Here’s our continuation of our day trip to St Jacobs. Our blog on the Farmers’ Market can be found here (St. Jacobs Farmers Market).

We didn’t have much time to explore the village of St Jacobs but we did get to go for a little walk. We managed to go into a few shops as well. Most stores have a no photography sign up in them so I did respect that.

The Conestogo River was beautiful as always. The last time I visited was in fall of 2017 so the scenery was quite different. I do wish I had a longer lens with me to be able to zoom in. The 24-70 does pretty well landscapes but 70mm just doesn’t get close enough at times. There were beautiful flowers in planters along the bridge.

From here we walked by Cellar 52, a former Inn. It was great to see the pump and water trough for horses out in front of the building. A bit of preserved history. I’ve included more information below each picture.

Next was the Quarry Communications building which was first occupied by the Canadian Felting company. They have the tower area open to the public. If you look up you can see right to the top.

Across the street is Snider’s Milling Co. An old building that is connected to the Village Silos - a must see in St Jacobs. The Silos have been converted into little shops which makes for a unique shopping experience.

We went into Hamel Brooms. They usually have a broom maker working on corn brooms but no one was there while we were there. The spaces is shared with Robert a Brown Glass & Metal Studio. Lots of different items for sale. Loved the signs.

We continued our walk south down King Street North. We made it as far as A Gift To Remember and turned back. We wanted to get to Elora before it got to dark. The Elora blog will be posted this weekend.

Rediscover the Village of St. Jacobs

As of the 2016 Canada Census the current population of St. Jacobs Village is 1,988 people. There are a total of of 723 dwellings within the St. Jacobs. The top three Ethnic origins reported in the 2016 census were German, Swiss, and Dutch. This community it unincorporated and is apart of the Township of Woolwich.

Conestogo River

Looking East

Purple Flowers

Along the bridge that is over the Conestoga River.

Conestogo River

Looking West

Quarry Communications (Was: Canada Felting Company)

In 1933, The Canada Felting Company opened it’s doors and was known for it’s Felt Boots and shoes through out Canada. In 1970, Pett Machine (renamed in 1971 to Resurfice Corp) bought Canada Felting Company and renamed it in 1971 to Fab-met Manufacturing. They continued to build their ice resurfacing machines there. By 1989 it was turned into small indoor mall with about 20 stores called “Riverworks”. In 2010, Quarry Communications moved in and is the present occupant.

Looking Up the Tower

Quarry (formerly the Canadian Felting Company)

Cellar 52 - Originally: The Farmer's Inn

Our picture here is the ally way between The Farmers Inn to the centre and left and the new Home Hardware Store on the right. We will talk about this store a little later in this Blog.

Cellar 52 - Orignally the Farmer's Inn

A view of The Farmer’s Inn now know as Cellar 52. It Opened in 1852 as The Farmer’s Inn. Through an Ownership change in 1871 it was renamed Dominion Hotel.

Old Tractor in front of Pioneer Roller Flouring Mills

Mural on the Pioneer Roller Flouring Mills

The Pioneer Roller Flouring Mills was an built in large part due the efforts of the it’s founder Jacob C. Snider and his son Jacob C. Snider Jr. It had the longest mill race in Ontario. In 1855, the mill had been sold and for the next 6 years changed ownership a few times until 1870. In 1870, The mill was purchased by E.W.B Snider who had worked in his fathers mill in in Parkway. Snider brough some tecnicial changes in the milling industry by introdcing a steam engine to help increase production in 1884 and was able to go electric by 1894. The bigest change he made came from an employ at the mill by the name of John Braun, who by the way was a German miller, pursuaded E.W.B Snider to invest in a new technology the “rolling mill”. The “rolling mill produced at a faster rate, a finer whiter flour. The rolling mill being the first of it’s kind in North America made it arrive at the at The pioneer Roller Flouring Mill in 1875. Soon after that they were the first mill in Canada to export to Glasgow (Scotland), Liverpool (England) and Belfast (Ireland) their premium grade“Seven Lilies Pastry Flour” and “Ocean Bread Flour” flour. They had brought the world forward in the production of the way flour was produced.

By 1975, the mill had ceased operations and was re-purposed in to retail space.

Click here for information on mill race

Train Car

Pioneer Roller Flouring Mills

The Village Silos 1

The Village Silos 2

The Village Silos 3

Hamel Brooms (Was: Jon B. Martin Blacksmith Shop) and Robert a Brown Glass & Metal Studio

The yellow brick building is Hamel Brooms and the wooden grayish building in the centre of the picture is Foiled Again Stain Glass Std.

Between 1880 to 1960 the Jon B. Martin Blacksmith was a very popular place for the Mennonite patrons. They would frequently visit by Horse and buggy to get their horse fitted for horse shoes. This was a very popular place for children over the years as children were intrigued by the blacksmith’s apparel and the inner works of the Blacksmith shop.

Collectibles

Outside Hamel Brooms

Timber Farm

This looked really interesting on the outside which makes you wonder what’s on the inside. The following was taken from the Timber Barn Web page:

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

ABOUT THE TIMBER BARN

We offer everything from handcrafted cabinetry and reclaimed furniture, to beams, timber frames and front entrances. We strive to stand out with innovative designs and execute with an obsession to detail.

To do this, we have partnered with local Mennonites and Amish businesses to supply quality timber and community craftsmen to finish the job. Every piece that goes through our shop is handled with a level of pride that shines through in our products.

