030is anon .
By Byron G.
i.
IN
11nts
1411 MAI-. 4fVJj"A,-3t diJr s.mrr�CB$•i
edla ace to a
$e f4vild fee"folr
l
h
I
R ra rs Agoj
Is'is
lel Narned
,'.. When Ingersoll's 1952 council is sworn into office this
timing Monday, January 7, it will be precisely 100 years to
the very day that Ingersoll's first council was elected.
s
y
Ing
er
soll's incorporation as'a village took effect. January.
1852,`and election of the first council'. took place the next
Monday. The election was held at the Royal Exchange Hotel`
where, our postoffice now stands, and the following constituted
iur first council: John Gal if reeve, and councillors W. A.
m 8V. ThomasBrowBrox
,.wl2, Charles.-PuKkkiiat and James }jyy-
wk,.T'he first boar of schoolArustees`was elected the fol-
awing day.and included Adam OIiyaK who became Ingersoll's
rst mayor when the community was incorporated is a town
t me 13 years later.
} ' Thus when taking office the 1952 council will mark an
historic occasion.' The new council includes: Mayor, Thomas
Fd. and Councillors H. W..l�ct Glenn To ham Mrs.
trQildred Ills Claire igUy, Don. and Tommy It.
ryylikely thatthe'new council, to m'ar a occasion, may pass
- resolution of loyalty and respect to the King, and in return,
birthday. the greetings of His AZaiesty upon the town's 100t11
t by e
In addition, council is due :for a surprise Monday evening
as they sit down to deliberate; a ceremony will take place of
bhich councillors at the moment have no knowledge.
P
For the First Election
Fi.
In 1852-100 years • ago--Inger
soll became a village. AG that, little
there were'175 aiunes on the villw,,e
directory. All did .not have the right;
to vote to], members of the'firstl
Village Council as this privilege was'
for freeholders only, at that time.
The election forthe first village'
council took place. on Monday, Jan.;
5, •1852, slid is,$,id to have been
hotly contested.'. 'W. A. 7, a,_
leading foundrynian, hea"f�d""the
polls by securing 97 votes: The
election was held `. in the "Royal Ex.
change Hotel, operated at the time
by John p ite,•s,» The Royal Ex
change Hotel stood where the pres
eat Post Office; erected in 1898,,
now stands.
The hotel was destroyed it,' the:
i z'rcat fire of 187'$, which started in
the stable at the real bf`'this ,. hotel'
()itthe'lth of May at 7 o'cloek in the'
ec cuing, and raged. .until 11:00
o clock.. The hotel was animng the:
first of 80 estaiblisluients to .become!
i I a ploy to the flames. The stable'
where the fire started was located oil
the southeast center of Charles and
,.Oxford 'Sucets.
' Possibly the fact the election was,
held in the Royal lExchange was be
cause it was ono of the inst up to,
date hotels- in the village. 1t oper
�I ated one of the first omnibuses to'
and from the Great .Western (tail
'.road station which was 'ei ected in
1854, the year this railroad was built,
through Ingersoll The returning
officer Tor -the first election was
James McDonald the merchant:
` There anus aye een others. by the}
r same.. name. .
LordiAlsia Governtr General
at the time Ingersoll (became a muh-
rcipadity with legal status, a. village
with a council, his terpi of office
being from 1846 to 1854. He toured
this section :cif. Oxford county on
j horseback in 184�9. on his ,journey
fromn.: Ingersoll to the "place now
known as Tlllsonbuig, he dismounted
at Dereham Heights and spent some
hours with the pioneers of that I
place. They were so pleased with his
(appearance and mannerly bearing,
that they -changed the name of the
settlement to Mt. Elgin. While much
discussion was taking- place about
Ingersoll having an election and be-
coming. a village, Lord �El iin�' again
passed through the`setitT I cut, this
I time via'the river, in a small steam
boat called the "Mohawk". Ile eon '
I11 tmued on to Sarnia.
+I Prosperity, Permeated The Area
By; 1852 there were many men-
Iclrurtsin Ingersoll and ;business was
,brisk by bui ter. The first store was ;
opened by James Ingers ,- son of 7
the founder of the -cnity, in ;
1822. James was i21 years of age at
the time.' John Patterso i innkeeper
.and a man of :goo nancial'reputa
Lion,,l,
joined with ''Adam - Oliver a
large buyer and exporter 4 umber
f as well as a builder,'. and later plug
11 errendl's_first mayor, to accept a- con -
J, to build - a freight shed, 3000
i{ feet '"long, near the- Suspension
Bridge, Niagara ;District. ' The con-
-tract was for $40,000. The shed err'
was con ideted-in,the early 1850 ,
The Adam jlyglL,., home, a bard:
dwelling, erected about the timeing-
ensoll ;became a village, still stands
on the south-west corner of John
and Victoria streets."Ris -lumber
yard covered the block west of the
residence. Great_ quantities of lum-
ber were teamed from the south
over the IngersollaPort Burwell
plank and gravel road to 'Ingersoll.
