John Rudulphous Booth summer home
Posted by: 
Kenmore
N 45° 29.442 W 075° 50.680
18T E 433998 N 5037810
The remains of the Booth family summer home on the north shore of Kingsmere lake. While the main structures have burned down there still remains stone columns, walls and stairways to remind one of the once great estate.
Waymark Code: WMFHW7
Location: Québec, Canada
Date Posted: 10/23/2012
Views: 17
John Rudolphus Booth (April 5, 1827 – December 8, 1925) was a Canadian lumber and railway baron. He controlled logging rights for large tracts of forest land in central Ontario, and built a railway (the Canada Atlantic Railway from Ottawa through to Georgian Bay) to extract his logs; and from Ottawa through to Vermont to export lumber and grain to the United States and Europe.
By 1892, he was the largest lumber producer in the world. He built Canada's largest sawmill in Ottawa, and very early on established a planing mill and offices in the United States. Former Prime minister of Canada, William Lyon Mackenzie King, described Booth as "one of the Fathers of Canada,"
With immense wealth came the opportunity for a "large" lifestyle including a huge summer home located in what is now Gatineau Park overlooking the north shore of Kingsmere Lake. His residence was bought out by the NCC some years ago and sadly was destroyed by a mysterious fire after the purchase. Today all that is left are a few remnants of the sprawling estate. The waymark coordinates lead you to the large entry columns to the estate. Through the gateway one can discern where the large turning circle driveway was and find a few stone walls and a stairway in the woods suggesting the extent of the compound Booth held. Further searching might turn up the well or a few concrete piers that supported some of the out buildings.
The property is now held by the NCC and is fully accesible to the public though it is not formally maintained like the Kingsmere estate on the south shore of the lake. There are a few herd paths that wander through the estate and allow one to explore the area. Parking is best done at nearby P7 (N45 29.427 W075 50.432) and then making the short walk up Kingsmere road to Chemin Booth and the waymark.
John Booth has several waymarks in Ottawa including his home (WMDF4C) and his gravestone is located in Beechwood cemetary (WMB6RE).
Terrain: 
Parking: N 45° 29.427 W 075° 50.432
Recommended access: N 45° 29.389 W 075° 50.657
|
Visit Instructions:
- At least one own photo of the place is required.