Monarch Battery - History

In 1921, the Monarch Battery Manufacturing Company made its first batteries in Kingston. In 1922, the operation moved from the 'Street Railway building' to the four-storey I. Cohen building on Ontario Street. At the time, Monarch was referred to locally as 'a Cohen industry' and Isaac Cohen was President. This 1926 ad, published at the time of lobbying for a fixed tax assessment, gives an indication of the company's early history, begun with a stock from another Ontario battery firm:

Monarch was listed in the 1927 Kingston directory, but no address given. Beginning broadcasting two years after CFRC that operated at Queen's (Canada's Famous Rugby Champions - Kingston's first radio station), Monarch's CFMC broadcast music from atop their building as an offshoot of the battery business. Their building (top photo) was located at 540 Montreal Street at Joseph Street, at the end of a 1500-foot CP spur through the Cohen property west of Montreal Street. (The building was later occupied by William J. Wing's machinist shop, then Pilkington Glass circa 1946. The spur was still in place in 1978, and the building is now occupied by Home Base Housing.) A June, 1928 ad includes some glowing ad copy! At the time, the company was also placing ads in the Canadian Jewish Review magazine.

Monarch Battery outgrew its premises on 540 Montreal Street and moved north to the Outer Station (former Reliance Moulding) site on Maple Street in 1937. Monarch frequently advertised in the Whig-Standard, especially proud of its move to the new site, with the new factory figuring prominently in this 1938 ad:

1939 Kingston directory cover ad (above ) and a 1946 Whig picture:

A July, 1946 strike by hourly workers, largely over a 20-cent raise, was covered by the Whig. General Manager S.J. Cohen was at odds with the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America local. Men's wages were 54 to 71 cents per hour, with women's lower at 43 to 60 cents. This photo of the strike shows the neat lettering on the plant's side: 

Monarch Battery seems to have been a local success story. It's products were prominently displayed on billboards towering over upper Princess Street in 1952 (Queen's University Archives photo): 

The Kingston and Calgary Gould factories were bought by Winnipeg's Globelite Batteries in 1959. Globelite operated into 1963, when the company moved operations to a new plant built in Toronto. The property may have been taken over by Frontenac Floor & Wall Tile. The factory has been the site of Presland Iron & Steel since 1970.

Reliance Moulding (and Several Successors) - History

Just north of CN's Outer Station, there are two major industrial buildings north of the freight yard and just outside city limits. Frontenac Floor & Wall Tile is just beyond the yard off Cassidy Street, and Reliance Moulding (in its first iteration) abuts just to the north on Maple Street. So far, I've been able to identify the following owners of the latter buildings over the past 100+ years and I expect to find more (*short-lived or stillborn enterprise):

• Reliance Moulding
• Frontenac Moulding and Glass*
• Collies Ltd.
• Janney Aircraft and Boats*
• Dominion Webbing
• Miller Clothing*
• Monarch Battery Manufacturing
• Gould Storage Battery
• Presland Iron and Steel

In 1913, Reliance Moulding Co. was given a tax exemption by the city, to get the company to establish their operation here. The exemption was extended to a term of ten years in 1914. The Reliance by-law received second reading in May, 1913.

In 1914, water main was being laid to the plant, to Frontenac and the Outer Station. The excavation alone cost $121! In March of that year, Mr. F.R. Phillips of Reliance addressed the Board of Trade regarding the company's move from Toronto to Kingston. Their Toronto lease was expiring, and they hoped to employ 40 workers here. The siding was being extended to the plant in May, 1914 and a transfer to the Grand Trunk spur to the tile works in November; the construction contract to P. McCoy. Agreement had to be made with Kingston Township to cross Elliott's road [sic].

In January, 1915 there was controversy about the cost of the Canadian Pacific (CP) siding built into the Reliance Moulding premises. The cost was $700 more than the $3,400 estimate! Not only that, but the City Engineer had not officially accepted the siding. (Later, in December, 1916 a Grand Trunk locomotive negotiating it derailed, due to a bad switch frog, subsequently replaced!)

