History of Valleyfield and Congregation 7

hauled to the Clearings, beyond which, everything not capable of walking must be carried.

Certain commodities, of necessity, had to be purchased. One of these was salt. Upon one occasion, when the supply of this necessity needed replenishing, six men volunteered to go for some. The two places where this could be bought were somewhat far away. One was at St. Andrew’s Point. . Here Hon. Joseph Wightman carried on an extensive business in shipbuilding and merchandise. As neither the Whim Road, nor the Lower Montague Boad had yet been opened up, the volunteers went by way of Beer’s Mill, which was situated where Sutherland’s Mill stood some years later. The stream through Heatherdale had to be followed to the Montague River, the shore of which ended at St. Andrew’s Point. Each man secured a bushel of the salt and all were back home be— . fore sunset.

In the years when crops were good, any surplus produce was sent to St. Andrew’s Point, as there was neither mer- chant, nor wharf, at Montague Bridge.

' It seems strange to us, who know the forest to be a very valuable asset, when we realise that the early settler regarded the forest as an enemy to be destroyed. The trees must be got rid of before the land could be cleared and tilled. Lumber was of no value and of little use save for the small quantities needed for buildings, fuel, or fences on the farm. Vast quan- tities of the finest timber were destroyed by fire, or left to rot. In clearing the land, the trees easiest of removal, were up- rooted, the ground levelled off by means of hoes. Potatoes were then planted between the stumps, or grain sown. Seed grain, or potatoes had to be obtained from the older settle- ments, as Point Prim. This necessitated a long pack carry over roads, or trails.

The spiritual needs of the new settlement became the early concern of the people. In 184.1, prayer meetings were organized. Each man in the district took his turn as leader. It was only natural that the home of the first citizen, William Martin, should have been selected as the first meeting house.

For awhile Brown’s Creek (Heatherdale) was the spirit- ual centre of the district, but this again shifted to Valleyfield. The pastoral district comprised the following communities:

Douse’s Road (Valleyfield) first settled 1840. Brown’s Creek (Heatherdale) first settled 1841 Orwell Rear, or Back Settlement (Lyndale) 1829 The Clearings (Grandview) _ Green Marsh (Bellevue) 1838

Caledonia 1858