The London Street Footbridge West Neighbourhood
This Heritage Home and Tree Tour was the second walk I developed as part of the Shifting Gears program, run by Peterborough Green-Up. The purpose of the walks was to connect neighbours, learn cultural heritage stories, and discover natural heritage features throughout the neighbourhood. The London Street footbridge west neighbourhood, knowns as the Dickson Mills neighbourhood, is filled with an abundance of historically significant homes, heritage features, and a strong connection to the river.
I created an accompanying map of the walking route and have posted the link to it below. If you’re interested in the transcript or would like a guided tour of this neighbourhood, please drop us a line or email. Happy walking!
Excerpt of Walking Notes
Stop #1 — London Street Footbridge West bank, Historical Society Plaque.
Perhaps the oldest and most historically significant neighbourhood in Peterborough is that of Dickson Mills; the London Street footbridge West neighbourhood. This site along the river is the location of the head of the old raceway and lumber mill owned by Samuel Dickson, an industrialist who emigrated to Peterborough from Ireland in 1830. The residential neighbourhood on the west side of the Otonabee River developed to house workers and merchants working in the adjacent mill reserve operations, which included the Dickson lumber mill, a grist mill, a woolen mill and other industrial operations.
View Shifting Gears Walk — Dickson Mills Neighbourhood in a larger map