With operation beginning on January 11, on a contract for 10,000 frames was literally the first order of business. The factory also made poles for signal flags for the war effort. Mirrors, picture frames and other mouldings were already being turned out after one month of operation. Thirty-five of the workers had come from Toronto. Orders were received from as far away as England. F.R. Phillips was the plant's manager. Reliance was reorganized in 1915 and closed in 1921. 

The Frontenac Moulding and Glass Co. took over from Reliance, operated by W.C. and F.C. Phillips. The siding was rented to the new company; the plant unoccupied at the time but the city wanted the siding retained for future potential use. In February, 1920 a drafted agreement was being discussed by CP and the city re: building a railway siding to the Reliance Moulding plant at Kingston Junction.

In July, 1922 the Dufton Woolen Mill of Stratford burned. Mr. William Collie came to Kingston and bought the Reliance Moulding building, installing machinery and operating the plant as of January, 1923. The operation was now called 'Collies Ltd', a large woolen industry. Employment at the plant was 23 men at $30/week, 12 women at $15/week, with $200,000 spent on machinery and $35,000 spent on land and buildings. Employment was expected to grow three to four times. Collies began production in 1922 but soon closed in 1924. Its machinery was second-hand and a lack of capital hastened its demise. The buildings would sit vacant for the next five years. Fire insurance map image, 1924:

In July, 1929 Janney Aircraft and Boats Ltd. bought the plant and property, receiving the customary fixed assessment from the city. President (Capt.) E. Janney, a flyer in Canadian Overseas Forces during World War I, and manager Charles Collins expected to build several airplanes and 100 boats in the coming year, making Kingston the grandiose-sounding 'future Aircity of Canada'! In December, there were boats being built and an airplane soon to be started. The boat construction area measured 40x250 feet, and the aircraft area was 60x80 feet. Raw materials would be received on the spur north of the plant. Manufacturing began in the fall of 1929. Sadly, a year later the plant was closed and contents were being auctioned for $1,400. Also sadly, Capt. Janney was in court on a fraud charge, pertaining to  four boats on order and motors ordered from Johnson in Peterborough. Interestingly, Captain Janney had served prison time in 1920 in Lethridge, AB for fraud, trying to float an aircraft company there!

In January, 1931 Everlastik purchased the Collie building, identifying Dominion Webbing as its Canadian branch operation. Everlastik was headquartered in Chelsea, MA where the company operated seven plants. Their representatives toured the Kingston plant by lanternlight! The plant was bought with cash, encouraged by the Kingston Chamber of Commerce. A fixed assessment, establishment of watermains and lighted road access were part of the agreement. By March, several carloads of machinery arrived, with 15 more to come. Motors were being rewound, with operation expected within a month.  Workers were setting up machinery on the second floor, finishing and painting the offices. The company had no orders 'over here' and no orders nor connections in the city! Their first shipment was completed in May, 1931. 

Mr. R. Brown spoke at the Kiwanis Club in August, 1931 on behalf of Dominion. The plant was producing elastic, braids and webbing, with advances coming from the new process of rubber vulcanization. Dominion Webbing closed up shop in Depression October, 1933 hoping to reopen when business conditions improved. A change of management may have led to the closure.

In 1935, the hope on the horizon was the Miller Clothing Company of Montreal and Toronto, expecting to move into the Dominion buildings. The company planned to buy much of its cloth from Kingston's Hield Bros., entering into a $6,000 fixed assessment agreement with the city. They planned to employ 125 workers and pay wages of $125,000 per year to get its operations started. Union objections to closing its existing Montreal plant put the kibosh on the move, even though work at the Kingston plant had already begun.

