Highland Creek Mills

Photos by Alan L Brown - Posted August, 2007

Just north of the parking area in Colonel Danforth Park on the north side of Old Kingston Road stands this 1977 Scarborough Historical Society plaque. Here's what it says:

Plaque coordinates: 43.780196 -79.176278

The early settlers of Scarborough used the waters of Highland Creek to provide power for their many saw and grist mills in this valley. The first mill in the township was built here in 1804 by William Cornell, who hauled his mill stones from Kingston on his sled. In 1847, William Helliwell built the first of his four mills on this site. Downstream, three sawmills were operated by Jordon Post, Stephen Closson and other in the 1830's and 1840's. Upstream for many miles, a succession of mills once flourished; George Stephenson's grist mill, John Wilson's saw mill, Martin Badgerow's woollen mill, Peter Secor's grist mill, John P. Wheler's flour mill, the saw mills of Archibald and David Thomson, and many others.

Related websites
Highland Creek
saw mill
grist mill

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Industrial Buildings
Scarborough plaques

Here are the visitors' comments for this page.

Posted August 7, 2011
I see red every time I see the reference to 'Colonel Danforth Park'. This is the site of the William Helliwell homestead beginning in the mid-1800s and it's doubtful if Colonel Danforth ever set foot on the property. Even if he did, what significance is that to name the park after him. When will the Scarborough Historical Society admit to this gross misjudgement on their part and rename it properly and correctly as 'Helliwell Park' or 'William Helliwell Park' as it should have been named in the first place?
Bill Helliwell Bilbo@ns.sympatico.ca

Posted August 21, 2009
I have seen the plague. But, who is Colonel Danforth?
Nadine Herbert, nadherbert@rogers.com

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