We are passionate about great design, encourage our clients to go against the grain, and fuel their unique ideas with our experienced team of designers, engineers, craftsmen and installers to provide a quality product that stands the test of time.

There is no question that if given the opportunity, the entire Timber Barn team will put forth their absolute best efforts to ensure the entire project surpasses your expectations from initial concept, to production, and through to final install.

Website: https://timberbarn.ca/about/

Spring Street

Down an Alley

St. Jacobs Mennonite Quilts Sign

St. Jacobs Mural

This mural is located at Spring st and King St. N on the side of the “A Gift to Remember” Store.

An interesting fact reported by Faisal Ali of the Observer the Waterloo region is home to 36 different Mennonite communities. Mennonites from this area draw their roots from Germany and surrounding area in Europe. They also immigrated to St. Jacobs from Pennsylvania USA from the middle 1600’s to the mid 1700’s. They are know as the Pennsylvania Dutch. It is common to see people drive horse buggies and wagons in and around St. Jacobs.

Looking back at the history of Home Hardware

In this picture there are the Muskoka chairs and stools in front of the store front of the Home Hardware Home Furniture Store. This is the approximate location of where The first Home Hardware store was located at 1421 King St. N. This was as a 2 story building that was used as a hotel and then a used as a Tin Smithing Shop. Henry Gilles acquired the building in 1893 opening Black Smith / Hardware Store. In 1934 after the death of Henry Gilles the store was purchased by Gordon Hollinger who renamed the store Hollinger Hardware. in an effort to boost profits from Hollingers retail Hardware sales he add a Wholesale division in 1936 which became the foundation for what we know today as Home Hardware. In 1938, Walter Hachborn was hired at the store to as a stock boy and 12 years later bought the store in partnership with Arthur Zilliax and Henry Sittler. It’s important to not that Walter Hachborn, the son of a millwright lived in a home very close to Hollinger Hardware. Most of the customers at Hollinger Hardware were Mennonite farmers who spoke Pennsylvania Dutch which Walter Hachborn spoke fluently. in the late 1950 to early 1960 saw Big Box stores competing for market share hardwar market in Canada, which meant that local indepent harware stores could not compete and would go out of business. Until 1964 when Walter Hachborn and Henry Sittler were able to convince 122 independent Hareware stores to buy in to co-operative that all the dealers would have ownership in through a corporation called Home Hardware. And well there is more to the story you can click on the links in the references for more details. I can report today that from this one store in St. Jacobs there are approximately 1100 stores in Canada with yearly sales of almost $6 Billion.

The reflection of the Home Hardware sign in the window is were the main Home hardware store moved to across the street to 1420 King St. N

You can Click Here Click Here to see a picture of Henry Gilles Hardware and the tribute to Walter Hachborn.

Mennonite Horse & Buggy

References

Statistics Canada. 2017. St. Jacobs [Population centre], Ontario and Ontario [Province] (table). Census Profile. 2016 Census. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 98-316-X2016001. Ottawa. Released November 29, 2017.https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/prof/index.cfm?Lang=E (accessed August 20, 2019).

Canada Felting Company (Quarry Communications), 1440 King St N. Retrieved from https://pocketsights.com/tours/place/Canada-Felting-Company-(Quarry-Communications)-1440-King-St-N-21059

History. Retrieved from http://www.resurfice.com/about-us/history/

Miya, Chelsea (Sept./Oct. 2010). Grand Magazine. pp 60–63

The Farmer's Inn (Cellar 52), 1430 King St N. Retrieved from https://pocketsights.com/tours/place/The-Farmer's-Inn-(Cellar-52)-1430-King-St-N-21057

A view of The Farmer’s Inn now know as Cellar 52. It Opened in 1852 as The Farmer’s Inn. Through an Ownership change in 1871 it was renamed Dominion Hotel.

Johansen, L. (2015, December 1). A mainstay hotel in St. Jacobs is closing its doors. Retrieved from https://www.570news.com/2015/12/01/a-mainstay-hotel-in-st-jacobs-is-closing-its-doors/

The Farmer's Inn (Cellar 52), 1430 King St N. Retrieved from https://pocketsights.com/tours/place/The-Farmer's-Inn-(Cellar-52)-1430-King-St-N-21057

Szuck, M. (8AD, March). Mills in Ontario (Mills Open to the Public). Retrieved from http://www.spoomcanada.ca/Mills in Ontario rev.Mar08.pdf

Grand River Conservation Authority Heritage River Inventory - Grand River Watershed Cultural Features and Values that support the Grand (including Speed, Eramosa, Nith and Conestogo Rivers) as a Canadian Heritage River. (2013, March 13). Retrieved from https://www.grandriver.ca/en/our-watershed/resources/Documents/Heritage-Inventory_As-of-March-13_2013.pdf

Pioneer Roller Flouring Mills (The Mill & Village Silos), 1441 King St N. Retrieved from https://pocketsights.com/tours/place/Pioneer-Roller-Flouring-Mills-(The-Mill-Village-Silos)-1441-King-St-N-21145

Ali, F. (2019, June 3). Not just history on display. Retrieved from https://observerxtra.com/2019/05/30/not-just-history-on-display/

Domroese, I. (2003). St. Jacobs & the Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Welcome you. Retrieved from http://www.kanada-ontario.de/en/st_jacobs/

("People Apart: portrait of a Mennonite world in Waterloo County, Ontario" by David L. Hunsberger, et al. 1977, St. Jacobs, Ont.)