HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1973-06-28, Page 96EXETER'S FIRST FAMILY- The above picture of Mrs. E. Willis was taken in 1951 when she was 80 years old.
At that time, Mrs. Willis was the only district descendant of hergrandfather,James Willis, Exeter's first settler.
She was born a Willis and then married a Willis. Her husband ran the barbershop where Wuerth's Shoes is
now located. This picture was taken in her home, which was the second house built on the site of her grand-
father's original log shack. The house still stands on Simcoe St. behind Graham Arthur's garage.
Section 1, Page 8 THE EXETER TIMES-ADVOCATE JUNE 28, 1973
Atlas of 1879 recounts beginning
Historical Atlas of
Huron County, 1879
This important and prosperous
place, which wears more the air
of a busy town than a village but
lately incorporated, is situated on
the "London Road" almost
midway in a nearly direct line
between London and Goderich,
being 31 miles north by west of
the former city, 19 miles south of
the junction of the London and
Huron Roads, and 31 miles south
by east from the county seat.
In point of settlement it was
almost the first in the whole
Huron District, with the ex-
ception of Goderich, and possibly
"Brewster's" and Bayfield, and a
very few points along the Huron
Road, which have never assumed
the dimensions of even a country
village.
James Willis and wife, who
located on Lot 20, London Road
survey, Usborne, were the first
settlers within its present limits -
and indeed the first between the
point where the London Road left
the Township of London and its
point of junction with the Huron
Road, where Clinton now stands.
This was in the winter of 1832, and
the log house built by Mr. Willis
was the first white man's
habitation in a section of country
extending over 20 miles in every
direction from this centre.
This was in the winter of 1832-
33; and towards the latter part of
the same winter Wm. McConnell
built a shanty on the Usborne
side, near the River Aux Sables.
This gentleman was previously a
resident of London Township, and
was the contractor who built (or
rather chopped out, as there was
no "building" for many years
afterwards) the London Road for
the Canada Company.
He took up a large quantity of
land from the Company, and was
the original purchaser, from
them, of land on both sides of the
London Road, and on both sides
the Aux Sables, where the village
now stands. He built the first saw-
mill in all that section of country
in the fall of 1833, on the Aux
Sables, where it crosses the
London Road, and the first grist
mill at the same place in 1834.
He was for many years during
the early day of the old Huron
District one of the foremost
citizens in the promotion of all
useful enterprises of whom that
territory ever boasted. A child
born in his family, the first
summer of his arrival, was the
first within the whole region
above referred to.
Mr. Willis was a native of
Ireland, whence he came just
previous to his settlement as
above. On his way up he came
through London - then a most
primitive backwoods village,
containing but some half-dozen
log shanties - where he left Mrs.
Willis till he had cleared off a bit
of land and put up a shanty for
himself.
This old lady, now past the
allotted threescore and ten, still
resides in Exeter, where she has
lived to see a vast wilderness,
extending for many miles in all
directions, transformed into a
country now entirely covered
with the evidences of a higher
civilization.
The forest has fallen before the
axe of the pioneer, till the whole
country presents a succession of
field after field of waving corn,
dotted at ever-recurring in-
tervals with comfortable and in
many cases elegant residences,
which show the builder and
mechanic to have been busily
employed during this space of
years, which has accomplished
changes not seen in other climes
in as many generations.
The contrast between the then
and the now is not less
remarkable than are many of the
incidents by and through which
the, vast change has been ef-
fected; and Mrs. Willis can relate
innumerable episodes of the
pioneer settlements and settlers,
rivalling the most thrilling ad-
ventures of "Life on the Western
Borders."
It is stated that when Mr. Willis
got his shanty up, and had
brought his wife up from London
to live in it (it being then spring
time), he returned all the way to
London to purchase a hoe to plant
his potatoes with, He had just
exactly one English shilling left
in money; and finding on his
arrival at London that the
cheapest hoe he could procure
would cost at least three times
that amount, he returned without
one, and planted his potatoes
among the stumps with his axe.
