The railway arrived in Lac du Bonnet in June 1901, bringing with it the entrepreneurial talents of John Duncan McArthur, who developed a sawmill located on land that became part of the Lac du Bonnet town site. The Canadian Pacific Railway connection with Winnipeg made the development of these industries possible and McArthur was able to connect the eastern Manitoba resources directly to his lumberyard in Winnipeg, located on Higgins Avenue near the CPR tracks. In 1902, McArthur opened a logging camp near Old Pinawa and set up his mill on the Winnipeg River just north of the present town site of Lac du Bonnet. He shipped the lumber, as well as cordwood, to Winnipeg. The mill was closed in 1918 but he continued to search “for a more suitable market for the small-sized woods available from eastern Manitoba’s forests”. By 1924, his pursuits resulted in the development of the Manitoba Pulp and Paper Company mill at Pine Falls, Manitoba.
Lac du Bonnet Sawmill Plaque (August 2010)
Source: Gordon GoldsboroughSite Coordinates (lat/long): N50.26187, W96.05382
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Inter-West Fuel and Peat Company (Lac du Bonnet)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Lac du Bonnet Brick Plant (Lac du Bonnet)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: John Duncan McArthur Commemorative Plaque (Lac du Bonnet)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Alex McIntosh Commemorative Plaque (Lac du Bonnet)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: William Walter Wardrop Commemorative Plaque (Lac du Bonnet)
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 31 January 2021
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