Isaac Cohen, president of Monarch Battery Manufacturing Company, announced in September, 1937 that Monarch has purchased the former Dominion Webbing building, vacant since 1933. At the time, the building's owners were said to be the Hamilton Cotton Co. and the Granby Elastic Co., and Monarch had outgrown its building on Montreal Street (1938 artwork showing the new iteration, below):

Producing unique batteries for tanks and radios during World War II, Monarch was succeeded by Gould Storage Battery in October, 1946. Gould was the Dominion branch of the American company National Batteries, with Kenneth Dawkins its first general manager. Gould's unique signage points the way to the plant, with Frontenac Floor & Wall Tile's adjacent plant in the foreground:

Gould built a 'new battery plant, boiler plant and office' for $250,000, claiming to be the only self-sufficient battery plant in the British Empire! Batteries were exported to South Africa, China, Holland, Newfoundland, and the East and West Indies. The company hoped to have new road access to enable future production expansion. Here are sunny-day views of the plant in 1950 (Queen's University Archives, above and below) 

Gould-National's factory was bought by Globelite Batteries of Winnipeg, in 1959, and closed in 1963 when Globelite opened a new plant in Toronto.

Presland Iron & Steel operated from the site beginning in 1970, owned by president Jack Preston. Taking over Cleland Iron Works on Russell Street around 1965, Presland supplied railings and fabricated steel to many local building projects, including the revitalized Grand Theatre in 2008. Still in business on the site, Presland recently added their expertise to the repurposing of the Bailey Broom Factory!

Trestle Third Time Lucky

I'd already made two tries at modelling the Sowards coal-unloading trestle on Place d'Armes. I was quite pleased with the results of the second version - it's a very visible structure upon entering the layout room, after all. While there are a few black & white photos that I included in my previous post, it's really challenging to get a sense of proportion or measurements of the prototype structure. The structures and piles of coal on the site were definitely huge, especially before the advent of oil as fuel for heating.

Visible in some of the photos are 'wings' on either side of the trestle. These wings are not present on trestles in warmer climes, where the trestle isn't enclosed as this one was. So I don't know what went on there, but it was definitely to be kept out of the weather. Perhaps the coal was bagged, definitely handled after unloading, there. After I'd added 'good-enough' paper wings before, I decided it was time to upgrade them, hence this third try!

I pulled off the paper wings, taking the structure to the workbench. I found some wooden trusses from a Cox lumber kit (above) and cut them down to act as wing supports. I then found a leftover plastic base (below) that I glued to the trusses. Since the office is on the far side, I only added one wing to the trestle - on the more visible side of the structure.

I found some 'building textures' online, printing a page of siding to use for the roof:

All that was left was to paint the trusses before replacing the trestle on the layout:

There's lots of room under the wings now:

 

'Steal & Run' - the S&R Story

 

Ask a long-time Kingstonian about downtown department stores of yore, and the one that always comes up is Smith & Robinson's, the much-revered and oft-remembered S&R (colloquially known as 'Steal & Run' or even 'S*** & Rubbish'! At its cornerstone location of Princess and Ontario Streets (George Lilley captured its imposing presence in 1960 - Queen's University Archives - top photo), it was well-known for a variety of wares. My Dad bought a suit there once, and we bought kids' clothes, candy & chips, toys, hardware items, well...anything and everything - always affordable. The store was a Kingston keystone, geographically and commercially, at that dividing line between north & south, town & gown, and the gateway to east & west sides of Kingston's harbour. In fact, if one stood on the roof of the Richardson grain elevator, with a lake vessel docked below you at the foot of Princess Street, the building was literally a stone's throw (especially if gifted with a good pitching arm!) from the water. Check out the roof-top water-tower, marking its location:

In its regular Friday Whig advertisements in the winter-spring of 1975, among the "5000 sweaters...leisure suits...quality leather coats...and suede jackets!" the store included a ten-part tiny block of its (then) 155-year history on a bi-weekly basis. Taken together, these well-researched tiny text-boxes give the entire history of the building and its evolution from a variety of uses into the 'Steal & Run'. 

