Details of Site Location: On the west bank of the Humber River are two sites above and below the line between the First and Second Concessions of York Township across the river. The Old Mill of today, south of Bloor, is the second site.
Current Use of Property: Much of the original Reserve is parkland today, with some commercial and residential development.
Historical Description: The first mill was built on Lot 6 of the Reserve, just north of modern Bloor Street. According to the Simcoe Papers, some of Lieutenant-Governor Simcoe’s staff discovered sawmill equipment buried at the Humber by the French in 1759, and this was used in the mill Simcoe ordered to be built. This mill was, therefore, the second one to be built on the Humber and the first built in the British Regime. Con-structed in 1793, it was operated from 1794 to 1798 by John Wilson. Andrew Clark and Osborn Cox ran the mill from 1801 until it was destroyed by fire in 1803. Clark continued his connection with the King’s Mill by joining forces with Alexander Lymburner and operating the second mill. Erected in 1803 by the government, the partners leased the mill from 1803 to 1807. Clark was dispossessed in 1808, and milling continued under Alex-ander and James Lymburner until 1811. At that time, John Chilson obtained the lease and assigned it to Stiles Stevens. The mill was damaged in a flood, after which Michael Whit-more took over. In 1820, the lease was held by Josiah Cushman and Joseph J. Lossee, who converted the second mill into a nail factory and undertook to build a new sawmill on Lot 6, the site of the first mill. The timber on the Reserve had become exhausted and saw logs had to be brought from other locations. Cushman ran into debt. His indebtedness and lease were purchased by Thomas Fisher. Fisher made additions to the mill on Lot 4 and converted it into a licensed hotel; he added a store and a stable, and altered the dam and millrace. In return for surrendering his lease, he received the mill on Lot 6 plus Lots 6 and 7 and the eastern half of Lot 9. In 1835, Fisher sold the mill to William Gamble. Gamble operated the sawmill, nail factory, tavern, and store, and built a five-storey wooden flour mill, designed and constructed by Rowland Burr. The complex was destroyed by fire in 1847, but Gamble rebuilt the flour mill in 1848, on the design of William Tyrrell. This building was made of stone taken out of the river and stood five storeys high. Around 1858 it ceased operating; it was gutted by fire in 1881. It was the last of the mills on the Reserve.
Relative Importance: Few traces remain of any of the city’s pioneer mills, and the ruins of Gamble’s Mill survive because the building was of stone. The mill has gone, but the ruins remain to speak to the future about the past.
Planning Implications: There is unanimous agreement within the heritage community and a large portion of the general public that the ruins of Gamble’s Mill should remain as ruins, but protected and stabilized so that all can experience that building. There are some supporters, but for the most part there is outrage over the damage being done to this mill through redevelopment. Two storeys of stone have been removed to date. Steps must be taken to halt the damage and protect what remains. It is strongly recommended that a major permanent exhibit be mounted at the mill with a map of the entire King’s Mill Reserve, showing the sites of the two mills and other buildings, the millrace and bridge, and early roads. The current owners of the property should be obliged to mount this exhibit.
Reference Sources: William Hawkins, Plan of the King’s Mill Reserve situate in the Township of Etobicoke and Home District (1834); King’s Mill Reserve, Etobicoke County of York, consolidated map of municipal surveys, Department of Surveys, 1932, Etobicoke Works Department MA-8322/1; Kathleen Macfarlane Lizars, The Valley of the Humber (1913).
Acknowledgements: Maps Project.