the Village of Consecon

The land was granted to Col William Marsh UE who was active with the Green Mountain Boys in fighting for their land in the contested area that became Vermont. A refugee like many had fled to Upper Canada after the revolutionary war. In 1793 he petitioned to the crown for the patent to the village site. The Land was later passed on to his son Mathias Marsh. Mathias fathered 24 children and they all took an active roll in the community. Some were innkeepers, a postmaster and telegraph operator. Others were carpenters and a grocer, but one had bigger things in his sight. Archibald, son of Mathias  built the first gristmill in 1808 and a village was born.

By the ninetieth century the village was booming with 400 people and the gristmill was the economic heart of it all. By 1878 many mills had now been built along the creek including the Wilkins’ Mill directly across from the Marsh Mill .The Marsh Mill had a sawmill attached to the south side. During winter farmers would bring their logs to the mill and wait till the spring for the water to be at it’s peak to have them cut. This mill remained and was run by the Marsh family till April of 1834 when the mill was sold to Robert C Wilkin.

Robert C Wilkin was quick to divide the mill equally among his sons. The mill ran successfully till 1854 when the mill’s business declined. Robert Wilkins was now indebted to Reverend George Romanus and Hon. William Campbell. The mill was passed onto them. They then sold to mill to Frederick James Osborne for $6,000.00.  Osborne was a driven worker and businessman. He operated the gristmill and flour mill ( which had two set of stones ) by himself, while he hired another man to run the sawmill. In the early 1880s Osborne sold the mill back to Alvin and W.H. Marsh.

They only kept it for roughly a year before selling to Adam Saylor and Mr. Burr. It wasn’t long before Mr. Burr sold their share and made Adam Saylor full owner of the mill.

In 1882 the mill burnt down and was rebuilt into a large four story stone mill. The new mill sported a top of the line roller system, a boiler house and a steam engine to run the roller when the water was low. The mill was even topped off with a “little giant” water turbine which weighed two tons and could generate 60 horsepower. The wheel was built in 1873 by J.C. Wilson Company of Glenora. It’s wooden bearings in the shaft were made of ebony to withstand constant wear from the turning wheel and the pinion was made from maple. ( The wheel can be seen today at the Ameliasburgh museum.) The new mill is now worth $7,000.00.

The mill returned to the Burr family when Saylor’s two daughters married the two Burr sons. In 1903 Adam Burr (son of Pheobe Saylor and Marshall Burr) inherited the mill. Soon after his son Ivan tragically lost his life to the mill wheel. The Burrs owned the mill until 1923 when they sold it Clayton French. Clayton French and his wife lived in an apartment over the butcher shop ( later a grocery store) that was attached to the west side of the mill. In 1931 they sold the Mill to Mr. and Mrs. Williams James.

On April 25th 1931 the James family moved from Frankford to the Consecon grist/flour/saw Mill with their son Roydon. They were very proud new owners of the Mill. Unfortunately the same night they moved into there new home, the mill caught fire and once again burnt to the ground. All that survived the fire was the large wheel. The James family rebuilt the mill once again but this time not as complex. They built a new metal and frame building for grinding feed which mainly ran on water. After the 17 years of running the mill Roydon was a master at raising and lowering the logs to control the water at the dam by the lake. The mill was later sold to Stephen Dempsey in 1945 and than to Richard Baldwin in 1949.

Richard Baldwin gave the Mill a facelift using an old freight shed from the railway station and reconstructed it on the mill site for a seed cleaning plant. He also added a tall section to the west side of the mill to house an electrical plant. In 1974 Baldwin donated all his water rights to the Ontario Water Resources Commission on the condition they rebuild the dam to maintain the pond in the village.

Lovingly Restored by Nick Livingstone

1956 − 2014, R.I.P.

Nick’s legacy in Consecon was bringing new life to the village by purchasing the Consecon Grist Mill, the Seed Mill and two houses along the water’s edge with a vision for a centre of lively activity.  After a fire he rebuilt the mill into apartment units, a pub & grill with a dance floor and a deck to enjoy the water.  And completed one of the houses as a commercial/residential space. He was thrilled when the final touch, to have art was realized when Janet B Gallery & Studios arrived in 2012 also bringing yoga and inviting more artists so in 2013 he converted the 123 year old home into a loft apartment and studio, home to the Goddess Fab Jewelry Design Studio. Originally, Nick operated Cascades Pub & Grill with his former wife Patti.  He returned to work at Livingstone Construction full time and in 2010 Rick and Deanna Furber carried on the tradition and are celebrating their 4th anniversary as proprietors of the Cascades Pub & Grill. A bigger than life character with a generous heart, Nick Livingston provided his garage at the Cascades Mill every year for decorating the float for our C.A.R.A. in the Consecon Santa Clause parade.   Nick generously donated his employees time to and his expertise in installing the original banner brackets for Consecon Banner Painting Festival in order that we might enjoy them.