Ewan

By Guy Scott

The east end of the Galway Road was much rougher, swampier and less suited for farming than the west side coming off the Bobcaygeon Road (now County Road #121). Thus, the farms were larger and many lots were not even cleared for farming! On the north side of the Galway Road (Concession 14) the last pioneer farm was the holdings of Henry Beckett, the son of John Beckett just across the Road. After the Beckett homestead, the Galway Road angled north-east across the 14^th concession towards the Ewan School (Lot 30, Concession 15). The next 6 lots (20-25) in both the 13^th, 14^th and 16^th concessions were too rough to attract settlers. The property was patented by mining speculators such as T.D. Ledyard of Peterborough. In the 1870s and 1880s, a mining boom was taking place just north of here at Furnace Falls and Irondale. The same vein of iron ore was traced to the ridges through these lots. The mining rush eventually faded and no mines were created on this stretch of the Galway Road. These lots were later sold (likely for back taxes) to local settlers who logged the timber.

At lot 26, the farmers reappeared. By this point, the Galway Road has jogged one concession north so that Concession 14 is on the south side and Concession 15 is on the north side of the Road. William McMahon came from Cavan Township and settled on lot 28 in the 14^th concession as early as 1875. John had a rather large family. The settlement rules of the day allowed each male over the age of 21 to claim 200 acres of land free; as long as they fulfilled the settlement duties of living on the lot, building a house and clearing at least 10 acres. When the land rush was over, the McMahon boys: John, Albert, Charles, Edward and John Jr. had claimed a huge chunk of land (at least 10 lots or 1,000 acres) in the 13^th, 14^th and 15^th concessions. While parts of these lots were farmed, the McMahons also dabbled in the lumber trade and were contractors specializing in barns. By 1914, the McMahon families had moved to Western Canada and settled in Saskatchewan. The Whites: Joe, Bill and Bob, bought out the McMahon holdings.

A school was built on lot 30 in the 15^th Concession; at the point where the Galway Road did a sharp turn and ran straight north to White Lake. A post office was opened in 1894 and named Ewan. The first post master was George McKee, followed by William McMahon (1900-1912), John Jackson (1912-1929), Maude Jackson (1929-1930) and Ellsworth Jackson (1931-1945). The post office closed in 1945, but by that date very few residents lived within its boundary. There was no post office building, or for that matter no store or business in Ewan. The post office was in the house of the post master. The mail was brought from Furnace Falls railway station, where it arrived on the IB&O train.

The only public building in the Ewan Settlement was the school house, SS#5 Galway. The school was opened about 1880 and closed in 1910 by which time most of the settlers had moved to greener pastures. The school house was located just south of where the South Salmon Lake Road meets the Galway Road. Church services were held in the school on a weekly basis. A minister from Kinmount (denomination unimportant) often led the services, but in the absence of an ordained minister, William McConnell acted as a lay reader.

Besides all the McMahon families listed earlier, also living in the Ewan area were: Billy Ross (Lot 26, Concession 13), George McKee (Lot 30, Concession 14), Robert McKee (Lot 31, Concession 15), Henry Smith (Lot 29, Concession 16), John Jackson (Lot 30, Concession 16) and William McConnell (Lot 31, Concession 16). The Rosses and McKees ended up moving to Toronto. The Ferrens (Alman and George) lived at Salmon Lake, just across the boundary in Cavendish and drew their mail from Ewan before moving to Kinmount.

Farm land was very poor in the Ewan area. By 1910, there were only a couple of families left and the school closed. Ellsworth Jackson was the last resident to live full time in Ewan before retiring to Kinmount in the 1960s. The Ewan settlement was now totally abandoned; at least until cottagers began to settle along the lakes.