Town of Shelburne approves names for three alleyways 

Written By PAULA BROWN

LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER

Three nameless alleyways in the Town of Shelburne have officially received names. 

During a meeting on Monday (March 10), Shelburne Town Council received a memo from the Arts, Culture and Heritage Committee regarding the naming of the three municipal laneways, marking the conclusion of the committee's initiative. 

“This is a continuation to finish the naming [of] the back lanes. We're in the final stretch of the last three and were able to come up with a couple of names,” said Coun. Lindsay Wegener, vice chair of the committee. 

The committee submitted the proposed names – Townsend Lane, Sawyers Feed Mill Lane and Rose Lane – for approval from Town Council. 

The laneway proposed to be called “Townsend Lane” is named after Harold and Lucy Townsend, who were married in Shelburne and were both World War II Veterans. They were founding executive members of the Dufferin County Historical Society and were also involved with the local Fall Fair and Shelburne Legion. Harold also served on Shelburne Town Council from 1959 to 1961. The Townsends opened a John Deere Farm Equipment Dealer at 151 Victoria St. in 1942 and operated the shop for 36 years. 

Townsend Lane runs parallel to the south side of Main St. E. from Victoria St. to the east side of Dufferin St. 

“I've been a friend of the Townsend family for many years,” said Karen Lang, who made the request for the plaque and laneway naming. “They have quite a history within Shelburne.” 

The proposed laneway, “Sawyers Feed Mill Lane”, runs parallel to Wellington St. and Joseph St., and comes off of Brickyard Lane. 

The recommended name “Sawyers Feed Mill Lane” comes from the laneway's proximity to the Sawyers Feed Mill, which operated on Adeline Street. The Feed Mill was a family-run business that started in 1957 and had three generations involved while it operated. Jim Sawyer operated the mill from the early 1970s onward. 

The final alley proposed is “Rose Lane,” named after local resident and historian John Rose. 

John Rose researched and wrote “The History of Shelburne” which was published in 1974. 

The 559-page book compiles “thousands upon thousands of hours digging and delving, investigating, checking, classifying and correlating it all for compilation into readable form so that generations yet unborn may know something of our part of the country in its pioneer times” reads John Rose's “A Foreword” in “The History of Shelburne.”

The laneway runs north and south, between Marie St. and Fourth Ave. 

Shelburne Town Council unanimously approved the proposed names of the three remaining unnamed alleyways. 

Plaques will be placed in each of the laneways sharing more information about the individuals behind the names. The Town of Shelburne will also be installing street signs.