highlands. Certain...
feature traditional Highland sports and entertainment, and bring in about 6,000 visitors each summer.
Almonte Celtfest
The Almonte Celtfest has been held annually in Almonte's Gemmill Park since 1997. The festival's goal is to "celebrate and promote the Celtic heritage of the Ottawa Valley through music and dance."Schools
Almonte has three elementary schools: R. Tait McKenzie Public School, Naismith Memorial Public School and Holy Name of Mary Catholic School. Almonte and District High SchoolAlmonte and District High School
Almonte and District High School is a secondary school in the Upper Canada District School Board. It is located in Almonte, Ontario, which since 1998 has been a ward of the town of Mississippi Mills...
serves the town of Almonte and much of the surrounding rural area. The Almonte campus of the T.R. Leger School provides adult education and literacy classes.
Mississippi River
The Mississippi RiverMississippi River (Ontario)
The Mississippi River is a tributary of the Ottawa River in eastern Ontario in Canada. It is in length from its source in Upper Mazinaw Lake, has a drainage area of , and has a mean discharge of...
which runs through Almonte has no connection with the U.S. river of the same name.
