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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen-Auburn, 2004-07-29, Page 24Oct. 1872. In the early years the mail came from Goderich, brought over from 4 CIIAMNEY hAMITOJI0k00. 41APIJMN 526.7700 AUBURN 150 YEARS OF HISTORY. PAGE 3. • • Post office remains part of community today Still part of community Today the Auburn post office is housed in the front of the residence owned by postmaster Cathy Carter. Though over the years, Auburn has lost many services it once boasted, it can still claim its own post office and postmaster at a time when some larger communities like Lucknow have lost theirs. Cathy Carter operates the post office in an addition to her Goderich Street home. She moved the post office from the old Orange Lodge next door shortly after taking over as postmaster in April 1998. The post office had been in the Orange Hall since 1968, during the time when Kenneth Scott was postmaster. That 'building housed the post • office for more than 30 years during the term of Scott and his successor Pearl Plunkett who was post master from Oct. 1978 to Mardi 1998. Scott had taken- over from Alfred Rollinson who was postmaster from April 1928 to Aug. 1958. Rollinson operated the post office in his harness shop on the north side of Goderich St. (main street) until he renovated the building in 1955 when the entire building was dedicated to the post office. 'Rollinson's long service was recognized in 1953 on Queen Elizabeth's coronation with a medal from Buckingham Palace. Prior to that the post office had been located for many years in a store at the corner Situated at the corners- of the former Twps. of Colborne, Hullett, East and West Wawanosh, Auburn has always been in a difficult position for governing itself, given that it never grew large enough to become an incorporated village. From 1895 through 2000, Auburn had some measure of control over its affairs through the "Police Village" status under the Municipal Act. Though they had no power to levy taxes, a council of three trustees would deal with such issues as public safety, including fire of Turnberry and Goderich Sts. where it had been moved in 1890 by Duncan Munro who was post master from April 1884 to Jan. 1908. He was succeeded by Mrs. M.A. Munro until Jan. 1926. Before this move, the post office had been on the site of the old evaporator plant, down the hill at the corner of Goderich St. and Maitland Terrace and was operated by Samuel Caldwell from October 1872 to April 1884. The first' post office, called Manchester, was located on the west side of the river. The first postmaster was William Garrett from Jan. 1854 to Dec. 1858. Later the post office was moved to a log building on the north side of John St. between Egmont and King. Other early postmasters were William Papst, April 1859 to Feb. .1860; John Landon Read, June to September 1860; John McRae, January to March 1861; James Sutherland, Jan. 1863 to Feb. 1871 and William Graham, April 1871 to protection and street lighting. They had to deal with the municipal councils of the township that made up the portion of the village where the service was needed. In 1904, for instance, the council paid a grant of $7.10 to the Twp. of Hullett for building a cement sidewalk. In 1896 the council had paid $262.72 to purchase a fire engine, $75 to buy land for a fire hall and $102.70 to build the hall. In 1919 the council forbade livestock running at large and. Postmistress Jewell Plunkett was once postmistress at Auburn. (Photo In 1936 the trustees agreed to rent part of the fire hall to the Auburn Public Library for $30 a year. The trustees could also use the library for meetings. By the 1990s the winds of change were blowing in Ontario with the provincial government pressuring municipalities to amalgamate so there would be fewer, larger governments. The government also eliminated the police village provision. While many of the seven police villages in Carlow by a man named Johnston. After the London, Huron and Bruce Railway was built through Blyth in 1876, the mail was brought from Blyth by James Moore. With the arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1907, the mail came directly to Auburn, with the name of the post office being changed from Manchester at that time. The mail continued to be delivered by train until the end of passenger train service in 1955. After that the mail came to Blyth by truck mid Mr. and Mrs. Wesley Bradnock picked it up and brought it to Auburn. Beginning in the 1960s the mail came from Clinton. Today a truck route from London delivers mail to Auburn, Clinton, Blyth and Goderich and other area communities in the morning, then picks up outgoing mail in the afternoon. Auburn's rural route deliveries were established in 1914. Today the mail is delivered to route 1 by Doreen McAllister and to routes 2 one municipality and the change wouldn't be noticed, Auburn, even after the consolidation of surrounding municipalities, is still split among Central Huron (the former Hullett section), Ashfield- Colborne-Wawanosh (the West Wawanosh and Colborne portions) and North Huron (the .East Wawanosh portion.) It can mean residents must apply to three different councils if they wish to get something accomplished in their village. Amalgamation means end of village council banned bicycles from the sidewalks.Huron were located entirely within courtesy of Maureen Bean) and 3 by Dennis Fisher. • • Congratulations from all of us at Chamney Sanitation Ltd. • Construction • Demolition • Scrap Metal • Industrial • Construction -Renovations & Roofing • Scrap Metal 96ft ae a ee 4"4 Chamney Sanitation Ltd. d 127 Goderich Street, P.O. Box 40 Auburn, Ontario NOM 1E0 Residential Collection 100% Canadian 526-7799 Proud to be a part of Auburn's history for 35 years! • Residential • Commercial • Recycling