The Village of Lambton Mills was a settlement at the crossing of Dundas Street and the Humber River. The settlement was on both sides of the Humber River, in both the former Etobicoke Township and York Township, within today's City of Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

, 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...

. It extended as far west as Royal York Road at Dundas, as far north as the still-existing CPR rail line north of Dundas, as far east as Scarlett Road and as far south as today's Queen Anne Road. The area on the east side of the river is still known as Lambton

Lambton, Toronto

Lambton is a neighbourhood in the city of Toronto, situated on the east bank of the Humber River north and south of Dundas Street West. It is bounded on the north by Black Creek, on the east by Jane Street and on the south by St. Mark's Road. The area west of Gooch Road is also known as "Warren...

, although the current neighbourhood encompasses very little of the original Lambton Mills village.

History

The crossing at the Humber dates to pre-European times. It was the crossing of the 'Davenport Trail' and the 'Toronto Carrying Place' trail used by local First Nations.

The name was linked to the mills (grist, saw mills, woolen mills) that operated along the Humber River from 1850 to 1915. Originally called Cooper's Mills (c. 1806) after William Cooper

William Cooper (businessman)

William Cooper was an Upper Canada business man and owner of mills along the Humber River in Ontario, Canada. Prior to 1838, the former name of the Village of Lambton Mills was Cooper's Mill, named in his honour in 1806....

's Grist and Saw Mill, it was renamed in 1838 in honour of John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham

John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham

John George Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham GCB, PC , also known as "Radical Jack" and commonly referred to in history texts simply as Lord Durham, was a British Whig statesman, colonial administrator, Governor General and high commissioner of British North America...

 (High Commissioner and Governor General of British North America, who visited to the area.

By 1857, the Village of Lambton Mills contained about 500 people and began to identify the community on both banks of the Humber River at Dundas Street. Earlier, the community on the west bank was frequently referred to as Milton Mills, although Milton Mill (owned by Thomas Fisher) was further downstream in what is now Home Smith Park. Lambton Mills was served by a church, school, and post office which received mail daily. It became an important commercial centre that included stores, a variety of milling operations, taverns, and hotels. Within ten years the population had declined to 250 people as steam-powered mills replaced the water-powered mill, although Lambton Mills continued well into the next century, becoming part of the Borough of York.
The railway crossing the Humber to the north of Dundas was completed in November 1874 as part of the Credit Valley Railway

Credit Valley Railway

The Credit Valley Railway was a shortline railway that operated in Southern Ontario, Canada from 1871 to 1883. Engineered by James Ross, its mainline went from Toronto to Orangeville with branchlines from Cataract to Elora and Streetsville to St. Thomas. It was acquired by the Ontario and Quebec...

. The bridge as constructed was 568 feet (173.1 m) long and 95 feet (29 m) high. The Credit Valley Railway had a station in Lambton although this no longer exists. Today, the CPR

Canadian Pacific Railway

The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...

 operates the rail line and the Lambton Yard, located east of Scarlett Road.

In 1915, most of the buildings on the east side of the Humber were destroyed by fire, including the original Lambton Flour Mills, by then already converted into a hotel and tavern named the Lambton Mills Inn. The Lambton House Inn was spared; it was the only brick building in the area.

Today

Only the Lambton House inn exists from the days of Lambton Mills. The immediate vicinity is a residential area, primarily single-family dwellings. Most homes are post-World War II although some cottages date to the 19th century. The name Lambton lives on in "Lambton Arena", "Lambton Park", "Lambton Woods Park" and "Lambton Golf and Country Club." To the west, on Royal York Road

Royal York Road

Royal York Road, historically known as Church Street or New Church Street, is a north-south arterial road in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a concession road, 5 concessions west of Yonge Street, and runs through many residential neighbourhoods, most notably Mimico and the Kingsway...

, is the Lambton Mills Cemetery.

Lambton-Kingsway Junior Middle School at Prince Edward and Government, is the third school built on the site. The original school was named Lambton Mills School, dating from approximately 1875.