Rick Mckee:   Delivered blocks of ice from the ice house to each of the cabins every Sat. Morning.

Ruth Thompson: This is before the fire in #4 cottage which was rebuilt bigger and is still there to-day

Ken Bonter:  Lived here all my life

1972 Keith McCoy Park Manager

BOOSTER PARK

Twp votes to contract out 

Marmora Herald March 27, 1991

When it comes to Booster Park, Marmora and Lake Township want two things: continued ownership but no more hassle. With these goals in mind, the township voted to contract out management of the trailer park to a private company, which would take care of the day-to-day business of the park and pay rent to the township and Marmora village. The township's motion to explore a leasing arrangement included a condition that the private manager would have to abide by the rule and by-laws' set out by the municipalities.

As owner-managers of the park, the two municipalities have had to deal with the problems and gripes associated with maintaining the operation, and the township has said it wants no more of this.

"It's been a nightmare since I came on council," said Councillor Clarence O'Connor, who represents the council on the Booster Park Committee with reps from the township and the village. He made his report to council at their last meeting on Thursday.

Township Reeve Graham Bell agrees. "This office was plagued to death with (the manager) coming in day after day with problems," Bell said. "We have to pursue the idea of leasing it out to a private operator. "

The Booster Park saga began in 1932 when the land was donated by a private owner to the municipalities, for public use. Since that time, the use of the land has changed from that of a "passive" park to a trailer park with seasonal residents. With residents,  inevitably come problems for the owners, and it's this situation that the township is trying to remove themselves.

Marmora Reeve Andre Philpot agrees that the relationship between the park and the municipalities should be examined, but he cautions against making a decision before the situation is examined closely. "We naturally have to look, at the possibilities," he said.  "It is time to review what's going on up there." 

Township councillor Gerald Fox says everybody would be better off if the park returned to its original state.

Lithographic Mines on the Bonter shore

Marmora Township is known to have several different kinds of rock and mineral hidden among the huge deposits of rock, but one mine site of lithographic stone caused some excitement in American mining circles in the late 1890's because of its rarity. Located on land owned by four generations of the Bonter Family, the site is quite close to the south shore of Crowe Lake, and within about 30 feet of Mrs. Ruth Bonter's back door on Booster Park Road.

The following information was obtained from the Department of Northern Development and Mining office in Tweed:

"Limestone may be used as lithographic stone if it is sufficiently grained and uniform in texture. It must be porous enough to absorb ink and soft enough to engrave. In recent years, the use of lithographic stone has fallen off because the photographic processes on zinc, copper or steel are cheaper and more rapid. In the past, some six or seven quarries were operated in Hastings County for lithographic stone. The largest is at Crowe Lake on Lot 8, Conc. 3, Marmora Township. It was operated by the American Lithographic and Asbestos Company, and had saws, rubbing beds, and planers. The mine operated from 1895-1898.

The 1912 report by Parks Canada continues:

On property owned by William and Robert Bonter, the excavation is roughly 150 by 100 feet with a depth of20 feet. While operating the quarry, the company installed a110-horsepower engine, three gang saws, one rubbing bed and one planer. Although a channeling machine was in operation for a short time, the exploitation was largely affected by the dynamite. According to local observers and, in all probability, in accordance with the facts, the final closing of the mine was due to the injudicious use of this shattering explosive. The lithographic stone was sawn into slabs and smoothed. The leather-lug was sawn. Over 100 such slabs, some of them 3x6 feet, are still on the premises but they are broken and destroyed by frost. As a building material, it possesses the same advantages as the stone from the Pearce's quarry near Marmora, The second quarry was opened along the Crowe River and was used in the construction of several buildings in Marmora Village, one of which was the Roman Catholic Church built in 1904. Located on Lot 7, Cone. 4, of Marmora Township, on the west side of Crowe River and north of Highway 7, the Pearce quarry produced building stone periodically from the early 1800's to early 1900's. It is said that the lithographic stone obtained from these quarries was fairly satisfactory. Since the quarries were opened, however, the use of lithographic stone has been largely dispensed with, except for certain types of work for which only stone of the highest quality is used. The quarries have not been worked for many years.
Marmora Herald May 30 1995

Fill in the Quarry and Make a Backyard

An abandoned quarry owned by Ruth Bonter and located off Booster Park Road has been given a high priority status (because of its proximity to "high density recreational and residential uses") as a candidate site for rehabilitation by the
Tweed District Ministry of Natural Resources under the Aggregate Resources Act.
According to a letter from MNR received by the Township of Marmora and Lake, "Under the Aggregate Resources Act, a fund was created forthe rehabilitation of abandoned pits and quarries which have not been licensed under the former Pits
and Quarries Control Act. These funds are collected through the current annual license fee structure where 5 cents for each tonne of aggregate produced from licensed sources is set aside to rehabilitate abandoned extractive sites."
The Bonter Quarry, measuring 110 by 160 feet, is currently filled with water which according to township CAO Frank Mills is having an effect on neighboring Crowe Lake and the water table. The proposal, which has yet to be formally approved by the provincial A.P.& Q. R. C, would see the pit filled, covered with topsoil and seeded for use as a residential backyard. The entire cost of the approximately $60,000 rehabilitation would be borne by MNR but would create work locally. An estimated 450 loads of rock fill, 37 loads of top dressing and 80
hours of dozer time would be required.   (Written by Ruby McCoy)

Gallagher,A.Campion,M.Gallagher McCormack, A.Crawford, H.Bonter, M. Finnegan'30s

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