Goulds Mills - Smiths Falls, Ontario
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N 44° 53.872 W 076° 01.275
18T E 419366 N 4972112
The Smiths Falls waterworks building, located at 25 Old Mill Road, in Smiths Falls, Ontario, was previously a flour mill. It was purchased by the town of Smiths Falls in 1910. A stone plaque on the old Mill reads "Gould's Mills - 1868.
Waymark Code: WM1748A
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 12/07/2022
Views: 1
The three storey brick building was the original pumping station built for the purpose by Captain Adam Foster in 1886. Foster received a contract to put a water pipe system below ground on the east side of Beckwith Street to supply the water tanks at the CPR yard. Over the next decade he expanded this private system through the major town streets. The waterworks was run as a private business until the town purchased it and took over its operations in 1899.
The three storey stone office building was originally a flour mill and bears the date 1854. It was purchased by the town in 1910. The first filter plant was built in 1924 in a brick building south of the original Foster building, with a further extension added in 1952.
The waterworks complex was designated a heritage property in 1977 for its historic and architectural value or interest.
In 1829, Jason Gould (1802-1864) made the journey from Roxbury, New York to the raw, undeveloped wilderness of Smiths Falls, Ontario. He had been hired to work on the Rideau Canal by his future brother-in-law, James Simpson. Within two years, Gould had created the foundation for his future wealth. He constructed “flouring mills on Jason Island”, assembled a substantial wooden bridge connecting it to Ward Island, and built a dam to harness the abundance of waterpower. In addition, the ambitious twenty-nine-year-old had become an important member of the rapidly developing community.
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