More detail on the piano business in Kingston, some of it involving this venerable building: 

Built circa 1820, the curved corner section dating from 1840, the building was first a grocery store, then a shopping arcade before becoming a piano factory. John and Charles Fox moved their piano-making business to Kingston from New York City in 1862. In 1865 George Weber joined the firm, taking full ownership after Charles Fox died in 1869. Reorganizing in the late 1890’s as The Weber Piano Company, the firm produced Weber and McMullen pianos. In 1896, William Wormwith joined the firm, then reorganized it as the Wormwith Piano Company, building a full line of upright and grand pianos under the brand names of Weber, Wormwith and Columbia. Mr. Henry Richardson bought a controlling interest upon Mr. Wormwith’s retirement in 1919, reorganizing it as the Weber Piano Company, Kingston Limited until the Great Depression and the company’s demise in the late 1930’s. In 1939, the Lesage Piano Company purchased all assets, continuing the use of the well-established Weber and Wormwith names until 1961. The building operated as S&R department store from 1959-2009.

1924 Oblique Air Photos of Kingston

On September 25, 1924 an unknown photographer made passes along the Kingston waterfront, from the west, to the east and north into the Inner Harbour then carrying on to Cedar Island. The remarkable black & white photographs are part of the Queen's University Library, with the negatives held in the National Air Photo Library in Ottawa. 

By clicking on the red dots on this Queen's webpage shown above in the photo key, a high-resolution photo can be viewed and/or downloaded. Here's an example - as always, click for a larger version You are there!

Some years ago, I'd visited Queen's Joseph S. Stauffer Library where these photos were held. The staff kindly photocopied them for me, and they've proved to be invaluable in learning about, and modelling 'Kingston's Hanley Spur'.

Another set of well-known aerial photos was taken by Billy Bishop and William Barker's air service in 1919, promoted by Kingston Frameworks in 2019. Duck, parishioners!

The Skeleton Press Article

In December, 2021 I published a post about my engaging interview with Lawrence Scanlan for an upcoming issue of the Skeleton Park Arts Festival's The Skeleton Press. The Spring, 2022 issue includes Lawrence's article on my 'passion project'. Here's the cover:

The local newspaper not only encourages local content and distribution at several sites (below) but also sharing of each issue with others. Its thought-provoking content, fresh look, lack of full-page ads and diverse editorial stance makes it a departure from the remnants of the Kingston Whig-Standard, which previously had all those attributes. Publisher Michael Davies, who recently left us, would be proud of thoughtful contributors like Lawrence, graphic designer Vince Perez and Professor Laura Murray, all of whom I've been pleased to get to know as part of my book-creating, blogging, model-building, train-running sojourn through history!

Here's an image of the article (below), but I highly recommend reading the whole issue. It's available online at this pdf link.

 

Track Work on Ontario Street, 1963

It would not be surprising if you think the title of this post doesn't ring a bell. One might think Ontario Street is just a street, but it used to have a surprising amount of track on it. These photos show a surprisingly large track gang working on rails and a switch along Ontario. Seeing the Tete du Pont barracks/Fort Frontenac outer wall in the background, and the Public Utilities Commission building at left (above), it was clear that the location would be Ontario at Barrack Streets.

But what was the story behind the photos? Why such a large gang, why here, and why in July 1963? Especially considering the waterfront trackage was gone by 1970.

