THE HERSCHEL TOWER 1967

With notes from John Robinson, Northwood Review, July 1999

The year of 1967 was a special national anniversary which celebrated 100 years of Canadian Confederation. Herschel Township applied for and received a federal government grant in early spring of ’67 for its proposed Centennial Tower project. It was constructed two miles south of Maynooth on the west side if highway 62 N, on Barry Hill which, according to Robinson, was better known as the top of Silva’s Hill, on a two-acre lot. I have always known this as Selby Hill. It was a higher altitude. It wasn’t unusual to have it raining at the bottom of Selby Hill and snowing at the top.

According to Robinson the tower was built by: Guy Scott, Heck Scott, John Scott, Archie Scott, Alex Scott, Roland Edmond and Henry Chamberlain. Sherwood Vardy, a crane operator for Carl Bierworth, would lift heavy timbers and planking for the building. Ronald Scott was the project designer and head carpenter. Wilmount Scott (buckshot) was the grader operator. Bruce Fransky operated the front-end loader and drove truck. Clayton Musclow was the project manager. Permanent Township employees also helped build the 60 foot wooden tower on its concrete base.

At the opening-day ceremony May 24, 1967 Jean Musclow took the accompanying tower photo.

The tower afforded a scenic view of North Herschel. A guest book to help commemorate the occasion apparently has gone missing.

Circa 1973 – 75 I took my Junior Rangers to this site as part of their educational exposure to the area which proved provident because in 1977, just one decade after the tower was built, it was dismantled on September 18 due to “insurance problems” by Guy Scott, Alex Scott and Ronald Scott. At this time Frank G. Peever was Reeve. Councillors were: Dorothy Summers, Ken Fiss, Joe Foster, and Jack Hughes.

2024-03-07

                                              PUTTING IT ALL INTO PERSPECTIVE

  It wasn’t many years ago that the normal measure for pollution was given in parts per million. However, analyses methods have become more sophisticated. Now parts per billion and per trillion are common and parts per quadrillion are sometimes quoted. To put this in perspective following are these measures compared to time:

• one part per million is equivalent to one second in 11.5 days.
• One part per billion is equivalent to one second in 32 years.
• One part per trillion is equivalent to one second in 32,000 years.
• One part per quadrillion is equivalent to one second in 32 million years.
• FYI