SRF 1920-1950

1921 - Census Statistics: Kendrey Twp. 674, Haggart Twp. 85

1924: The Smooth Rock Falls and District Board of Trade came into being on March 24th. They carried on a variety of work such as colonization, improving of mail service, education and development of roads. In the late 1920’s their priority in road development was the highway between Cochrane and Kapuskasing.

1925: Work started on the trunk road from North Bay which would eventually link Northern Ontario and Southern Ontario.

1925: Dell Hansen (of Timmins) teaches the class at the old Smooth Rock Falls school.

July 20, 1927: The Royal Bank opened a branch in Smooth Rock Falls. It was situated in a portion of the old main office building up at the Mill (Abitibi). First manager: Ross A. Edwards, 1927-1930.

1928: The road between Kapuskasing and Smooth Rock Falls has been graded as far as Strickland. This leaves only eight miles to complete between Smooth Rock and Strickland.

1929 - Temporary Street Lighting Scheme: Certain veranda lights of houses recommended as being properly located, to be placed on a meter and allowance to all those burning lights for this purpose, be made on the basis of this meter reading. This method of street lighting was chosen as the cost of a permanent street lighting system was considered too big a cost for the present. This method of street lighting often proved to be ineffective as occupants of these "selected" houses often forgot to turn their lights on or to replace burned out light bulbs.Poles were placed for the lighting of the street to the Roman Catholic Church. That same year there was also a request for street lights for French town.

Town of Smooth Rock Falls 1928-1930
Townsite sketched from Abitibi drawings courtesy of Malette Kraft Pulp & Power.
Sketched by Carl P. Lloyd in Feb. 1991 (not to scale)

1929: “Temporary” arrangements were made with Dept. of Highways to use the mill’s dam as a connecting link on the Trans Canada highway system. This temporary arrangement lasted 27 years.

Official opening of the Ferguson Highway [later called Hwy 11], Driftwood to Smooth Rock Falls, took place on Saturday, July 20, 1929. Completion of this portion was the final link in a trunk road, connecting Cochrane, Smooth Rock Falls and Kapuskasing. The ceremony was held at the Driftwood River.

April 30, 1929 is the date of original incorporation of the town of SRF. The population of the townsite was 1,031.

Elections: On May 30, 1929 nominations were held, 12 people were nominated, 6 declined.May 31, 1929 - The following were elected by acclamation:Mayor: Claude Bolton; Councillors (6) = Louis J. Gagnon; Elior Houle; Joseph Eugene (Alphonse) Lacombe; William Albert “Bert” Plant; Horace Edwin Ruwald; Charles Valiquette.Acting Town Clerk: William Horace “Bill” Killaby.

Nov 15, 1929: By-law #35 was passed to prohibit sleigh riding and driving of dog teams on the sidewalks.

"Big Joe" Jozef Wierzbowski, Colquhoun Township.b: 1892, Poland d: July 28, 1975, Cochrane, ON. He is buried in the SRF Cemetery.
Joe came to Canada in the 1920s. He was a member of the Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 305, S.R. Falls.

The Mercantile, Hudson’s Bay, Northern Stores:The Mercantile Store, located on 2nd Ave., was built c.1926/27, & owned by the Abitibi Co.On Jan. 1, 1947, The Mercantile was purchased from Abitibi and became a Hudson’s Bay Store.

June 5, 1929: The first council meeting of the Corporation of the Town of Smooth Rock Falls was held in the old Separate School building. (Area of 141 Fifth Street).

On March 24, 1930, Annie Clippa and Richard “Dick” Jennings were married in the Clippa home at 38 Third Avenue, SRF. Dick Jennings was an avid photographer. He took many photos of SRF, leaving us a lasting record of the early years of our town.

The Riverview Road area was a group of tarpaper shacks along the riverbank, north of the Mattagami Centre. Around 1929 these buildings were disposed of by fire, as was French Town in 1937, when the Hollywood houses were built.

Unionville may have been named after the Union Hotel but I have no documentation on this......

