Dixon Mill owner dies

I learned yesterday of the passing of Mac Dixon - he was one of those Islanders very proud of his family's heritage in rural Prince Edward Island.  I met him only once back in April 1989 when he showed us through his old mill and told us stories of bygone days - truly a step back in time that day.  After that I oftened heard him on the radio talking about his horses.

OBIT: William Lyon MacKenzie King ( Mac ) Dixon  Died on Oct. 15, 2011 (age 85) at the Whisperwood Villa in Charlottetown, P.E.I.

Mac was born May 7, 1926, and was the son of the late Jack and Edna (Smith) Dixon of South Melville and husband of the late Erma (Ings) Dixon, to whom he was married for 50 years. Mac is survived by his five children: 12 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

Mac grew up in South Melville where his family ran the Dixon Mill and where he eventually began his 50-year career in farming. Mac and Erma ran a mixed farm and Mac was extremely proud of his Clydesdale horses, of which he began raising at the age of 19 until he turned 75. Mac was an active member of the Liberal party for many years, and was very proud of the history behind his given name.

Trip to the South Shore area...

I was down to the south shore area today for meetings.  Here's a few photos.

Above:  The former Hampton United Church located on the Trans-Canada Highway (Rte.1.) in Hampton, P.E.I.  The church has been renovated and painted - now used as a dental office.  Back in February 2011 CBC's Maritime Noon program had a phone-in show on the topic of what to do with our old, decommissioned churches?  The owner of this church, Dr. Peter Bevan-Baker, was one of the guests on answering questions, etc.  I took meticulous notes and someday hope to do a presentation on the topic along with information gathered from a symposium in Halifax I attended in April 2010.  The symposium was on "The Conservation of Religious Buildings and their Settings" - it was held at the Atlantic School of Theology and sponsored by the Heritage Trust of Nova Scotia.  It was a full day of speakers on a variety of topics - one things that was stressed was that poor restoration methods will eventually be the demise of any heritage building.  They held another symposium in April 2011 but we were unable to attend- check out their website:  http://www.htns.ca/

Above:  A little further up the road is the former Flood Homestead.  This is located in South Melville on the corner of the South Melville Road (Rte. 246) and the Sandy Point Road.  Back years ago this farm often appeared in Island tourism literature.  It's not far from Mac Dixon's Grist Mill (featured on June 8th in this blog).  Back in the early 1990's we visited here often as we made our way to Victoria-by-the-Sea.  The farm was sold out of the family about 15 years ago.

It was typical practice to build a new barn onto/over the old barns - my father did the same to his old barn.

Below:  Just across the road from the Floods on the South Melville Road is this old schoolhouse.  For many, many years it was abandoned and surely to fall in to the ground but in recent years someone has restored/renovated the school complete with the sign.  Excellent!!!

Below.  I went further on to see clients along the Desable Road (Rte.19) and spotted this house.  Hum, I would have done a few things different in renovating this house - ie. no house looks good with basement windows on the front; it has new vinyl siding and all the windows have been changed to casement - the casement windows here don't take away from the look as these are very wide for casements - often they're narrower.  It's an interesting style in that the front has two equal gables.  It's age? maybe 1870's.

The Desable-Argyle Shore area of the Island was settled by Scottish immigrants from the Isles in the 1820's.  I visited a client today about a new house to be built along Rte.19, the shore road.  Following we got talking about the area and I told him that my grandmother's family, the MacNevin's, were amoung the earlier settlers here and that in the 1880's my great-great-grandfather Neil "Tidy" MacNevin moved to the Brae (near O'Leary, PEI) with his family.  He said that his great-great-grandfather bought Neil's 33-acres over there, adjacent to his farm.  Wow!!!  I never knew where that farm was.  He said his family has been in the area since the 1820's and likely came over with the MacNevins - his family was from the Isle of Colonsay - mine were from the Isles of Mull and Coll. 

Above:  a few miles west up the road in Canoe Cove, where Rte. 19 turns to Rte.19A (Canoe Cove Road), is the Canoe Cove School, Est.1820.  I believe there's been a school here since 1820 but this school dates back to about 1850.  Below is a painting by Robert Harris, titled "School House at Canoe Cove".  Robert's sister married into the Stretch family and lived in the area.  The Painting cf. Historic Places website - for more information see http://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=1773

Above:  On my way back to Hunter River, I photographed this barn on the Colville Road (Rte. 9)  As they'd say - nice old barn!

Mac Dixon's Grist Mill, South Mellville

I took theses photos on April 15, 1989.  Arnold Smith and I were visiting our friend Marion Flood who lived nearby - we got talking about the old mill then she took us over and introduced us to Mac Dixon, owner of the old mill.

Above: entry to the property.

There are / were a few Dixon Mills on PEI - the story goes there was a Dixon family near Belfast, I believe, who operated a mil - when his sons grew up they were encouraged to go to other communities on the Island and start mills.  I know there was a Dixon Mill in Kingston and another near Souris.

Above: this is where the water wheel was located.

Mac showed us through the mill telling us about the equipment and this Bran Duster that his father bought on a trip to Boston.

The old mill is still there - I don't have current photos - I will try this summer.  Mac's son built a house behind the mill in the 1990's.  In the late 1980's there were a couple of local entrepreneurs who wanted to turn it into a museum but it didn't happen!  There are few of these old mills left on the Island.

Above: later that summer I took this photo - a site to behold as the wide open fields gather in the vale at the old mill.