This geocache is one of twenty Historical Geo-Passport geocaches within the South Nation Jurisdiction. For more information on this series of geocaches, please visit South_Nation.
This is a wherigo geocache. Certain GPS units are able to run a Wherigo cartridge, or apps can be downloaded to run wherigo on a GPS enabled smartphone or tablet. This Wherigo can be downloaded here.
This historical wherigo will tour you through the history of Chesterville, along the banks of the South Nation River. The stages are usually fairly close together over a total distance of approximately 700 meters. Walking the route is recommended, although it is possible to drive between each stage.
Histoire / History:
Chesterville est l'un des anciens villages parmi les plus intéressants du territoire de la CNS, où la ville et le fleuve ont été interdépendants depuis que les premiers colons sont arrivés en 1817. Le premier colon était un Loyaliste de l'Empire-Uni nommé George Hummel. Il reçut une grande étendue de terre, dont la majorité est devenue Chesterville. Il a été rejoint en 1825 par deux frères, les Merkley, qui ont décidé de construire une scierie près de la Maison Hummel. Au fil des années, le village a reçu plusieurs noms. À l'origine, ce fut Armstrong Mills, ensuite Thomas Armstrong, et plus tard Winchester. Cependant, de nombreuses régions voisines partageaient le même nom, comme North Winchester, South Winchester, Winchester Springs et West Winchester. Finalement, en 1875, les habitants de la région ont changé le nom du village pour Chesterville, honorant le premier opérateur de télégraphe, Chester Casselman.
L'hôtel de ville, construit en 1867, a également servi à travers les années en tant que caserne de pompiers, palais de justice, prison, église, et salle de cinéma. Il s’agit maintenant du Centre du patrimoine.
Aujourd'hui, la ville abrite également le barrage de Chesterville, une importante structure de contrôle de l'eau sur la rivière Nation Sud, construite plus récemment en 1978.
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Perhaps nowhere in the South Nation Watershed has a settlement had such an interesting past as the town of Chesterville. With the South Nation River flowing right through the center of town, the town and the river have been sharing a symbiosis since the first settlers arrived in 1817. That first settler was a United Empire Loyalist named George Hummel who was given a large tract of land comprising nearly all the land on which the village was later settled. He was joined in 1825 by two Merkley brothers who decided to build a sawmill near the Hummel home. Over the years the village has had a few names. Originally Armstrong Mills after Thomas Armstrong, and later Winchester, but due to the fact that there was a North Winchester, South Winchester, Winchester Springs and West Winchester the local folk in 1875 decided to change the name of the village to Chesterville, honouring Chester Casselman, the first telegraph operator.
Today the town is also home to the Chesterville Dam, an important water control structure on the South Nation River, built more recently in 1978.