Some other interesting details 

• gang members came from as far west as Ernestown and as far east as Findley and Gananoque
• the trackage was being converted from 85 pounds per yard to 100
• the gang comprised 40 men
• the work started at 0400 and 11 rails were put in place
• being from the steam era, each section man could hammer a spike into the tie with five or six hammer swings
• asphalt had to be dug out to reach the ties

A 1951 aerial view of the worksite: 

There was a time constraint, because though CN owned the track, CP used it to reach their yard across from City Hall, and a switchman's shanty was located near here, guarding the joint trackage. The CP (formerly Kingston & Pembroke) trackage diverges from the joint section at right, CN at left:

The newspaper photo is adequate, but the cropped newsprint image in the Whig clipping (above) makes the photo look like pointillism. There's nothing like the original negatives, from the Queen's University Archives, to bring out the detail:

Three Visitors to the Hanley Spur!

Vince, Heather and Laura

The pandemic has a way of elasticizing time and making everything seem longer and slower. So it was with a special visit today that was envisioned over two years ago. Laura Murray, a Professor of English at Queen's University, has been spearheading the Swamp Ward and Inner Harbour History Project (SWIHHP). This multi-faceted project documented the personal stories of the people who lived and worked in the part of town that I model here on the Hanley Spur, utilizing community-based and oral history. Laura had seen this blog and was intrigued. Today, we managed to finally arrange a visit!

Along with Laura were two other interested visitors who had worked with her on the SWIHHP. Vince Perez is Art Director for The Skeleton Press, a most interesting 'Neighbourhood Focused, Pulp-Based Journalism' serving McBurney Park and surrounding area. I've been enjoying Vince's work mostly online, but also in two paper editions.  Heather Home is a Public Services/Private Records Archvist at Queen's University Archives, a place I hope to return later this spring. Heather and her staff have been very helpful, and are integral to my research

Of course I was so pleased that my visitors were readily able to point out models of various prototype buildings that they recognized! And that they could imagine themselves strolling the streets of the industrial waterfront of Kingston as HO-scale visitors.

We kept our visit COVID-friendly (save for a brief unmasked moment for the top photo). That didn't inhibit my visitors' enthusiasm and their insightful inquiries. After a chance to see all parts of the layout from the aisle, I emplaced the continuous-run option so I could demonstrate switching industries on CN and CP trackage. This added much to their appreciation not only of the modelling I've done, but also the prototype-based operating system used on the layout. In other words, how the prototype industries were served by the railways, and how I've replicated it.

I look forward to following up on some intriguing ideas we discussed:

• making my digitized images available to others through the Archives
• digitally preserving this blog also through the Archives
• linking oral histories in a multi-media nexus to parts of my layout
• other ways to take my layout 'outside the basement'
• returning to the archives to follow up on some leads I have uncovered

Watch for more on the current issue of The Skeleton Press upon its release, with Vince's work and my interview with editor Larry Scanlan.

Heather looking over Kimco scrap 

Woolen Mill - History

Overview - Known locally as the Woolen Mill, this four-storey 1882 enterprise was originally known as the Kingston Cotton Manufacturing Company. A single-storey extension was added in 1883, and there are 12- and 16-inch pine beams throughout the windowed structure. The mill produced cloth, most notably for the armed forces during wartime on its 3.6-acre site. Shuttered by the Great Depression, it was later known as Hield Bros. operating under that name for 35 years until closure in 1966, due to declining demand and the rise of newer textile technology. The building has successfully passed between various owners becoming home to several businesses including the Kingston Whig-Standard. An early view with two tracks along Orchard Street in right foreground, and a 2022 view:

The mill building cost $200,000, with machinery costing $160,000. There were 65 looms installed in January, 1882 and another 135 expected before opening one month later. The Kingston Cotton Manufacturing Company employed 250 in 1886, with 300 looms under President James Richardson. Dominion Textile Co., in some reports originally named Dominion Cotton or Dominion Cotton Mills, acquired the mill in 1890. Dominion had other mills at Hochelaga and Cornwall. Much has been written about the predominantly-female workforce at the mill, including teenagers, and the dangerous nature of the work, as early as 1899. On September 19, 1895 a storm caused damage to 2,500 square feet of roofing. The roof of the mill's tower lifted right off. Damage totalled $80,000. A June, 1888 notice from the Whig:

Cotton was coming from Mississippi and Texas in 1912, with coal shipments arriving via the mill's wharf on the Inner Harbour. The plant was billed as self-sufficient, bringing in its own coal, producing its own power, electric light and fire protection. The mill spent $13,500 on freight annually. Finished cotton was packed into 600-pound bales containing 2,200 yards covered in paper and burlap and hooped with iron. The mill was operated by Dominion until 1929. 