Union Hotel (188 Main Street), Unionville, Kendrey Township:c.1933-35: Built by Albert and Virginie Labrecque.Hotel burnt down Dec. 22, 1984. Cause undetermined. A total loss, damages were estimated at $160,000. Final owners were - 198?-1984: Roger Bergeron (age 57) & his wife.

re: 1937 drowning of five people:
1) Daigneault, Leo – age u/k
2) Bednarz, Mary - age u/k
3) Litnicki, Anthony -age 23
4) Litnicki, Edward - age 15
5) Sicard, Juliette - age 18

The Litnicki brothers are buried in SRF. They have a beautiful monument, it is quite big. At the time of their downing their parents, Joseph and Annie Litnicki owned the Elite Hotel which they built in 1935. The hotel was sold in 1941.

Department of Lands & Forests
[Corner of Hwy 11 & Main Street - our current access road.]
In 1930 Fire Rangers of the District [Cochrane] commenced erection of their new headquarters east of town. Warehouse dated 1941.

The Mill

Abitibi Power & Paper Company first Quarter Century at SRF: Dec. 5, 1948

When the Abitibi Co. took over the old Mattagami Co., it was re-named “Abitibi Fibre Company”.

[Year started work with the Company]
Berrigan, Martin [1921] - 27 Yrs (Steam Engineer)
Biglow, Leonard B. [1923] - 25 Yrs (Electrician)
Bisson, Felix E. [1923] - 25 Yrs (Backtender)
Bolton, Claude [1920] - 28 Yrs (Office Manager)
Breault, Philias [1923] - 25 Yrs (W.R. Foreman)
Burlock, Fred [1920] - 28 Yrs (Machine Tender)
Clark, John [1920] - 28 Yrs (Power House Operator)
Cote, Frederick L. [1919] - 29 Yrs at Espanola & SRF (Electrician)
Croswell, E. Guy [1920] - 28 Yrs at Sturgeon & SRF (Mill Accountant)
Demeules, J. Wilfred [1922] - 26 Yrs (Bleacher)
Dupuis, Jean B. [1923] - 25 Yrs (Carpenter)
Duquette, Paul E. 1923] - 25 Yrs (Bleacher)
Eades, L. Roy [1922] - 26 Yrs at Iroquois & SRF (Agent, Mattagami RR)
Fraser, P.G.R. [1917] - 31 Yrs (Conductor Mattagami RR)
Gerard, Joseph [1922] - 26 Yrs (Backtender)
Lacombe, J.E. (Alphonse) [1921] - 27 Yrs (Millwright)
Lamothe, J. Percy [1922] - 26 Yrs (Power House Operator)
Larabie, Oscar [1920] - 28 Yrs (Acid Maker)
Leblanc, J. Herman [1923] - 25 Yrs (Screen Room Foreman)
Legault, Eugene [1921] - 27 Yrs (Backtender)
Mykytiuk, John [1917] - 31 Yrs (Machine Tender)
Panchuk, Andrew [1921] - 27 Yrs (Machine Tender)
Parisee, Theodore [1923] - 25 Yrs (Wood Room Supt.)
Piper, R. Orville [1922]- 26 Yrs at Soo & SRF (Employment Supervisor)
Plant, W.A.[1919]- 29 Yrs (Mill Manager)
Renaud, Jules O. [1920] - 28 Yrs (Millwright)
Richmond, Thomas E. [1917] - 31 Yrs (Steam Supt.)
Rousseau, Leopold [1923] - 25 Yrs (Laboratory Asst.)
Shore, Les. W. [1922] - 26 Yrs at Iroquois & SRF (Engineer Mattagami RR)
Ubdegrove, Alfred [1923] - 25 Yrs (Acid Maker)]
Valiquette, Charles [1919] - 29 Yrs (Millwright Foreman)
Valiquette, Leonard [ 1923] - 25 Yrs (Tour Foreman)
Valiquette, P. Dalton [1923] - 25 Yrs (Millwright)
Wagner, E.A. (A.E.) [1916] - 32 Yrs at Sturgeon & SRF (General Supt.)