125 YEARS AGO Thursday, January 22, 1885

• A key speaker at three public meetings in Melancthon Township, was township treasurer Richard Slack, who said he was greatly surprised to hear a claim that 95% of the ratepayers in the Old Survey had signed a petition for separation. Explaining that he favoured having public meetings to discuss the question, he was critical of the petition’s instigator, who he said was not present at the initial meeting in Silk’s School House. The treasurer asked whether the petitioners had considered the fact that it cost more to run two households than one. A new town hall would be wanted at Horning’s Mills and the New Survey would need a new hall that was centrally located. The transfer of registration was another important item, for every municipality must have its own registry books, and he knew of one instance where it cost a municipality $1,400 for such a transfer. He observed that the Old Survey had now nearly reached its zenith, but not so the New Survey, where assessment would, within 10 years, exceed that of the Old Survey.

Speaking last Wednesday before a capacity crowd in the Masonville Orange Hall, he dealt with suggestions that Melancthon was in a similar position to Luther and Garafraxa Townships which had both been successfully divided. He said the audience should consider that Garafraxa was much larger than Melancthon and that East and West Luther were effectively divided by the huge marsh.

The meeting at Silk’s School House unanimously passed a motion calling for a petition to the Ontario Legislature praying that the petition already submitted asking for separation not be entertained.

100 YEARS AGO Thursday, January 20, 1910

• A fire at the store of E. C. Clark, general merchant, of Broadway, broke out Friday night, a few days after Mr. Clark had sold his stock to A. J. Smith, of Toronto. The store had been closed for several days for stock-taking and Mr. Clark and his head salesman had just left when the fire was noticed by the night watchmen, James Halbert, who turned in the alarm. The firemen responded quickly and the fire was soon extinguished. The fire originated in the basement furnace and considerable damage was done to the flooring as well as to the stock, mostly by smoke, but was fully covered by insurance. The three-storey brick building is owned by George Campbell and is fully insured.

• The Orangeville Library Board has decided to open the reading rooms on Sunday for three hours in the afternoon, 2-5 p.m. Only adults will be allowed admission.

• The Orangeville Sun says Reeve Reith, of Grand Valley, has been working on the Wardenship job for some time and is confident that he will be successful in landing it. “Exreeve Greer, of Mulmur, who was defeated by one vote, would have been a formidable rival, but he will not be in the field unless a recount hands him back his old position. In the event of the Mulmur man remaining out, Reeve John Cornelius, of East Garafraxa, will be in the field for the honour and he is satisfied his chances of becoming Warden of Dufferin are pretty bright.”

• The recount over the reeveship of Mulmur came off before Judge McCarthy on Saturday last. On scrutiny of the ballots by His Honour, it was found that seven that had been counted were not initialed by the deputy returning officers but were marked five for Archie Greer and two for John Reburn. These the judge would have thrown out, but Mr. Reburn asked that they be counted as he did not wish to be elected in that way. There was one ballot at Ruskview for Mr. Greer that had not been counted and this the judge allowed, leaving the candidates tied. It was then up to Clerk Laking to decided the tie, which he did, giving the vote in favour of Mr. Greer. Judge McCarthy thought Mr. Reburn was very magnanimous in asking that the ballots not be thrown out, as the result would then have been in Mr. Reburn’s favour.

75 YEARS AGO Wednesday, January 24, 1935

• Reeve T. F. Brown, of Shelburne, was chosen as Dufferin County’s Warden for 1935, at County Council’s first session, held Tuesday afternoon. He is the seventh Shelburne reeve to serve as Warden, the first being the late William Jelly, in 1885 and again in 1893.

50 YEARS AGO Wednesday, January 20, 1960

• John Root, MPP for Wellington- Dufferin, says Highways Minister Fred Cass has notified him that a new contract for the Development Road between Shelburne and Mount Forest, covering 7.35 miles west of Signet, has been awarded to E & E Seigmiller Ltd. of Kitchener.

25 YEARS AGO Wednesday, January 23, 1985

• Orangeville Council voted Monday to notify the CPR that it will take responsibility for the town’s old train station.