A fire insurance map image marked 'Silent, Aug. 1929': 

In 1930, British textile companies were buying mills in Canada due to additional tariffs that made Canadian-based operations more advantageous.  Canadian textile factories would only have to import 15% of woolens, previous set at 50%. Examples were George M. Hirst Co. Ltd of Batley buying a mill in Carleton Place, ON and Hiram Leach Co., also from England buying a mill in Huntington, QC. Climatic conditions and water that replicated those in Lancashire were sought after. Thus, the Hield Co. leased, then purchased the Woolen Mill. 

In February, 1931 the Hield Brothers of England signed an agreement to purchase the Dominion Textile building for $75,000. There was controversy at the time about the by-law enacted by the city to cover the purchase. The official opening was in late-July of 1931. W.S. (Stan) Grimshaw was the first manager, and he died at the age of 53 on November 3, 1937. A July, 1938 Whig ad gives some history:

In 1935, mill output was 12,000 yards per week of cloth for men's suitings. By 1939, 200 workers were employeed. 

As part of a Victory Metal drive in September, 1943 the three 16x20-foot locomotive-style upright boilers and the huge engine that once powered the cotton mill were sold for salvage at $5 per ton. Originally costing 1,400 pounds, the engine, produced by J. & E. Wood of Bolton, England was 40 tons with a 22-foot wheel, turning 60 revolutions and powered by 580-hp engine, cycling 69 feet of 3-foot-wide belt with each revolution. The main belt led to more complex belt arrangements at each loom. The engine was first started on January 21, 1883. As of 1931, when woolen production replaced cotton, the earlier propulsion method became obsolete, with electric motors installed. The scrap was shipped to Toronto by train. An October, 1943 Whig ad: 

Closure of the mill was confirmed by Hield Brothers on August 31, 1966. St. Francis Developments took over ownership.

In July, 1969 the mill was bought by Dominion Industries of Kingston. Kingston Spinners, a subsidiary of Carolina's Mill Craft Corporation purchased 14.5 acres of land on Dalton Avenue for a planned $2.5 million, 50,000 square foot mill. Dominion Industries was operating a pilot plant in 40,000 square feet of the Woolen Mill's leased space before their new plant was ready.

In 1984, the mill was redeveloped to the Woolen Mill Centre by John Hansen and Wilf & Mary Eagle, but was down to 30% occupancy. A September, 1986 Whig ad: 

The mill was bought by Doornekamp/ABNA Investments in July, 1993 with 75,000 square feet of space available. The sale was through National Trust, and included the adjacent 3.26-acre demolition yard. The new owner planned refurbished commercial space, including the Kingston Whig-Standard offices.

R. Bruce Warmington wrote a book on the Woolen Mill, 'But Before That'. A copy is available in the reference section of the Kingston-Frontenac Public Library. I have yet to read it, but I"m sure it includes a complete history of the mill.

Memories...

I worked at Hield Bros., making woven fabric for men’s suits. My job was in the office for $25 per week, working Monday to Friday from 9 to 5. 

Wool suits were made there. My dad was a foreman. He took the job right after World War II. 

In 1964, I worked there in my teenage years, crawling under the huge machines to put belts back on the pulleys. A real sweat shop! 

By the time I worked at the mil, it was owned by Hield Bros. They wove some of the finest worsted cloth in Canada there. Royal Canadian Mounted Police scarlet, and Royal Canadian Air Force dress blue were two examples.