Old Mill Heritage Centre to mark 100 years as ‘centrepiece of Kagawong’

Kagawong’s Old Mill Heritage Centre originally built in 1925 as a pulp mill, it later powered Manitoulin Island as a hydro plant before becoming a museum.

Kagawong on Manitoulin Island is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Old Mill Heritage Centre, which has stood on the shores of Mudge Bay for a century.

It’s had several uses during that time, but it has always been an important part of the fabric of the community.

“They made pulp here out of spruce trees and then shipped it to Wisconsin for the Sears Roebuck catalogs,” said Dianne Fraser with the Billings museum committee.

The stone structure was built in 1925 to operate as a pulp mill.

“It provided work for a lot of people,” Fraser said.

“They had to build the flume so they could use water. There’s the Kagawong River, which flows down into Mudge Bay. So, they had to build a huge flume to use the water to make the pulp. It was a good employer of people.”

“Then, of course, when it became a hydroelectric plant, same thing. It provided employment,” she added.

Supplied power to Manitoulin

The structure was a hydroelectric building between the 1930s and the early 1960s, supplying power to all of Manitoulin.

The building was vacant until the 1990s, when some civic-minded residents restored it into a community hall.

Now it’s a museum, an art gallery and a municipal building, contributing to tourism for the community of Kagawong.

The town is within Billing Township, and Mayor Bryan Barker calls the Old Mill the ‘centrepiece of Kagawong.’

“There will be a lot of great memories from Billings Township,” Barker said.

“We have lots to see here. It’s a very welcoming community. And I think – well, I can guarantee -- they’ll enjoy their time that they spend here.”

The Old Mill Heritage Centre is run by a group of volunteers, like Fraser.

“They make it a very welcoming place for visitors. They do a lot of work,” Barker said.

Fraser worked with the curator of the museum, Rick Nelson, to create a book for the milestone anniversary of the building.

The book chronicles the history of the Old Mill and is full of pictures. It’s for sale at the museum.

A day-long gala marking the 100th anniversary is set for July 19, with a special program from 7-9 p.m. that will include speeches and representation from various levels of government.

Barker said it will include a presentation on future plans for the Old Mill Heritage Centre.