The Meaford Water Works was built in 1895 for a total cost of $20,930 and included a pump house (pictured above), filtering basin, brick and timber tanks, four miles of water mains and 33 hydrants. A brick chimney was added a few years later for greater efficiency (likely dating this photo circa 1898-99). William Rose was the first engineer in charge of the water works, but it is not clear whether he is the man pictured in the photo.
In the late 1930s the building was turned into Public Utilities offices. During the 1940s the chimney was removed, the Public Utilities department relocated and the building was left empty until 1961, when the town received a sizable donation of historical memorabilia and the building became home to the Meaford Museum. Since that time the building has seen several renovations, additions and improvements and the Meaford Museum continues to operate out of the expanded former pump house.
There are some reports that the museum is haunted. Several people have reported seeing a young woman in a blue-and-white Victorian dress, hearing footsteps in the attic and feeling “cold spots,” all centred around a century-old rope bed, an antique cradle and a child’s doll that were part of an upstairs exhibit. One theory holds that the spirit is that of a woman who was once a servant to the family who originally owned the items, and may have died in the bed; another that she was a young mother who died in childbirth – a common enough occurrence in the 1800s. The museum’s previous curator, Pam Woolner, heard a host of stories about the woman walking around upstairs during her 20 years with the museum. “It used to sound like someone with boots on,” Woolner has said. “She got a big kick out of walking around, because I think she knew we could hear her footsteps downstairs.”
Others have reported tales relating to two male spirits – one an older, portly gentleman who was looking for a pipe inside an empty pipe case (the case is no longer at the museum); the other a shy, depressed young man in his mid- to late-20s who avoids contact with people.
The museum’s current curator, Jody Seeley, says, “As for the museum being haunted, I guess it depends on who you speak to. I personally don’t believe in it, but stories go that we have three ghosts here.” ❧
Sources: The Meaford Museum, The Shelburne Free Press, meafordhaven.ca/meafordhistory.
