Ayr Ontario in Colour Photos: Saving Our History One Photo at a Time

Ayr is located south of Kitchener and west of Cambridge, and south of Highway 401. The history of the village of Ayr is steeped in the traditions and lifestyles of its founders. Ayr remains a well preserved example of a rural agrarian community. In 1824, Abel Mudge built a saw mill and flour mill at the junction of Cedar Creek and the Nith River. This was the first of three settlements, Jedburgh in the east (Main Street), Nithvale in the west (Piper Street) and Mudge’s Mill in the centre (Stanley/Northumberland Streets) in what is today the Village of Ayr. Jedburgh began in 1832 when John Hall, a young immigrant from Jedburgh, Scotland, purchased a 75-acre parcel of land that included the area now flooded by Jedburgh Dam. By 1850 Hall had developed several industries, including a flour mill, sawmill and distillery with water power provided by the damming of Cedar Creek. At the same time a smaller settlement, Nithvale, was founded to the west of Mudge’s Mill where a small sawmill opened along the Nith River. The growth of these communities, particularly Jedburgh and Mudge’s Mill, occurred after 1832 with the immigration of settlers from the Scottish Lowlands. These immigrants were drawn to Canada by promises of inexpensive, fertile land made available by the major landholder of the district at the time, William Dickson. While Jedburgh and Mudge’s Mill bitterly fought for supremacy, Nithvale lagged behind in terms of development. The battle between the two communities officially ended in 1840 when Robert Wyllie established a post office under the name ＂Ayr＂, a name influenced by the large number of former Ayrshire, Scotland immigrants who were drawn to Canada by promises of inexpensive, fertile land. In 1846-47 Daniel Manley’s mill was built, William Baker’s store was established and John Watson’s foundry constructed with Watson’s Dam its power reservoir. These three key businesses played large roles in Ayr’s early success as did the coming of the Credit Valley Railway in 1879. James Somerville began the first Ayr newspaper in 1854.