Unique geography has attracted engineering minds to the southwestern portion of what is now St. Catharines since the early days of European settlement. Over the past 240 years, the seemingly endless supply of natural energy careening over the escarpment has supported mills, electric generators, and a rich history of community building. Sean heads to Power Glen, once the village of Reynoldsville, to piece together the puzzle of settlements and innovations that have flowed through this water-rich area. This is History from Here: a video series presented by the St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre.  

Power Glen is situated near the confluence of Twelve Mile Creek, Beaverdams Creek, and the Niagara Escarpment. This geography results in plentiful fast-flowing fresh water, making it an ideal setting for industrial and residential development. Even before Europeans realized this in the late 1700s, Indigenous Peoples had long identified the area’s bounties. The largest known Indigenous archaeological site in St. Catharines is at Barbican Heights, also along the escarpment just three kilometers east of here. The people living in this area were most likely of the Neutral Confederacy, an Iroquoian People who lived in semi-permanent, highly organized villages, practiced agriculture, and played lacrosse. 

Arriving as squatters in the early 1780s, the Turney family were probably the first European settlers in this area. Their family burial plot still exists just steps from here on Trail Race Rd. The first settler to exploit the area’s natural power source was Duncan Murray in 1786. Murray had been a Lieutenant with the Butler’s Rangers and was entitled to a significant land grant. Though virtually the entirety of St. Catharines was still available, Murray chose Power Glen. He immediately set to work building the area’s first water-powered saw and grist mills, but died before they were completed. Queenston merchant Robert Hamilton soon acquired the property and completed construction. These developments are considered the first permanent European settlement in what is now St. Catharines. Hamilton also acquired substantial property further up Twelve Mile Creek where he set up a trading post to compliment his mills, pre-dating Shipman’s Corners by at least a decade. Hamilton sold most of his land at Power Glen to a Jesse Thomas in 1800, whose son Peter built a new grist mill in 1811. Remnants of a dam for this mill can still be seen today. 

On top of the escarpment, John Decew had built his sawmill by 1792. Over the next 20 years, Decew prospered and expanded his property to control significant sections of Beaverdams Creek and the Mohawk Trail, and thus a major opportunity for capitalization. Decew was an early investor in William Hamilton Merritt’s canal idea, as the route was initially supposed to pass right through his property. When the route changed it not only directed traffic away from Decew’s business, but also affected water flow to his mills. He was left in financial straits and moved to Haldimand County. Below the escarpment faired much better and the story of Reynoldsville began. 

In 1854, Benjamin Franklin Reynolds purchased the land and mill operations at the bottom of the escarpment that had been owned by Duncan Murray, Robert Hamilton, and the Thomases. Reynolds revitalized the complex and established a small village which became known as “Reynoldsville”. Reynolds’ own impressive Georgian-style home still stands at Vansickle and Power Glen. The village was primarily constructed to support mill workers and their families. It occupied about 160 acres owned by Reynolds and had a population of about 60 in 1871. Reynolds’ mills supplied masts for Shickluna Shipyards and timber for the Third Welland Canal. The complex also featured a carriage works, blacksmith’s shop, and a truss bridge over the Twelve Mile Creek. Reynoldsville petered out after 1886 when Reynolds suffered a serious injury at the age of 75 and put his property up for sale. The mills were shut down by 1893 and were destroyed by fire soon after. Reynolds himself died in 1896. 

But dormancy here has never lasted long. The following year, construction began on the ground-breaking Decew Falls Generating Station. This facility was unique because it used alternating current (AC) which was invented by Nikola Tesla in 1888. This enabled electricity to be transferred across great distances without power loss, as is the case with Direct Current (DC). The plant was designed to send power to Hamilton, some 56 km away – the longest such distance in Canada to that point. Decew Falls Generating Station was the first of its kind in Canada and is the longest running hydro-generating station in Canada. With this new activity, the surrounding area once again began to attract residential settlement. In 1904 the neighbourhood received a post office and was officially renamed Power Glen. 

With the gradual Eastward movement of canal projects, the Power Glen area was not destined to compete with other parts of St. Catharines for industrial or commercial significance. The result, however, has been that the most geographically impressive corner of the city has maintained much of its beautiful natural character. And that is something worth celebrating.