It is satisfactory to know that
this method of husbandry was
followed on that particular oc-
casion by most flattering results -
the crop being at least equal to
any Mr, Willis had ever seen upon
the "ould sod" of his native
county, Armagh.
All kinds of fish and game were
very plentiful in those days - the
latter ranging in size and value
from the squirrel to the deer.
So also were bears and wolves,
and these used sometimes to
inflict substantial damage on the
pigs and sheep, and even cows, of
the settlers - when they began to
be blessed with facilitties for the
possession of such luxuries - to
say nothing of the "consequential
damages" to the nervous system,
by keeping the women (who were
often left alone for weeks at a
time by their husbands, in the
necessary pursuit of their
avocations) in a state of fear and
dread and wakefulness by
"making night hideouts" with
their howls.
On one occasion, during her
husband's absence, Mrs. Willis
was roasting a piece of venison
over the fire on the hearth, The
door of the shanty was open, and
while she was in the act of
changing the position of the
"roast" a monstrous grey wolf
bounded into the apartment,
quick as lightning snatched the
savoury morsel from her hands,
and as quickly disappeared with
its prize,leaving the victim of the
robbery to compose her ruffled
nerves and meditate on the
selfishness of the denizens of our
Canadian forests.
Among the incidents peculiar
to pioneer life was the quite
common, and in fact almost
general necessity of the first
settlers being obliged to log and
clear their land by hand alone;
and in this way Mr. and Mrs.
Willis together cleared off over
five acres - the first clearing
within the present limits of the
village.
For a long time after the first
settlement of what is now Exeter,
there was absolutely no im-
provement in the place, or in the
immediate locality, if we except
the mill built by McConnell.
The cause was not far to be
sought - the country near the
crossing of the Aux Sables being
low, and during the time it was a
forest, for a great portion of the
year partially under water.
It was not till the arrival of
Isaac Carling, in 1847, that the
place ever gave promise of being
even a country village. He
thought he saw a future for the
spot, and events have proved the
wisdom of hiS conclusions.
He erected a tannery here
immediately on his arrival, and
also started the first store in the
place. This he soon gave up,
however, and followed the tan-
ning business exclusively for
many years.
The amount of business he
succeeded in building up also
built up the village to an extent
which soon gave it an appearance
in open contrast to its sometime
quondam condition; in fact, the
success which attended this
gentleman's business affairs was
shared by the village at large, in
whose interests he has ever been
one of the most zealous workers,
and of whose prosperity he has
been among the chief promoters.
Another man whose history has
in great measure been the history
of Exeter is James Pickard. An
Englishman by birth, he came to
Canada poor, and to Exeter, in
1852, with little but his natural
qualities to fit him for a fight with
the world in what was even then a
comparative wilderness,
He at once opened a store on a
very small scale, and by fair
dealing and strict attention to
business, his trade gradually
assumed such proportions as
have placed him in the position of
one of the most prosperous
merchants of the Province,
And with his success, Mr.
Pickard did not forget the duty he
owed to the country which gave it
to him; he has been ever active in
the encouragement of every
enterprise, whether of a
religious, educational, or com-
mercial character, which
promised to develop or improve
or benefit his adopted village.
Several of the large manufac-
turing establishments in the
place are now chiefly owned and
operated by him,
Among the earliest settlers now
living in Exeter is George
McLeod, a native of
Sutherlaudshire, Scotland, He
came here in 1843. He is said to be
the oldest Freemason in the
County of Huron,
When the first lodge was
organized at Goderich, in the old
Huron District, he was one of the
charter members. At that time
there were but six other Masons
in the district, including the
present Counties of Huron, Perth
and Bruce.
He was for years a "wood-
ranger" for the Canada Com-
pany, his duties in that con-
nection extending over their
whole tract now included in
Lambton, Middlesex, Perth and
Huron.
There was a post office at
Exeter at a comparatively early
day, and the place was so named
by the inhabitants when the post
office was established, the great
majority of those in the neigh-
bourhood having originally come
from the town of that name in
Devonshire England.