The company operating this road
was formed in 1949., Janes Ineersaljl
was secretary -treasurer in 1� 0- and '
1851 and J. M. iggh�__appm��,, in 1�852.
At th]il" time the o� cllvas in Inger-
fin "18i7„ Ingersoliville w" am
,active grain market 'American "I,,
ers ;.came here to pupchasto- wit"
t,
war in Europe, tb� Releafe
wheat markets revere etosed to 1IM
ain: Britain then sought Car.a,tsa.rd
wheat. Sometimes go to 30 wago
;loaded with wheat;f .would Lo It _
'up at the Victoria street #storagtt;
;The mills in the village were dot
is rushing business also.. Wheat trstti
selling at $1.60 perbushel.
During the formative years of t
village, prior to and doilowing leaf,
dairy farming for - milk., productiaat
l and cheese making by private aMa
prise, was making forward' stridiat,`
Britain was the buyer. An early ell.
Porter was Edwin Go'n lir: *Lb&
crossed the ocean 5 t is the
interests of the Cheese, industry, 0
few trips -being made while inge$:
soil. was a village, but most of the#a.
after the establishment of co-open-
ative factories r which began in the
Int,e.rsoll district in 1866.
Four years after Ingersoll became'
a village, a" disastrous ire. burned'
out the nurin business block. Thus
°' was oil the north side of King et"Vt
i' east )between Water aqqd Mill strcvM '
`' a'a`ltiP yCarh18R, zrwor-
sollville•�received' almost contirroaP
wide advertising through the Villa�e
.Pond Hoax, '•What's In the peal*;'sr .
The ;pond known as the Villags•Po 1
vas. between King and Canterbury
streets.4t'has beep;known asa,tl$ e-
orial .Par+k`"d'or several years,:.
The cmnununity that became lylrl•
ersoll was 'founded Ill Thomas 1
7179,3,
who moved into r a c ulos
n of Canla West on the ad-
fhis good friend, the famed
a chief, Josephjt„r„
ame iu with of eh r settlers in
.slid iMr. Ingnw^II personaNrthe tree from Ivvhich he enset• log home where the+aofficeote sWnde.Srr, however, Mr. II g�drsoUte
wscancelled,
t Of 00s arresuit of n d4s.'
pute over the settlers he was brirtg. '
mg it), mid he moved to -the mouth
of the Credit river, rwhoro ,./9.trs.
Credit now stands. ring
of his family wit h�hi in In moil s
ryas aura who us[ I a
become 17 Th.
Canallft's eroin r
. In 1817� Than
r e oy. ""ner son, Janet
'md together built up the, coa'unt
Iity having: a share m many fntetet
�Chail named the village after.
Sather, and in 1821 became ,t
com.nunity's first postmaster, 'I
brother, - ames, first white child
be or b r n n n •e rso)1
beca rug
roe
t rand Itekllhe post for 62 you
d,hu•les and a son,unn,au. d1Ci1
a"'efioie� _ `y
a`eid emi P c i n 183 .
Whe
n �Hr, g ersoll ;became nn {n�,y
..pirated village, its population w
iabout'1190 and it, (acreage 1,r,
�with 726 -acres in 'North Oxford a,
1,047,fh West ,Oxford,
t' }z
or 0-GtI7V �7�
J
A contract covering :roof repairs
to the town hall was .awarded to
contractpr H. G. R' dell at a price
' of 14,100. Theoxk s onder a
arven-year guarantee.
6—t9Si
CV to
�. U tn.�+-P.t� a+..v.✓ �sJR�
I
i
€ n1
r
-N i
I _
1 C
G The first Ingersoll council meet
fit=
ing was s held in the U "on sell
house at 2 in. on Jan:+"
•
g to
accor mont
a paper he Inrf d
utes of the early council meetings
E. read at Monday's inaugural ses• r
Siof the 1952 council. by Shy j
J. Smith' a member.of the council I
". i9✓i-
a .,
The,council appointed take-_Q,* t
uire, as reeve. Rev, 9
liford es7ast
v 1 opened the first t
i-mee mg with, prayer. and
ediction was given by Rev, t
an_d�}}. editor of the West. 1
gress, Woodstock. M r,
y
preached many times in t W-'.
ass Mission_Nor11111ipnics 9,i
nd knew pra�ally everythe
village. r
..... c....._ ,...