A pioneer of the Ottawa Valley lumber industry, Bell had commanded H.M. gunboat "Murray" at the battle of Plattsburg on Lake Champlain in 1814. Emigrating to Upper Canada about 1817, he was granted 800 acres of land, partly located here at the "first chute" of the Bonnechère River. By 1829, he had built a timber slide and sawmill, in the vicinity of which there grew up the hamlet of "Castleford", named for Bell's birthplace in Yorkshire. The name was later transferred to the present settlement on the Ottawa River. As magistrate, commissioner of the court of requests, land agent and postmaster, Bell played an active role in the development of Renfrew County.

Location

On County Road 1 at the Bonnechère River in the vicinity of his former sawmill and timber slide, about 2 km southeast of Castleford

Themes

• Industry and trade
• People
• Transportation systems and communications