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* Deserted Hamlets of Waterloo County in 1850 | & o Waterioo‘s _ first _ school _ was bmlk back in 1820, and was conâ€" siructed of logs_ It stood on risâ€" mg ground on the south side of Church street near King. and served the communéity tor 23 vears. ® The school was moved to a site in Kitchener, east of the Kâ€"W CI on King St. where it served as â€" _residence for a colored family named Carrol for a number of vears. expansion, sometimes find themâ€" selves left by the wayside through no fault of their own. Waterboo County is now a thirivâ€" ing area, filed with everâ€"expant ing cities and towns and prosperâ€" the wayside in the advances of experienced their heyday in the fotlowed the road from Frank Lowell‘s eambeand hotel in Presâ€" ton, easteriye®8 what was latter known as Westcott Corners, then northerly directly past the Groh Proprietor of the stage line at that time was Frank Lowell, ownâ€" er of the aforementionel hotel in Preston. Willkiam Harding was the driver,. who carried the mail beâ€" tween Preston and Guelph. FISHER‘S MILLS: Mr. Octavius Seagram, father o Edward and Joseph Seagram was wlentified with the early actiâ€" vitres of this centre. Mr. Seagram purchased on September 7, 1837, a 100 acre farm from one John Gingrich whe in turn had purâ€" chased it from Commeline Panneâ€" becker in 1835. Mr. Pannebecker bought the farm on Juy 2, 1810. Mr. Seagram also purchased, September 1847, a hotel from Charles Cross m which remained m the possession of the Seagram famny for 22 years, being sold m 1869 to Francks Douglas, by which time, much of the glory of the village had departed.: During the preceeding 22 years, the hotel experienced at least seven hotel keepers, one thought o be Ed. Seagram. Others were, a Mr. Barbour of Galt, Robert Mres of Hespeler. a Mr. Kringle also of Galt, Robert Drvden of tGuelph, Amos Adams of Gal, and James Baker who later opâ€" erated the Queens Hotel in Hesâ€" peler. where after crossing Bretz Creek «t resumed a northerly direction to Vance‘s Corners from which it turned to the then Gueiphâ€" Waterloo Road, following it to Guelph. During the 1850‘s, the communâ€" ay was a very busy place alâ€" though not on the main hine of the GTR line from Sarma to Monâ€" breal,. which ran six miles out. The busy time was due. however, m _ the â€" traffic _ which _ passed through â€" in connection â€" with | the buikding of the railway. The reason for this ‘ unpreceâ€" dentad happenming was due to the Koot that the railway brr«lee over Perhaps the most impressive happeming for the residents. aside from the passage of the daily siage coach, was the passing of iwo locomotives through the hamâ€" bet. which neither then nor since vwas ever within six miles of a )anbw ay lane. Perhaps, because they were doâ€" mx a thriving business at that trme the res«lents of that comâ€" munity may be forgiven for feelâ€" me that they had a bright future. I4 was purchased by the Parks BRoard and placed in Waterioo Park where it now stands. Two such centres were Fisher‘s First School Recornds are of course, rather . d&ys the bridges were not completed wntid 1856. the Grand River at Bresiau and the Speed at Gueiph, were not then completed. Although the road bed hbad been under construction during the previous three years, to baul fill and ballast, it was found necesasry to take them overland from the nearest conâ€" A branch of the hime, having been completed to Galt in 1854, the two locomotives used there were chosen for the overkand trip. Transported overland from Gak to the Shantz Station (probably In the meantiome, in order to get locomotives at work on the noad beds between the two rivers en laid down, over which the This was quite an undertaking for this time, because there were several large hills to be traversed as well as the Speed just west of Hespeler. They followed someâ€" what the trail of the stage coach. The rate of progress by horseâ€" power may be judged by the fact that on one Sunday the boys of Hespeler (then New Hope) saw the locomotives for the first time at Groh‘s Hill south of the Speed River, they further inspected them the next Sunday at Vance‘s Corners which was approximately three miles further awav. and he and his son canried on the business untrl 1890, when the mill was dismantled and along with the machinery was shipped to Biurtle, Manitoba. Though now sparsely populaâ€" ted, Fisher‘s Mills st.l has some mhabitants, and the Gbobe Hotel (referred to earlher) is stil in existence as a dweling house. Mr. Fisher, for whom the bocaâ€" on was named, purchased the mailling industry land in 1842, constructing the mill in 1847 or 48. He only operated it for a year or two before his death. In 1854 t was purchased by Thomas Stewart who, adter 10 years solid it to Aaron and John S. Clemens. Aaron became sole owner in 1882 Mr. Stewart. who operated Fishâ€" er‘s Mills, also purchased the old Dumfries Mill at Galt and the Doon Flour Mill, but it is reportâ€" ed that nesther ventures proved profit able. KOSSUTH: Less than three miles from Fisher‘s Mills was the site of another hamlet called Kossuth. Now, there is nothing to identrfy the location unless xt be some flowers now growing wild. This could, by no stretch of the imagination, be called ""speedy" travel for railway engimes. The diversity of nationatlities of ths community‘s dwellers is inâ€" dicated by the names of those who carmied on their businesses there. Switzerland is represented by the Zyrd family who manufacâ€" tured _ suipher _ matches. _ John Groh, a Pennsylvania Dutchman made clay crocks and shallow clay pansions for mik and also A Mrs. Cossel, whose natonalâ€" ty is not now known, erected a somewhat preterviroums hotel (brick ) about the year 1851â€"55. This hotel was but one of a numâ€" ber _ of elaborate bunlding enterâ€" prises of that decade, which were undertaken under the boom in fAluences of _ extensive _ railway construction _ an«l â€" the quirckened cwculation of money due to the Cirmean War. It is reported that in this perâ€" wl of time. the people of these parts expersenced. perhaps their first taste of ready money. While in the mxliMe of that decade evâ€" ervone had money. by the year 1859 money was agam extremely scarce. Among those of Irish extracâ€" tron were Alexamter Venton who was a weaver of checked cotton and flannels, and James Bradley and James McCaffery and Sons who made shoes. in e period when cash was most available, many fine homes and barns were constructed. The Kossuth Hotel came into being probably as a result of the Crimean War but was dismantâ€" led during another war. The bricks were reportedly salvaged for other bwilding projects. Durâ€" mg the big bridge vbmid'mg days 405 PHILIP STREET 8 KING STREET SOUTH The Twin Cities‘® "Oldest" established jewellers serving "You" for more than 50 years with the finest name brand merchandise. FRANKS sewrurers Manufacturers of . Automotive and Furniture Pad Supports Van Dresser Specialty (Canada) Limited Van Dresser Specialty (Canada) Limited @ Waterloo, Ontario ongratulations Canada Burlap Steel and Wire Assembly t was a centre of actevity where teamsters and their horses were accommodated, as they passed through with their loads of quarâ€" ied stone taken from limestone quarries along the Speed. These stones were hauled for the old Russel Tavern on the Guelph road and the Cosse! Hotel at Kossuth, then over to Breslau for ntario @ Warren, Michigan @ Bakersfield, California the building of the blarge prers and abutments of the ratway brwige over the Grand. In 1931, the Historical Society marked, with a bronze plaque, the location of the local school which served the young of these almost _ forgotten _ communities, > which, once thriving centres are now just deserted hamlets. WATERLOO WATERLOO