The following is a re-print of a past column by former Advertiser columnist Stephen Thorning, who passed away on Feb. 23, 2015.
Some text has been updated to reflect changes since the original publication and any images used may not be the same as those that accompanied the original publication.
143 years ago – December 1880
The promoters of the Arthur Junction Railway – a proposed line to run from near Goldstone to Arthur village and into West Luther Township – made a fresh effort to secure municipal aid in the fall of 1880.
Most people thought the project had died when councils and voters rejected it earlier in the year.
This time the promoters went to the City of Guelph. Merchants there endorsed aid enthusiastically, hoping the line would funnel more business into the Royal City. Ratepayers thought otherwise, and turned down a proposal for $5,000 of aid by a majority of 86 votes in late November.
Undeterred, the promoters went to Peel councillors for the third time, convincing them to schedule another vote in the township, this one for $3,000. Then someone noticed that there was insufficient time, as prescribed under the law, from the announcement until voting day. That seemed to end the matter. At least for a while.
Drayton council met on Nov. 25, and decided to sue the estate of A.G. Dewar for unpaid property taxes. The clerk had made no progress dealing with the executors and their lawyer. Among the bills paid that night was $7.50 to Bill Campbell for ringing the village bell four times daily for six months, and $3.49 to David Roberts for sidewalk repairs and lumber.
The next Drayton council meeting was not until Dec. 19, a long interlude for that body. Councillors were in a generous mood, granting refunds to three residents who had overpaid their taxes. They also extended the deadline for 1880 tax payments by two weeks.
In other business, the Drayton council authorized a $7.95 payment to Matthew Fox for 157 cubic yards of gravel, and discussed the purchase of a new bell for the village. There were rumours that a pool hall would open in Drayton. Council took a pre-emptive strike by instructing the clerk to prepare a bylaw to licence billiard rooms and other recreational establishments.
Peel councillors gathered on Nov. 16 at Goldstone. They were outraged at a bill from Dr. Varden in the amount of $35 for attending a destitute patient. They refused to pay a penny. The five road superintendents – the township was divided into five wards for the administration of statute labour – all gave reports, and council authorized some last-minute expenditures for minor work, ranging from $20 to $60 per ward.
Councillor Joel Boyle had taken another destitute resident, John Duggan, to the County House of Refuge at Aboyne. Council voted $2 to cover Boyle’s expenses. Other items approved were payments of $12.97 to the Drayton Advocate for printing voters lists, ballots and collector’s rolls, and $10.70 as Peel’s share of a small bridge on the Peel-Woolwich town line at Concession 9. Before adjourning, councillors set a special tax rate for those who would benefit from a new drain on Conc. 14.
The Arthur Junction Railway bylaw, approved on Nov. 16, was the cause of a special meeting on Dec. 1, when council realized it had to be withdrawn. One other item was dealt with as well: a claim from Sam Johnstone, who had taken care of an orphan boy. Council approved $12.
Peel’s final council meeting of 1880 was held on Dec. 21. Councillors accepted an arbitrator’s recommendation for a $10 payment to Pat Fitzgerald, whose horse was injured at a culvert on the Peel-Arthur town line. Another $10 cheque went to the Guelph law firm of Guthrie, Watt, and Cutten for work concerning the Arthur Junction Railway.
The procession of indigent residents to the county poor house continued. Bob Carter received $3 for transporting John Palmer to his new home, and George Miller the same amount for escorting Robert Norris.
Before adjourning, council voted a $10 payment to township treasurer Bill Close for extra duties and stationery. The final tasks were the preparations for the election, to be held Jan. 3. The nomination meeting would convene at Stork’s Hall, in Goldstone, which was the regular council meeting room.
The election campaign occupied much of December in Peel, long before official nominations. When the votes were counted, Robert McKim made a comeback, defeating Reeve James Cross by 29 votes. McKim had been reeve in the early 1870s, but had left politics when his huge sawmill operation at Parker ran into financial trouble. Peel then had two deputy reeves, both of whom also sat on county council. R.F. Rudd frustrated councillor Joel Boyle’s attempt to move up, by a majority of 39. Deputy reeve Harcourt retained the other seat by acclamation. Voters re-elected councillors Bruce and Whale to round out the 1881 council.
Drayton village saw some changes, with S.P. Emes in the reeve’s chair for 1881, replacing the retiring J.C. Johnson. Dr. Smith, D. Macdonald, T.H. Gordon and R.J. Peylos made up the council.
