Allan's Mill Ruins

The first industrial establishment in Guelph, the original wooden mill was built in 1830 for the Canada Company by Horace Perry, who sited it on the west (right) bank of the Speed River. The mill was sold to William Allan in 1832, who operated it as a grist and flour mill; by 1836, the mill complex was expanded on both sides of the river to include a distillery, a brewery, and a wool carding house operated by William and his son David Allan. Around 1850, the original wooden structure was removed and replaced with one made of limestone, and a bridge was added across the river, connecting the two halves of the mill. Old reports state that the new grist mill building had cylindrical turrets, such as those found in Scotland. The distillery sold large quantities of whisky and other spirits. Around 1877, the Allan family sold the mill to David Spence of Brantford; it remained in operation as a flour mill until a series of fires gutted the building.