Wm. Sanders, one of the oldest
settlers, was the first Post-
master, He was always an ex-
tremely active man in all affairs
pertaining to the general in-
terests of the locality, and was
particularly forward in the
substantial encouragement of all
matters, agricultural and
educational, He was one of the
oldest and most popular
magistrates in the district until
his death, which occurred some
two years since.
The mail was first carried by
John Rattenbury, on the route
between London and Goderich,
his brother Isaac having the mail
contract from the Government
for a number of years. In good
weather and with good roads - as
good roads went then - he made
the round trip in a week, though it
oftener required a fortnight to
accomplish it.
For several years previous to
its incorporation Exeter had
acquired a status which gave it
the reputation abroad of being
one of the "livest" county
villages in the western section of
the province,
About six years ago the idea of
a separate municipal existence
forced itself upon the inhabitants
as one of the best levers to
operate for the building of the
London, Huron and Bruce
Railway, then being agitated, but 1>
as yet by no means certain to be
built,
The
T
incorporation was effected
by Special Act of the Ontario
Parliament, being the 36 Vict,,
cap. liv., assented to March 29th,
1873. We quote the second clause
thereof, showing the superficial
limits of the Corporation:
"(2) The said Village of Exeter
shall comprise and consist of the
"following lots and parcels of
land, that is to say; the south half
of "Lot 1 in the first concession of
Township of Hay; the north half
of "Lot number 20, Lots 21, 22, 23
and 24 in the Township of
Stephen, "and the north half of
Lot 15, Lots 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20,
• and the south "half of Lot 21 in
the Township of Usborne."
The preamble stated that, the
Villages of Frances and Exeter,
of which the new Village of
Exeter was formed, contained
over 1,000 souls, and the third
clause appointed Wm. Bailey
Returning Officer to hold the
approaching elections, the result
of which may be seen from the
following extract from the
minutes of the first Council
meeting:
"The Council elect met at the
Orange Hall, Exeter, April 15th,
1873 at one o'clock p.m.
"Isaac Carling, Esq, Reeve
elect, and Messrs. James
Pickard, W.H. "Verity, John
Trick, and Edward Drew,
Councillors elect, subscribed "to
the declarations of office in the
presence of Joseph Acheson,
Esq., "J.P.
Michael Eacrett was appointed
Clerk at this meeting; Robert
Sanders, Treasurer; Joseph
Acheson and George Kilpatrick,
Assessors.
George Willis was elected to
the Reeveship in 1874 and 1875
and Wharton Hodgson in 1876;
since which time the position has
been filled by the present in-
cumbent, Lancelot Hardy.
The following are the
municipal officers for the current
year: Reeve, L. Hardy; Coun-
cillors, - Bissett, Edward Drew,
James Pickard, John Sanders;
Clerk, Michael Eacrett;
Treasurer, George Eacrett;
Auditors, John McDonell, P.
O'Byrne; Constable, John Gill,
On withdrawal from the
Townships, Exeter assumed 1-
27th of the debt of Stephen
(amounting to $1,619) on which
an annual interest of $97.05 is
paid to that township, and a
sinking fund of 5 percent. raised;
also 1-25th of the debt of Usborne
(amounting to $1,000) on which
interest and sinking fund amount
to $110 per annum.
The village gave $10,000 on its
own account as a bonus to the
L.H. and B.R., and pay $1,100
yearly towards interest and
sinking fund on this debt.
The Municipal Loan Fund
Surplus, amounting (inclusive of
interest) to $4,000 was expended
in the erection of a Public School;
and $4,000 additional were raised
by sale of debentures for the
completion of the building, Which
is a real credit to the place,
costing in excess of the above
$8,000. Over $1,200 of the $4,000
are already paid,
The amount raised last year
for school purposes was $2,403.
There are six teachers in the
school, with salaries ranging
from $560 to $225.
The total amount of taxes
levied last year was $7,993,18, of
which $586.31 went for county
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