March 8, 2020

WHO ARE THOSE GRAVENHURST STREETS NAMED AFTER?

Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

GRAVENHURST — If you’ve walked or driven along Muskoka Road and crossed the east-west Brock and Sharpe street accesses, you might have wondered for whom they’re named.

Or who Mary and Sarah are that they, too, had streets named for them on the west side of town?

The two little girls were born Browns – and both lived just one day.

They were the daughters of Dugald Brown, who founded the Brown’s Beverages company, now known as Muskoka Springs.

He who not only made his famous Muskoka Dry ginger-ale (before going on to bottle and distribute Coca~Cola), but who also made liquor for a time.

So, one might ponder he had the rye and ginger or rum and Coke markets cornered locally.

That was just one sober query posed to historian and archivist Judy Humphries at her most recent Gravenhurst Archives talk at the library, about some of the town’s founding families: including James McCabe, the town’s first settler; Thomas Robinson the first settler on Muskoka Bay and Lake Muskoka (and first “tourist resort” owner of Robinson House), Joseph Brock who walked from Thamesford to Gravenhurst twice to settle here, the Cockburns (boat builders) and several others too many to mention.

Humphries’ popular History Lives series (the next one is April 22 about the Rubberset) drew a decent, daunting crowd of 18 serious history buffs and experts whose enthusiasm for the subject matter had to be reined in lest their questions and digression lengthened the already protracted talk beyond the allotted closing hour.

There was so much history to dissect back to around 1860 — and she did a great job, as usual.

Like noting just three men came to own the much of the north end of Gull Lake on its eastern shoreline, from Winewood Road (old Bracebridge Road) south to roughly Main Street, where there was an original railroad station.

W.N. Moody owned the top tract, which is still called Moody’s Bay and it small water landing and swimming hole is at the end of the short Moody’s Drive off Bethune Drive.

Humphries said he held a land grant from Church Street in the south to the Bracebridge Road (now Winewood Road) in the north and from Muskoka Road in the west to the middle of Gull Lake in the east.

Joseph Brock Sr., who walked from Thamesford to Gravenhurst twice to settle here, owned the middle section of town, where the YIG store is now.

He built a log home on the site of the present day Albion. It was moved east on Brock Street to the other side of First Street next to the Rubberset, where it remained until about the early 1970s.

Brock held an 80-acre land grant from Church Street in the north to Sharpe Street in the south and from Muskoka Road in the west to the edge of Gull Lake in the east.

James Sharpe held a land grant that ran from Sharpe Street in the north to somewhere imprecise in the south and from Gull Lake in the east to a somewhat unclear western boundary.

Sharpe had the original hotel at the corner of Muskoka Road and now Sharpe Street.

The Caledonian burned in the Great Fire of 1887 and was rebuilt as the Empress.

But, said Humphries, it really his son John who was the active owner.

It later became the Gilmour Hotel, and is now occupied on the ground floor by Tara’s.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, Dugald Brown had land running south from Muskoka Road, north of Bay to about Isaac Street or a little farther north, and running west down to the present day Muskoka Wharf.

Sarah (Scott) Brown was Brown’s first wife. Their daughter Mary died almost immediately after birth. And their other daughter Sarah also died at birth, Humphries told her rapt audience.

Dugald’s wife Sarah died in December 1881 and he married Louisa King in September 1883 (for whom Louisa Street is named). Dugald died in 1885 while Louisa lived for many more years to 1949.

Another interesting character who came up in the talk was Jane Brines, who became the “go-to” midwife in the late 1860s.

Much to the consternation of Dr. John Adams – possibly earliest doctor and an otherwise estimable physician who thought he had the maternal market cornered before Brines.

He actually attempted to have her services restricted to no avail. She continued on for years as the much-preferred primary midwife in much of south Muskoka.

Among the other interesting tidbits was the “fastest” race horse in town that twice went off course beating a hasty retreat to the Phillip Street barn.

And Robinson’s schooner-like yacht “The Wave,” which looks like the Bluenose and forced all other competitors out of the field each summer race season.

Humphries’ well-researched history and work with the archives of Gravenhurst was rewarded this week with her being honoured with a Rotary Paul Harris honour.