Seguin Falls Ghost Town

The Nipissing Colonization Road travelled from Lake Rosseau to Lake Nipissing. Seguin Falls was another stop along the way for tired travellers to stop, eat and sleep before continuing their journey.

Seguin Falls was one of many towns set up at 10km intervals along the Nipissing Road to provide rest and food for travellers. There were actually two Seguin Falls. The original town was at the crossroads with the Christie Side Road.

When the railway pushed through in 1897, 2km to the South of Seguin Falls, The Spence Lumber Company built a mill at the location where the railway met the Nipissing Road. From there the other businesses followed and moved south.

A sawmill and train station were set up by the tracks when the railway passed through in 1897. It also featured a school and church. A sawmill and shingle mill were established to provide lumber, and Anglican and Methodist churches built for parishoners.

David Burk ran the Burk's Hotel and was postmaster until 1879 when he died. His wife, Henrietta, took over for a few more years. David's son would be the one to travel up the Magnetewan River and find the falls, which would be known as Burk's Falls. Percy Vigrass built a store and was postmaster from 1912 until 1930. Howard Vigrass would take over until 1941.

The King George Hotel owned by Mr. and Mrs. McKinnon provided good food and rest for tired travellers. The remains of the fireplace can be found where the railway meets the road.

In October of 1921 a new brick school house was built, which still stands to this day. It closed in 1944. Please remember this is private property.

The town began to die when the mill closed and, in 1933, an ice flow destroyed the railway trestle in Algonquin Park. By 1955 the railway had lifted the rails and the store was closed. The population dropped to less than fifty. By 1960 only two buildings remained occupied.

The railway bed is now used as the Seguin Trail.