Postcard Memories is a new biweekly series on InnisfilToday, where we share stories of the town's past from the Innisfil Historical Society
The village of Lefroy in Innisfil did not exist when the area was first surveyed in 1820.
At the time, Innisfil Township only had a population of 20 people but grew to 700 within 20 years.
One of the village's first residents was Henry Grose who owned a portion of the northeast section of Lefroy in 1832. Two men by the name of Goodfellow who lived in East and West Gwillimbury purchased the land on the south side in 1843. The land to the west of the Goodfellows became the property of Richard Grose, and the other corner was purchased by a man named Cronin.
The creek running through Henry Grose's land powered a sawmill, which became the foundation of Lefroy's future industry.
The Northern Railway came through in 1853 after a right of way was purchased by Grose and Goodfellow. The first line went through Belle Ewart, an important port on Lake Simcoe.
Travel by water was the only means of transportation back then. There was a rough trail through to Bradford but was often impassable.
A man named Orpen was the first station master of Lefroy.
Innisfil had been the first name of the village, and a debate arose whether it should be located on the third or fourth line. The fourth line site eventually won.
The village got its name in 1854 from John Henry Lefroy who was in charge of the Magnetic Observatory in Toronto.
The village had a school, a general store, a church and a mill. A stagecoach connected Lefroy by land to Churchill, Belle Ewart and Crown Hill.
Mail came up from Toronto to Holland Landing up Yonge Street and from there was delivered on foot or horseback and distributed at Churchill.
The telephone came to Lefroy at the turn of the century with the help of G.C. Allen and J.F. Ardill who brought a line from Cookstown and installed the first telephone in the corner. Stella Ardill was the first operator.
The first church to open was the Presbyterian Church in 1865, which served until 1925. The congregation then moved across the street to the Methodist building which was moved from Belle Ewart in 1902.
According to minutes from a town meeting in 1860, parents of children attending Lefroy school had to supply a half cord of wood per child or the equivalent cash value. Teachers were paid $230-$380 annually and had to also act as caretakers, sweeping floors and starting fires.
There were three hotels in Lefroy, the first was Lefroy Hotel, which eventually became an antique shop owned by Edward and Valerie Waddington. The second hotel was located across the street, and the third a bit further west.
Lefroy's first bank was the Sterling Bank, with an office in a home on the north-west corner of Church and Killarney Streets from 1906-1916, when it moved to the post office building.
Back then, butter, eggs and produce of any kind were as good as cash and could be exchanged for other goods, such as clothing.
There were two halls used for special occasions, one being the Grange Hall which is still around today.
The Lloyd George Park was donated to the village by Albert Kirkpatrick as a memorial after the First World War. The cobblestone gate posts were constructed by Joe Gregg.
There was a library as well.
The names of some of the first settlers were Cannings, Ardill, Whan, Barry, Bell, Adams, Reid, Bateman, Wilson, Jacks, Corner, Sheldon, Blackmore, Nesbitt, and Allan.
-from the BWGPL archives
