Early Welland citizen Jacob Ryan recounts history of the area, from 1835-1911
Dublin Core
Title
Early Welland citizen Jacob Ryan recounts history of the area, from 1835-1911
Subject
Jacob Ryan and Welland
Description
Early Welland citizen Jacob Ryan recounts history of the area, from 1835-1911. Article from the October 24, 1911 edition of the Welland Telegraph.
In the article it states he was born in 1827 in Wainfleet, and moved to farmland on what was later known as the Crowland area around 1835. Two farmers named Griffith and McFarland owned all the land of what became Welland, before the first canal was built.
Jacob recalls having discussions with William Hamilton Merritt, the father of the Welland Canal. He later worked for a Mr. Sealey who owned a planing mill, and who in the mid 1840s is credited in the article with changing the name of the village from Aqueduct to Merrittsville in honour of Merritt (and which was later changed in 1858 to Welland).
Jacob recounts a few other details, and the article mentions that he and George Hanna are about the only citizens to live here in such a time frame as the 1830's to the then-present of 1911.
* Additional information: Thomas Dunlop and Ebenezer Seeley, natives of New York State, opened the first grist mill, the Welland Flouring Mills, in the fall of 1847 on the north bank of the Welland River, west of Niagara Street. The mill was destroyed by fire in 1886. They also operated a woolen factory and a sawmill north of the river. (From "Aqueduct, Merrittsville and Welland: A History of the City of Welland" by William H. Lewis).
In the article it states he was born in 1827 in Wainfleet, and moved to farmland on what was later known as the Crowland area around 1835. Two farmers named Griffith and McFarland owned all the land of what became Welland, before the first canal was built.
Jacob recalls having discussions with William Hamilton Merritt, the father of the Welland Canal. He later worked for a Mr. Sealey who owned a planing mill, and who in the mid 1840s is credited in the article with changing the name of the village from Aqueduct to Merrittsville in honour of Merritt (and which was later changed in 1858 to Welland).
Jacob recounts a few other details, and the article mentions that he and George Hanna are about the only citizens to live here in such a time frame as the 1830's to the then-present of 1911.
* Additional information: Thomas Dunlop and Ebenezer Seeley, natives of New York State, opened the first grist mill, the Welland Flouring Mills, in the fall of 1847 on the north bank of the Welland River, west of Niagara Street. The mill was destroyed by fire in 1886. They also operated a woolen factory and a sawmill north of the river. (From "Aqueduct, Merrittsville and Welland: A History of the City of Welland" by William H. Lewis).
Creator
Welland Telegraph
Source
Welland Public Library Microfilm Collection
Date
1911/10/24
Rights
Access to this item is provided for educational and research purposes only. The user assumes responsibility for obtaining permission from the copyright holder to publish or distribute this content.
Format
Microfilm
Language
English
Type
Text
Identifier
Microfilm cabinet - 071.1338 WEL Tel #19
Coverage
Welland
Files
Collection
Citation
Welland Telegraph, “Early Welland citizen Jacob Ryan recounts history of the area, from 1835-1911,” Welland Public Library Local History, accessed September 16, 2024, https://omeka.wellandlibrary.ca/items/show/11020.