MCKELLAR — Over 60 people attended a public meeting held by Wave Weir at the McKellar Community Centre on Saturday, June 15 to learn about a $1 million business proposal for a woollen mill in the Parry Sound District.

Weir, a longtime McKellar resident, was unable to purchase material for Wave Handmade (natural fibre high-quality clothes) without a wait of several months. Weir's research found a strong need for a small Woollen Mill suitable for small communities.

With 225,000 sheep (two million pounds of fleece each year) in Ontario, there are six small woollen mills in southern Ontario and a three-year wait to get wool. With the emphasis for a need to reduce present clothing that does not decompose in landfills, there is an increasing demand for raw material. But there is a bottleneck in manufacturing.

The Township of McKellar has a local history related to the wool industry. A woollen mill was owned by Samuel and John Armstrong in the late 1800s and was sold to John H. Taylor and Joseph Bately in 1886 for $3,500.

Several McKellar families kept sheep over the years. Margaret Crisp remembered when her parents left in 1892 for the cold prairies and first took wool to McKellar to have it made into blankets and yarn. A blanket made in the Bately and Taylor Mill was donated by Orpha Scott to the West Parry Sound Museum. Such was the value that one farmer left his sheep in his will to his wife and daughter.

The woollen mill in the village centre closed around the turn of the century.

Obvious advantages of a small woollen mill today would be to create employment, support cottage industries and local wool farmers and to attract visitors. An area brand for locally produced and sourced high quality products could create spin off businesses. Many small communities worldwide have been revitalized by a similar venture.

Weir would like to keep the business in McKellar if commercial space can be made available for purchase.

The McKellar United Church annual bake sale will be held at the opening of the McKellar Market in Minerva Park on June 29, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Ann Bradley asks all to “please bring baking donations to the United Church on Friday, June 28 at 6 p.m.”

“Many vendors, Caribbean food, the council’s unveiling of the historical posters in the kiosk, the library’s sale of used books, cart dog rides for the little ones and music throughout the day will create a festive atmosphere to celebrate Canada” stated market organizer Jan Gibson.