160 Unusual Things to See in Ontario -- Blair Sheave Tower

We took the above photos in February 2009 while out letterboxing.

We did find the box but it was retired in 2018.

"In a time before power was supplied by electrical grids, grist mills were responsible for generating their own hydro to operate the mills. Sheave towers were an economical way to generate power from rivers by use of a water turbine underneath the tower.

The last remaining wooden sheave tower in Ontario can be found in the former Village of Blair, now a part of the City of Cambridge.

The Blair Sheave Tower, a 31-foot tower, was built beside the Blair (Bowman) River in 1876 by Allan Bowman, to power the Blair Carlisle Grist Mill, located 240 feet downstream. The tower used a grooved wheel (sheave) higher up in the tower, to harness water power. It was connected by a pulley and cable system to the grist mill, which dates back to 1846.

Described as having “a mini mining headframe” and a “tapering wooden structure,” the Blair Sheave Tower generated electricity until 1954, making it not only Ontario’s oldest hydroelectric generating site, but one of the world’s smallest hydro-generators.

A restoration was undertaken in 1999 by the City of Cambridge, putting new timbers in its frame and a fresh coat of oxblood paint on its board and batten walls. The tower looks as it did when built and is a very popular subject for painters and photographers.

A partial restoration was done by the Waterloo Historical Society in 1962, but nearby housing developments caused damage to the tower’s foundation when the river overflowed.

The Blair Sheave Tower can be found on Old Mill Road, east of Dickie Settlement Road, across the road from the Carlisle Mill, which also remains. It’s along a trail, about 100 feet off the road and is accessible to the public. It has been owned by the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario, Cambridge chapter, since 1994. Unfortunately, there is very little room to park along the narrow rural road."

https://militarybruce.com/the-blair-sheave-tower-ontarios-last-remaining-wooden-water-powered-hydro-generator-tower/

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