First Paper Mill in Canada / Argenteuil Paper Mill National Historic Event
Saint-André-D'Argenteuil, Quebec
Original plaque, First Paper Mill in Canada
(© Parcs Canada | Parks Canada, 2011.)
Address :
165 Long-Sautl Road 344, Saint-André-D'Argenteuil, Quebec
Recognition Statute:
Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date:
1925-05-15
Other Name(s):
-
First Paper Mill in Canada / Argenteuil Paper Mill
(Designation Name)
Research Report Number:
2022-CED-SDC-02
Importance:
First paper mill in Canada
Plaque(s)
Original Plaque:
THE FIRST PAPER MILL IN CANADA WAS BUILT AT ST-ANDREWS EAST IN 1803-05 BY A GROUP OF NEW ENGLANDERS AND LATER OPERATED BY JAMES BROWN, STATIONER OF MONTREAL.
THIS WAS INCEPTION OF ONE OF CANADA MOST IMPORTANT INDUSTRIES.
Approved Inscription:
Around 1803, when paper was being imported from England and the United States, two American paper makers, Walter Ware and Benjamin Wales, set out to establish the first paper mill in Canada in St. Andrews East (known today as Saint-André-d’Argenteuil). The factory used cloth rags to make newsprint, wrapping paper, and hatbox cardboard, which were shipped to Montréal by boat. Montréal printer James Brown, originally from Scotland, acquired the mill in 1809 and operated it until its closure in 1834. The origins of Canada’s important pulp and paper industry may be traced to the establishment of this paper mill.