About this location
Blairton began in 1822 when rich iron ore deposits were found in the area. The railway came in the 1860(a)s and Blairton grew as a mine town. The mine was actually owned by the Cobourg, Peterborough, Marmora Railway and Mine Corp and was an open-pit structure. They laid a site with 40 homes for the miners spread out over 12 streets. The town grew to have 2 hotels, boarding houses, stores, a church, a post office and a school. By 1864 the population was at an amazing 500. Eventually the town had even more enterprises like butchers, a carpenter, a doctor, a clothier, a shoemaker, a bank and a money order office.
The mine shut down in the 1880s and the post office lasted until 1929 when the population dwindled down to about 25.
Today all that remains is the mine manager's home, some derelict structures and a lived in home. The rest of the village is now newer homes, but the population is still far less than it once was.
Loyal Orange Lodge #1255
Blairton was represented by an Orange Lodge, where Protestants loyal to the King of England met for political, religious and charitable fraternizing. Their Grand Master was D. McCurdy in the early 1900s..
Albums 4
Comments
Comments
Please log in to leave a comment
This little red house on the corner of a huge chunk of land used to be owned by my Grandparents back in the late 70's. James and Thelma Moffatt. I remember going when I was a kid. We had to pump the water in the kitchen from the well outside. Where the house sits to the north, there was a pigpen and chicken coupe. One of my cousins owns the property still. I'm doing research on it now on how to get it back in "living" condition. its a great location with a lot of history.
I heard that the mine manager's home was lit on fire and they had to tear it down.
7 years ago
Awesome location ktolfree