November 4, 2023

Families started to arrive in the area of present day 14th Avenue and 9th Line near Markham as early as 1815. The Tomlinson and Beebe families were among the first to move there and begin to develop farms and mills. In 1850 they put forth a plan to develop the community by selling lots for residential use. The lots were either 100 or 250 feet wide by 250 feet deep. This was intended to provide housing for the workers in the saw mill, woollen mill and shoddy mills. A shoddy mill reclaimed used fabrics to make paper or mattress stuffing materials. The community was known as Sparta or Sparty Wharf and was the last point on the Little Rouge River that could be easily navigated. The development soon let to the arrival of three hotels and taverns, a cheese factory, a blacksmith and two axe makers. The image below is taken from the 1877 County Atlas and shows the community in relation to nearby Cedar Grove.

In 1850 The Episcopal Methodists had built a small church in the town and continued to worship there until 1877 when their new building became available. They continued as a Methodist Church until 1925 when they became the Box Grove United Church. In 2004 the church congregation voted to join the Zion United Church in nearby Cedar Grove. The building was vacated and then bought by the Full Gospel Assembly of God in 2006 who continue to meet there on Sundays.

A half acre of land was set aside for the Methodist cemetery in 1850 and many of the town settlers are buried here.

From the County Atlas above you can see that the school is shown across the street from the present structure. This small frame structure had become too small and needed to be updated. School Section #18 was replaced with this red brick structure in 1877, the same year the county atlas was produced. This new schoolhouse was used until the 1960s when new buildings were opened and most of the one room schools in Ontario were closed. Today the old school serves as a community hall and can be rented for various functions such as parties and wedding celebrations.

In 1867, the year of Confederation, they were awarded a post office and the town name was changed to Box Grove. The post office was in the general store which was located in the building seen below.

With three taverns and a population of 150 the town had a bit of a reputation for being rowdy. The Mennonite families on surrounding properties were not pleased and soon opened a Temperance Hall. All of the original industry disappeared and only the homes remained along with the school and church. There are still quite a few mid to late 19th century houses lining the streets around the original intersection. The one pictured below is a typical one and a half story worker cottage.

The house below was originally built in 1880 using a roughcast stucco surface applied to lathing. It has since been covered over with wooden siding. It was built on the Reesor Family farm on the east end of town and may have housed the person who operated their cheese factory. The house was modified at some point adding the western wing and making the home into an L shaped building. When the farms around Box Grove were redeveloped for housing the home was moved to make way for stormwater ponds.

One of the few homes in Box Grove to still display its original brick veneer with buff coloured accents stands on the eastern edge of the original town.

In the past few decades the area has been developed with new housing but the older ones can be picked out as you walk or drive through the neighbourhood.

In 1950 Nelson Morgan Davis, one of the richest men in the country, created a golf course in Box Grove which he called the Box Grove Golf Course. It was private and he was the only member. It was eventually developed into a 27 hole course with 9 holes in the valley and a challenging 18 hole course on the tableland above. It is said that he built the course after being hit in the head by a golf ball while playing at Rosedale Golf Club. Arnold Palmer was invited to play a round of golf with Davis and he later said that the course was one of the hardest he had ever played. Davis sold the golf course to IBM in 1967 netting a cool $2 million for it. IBM kept the course for the entertainment of its employees who could play a round of golf for $5.00. In 1997 IBM sold the golf course to Minto Developments who built a residential subdivision on the upper course while the City of Markham now operates a nine hole course in the river valley called Markham Green.

The Little Rouge River was dammed to create a mill pond to store water to power the mills that provided early industry in the community. The mills were all lost to flooding or to fires but the mill pond remains and is now the centre attraction for the Old Mill Pond Park which is just one of the parks in and around town. The town also features some hiking trails along the river.

Box Grove has been swallowed up by modern developments but there’s still quite a number of early residences hiding along 9th line and along 14th avenue.

Related Stories: Cedar Grove, The Reesor Family

Google Maps Link: Box Grove

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