43 years ago – March 1980
The big news at the beginning of March 1980 was the sale of Community Telephone Ontario Ltd. to Bell Telephone. The firm, itself an amalgamation of many small local telephone systems including the one in the Drayton area, operated 21 exchanges across Ontario, and served some 33,000 businesses and households.
Along with the sale came an announcement that rates would increase 80 per cent. Prior to regulatory approval, affected telephone users had the opportunity to voice their comments at a series of hearings, including one at Drayton on March 4. Elbert van Donkersgood led the local committee formed to oppose the new rates.
More agreeable news came from the Peel and Maryborough Mutual Insurance Co. Its annual statement came out in early March, and showed a considerable increase in business during 1979. Assets stood at $1.6-million; liabilities at $446,000. Premium income was up 18% to $706,000, and claims for the year totalled $375,000, resulting in a sizable increase in reserves.
A Ministry of the Environment (MOE) survey showed that 94% of Drayton’s septic systems were substandard, and some severely so. More serious were the contaminated wells: about a dozen of the village’s 120 wells produced severely contaminated water.
The MOE suggested the village construct a lagoon-type sewage system, with the lagoons on a 106-acre parcel owned by Arend Flinkert in Maryborough. The report concluded: that a deep well drilled for the village’s health clinic in 1967 had sufficient capacity to supply most of the village.
Meanwhile, new construction continued. Council reached an agreement with Albert Meisler to develop eight lots facing Queen, Mill and King Streets. He would be responsible for bringing the streets up to standard and providing storm drainage.
Hockey season reached its peak in March, with Drayton teams involved in playoffs. The Intermediate team took on Ripley in a five-game series and disposed of them handily. The local Dragons were much less successful when they began a series against the Goderich Panthers, losing the first game of that series 10-7. For the second game on March 21 at Goderich, Drayton area fans chartered two buses to take enthusiastic supporters to Goderich.
The PMD Minor Hockey group organized a full-day tournament on March 8, with play beginning at 8am. House League, Tykes, Atoms and Pee Wees filled the day with steady play. The event concluded with a fundraising dance in the evening.
Other Drayton organizations made plans for events. The Kinsmen scheduled the first of three local talent contests for March 29 featuring Hoppy, a popular Kitchener broadcasting personality. The Rotary Club was busy organizing a walkathon, with proceeds earmarked for the paving of the parking lot at the arena.
A petition to the Wellington County School Board from 11 parents in the Yatton-Wallenstein area caused some concern. They wanted their children to attend the Floradale school in Waterloo Region, rather than Centre Peel and Drayton schools. These Wellington schools already were experiencing declining enrolment, and some feared that it might be closed after the loss of more students. Floradale was only a couple of miles from their homes, while Centre Peel was about six and Drayton 13.
On March 10 the PMD Arena Board set its budget for 1980. The board requested $20,000 in operating grants, and $27,000 in capital grants, most of the latter allocated to paving the arena parking lot. Board members were delighted with arena manager Peter Robertson’s report. His conservation program had reduced electrical consumption by 30% in January. Costs of operating the arena were reduced considerably by the fundraising activities of various user and community groups, including Rotary and the Hockey Moms.
Light snow cover frustrated local snowmobile enthusiasts. The Lake Conestoga Snowmobile Club, working with the Ministry of Natural Resources and the conservation authority, laid out a 75km trail around the lake, but lack of snow in February and March made it largely unusable. The club, founded in 1974, had grown to 50 members by 1980.
Drayton’s Figure Skating Club began a major fundraising drive, asking supporters and friends to save proof-of-purchase labels for 11 Colgate-Palmolive products. The firm promised to give from 10 to 40 cents for each one turned in. Several businesses volunteered to be collection points.
Drayton’s Curling Club held its combination awards night and annual meeting on March 24. Ron Schieck and Ken Fisher skipped the top teams during the season. The club ended the season with 46 paid-up members, and a surplus of $886.
A downtown business location, vacant since summer 1979, seemed destined to remain so. An auctioneer tried to sell the Drayton Variety and Pool Hall on March 22. The only bid offered was far below the reserve. The business had closed with the bankruptcy of Bob and Shelda Geff, the last operators.
*This column was originally published in the Drayton Community News on March 4 and Dec. 9, 2005.
